Hiking Acatenango and Fuego Volcanoes: This Two-Day Hike Is Challenging but Rewarding

Cecilia Markley
6 days ago
9 min read

Guatemala has the most volcanoes of any Central American country. Acatenango and Fuego are two of its most famous. Located just outside the southern Guatemalan colonial city of Antigua, the two volcanoes are popular for hiking. Acatenango is the most-hiked in Guatemala, typically split up into two days, with the hike over to Fuego often added on as part of the experience.

I hiked the two volcanoes in October, and it was one of the best experiences of my life. Completing the hike was so rewarding, and seeing Fuego erupt every few minutes from so close was like nothing I had ever seen. I recommend everyone who goes to Guatemala take the time to hike Acatenango and Fuego.

What to Know Before You Begin

Before you begin this two-day adventure, you will need to prepare. This means ensuring you have the right supplies and knowledge before setting out on the hike. Let’s start with what you need to know. First, it is not absolutely necessary to spend the night on the volcano. You can go up and back in a single day. However, this would be approximately a ten-hour, very strenuous hike, if you do not also go to Fuego. Not only is it very difficult to do in a day, but you are missing what is, in my opinion, the best part: seeing Fuego erupt at night. I wholeheartedly recommend you spend the night camping on Acatenango to get the best experience.

If you do it in two days, the hike will be broken up into two, three, or even four parts, depending on how much you choose to do. The first part is the hike up to base camp, followed by an optional hike to Fuego and back. Then you will sleep at base camp for the night. Before sunrise the next day, you can choose to hike to the summit of Acatenango and back. Finally, end your journey by descending back down the volcano.

Next up, let’s look at tours. While a tour is not required to hike Acatenango, I highly recommend one for several reasons if you plan to stay overnight. First, this means you do not have to bring your own camping supplies or meals. Every tour company I looked into had a base camp with tents and sleeping bags set up and provided lunch and dinner the first day and breakfast the second day. We had to carry our food with us in our bags, but it was provided for us, included in the cost of the tour, and the guides cooked it at base camp for us.

With most tours, a coat, gloves and hat are also provided, included in the cost. You will carry these yourself, but for me as a backpacker, this is a huge plus, as it meant not having to pack these in my 40-liter backpack in which I had to fit three months’ worth of clothes and supplies.

Another reason to go with a tour guide is that guides know the volcanoes well, as most of them do the hike once a week or more. They can answer any questions you have, assist you when needed, and take you on the best and safest routes. If you choose to go to Fuego, a guide is even more strongly recommended as the journey to Fuego and back can be dangerous. It is done in the dark and is slippery and steep.

The total cost if you choose to go with a tour will vary but should come to around $100. My tour was $53 plus tip, with additional fees of $13 for the entrance to Acatenango park and $26 for the hike to Fuego, plus miscellaneous fees for gear and supplies.

Packing for the Hike

What do you need to pack yourself? I went with the recommendations from my tour company, and it worked well for me. I brought my 20-liter bag, in which I had to leave space for the food the guides gave us. In your bag you will need three liters of water, protein-filled snacks, sunscreen, whatever toiletries you want (keep in mind there is no plumbing at camp), toilet paper, medicine and first aid supplies, a bandana, cash for the entrance fee, hike to Fuego and some extra (I brought Q400, or around $52), and a change of clothes. I also recommend you bring a dry bag because you will likely encounter rain at some point during the hike.

Most tour companies give you the option to rent supplies from them. I did not have a headlamp, so I rented one from my tour company for Q50, or around $6.50. I brought my own hiking poles, but you could also rent them for Q50. I highly recommend hiking poles unless you are a very advanced hiker. You can even rent a backpack if you need.

The weather can be unpredictable and will change throughout the hike. At the bottom, it was hot and sunny, and as we went to sleep at base camp that night, it was nearly freezing (around 40ºF/4.4ºc). Bring layers and prepare for rain. I wore leggings, a sun hat, a tank top, one pair of warm socks and hiking shoes. At the midway point, I added hiking pants over my leggings and a fleece over my tank top. An hour later, I was in a rain poncho and covering my backpack as it began to pour down rain.

When we reached base camp, I had on the heavy coat, gloves and beanie the tour company provided us. That night as we slept in the tents, the outer clothes of myself and most of the others in my group were all soaked despite our best efforts to keep them dry. Luckily, I had brought two extra pairs of socks and an extra sweatshirt that I wore to prevent myself from freezing overnight.

The Morning of the Hike

The tour company picked us up from our hostel in a small bus at 8 a.m., and we got to meet the rest of our group on the bus. We stopped at the company’s office where we were given our warm clothes and gear and paid the Acatenango park entry fee and Fuego fee. Our guides introduced themselves. They only spoke Spanish, but you can find tours with English-speaking guides. We headed to La Soledad, the small village an hour away from Antigua at the base of Acatenango.

I remember the excitement as we pulled up to the base of the volcano. The sky was clear and the sun shone bright, so we could see plainly what laid in front of us. We exited the bus and were given hiking poles. At 10:30 a.m., we began.

A Difficult Ascent

The first part of the hike is up to base camp, which takes between four and six hours and is around 4.5 miles (7.2 kilometers).

