After more than a week of wet and chilly Xela evenings and a tiring climb up Volcan Santa Maria the day before, we figured it was high time we visit the volcanic hot springs at Fuentes Georginas. We visited the main office in the city, and arranged a trip out to the hot springs for 115 Q (about $14 CAD) per person. This included round trip transportation, about 2 1/2 hours at the pools, and entrance fees.
We chose to go in the afternoon, after hearing how nice the pools are in the rain. Since it’s rainy season in Guatemala, there was about a 99% chance that it would rain that afternoon.
The ride up to Fuentes Georginas was rough and windy. We both crawled from the mini-van feeling a little ill, but the misty setting at 2400 m elevation made us quickly forget about our queasy stomachs.
We walked through the mists to pools, which were enveloped in steam.
The pools are fed by hot, sulfuric water from the Zunil volcano. The mountains rise up dramatically and I couldn’t help but feel we were in a very spiritual place. Until I saw the local guy across from me shaving with a disposable razor – that was more than a little gross.
There are three separate pools at Fuentes Georginas, though we spent 99.9% of our time in one of them. There is a kids’ pool, which is the coolest, and an insanely hot pool that I’m pretty sure would blister your skin if you spent more than 30 seconds in it. (I wouldn’t know, though, because we only got one foot in up to the ankle before we cried out in pain and gave up the attempt).
The pools are relaxing, beautiful, and incredible in the cool rain, though they do have a few dead bugs and some creepy guy’s beard hair floating around in them. Nonetheless, I would highly recommend a trip out here if you’re in the Xela area. Especially if you’re overdue for a shave.
