We'll start the day by having breakfast and delicious Guatemalan coffee together. After we've finished up, our Adventure Guide will take the group on a walking tour through the vibrant, cobblestone streets of Antigua. This town is rich with history and culture. Diego, our guide, is a Guatemalan local and a very knowledgable person. He'll be able to answer any questions you may have along the way. To finish the tour we'll go to a viewpoint that looks over the city and is a great place to take photos. 

After that the day is yours! You'll have the rest of the day to get some lunch at a local spot and choose some activities to fill your time.

A few possibilities for the day:

- Learn how to make chocolate from scratch

- Visit a world famous Jade museum

- Rent ATVs and explore the surrounding hills

 - Find a quiet cafe to read a book or chill

- Hunt for souvenirs at the colorful textile markets

In the evening we'll get back together for one of our favorite activities of the trip, a group cooking class. We'll hop in a caravan of tuk-tuks and head to a surrounding town. You'll have the opportunity to learn how to make a traditional Guatemalan meal with all of your fellow travelers while sipping on beverages and dancing to reggaeton.

Meals Included:

- Breakfast

- Cooking class dinner

After breakfast, you'll have the first half of the day to do any final exploring you'd like to do in Antigua, and grab lunch before our road trip to San Jacinto.

San Jacinto is a community that Vivid Roots has been working with for the past three years. We will stay in a hotel in San Jacinto with a pool to enjoy after hard, sweaty work days. You'll meet our partner Jessica. She is one of the best humans we've ever had the pleasure of meeting, she works for the municipality and organizes the service project that will fill our time for the next three days.

Meals Included:

- Breakfast

- Dinner at hotel in San Jacinto

This is the first of three days that we'll be working alongside the local community to increase access to clean water, education, and health services. Depending on the needs and requests from community leaders, we may be working in a school or possibly a health center in a surrounding mountain village. We typically work from 8 am to 5 pm with a break to get out of the sun and enjoy some local cuisine.  Once we get to a good stopping point for the day, we'll head back to town to clean up, relax, or join a pick up soccer game in the local square. We'll have dinner at the hotel.

Meals Included:

- Breakfast

- Lunch

- Dinner

This is the second of three days that we'll be working alongside the community to increase access to clean water, education, and health services.  We'll pick up where we left off the previous day, and work hard to get as much done as we can. We'll follow the same schedule as the first day of service

Meals Included:

- Breakfast

- Lunch

- Dinner

Once we finish up the last of our service project, we'll hop back into the trucks to go check in on some past projects we've done, and visit sites of future projects., Once we've said our goodbyes to Jessica and all the locals, we'll head to one last spot (a surprise) with a great view. After we've cleaned up and packed, we'll hop in the van and head out of town.

For those taking part in the 7-day trip: You will leave San Jacinto and head back to Guatemala City where you'll stay for the night before heading home on day 7.

For those taking part in the 10-day trip: You will leave San Jacinto and head to Rio Dulce, a beautiful town whose name comes from the river that it sits on, the Rio Dulce (Sweet River). We'll stay at Hotel Backpackers, a very special place for us. Our stay helps raise money for a school called Casa Guatemala which provides an education for students who otherwise wouldn't have the opportunity.

Meals Included:

- Breakfast

- Lunch

For those taking part in the 7-day trip: Breakfast is included with your stay at the hotel. If your flight out is very early in the morning, you may have to skip breakfast to get to the airport on time. We'll make sure to help you arrange a ride for the appropriate time to get to the airport.

Meals Included:

- Hotel Breakfast

For those taking part in the 10-day trip: Early risers will have an opportunity to take an hour ride to Finca Paraiso, a geothermally heated waterfall. If you sleep in, or the rain prevents us from going, we'll start the morning by exploring the river by boat. Our ride through the mangroves will lead us to a guided hike through the jungle to a cave with a local Mayan . After that we'll get checked into our home for the next two nights, Finca Tatin. Finca Tatin is a riverside bungalow style hotel with opportunities to relax and swim off the dock, kayak, sauna, or simply chill and absorb the sounds of nature from a hammock.

Meals Included:

- Breakfast

- Dinner

After waking up with some tasty homemade breakfast in the jungle, you'll have the opportunity to choose your activities for the day. Some options are:

- Zip-line Tour

- kayaking

- Explore Livingston, 

-  island hop the Belize Cayes (This video has some great footage of the islands)

All of these activities will be arranged for you based on individual interest and the weather.  

***The costs associated with these activities are not included, but are affordable and well worth the experience!

Meals Included:

- Breakfast at Finca Tatin

- Dinner at Finca Tatin

We'll wake up, have breakfast and say our goodbyes to Finca Tatin. Then we'll load up the boat and head up river toward Rio Dulce. On our way back, we'll stop at Casa Guatemala. 

Casa Guatemala is a registered NGO and receives no government funding. We rely on funds from individuals and groups around the world to provide care for up to 300 children at our village and in the larger community. These children have been wards of the State, but the majority come from families from the surrounding Mayan villages who live in cases of extreme poverty who, without Casa Guatemala, would have no other access to education.

 We'll have a look around the property, learn more about their program and do an activity with some of the students. 

After that we're back on the bus and headed back to Guatemala City where we'll stay for the night.

Meals Included:

- Breakfast at Finca Tatin

- Lunch on the road

- Dinner