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**This visit to Guatemala was pre-COVID in early February 2020**

I had such an amazing time at the yoga retreat in Bali that I wanted to take a similar trip but somewhere closer to home and more affordable. The more I researched, the more I was starting to see that somewhere in Central America was the answer. There are plenty of yoga retreats in Costa Rica but I’ve already been there so I started looking into Guatemala and found the perfect yoga retreat at Villa Sumaya.

Villa Sumaya is located on Lake Atitlan, which is the most majestic location surrounded by three massive volcanoes. Lake Atitlan is massive and is the deepest lake in Central America. It’s also considered to be the center of the universe by the Mayans.

There are numerous yoga packages you can choose from at Villa Sumaya and I chose to do the personal yoga retreat for 4 days. The Rest & Rejuvenation Retreat included:

• Daily vegetarian breakfast, lunch, and dinner (starting with dinner on arrival day, ending with breakfast on departure day)

• 24-hour self-service, unlimited organic teas, local organic coffee, purified water

• 1 personalized one-hour Harmony Spa session

• 2 private yoga/meditation sessions

Prices vary depending on which room you decide to stay in and I chose to stay in Bungalow 10. If you are staying alone, the cost is $695. If you are sharing with someone, the cost is $560 each. My friend decided to join me on this retreat, so it was $560 for each of us. It’s a great price for all you get at this retreat.

GETTING HERE

The expensive part was the transportation which cost $145 for each of us for a private shuttle. If you are traveling alone, it would cost $290. It takes anywhere from 3-4 hours to get to Panajachel (Lake Atitlan’s main dock) from Guatemala City airport depending on traffic. 

You could opt to travel to the villa yourself via chicken bus or other means of transportation, but it’s strongly advised not to. Chicken buses can get confusing (and crowded) and will take longer to get to your destination. You also have to consider getting to Panajachel at the right time. 

The only way to get to many of the towns and resorts at Lake Atitlan is via boat. Public boats usually stop running around 6pm, which means that if you miss the last boat from Panajachel, you will have to wait until the next day to catch a boat in the morning. 

Since we went with a private shuttle, getting to Villa Sumaya was a breeze. Our driver picked us up at the airport, drove us in a large, air-conditioned minivan, and made sure we got on the right boat once we arrived in Panajachel. It was 7pm by the time we arrived at the dock and usually the boats stop running by this time, but since we had a private boat arranged by Villa Sumaya, we were able to reach our destination.

THE ROOM

There are several rooms and suites you can choose from and they are all very different from one another. I chose to stay in Bungalow 10 at the very top of the hill for several reasons: 

• Private balcony with hammock

• Grand views of the volcano

• Treehouse-like feel with an actual tree trunk coming through the bathroom

The downside to staying in a bungalow so high up the hill was climbing the stairs. We had to climb up 107 steps every day at least three times a day, so you will definitely be getting your exercise in. For the most part it was fine, but if you have any mobility issues, this is not the bungalow for you.

Another thing you have to consider are the bugs. Since the tree was actually coming through into the bathroom, it attracted a lot of ants and we would always see a lot of them around the sink.

The room itself was lovely. There is a queen-size bed in the middle of the room and a nicely decorated lounge area to the left. To the right was a walk-in closet with plenty of space for two people. They provided a shelf, plenty of hangers and an extra blanket. There was also a security box up top where you can lock it with a key.

The bathroom was spacious and the views looking out to the lake was stunning. They provided a large bottle of shampoo and conditioner, along with a bar of soap. There was also two large towels, two medium-size towels and two hand towels. They did not provide a hairdryer, so if that’s an essential for you, make sure to bring your own.

The best part, of course, was the balcony. We used the balcony often to take in the views and sip some wine. We also loved the hammock and would relax in it as much as we could. I even laid in the hammock while brushing my teeth sometimes.

THE FOOD

The food they serve at Villa Sumaya is vegetarian based, but if you want to include meat in your meals, you can request for chicken or fish at an extra cost. I’m not vegetarian so I thought I would need to order chicken some nights, but I never did because the meals they provided were excellent.

I really enjoyed all their vegetarian meals and they did a great job preparing something new and exciting every day. I particularly enjoyed the clear noodles and beans they served one night that basically tasted like lasagna.

THE SERVICE

The entire staff here was extremely friendly and helpful. I had a ton of questions as soon as I got there and both of the receptionists, Olga and Jorge (who spoke perfect English), were very patient with me and made sure I got everything I needed.

We wanted to explore one of the towns on Lake Atitlan, but also wanted a guide to take us around since we wanted to learn a little more about the history of the area. It was actually more difficult than I thought because the internet wasn’t working well for me and most of the guides were already booked or were not operating on the days we wanted to go.

After hours of calling around, they finally found a guide for us with Voltan Adventures and we could not have been happier. The guided tour was more than we expected and we really appreciated how hard they worked to organize this whole thing for us. They were truly wonderful!

AMENITIES

The property is gorgeous and there is so much you can do. Here are some activities and amenities we enjoyed:

• Pool - the pool is rather small, but there weren’t very many people using it at the time we were there. We mostly lounged in the comfy chairs and read some books and relaxed.

• Lounge areas - there are multiple lounge areas on the property and every single location was gorgeous. There are plenty of lounge areas for everyone to enjoy.

• 24-hour coffee and tea - the coffee wasn’t the best in our opinion (especially since we had the best coffee at San Juan La Laguna), but they had a large selection of delicious teas.

• Books - there were so many books scattered throughout the property and my friend definitely took advantage of borrowing some books and reading them while we lounged.

• Gift shop - you can buy souvenirs, clothes, textiles, and more at this cute gift shop. The prices were pretty reasonable compared to the other towns and the airport.

• Boardwalk - we used the boardwalk to catch the sunrises, sunsets, flagging down a boat, and jumping in the lake.

• Ceremonies - there are a variety of ceremonies Villa Sumaya offers like the Sweat Ceremony we wanted to try, but unfortunately, there was a fire in the sweat lodge a couple days before we got there.

• Spa - their menu of services includes a Swedish Massage, Thai Massage, Reiki, Acupuncture, Facial Treatments, and more. The staff will make sure to find the right masseuse to fit your needs.

• Apothecary - a little shop of various natural medicines.

• Bar - the bar is typically open during meal times at lunch and dinner. I can’t remember if they served cocktails, but we did have some excellent wine. They gave you a generous pour of wine for $6.

• Wi-Fi - WiFi is available for $3 per day, but it did not work very well in our room since we were pretty far from the lounge area where the signal was strongest.

YOGA SESSIONS

As I mentioned, our retreat package came with two private sessions of yoga.

We wanted to have our yoga session first thing in the morning so that the rest of our day would be free and Gemma agreed to come to the villa between 7:30am and 8am.

Gemma is an excellent yoga teacher and did an awesome job leading our yoga sessions; especially since she had the challenge of teaching a novice like me and an advanced yogi like my friend. We both learned so much from her techniques.

At the end of our yoga session, she gave us a worry doll, which are small hand-made dolls from Guatemala. Worry dolls are made to help your sorrows, fears, and worries go away. You tell them your worries, hide them under your pillow at night and in the morning, your worries are said to go away. This gift was so special to us.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Overall, I had a wonderful time at Villa Sumaya. I especially appreciated all my questions being answered via email before my arrival. The meals were superb and the staff was excellent. Olga and Jorge did a fantastic job organizing all of our appointments and tours.

If you want a special experience at one of the most beautiful places in the world, Villa Sumaya is for you.