Experience Chichicastenango Market, the Largest Indigenous Market in Central America

Chichicastenango Market was one of the most incredible market experiences we have ever had. Known for being the largest indigenous market in Central America, it will have you immersed in their culture. Your experience here will be like no other market you have been to.

How to Explore Chichicastenango Market

Chichicastenango, also known as Santo Tomás Chichicastenango, sits in the mountains just north of Guatemala City. With a population of over 70,000 people, this town can be a stop on your vacation, but most make it a day trip. The market itself is only held on Thursdays and Sundays. Since we were staying on Lake Atitlan, we scheduled a private tour of the market. We were picked up by a private shuttle at 8:00 am in Panajachel and we were back by 4:00 pm. Our time at the market and the town itself was about 4 hours.

There are a few other places to see when you are Chchicastenango. You can explore on your own or any tour will also take you to any of the ones we went to below.

Chichicastenango Market

You can get an early start to the day. Some vendors arrive as early at 5:30am! Don’t worry though, the most popular time to be there is between 9am and 3pm. This market has everything that you could need. The market offers stalls upon stalls of traditional clothes, fabrics, more modern ware, food stalls, live animals, produce and so much more. Our favorite part was the produce area, which is set up in a gymnasium. The prices were unbelievable and the quality, almost unmatched to any market we have been. Just watching the fresh tortillas being made was so simple, yet so, oddly satisfying.

You might be worried that this is a tourist trap, but it is far from it. More locals, by far, than tourists were in attendance. Guatemala is made of of Departments and you will see they come from around the country to attend or to sell. You can tell where the women are from by the colors of their traditional clothes. Darker by Lake Atitlan and brighter as you get close to the Guatemala City and Chichicastenango. They don’t dress up for show, this is their way of life and they do it with or without the tourists. That is why it is one of the best markets you can explore.

There are many food stalls that you can grab a bite to eat at, but bring your appetite because you may eat more than you anticipated. Fried chicken, fresh corn tortillas (yes plain) and sliced mango were some of the best things to find while explore the hundreds of stalls. The area also has a few restaurants surrounding the market and there are a few within the market with local dishes and fun atmospheres. We love to people watch, so finding a place to sit with a good view of the market was the best. We suggest Casa San Juan Restaurant. Sit outside, have an amazing local dish and relax while watching everything happening around you.

We walked a much of the market as we could and then our guide took us to a few other spots in town. Make sure to make time for these spots to learn more about the culture, history and people of Guatemala.

Churches of Chichicastenango

Inglesia de Santo Tomas is the main church in the town. Built as a Roman Catholic church atop a traditional Mayan temple to wipe out the Mayan religions. The story is, when the Spanish came and built the church to convert the local people, they hired the locals to build it. Unbeknownst to them the locals built it to still honor their religion. Instead of wiping out the religion, it ended up blending the two. To this day they still hold traditional Mayan ceremonies and burn incense.

Directly across from Inglesia de Santo Tomas is another church that is a little less elaborate. Capilla del Calvario is small. Another church built atop a Mayan temple, but with just as many Mayan symbols for their religion to not be lost.

Chichicastenango Cemetery

Known to be the most colorful cemetery in all of Guatemala, it has about 3,000 gravesites. Most are in the Mayan tradition but you will see some other religion symbols make their appearance. Can you see it in the second picture? You can walk amongst the gravesites and see the different options that families have. From a single grave to an ornate building for families. There is even a location to hold Mayan ceremonies.

Ceremonial Site Plaza Baktun

This area is a short walk from the graveyard. A traditional Mayan ceremony site, it is best to stay on the outer perimeter if you are not partaking in a ceremony. Beautiful statues and small platforms for sacrifices. They still do animal sacrifices, which mostly consist of a beautiful rooster. Pictures are okay and to watch the ceremonies, but be respectful. No loud music, or talking on your cell phones. They take this very seriously and as such, should be respected.

After this we headed back to the market to get a snack and drink for the ride home. If you can make sure to purchase some of the produce to take back.

Tips for Visiting Chichicastenango Market

Bring cash. Almost all the vendors only take cash in their local currency.

Wear good walking shoes. The town is very hilly and the market huge. You will be on your feet a lot.

When you get dropped off, make sure to find a point of interest that you will remember. The market is a bit of a labyrinth and if you make it to the center, you may forget which way you came from or which way is out. If you have signal, pin it on your maps app.

Final Words

An experience that everyone should have. This is a must do if you are in Guatemala. It is worth a day trip from wherever you are staying. You will not see anything like this anywhere in the world.

I mentioned this in my previous post, but it was pretty incredible being in a place where the common language was not English. Instead, it was Spanish.

We hope you get to experience this magical country!

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