Travel Risk Atlas

Guatemala

Central America · Capital Guatemala City

Level 3 United States Reconsider Travel FCDO United Kingdom Against essential-only travel to parts Yellow Netherlands Yellow — pay attention Level 2 Canada Exercise a high degree of caution AA Germany No warning in force

Each opens that government's own advisory for Guatemala — the authoritative version, updated far faster than this page.

51.9 Moderate risk
Atlas Risk Score · 172nd safest of 220
Temple of Kukulkan
Photo: Jimmy Baum / Unsplash

Where the risk actually is

Each region is coloured by the advice that applies to most of it, drawn by hand from the wording of all five government advisories. Numbered markers flag localised warnings — usually a border strip or remote interior — that cover only a small part of an otherwise lower-risk region.

Alta Verapaz — Travel with cautionBaja Verapaz — Travel with cautionChimaltenango — Travel with cautionChiquimula — Travel with cautionEl Progreso — Travel with cautionEscuintla — Travel with cautionGuatemala — Travel with cautionHuehuetenango — Travel with cautionIzabal — Travel with cautionJalapa — Travel with cautionJutiapa — Travel with cautionPetén — Travel with cautionQuezaltenango — Travel with cautionQuiché — Travel with cautionRetalhuleu — Travel with cautionSacatepéquez — Travel with cautionSan Marcos — Travel with cautionSanta Rosa — Travel with cautionSololá — Travel with cautionSuchitepéquez — Travel with cautionTotonicapán — Travel with cautionZacapa — Travel with cautionLago de IzabalPresa de la Angostura1. Mexican border strip — Essential travel only1
What governments advise Travel with caution Localised warning — see the notes below

What the warnings actually cover

  • 1
    Mexican border strip — Essential travel only. Essential-travel-only within 5km of the Mexican border from the Pacific up to the Gracias a Dios crossing, and in the Huehuetenango towns of Santa Ana Huista, San Antonio Huista and La Democracia. Antigua, Lake Atitlán and Tikal are unaffected.

A numbered marker warns about the small area described in its note — the rest of that region carries the base advice. Mapped by hand from the official wording in July 2026; always check the current advisory before you book.

What drives the score

Each pillar is scored 0–100 against every other country. Longer bar = more risk.

Conflict & terrorism
15% of score
64/100
172nd of 220
Crime
15% of score
59/100
190th of 220
Road & transport
10% of score
59/100
165th of 220
Natural hazards
10% of score · mainly earthquakes, tsunami, flooding
58/100
192nd of 220
Political stability
10% of score
52/100
169th of 220
Health & medical
15% of score
49/100
152nd of 220
Official advisories
25% of score
37/100
163rd of 220
Women's safety
not in the score
72/100

Biggest factor here: conflict & terrorism. Armed conflict, political violence and terrorism exposure.

Practical facts

The things worth knowing before you land.

Emergency number
110
Police 110 · Ambulance 128 · Tourist assistance 1500
Currency
GTQ Q
Languages
Spanish
Visa (EU passport)
90 days visa-free
US: 90 days visa-free · UK: 90 days visa-free
Population
18.7m
World Bank 2025
Capital
Guatemala City
Driving
On the right
22.9 road deaths per 100k
Power
Type A, B
110-127V
Safely managed water
49%
Most households lack it · of residents, not a tap-water verdict
Dialling code
+502
GDP per capita
$7k
A rough guide to price levels
Visitors a year
2.6m
International arrivals, 2019
Malaria risk
8.2/10
INFORM exposure score — see a travel clinic

When to go

Average daytime high and nightly low for Guatemala City, over 2010-2019. Bars are rainfall; the colour band is how hot the days get.

Mildest and driest around November to April.

Daytime high warm hot
Top figure is the average daytime high, below it the average nightly low, and millimetres of rain under each bar. Figures are the average daytime high; bar heights are the month's rainfall. Shaded months are the mild, drier ones. Source: NASA POWER daily observations, 2010-2019, public domain.

Compare with neighbours

Sources for this page

Vaccinations, malaria and outbreaks. This atlas does not give medical advice — it is personal, it changes, and it is the one thing worth getting from a doctor. Both national services publish current advice for Guatemala:

CDC Travelers' HealthTravelHealthPro (NHS/UKHSA)

Check the official advisory before you book. This page reflects data as of August 2026. Advisories change without warning, and only your own government's advice affects your travel insurance.