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The Baja Verapaz area is rich in cultural heritage and has lots of interesting trees to study, specifically jicaro and morro (especially in Rabinal). Chilascó is a local center of indigenous Maya basket weaving.

Since Baja Verapaz is hot and dry in the dry season, and since it is a bit off the main highways, you will not be overrun by busloads of other tourists! But I go to Baja Verapaz about every two years and if you visit there in the rainy season (June-August) everything is green and pretty.

If you are visiting Chilascó (half hour drive away on another road) or if you are visiting Rabinal (40 minute drive past Salama) there are no hotels of international standards in those two locations. So if you want the amenities you expect, the only hotel we have found that would be a good family hotel is theHotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ before the entrance to Salama.

Surely we will eventually find other hotels, but I have not yet seen a hotel like this in Rabinal and for sure there is no hotel like this in Chilascó.

Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ is clean

In these photographs by Gustavo Gallego, FLAAR, you can see the rooms are clean.

Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ view second floor, Salama August 2011. Photo by Gustavo Gallegos.

Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ Hall second floor, Salama August 2011. Photo by Gustavo Gallegos.

Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ Hall first floor, Salama August 2011. Photo by Gustavo Gallegos.

Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ single room, Salama August 2011. Photo by Gustavo Gallegos.

Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ double room, Salama August 2011. Photo by Gustavo Gallegos.

Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ tripe room, Salama August 2011. Photo by Gustavo Gallegos.

There is a swimming pool

If you like to swim to relax or for exercise, a pool is available.

Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ swiming pool, Salama August 2011. Photo by Camila Morales.

Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ swiming pool, Salama August 2011. Photo by Camila Morales.

People are super-friendly

From the check-in desk to the gardener to the restaurant, everyone in the hotel was pleasant. I would especially note the waitress Jacqueline. She noticed that we were photographing all around the garden (in other words, we were workaholics and were unlikely to want to wait in the restaurant to order our food). So she kindly took our dinner orders out in the garden, where she tracked us down one by one (since each of us was in a different location).

Other restaurant staff were also pleasant, just that it was Jacqueline who we saw both at dinner and at breakfast the following day.

Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ workers, Salama August 2011. Photo by Camila Morales.

Avocados: round and normal shaped

Avocados are a plant native to pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. We found two varieties here.

White lilies

Most of the flowers in any hotel garden anywhere in the world are a mixture of local plants plus standard decorative plants from elsewhere around the world. So you also get orange trees and lots of plants from other parts of the world. But I believe the white flowers with the off-white or yellow spike is a plant native to Mesoamerica.

Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ panorama view, Salama August 2011. Photo by Camila Morales.

Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’ panorama entrance, Salama August 2011. Photo by Camila Morales.

Contact information for Hotel Tz’ Alam Ha’

Lissett Vanegas de Orellana
Camino a Aldea Los Limones
San Jeronimo (Salama), Guatemala, Central America

Telephone (502) 7940-0338, fax (502) 7940-0303

e-mail tzalamha@hoteltzalamha.com

The restaurant is a bit outside town and to the south of the main highway a few blocks. There is a sign on the main highway which you will see if you are alert.

First posted August 12, 2011.