ancient ruins
Quiriguá
UNESCO Maya site just off Guatemala's Atlantic Highway, home to the tallest stelae ever carved by the Maya: 10-m sandstone giants standing in a banana-plantation clearing.
6 km · about 10 min drive
Izabal Department, Guatemala · North America
Los Amates is worth a stop: 25 minutes from La Playona, 60km from Río Dulce Gorge.
Los Amates is a town located in Izabal Department, Guatemala. With a population of 3,417, it is an important destination in North America.
On a road trip, Los Amates sits in Guatemala. It's in the America/Guatemala time zone. Below you'll find where to stay, things to do nearby, and everything you need to add Los Amates to your route.
Quiriguá (Spanish pronunciation: [kiɾiˈɣwa]) is an ancient Maya archaeological site in the department of Izabal in south-eastern Guatemala. It is a medium-sized site covering approximately 3 square kilometres (1.2 sq mi) along the lower Motagua River, with the ceremonial center about 1 km (0.6 mi) from the north bank.Read more
During the Maya Classic Period (AD 200–900), Quiriguá was situated at the juncture of several important trade routes. The site was occupied by 200, construction on the acropolis had begun by about 550, and an explosion of grander construction started in the 8th century. All construction had halted by about 850, except for a brief period of reoccupation in the Early Postclassic (c. 900 – c. 1200). Quiriguá shares its architectural and sculptural styles with the nearby Classic Period city of Copán, with whose history it is closely entwined.
Quiriguá's rapid expansion in the 8th century was tied to king K'ak' Tiliw Chan Yopaat's military victory over Copán in 738. When the greatest king of Copán, Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil or "18-Rabbit", was defeated, he was captured and then sacrificed in the Great Plaza at Quiriguá. Before this, Quiriguá had been a vassal state of Copán, but it maintained its independence afterwards. The ceremonial architecture at Quiriguá is quite modest, but the site's importance lies in its wealth of sculpture, including the tallest stele erected in the Mayan world. Because of its historical importance, the site of Quiriguá was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1981.
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Los Amates is located in Izabal Department, Guatemala, North America. The coordinates are 15.2564 latitude, -89.0972 longitude.
Los Amates has a population of approximately 3,417 people, making it a town in Guatemala.
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4 notable places within an hour's drive.
ancient ruins
UNESCO Maya site just off Guatemala's Atlantic Highway, home to the tallest stelae ever carved by the Maya: 10-m sandstone giants standing in a banana-plantation clearing.
6 km · about 10 min drive
castle
A compact 17th-century Spanish fort of turrets and drawbridges at the narrowest point where Lake Izabal meets the Río Dulce, built to stop Caribbean pirates: a chain was once strung across the water to the far bank.
44 km · about 50 min drive
ancient ruins
A major Maya city renowned for its remarkable series of portrait stelae, its elaborate Hieroglyphic Stairway containing the longest known Maya text, and richly decorated temples.
47 km · about 55 min drive
natural wonder
A jungle river running out of Lake Izabal to the Caribbean through a gorge of 100 m limestone walls hung with bromeliads, with hot springs at the water's edge. The highway bridge at Fronteras gives the classic overview.
60 km · about 70 min drive
Year-round
Tropical latitude: plan around the wet season rather than temperature.
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