Acatenango Volcano Tour with Overnight from Antigua

Posted By : Jessica_F
The sky cleared up for us and it was a great trip. Food was provided and good gear provided for the range of weather conditions. The hike was vertical most of the way up with 2 stops to purchase snacks and drinks, and 2 check points where park fees are required. We were able to see the volcano which was a bonus. Apparently in rainy season that’s not common so I recommend doing this in the in season. Overall good, the group was great, though variable fitness levels.
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Posted On : 2024-05-15

Posted By : Donatellopri
The whole excursion is explained to you the day before, and all the gear required is provided by Ox Adventures, with safety as a top priority. On d-day, Ali (our guide) coordinated everything to ensure no one was left behind and that we all climbed as a group. Ali and the local guides were very professional, friendly, and flexible, adjusting to everyone’s abilities. Everything is reexplained during the hike, with different options available. You will not feel pressured to do all the hikes if you do not want to, and the view from basecamp is already 100x worth the effort of the climb. Thanks, Ali, for the guidance and the amazing memories! I want to do it again!
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Posted On : 2024-05-14

Posted By : cacgoldin
We enjoyed the rigorous elevation hike. It was difficult but we managed with guidance from Ali, our tour leader, local guides, porters, and inspiration from our fellow hikers. The highlight was the volcano which entertained us throughout our stay with loud explosions and glowing streams of lava. Trip was well organized. Food and camp was also very nice.
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Posted On : 2024-05-13

Posted By : madisony218
Epic adventure!!! Very steep and very dusty, but you’ll be in good hands. Worth every penny and there are plenty of scaling options if you find yourself sick. SO GREAT!
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Posted On : 2024-05-13

Posted By : Meghan_R
A very good experience! We would recommend going some time between Jan-March to get clearer views as it was quite cloudy when we went in May. A tough hike but doable! To make it easier we got walking sticks and a porter for our bag, which we would highly recommend! Also it is so dusty, so we bought buffs at the first stop - again, would definitely recommend. We did just fine in tennis shoes (but would recommend tall socks). On the first day you can pretty much take your time getting up. The guides were nice and helpful, but less patient going to the summit in the morning, which was the hardest part of the hike (plus it’s 4am and you were up all night watching the volcano). Some people got elevation sickness so be prepared with some medicine and definitely take the warm weather gear they let you borrow!
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Posted On : 2024-05-09

Posted By : Reeseguevarra
OX expedition makes sure you are prepared for this hike. Their expert team was personable, friendly and seemed to have fun. I would highly recommend this group to anyone wanting to hike Acatanego. Tip- get the porter both ways.
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Posted On : 2024-05-07

Posted By : Benjo816
This is run by the company Ox which is well organised, safe and has all the equipment you need. They provided us with coats, bags, gloves and ponchos in case of rain. The pace of the trek was spot on. Not too difficult, but didn't feel like we were hanging around. For some context, I'm 44 years old. We were in a group of around 25 of us, but it doesn't feel crowded. Everyone on the hike made it up and down with no issues. The hike itself is pretty tough, but doable and well worth it! At the top you stay in cabins which have a glass front facing the volcano. This turned out to be perfect as when the volcano erupted at 1.30am, we had a front view straight from waking up. Didn't have to miss anything by crawling out of the door or tent etc. If you do this hike, I hope you're lucky with the clouds. There's not much you can do about the clouds obscuring your view. We were lucky that the cloud moved during the night so we could see and hear the amazing Fuego eruptions. You can pay extra to walk over and back to Fuego. The people that did that said it was enjoyable and tough, but unfortunately they didn't see anything due to clouds. I stayed back at camp and enjoyed the volcano view by the fire. Tip: take loads of snacks! The food was tasty, but not a huge amount. Most of the country is gluten free, but for some reason they used pasta for the meals. I'm not gluten free, but some people had issues, so not sure why they don't provide gluten free food. I think the guy thought gluten free meant no meat as he just provided refried beans without eggs and without tuna and chicken :) In the morning at 4am you can climb to the summit. I began this climb, but turned back as I preferred to watch the volcano erupting from the camp. The people that climbed up missed the night time eruptions as by the time they got to the top the cloud was back. However, if you've already seen the eruptions, then the climb will be well worth it. I'm sad I missed out on climbing the summit, but happy with my choice of seeing the eruptions which is once in a lifetime. I'd like to thank all the porters and guides for their help! They were a very friendly bunch and made the trip enjoyable! We will never forget this experience!
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Posted On : 2024-04-27

Posted By : C1356GLandyt
Ive been twice now on the double whammy to fuego/acatenango. Once solo and this time around with my wife and a good friend. I highly recommend Ox. They are well organized and the tour guides (both times ive gone now) Miguel and Alonso are awesome humans. Im glad that they represent Antigua and Guatemala as a whole well (for some it may be their only experience in Guate). The hike is pretty difficult, I was a prior military member and my friend had mountaineered and lead people in the infantry and its certainly a challenging hike even by our standards. You can get by doing it with sneakers and jeans but no doubt you have to have some heart. Most average hikers wouldnt hack it with minimal gear. The porters do it with minimal gear daily and I had a member of our group do it in jeans and sneakers. But its substantially harder than it needs to be and the member with just the sneakers didnt go up Fuego which in my opinion is the hardest segment of the hike (they did however summit Acatenango). So it can be done but ill re emphasize it may be one of the harder things to do if done with just sneakers/minimal gear Sticks are highly recommended too. We had a couple do it without sticks, but they were from Switzerland and despite their modest appearance they seemed pretty experienced/fit with backpacking. This is why Ox (I think) is pretty well run. The pre hike brief may seem long and redundant but its pretty important for anyone doing it. Also I think its good to know, youre doing this hike with 20-25 other people, the human element is at play too. Even for the most introverted members of the group you do feed off of eachother. Alonso and Miguel do a really good job of managing that and are up front but friendly with the questions the group asls Overall this is my second time doing it. Ill probably be doing it again. Be prepared its a long day if you do all the hikes, easily an aggregate of about 12 hours moving all day and early wake up times. Ox provides all the food and their team of guys is proffessional and positive (seriously underrated). Miguel and Alonso both love their jobs, and it shows. Its refreshing to be around people like that and the guides along with the staff at Ox do a great job of preparing you. If I have 1 qualm its that prior to arriving it was hard to reach the front desk by phone. That being said their email times pretty responsive. Definitely recommend for any adventurous souls. Great time even although it was hard.
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Posted On : 2024-04-23

Posted By : jeremydO7042GQ
Ali, Rolando, Gilmer, and Pewis were amazing guides. We couldn’t have done it without their help and encouragement. When people say it is a hard hike… they mean it. Only 1/3 of our group ended up doing the sunrise portion to get to the top of Acatenango. Ox was great about making sure we had all the necessary equipment and clothing to borrow.
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Posted On : 2024-04-23

Posted By : W3470VZleahc
We did the double whammy—both Acatenango and Fuego, and would highly recommend them! Ali was a great guide, providing all the information and encouragement we needed to complete these strenuous hikes. He and the other local guides set a perfect pace to keep everyone in our group together and in good spirits. Ali is very knowledgeable about the history of the volcanoes, we learned a lot from him! We would highly recommend him and OX Expeditions! Our group was very lucky with good visibility and lots of activity from Fuego, truly a trip of a lifetime!
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Posted On : 2024-04-19