El Paredón is a sleepy fishing village on the Pacific Coast of Guatemala. Surfers regard it as one of the best surfing beaches in Central America. Naturalists visit the lagoons and mangrove swamps along the river and in the adjacent Sipacate-Naranjo National Park to see nesting sea turtles and more than 100 species of waterfowl who nest in the protected wetlands.

Understand

A dusty street in El Paradón

The village is gaining in popularity with surfers and backpackers, due to its black sand beaches and consistent waves. Infrastructure is limited, however. The town has one new paved road while the rest are dirt.

Get in

Shared shuttles to El Paredón can be booked from Guatemala City, Antigua Guatemala and Lake Atitlán. For far more cash, you can also book a taxi from pretty much anywhere.

By bus

If you're feeling adventurous, you can use the Chicken bus like the locals do. Use the Transpacifico Sur bus from Centra-Sur bus terminal in Villa Nueva (also called CENMA). It departs daily at 3:30pm from stop 39. A one-way ticket is Q 35 (about US$5), and the trip will take about 4 hours due to frequent stops along the way.

Get around

The town is small and easily traversed by walking since it's only a few blocks long. You'll want to hire a taxi for longer trips, perhaps to visit other nearby beaches. Lanchas (boats) are available for hire along the beach. This can be a good way to explore the lagoon and the mangrove swamps that line the river.

See

• Turtles From September to December, baby turtles are released on to the beach. Get up early and watch them crawl to the ocean.
• Watch the sunrise and the sunset You can see them both from the same place on the beach (but not at the same time, sadly).

Do

• Surfing Due to strong currents, the swimming isn't great at El Paredón, but the surfing is excellent. Signs along the beach warn visitors about the strong rip tides. The town charges a fee of Q300 if you have to get rescued.

Sleep

Hotel Paredon Surf House

Due to limited availability, it might be wise to book accommodation ahead of time during peak season (December–March). It is possible to book homestays such as AirBnb, although these fill up too.

• Driftwood Surfer Hostel Popular among the party crowd
• Mellow Hostel
• Hotel Paredon Surf House

Connect

Cell service is available but tends to be 3G with occasional dropped signals as you get away from beach towns. Most hotels and hostels have internet, though their WiFi is unreliable.

Go next

• Puerto San José
• Monterrico
• Escuintla