The first two hours were straight uphill on steep terrain. The first half-mile or so was a dirt path surrounded by steep walls, then at some point we began walking through farmland on a much thinner path with beautiful vegetation around us. This part of the hike is very difficult. After just 20 minutes, I was out of breath and questioning if I could continue on, but luckily, our group of eight had a range of hiking experience, so I was not alone in taking frequent breaks.

Despite struggling in the beginning, I remember turning around at times to enjoy the view around us. It was warm and sunny for the first two hours of our ascent, and the skies were clear so we could enjoy the view of the surrounding mountains.

Soon the landscape switched to mud and the colorful flowers of the farmland turned to pine trees and dry brush as the air cooled. We still continued uphill, but the straight ascent transitioned into more switchbacks.

We stopped for lunch for 30 minutes around 1 p.m. then continued on. The final leg of the ascent is easier, as it flattens out a bit, but this is where we encountered rain and wind, and the temperature dropped significantly, requiring us to put on our heavy coats.

At this point I was a bit miserable. Even though the final hour is flatter, I was exhausted, cold and wet. When we heard the guide in front yell that base camp was moments away, a swell of relief rushed over me.

Reaching Base Camp

We reached base camp at 3:30 p.m. We were divided four to a tent and allowed to rest or snack, but most of the group, myself included, was more interested in enjoying the view of Fuego, one of the world’s most active volcanoes, as it shot out ash and lava every few minutes.

The guides said that for anyone interested in hiking to Fuego, we would leave soon. Our group, which had bonded on the strenuous hike to the top, talked, and we all decided to go.

We settled our things into our tents, hung our wet clothes up to dry, and enjoyed some down time with a spectacular view of the erupting volcano before we departed.

The Hike to Fuego and Back

You certainly don’t have to hike to Fuego to enjoy your experience. The main reason many people, ourselves included, choose to go, is because it gives you an extremely up-close view of the eruptions at night.

The hike to Fuego and back adds another three to six hours and 3.4 miles (5.5 kilometers) to your hike. Our group left base camp around 5 p.m.

I will warn you now, because our guides did not advise us at all before we opted to go to Fuego, that it is considered a dangerous hike. Not only is the hike done in the dark with only a headlamp, but you traverse thin, steep, unstable terrain the whole way there and back. There have previously been deaths on the hike, and one member of our group said she regretted doing it and wished she had been warned beforehand about the difficulty and dangers.

The first 30 minutes to Fuego were straight downhill on slippery gravel switchbacks as we descended Acatenango. It was about 20 minutes in when I developed a migraine. By the time the hike flattened out at the meeting point of the two volcanoes, my head was pounding, and my boyfriend was helping me walk. The group took a short break here, and I downed water and medicine before beginning the ascent straight uphill to the knife ridge viewpoint on Fuego.

Almost an hour later, around 6:30 p.m., I arrived in tears from the pain. I wanted to lay down and sleep right there, on the loose gravel with a 1,640-foot (500 meter) drop on either side. But my boyfriend tapped me on the shoulder and told me to look up. As I did, I couldn’t believe my eyes.

Just a few-hundred feet in front of me was the crater of Fuego. I watched in awe as every few minutes hot lava spewed out, the vivid orange and red contrasting with the dark night sky. The hike was worth it! It had all been worth it! This was the most incredible view I had ever seen in my life.

After viewing the eruptions for nearly an hour, we hiked back to base camp, arriving by 9 p.m. I devoured my dinner. I collapsed in my sleeping bag with a migraine and did my best to sleep, shivering from the cold, the sound of Fuego’s eruptions lulling me to sleep.

Sunrise and Hiking to the Summit

The guides awoke us at 3:45 a.m. for the most challenging part of the whole experience: the hike to the summit. We were warned this would be difficult: an hour and a half straight uphill without stopping.

We left at 4:00 a.m. One member of the group chose to stay behind. One member went but was suffering from altitude sickness. I chose to go, my migraine nearly gone.

About 15 minutes in, I began to fall behind the others. I had left the headlamp I rented behind and was using my phone as a flashlight, trying to balance it and my hiking poles while staying upright on the unimaginably steep and slippery climb. The second guide came and explained that if I didn’t pick up the pace, I would need to turn back. My boyfriend and I talked for a few minutes, and I made the difficult decision to return to base camp alone.

As disappointed as I was not to reach the summit, I still enjoyed a beautiful sunrise from base camp with the other hiker who chose to stay back. My boyfriend and the others reached the summit by 5:30 a.m. and returned to base camp by 6:30 a.m. He said it was the hardest thing he had ever done in his life.

Descending the Volcano

After breakfast, we packed up our gear and began our descent at 7:30 a.m., reaching the bottom by 9:30am. The descent is much easier on the lungs, but harder on the knees, and the views are just as beautiful as on the way up. I felt such a sense of accomplishment – combined with exhaustion – when I finished, and spent the afternoon sleeping in my hostel knowing I could be proud of what I had achieved.

While hiking Acatenango and Fuego was a challenge, it was well worth it for the nature I got to see, the sense of accomplishment I felt at the end, and best of all, the view of Fuego’s eruptions. If you ever find yourself in Guatemala, make your way to Antigua and climb these volcanoes yourself to enjoy the view from the top.