Guatemala Guide
East to the Caribbean
The Río Dulce
An excellent reason to come to Lívingston is the spectacular trip up the Río Dulce, a roughly thirty-kilometre journey that eventually brings you to squalid settlement of Río Dulce Town. From Lívingston, the river passes through a system of gorges with sheer, 100-metre-high rock faces draped in tropical vegetation and cascading vines. Here and there you might see some white herons or flocks of squawking parakeets as you cruise upriver taking in the stunning tropical scenery.
Around 7km from Lívingston there are a couple of delightful river tributaries, on either side of the Río Dulce, both with eco-hotels. Boats travelling between Río Dulce and Lívingston will drop you off at either place. On the southern side, just up the Río Lámpara, 
Hotelito Perdido ( 
5725 1576, 
www.hotelitoperdido.com ; Price: $13–30) is a superb lodge owned by a welcoming English– Polish couple, set in a verdant tropical garden of water apple, lychee, cashew and banana trees. It's an intimate place with three split-level wooden cabañas, plus dorm beds (US$6) above the restaurant.
On the north bank is the Río Tatín, which most boatmen venture up into briefly, where the Finca Tatín ( 5902 0831, www.fincatatin.centroamerica.com ; Price: $13–30) offers rustic dorms (US$6 per bed) and private rooms, some with bathroom; all accommodation has mosquito nets. It's set in dense jungle and the rainforest habitat means that you will encounter plenty of bugs. However there's excellent, healthy food (communal dinner US$5.50), kayaks for hire, table tennis, walking trails and Spanish classes available. Q'eqchi' Maya guides also can be arranged to accompany you to local villages and caves, as well as Ak'Tenamit.
Travel several kilometres or so further upriver and you'll find a spot where warm sulphurous waters emerge from the base of a cliff – a good place for a dip. Just beyond, the gorge opens into a small lake, El Golfete, on whose northern shore is the Biotopo Chocón Machacas (daily 7am–4pm; US$3), a nature reserve designed to protect the habitat of the manatee, or sea cow, a threatened species that's seen around here from time to time.