Semuc Champey

A yellow seventeenth-century arch across a cobbled street, built so cloistered nuns could cross without being seen, framing Agua volcano.

A hilltop cross above the town reached by steps, looking down the street grid to Agua volcano.

Tikal was one of the most powerful Maya cities, and its temple pyramids still rise above the rainforest canopy of the Petén. The site is large enough that walking between plazas takes real time, and the forest around it holds howler monkeys, toucans and coatis. Sunrise entry is sold separately and often means cloud rather than a clear view.

The tallest structure at Tikal at about 65 metres, climbed by a wooden stair to a platform above the canopy facing the other temples.

Atitlán fills a collapsed volcanic caldera at 1,560 metres, ringed by three volcanoes and a dozen villages, each with its own character and Maya language. Boats rather than roads are the main link between them: Panajachel for transport, San Marcos for retreats, San Juan for weaving cooperatives. The lake is deep and the afternoon wind is strong.

A ridge above San Juan climbed before dawn for a view across the lake to the volcanoes as the sun comes up.