gorgeously designed by Italian builder architect Luciano. The gardens are a dream. the pool with the view is even better than the photos. Tucked away in Santa Catarina de Polpolo, views of the lake are superb. Heidi even helped us arrange a lake boating tour. Watch out for the crazy driveway!

My husband and I visited Tzam Poc in February 2012 and we were enchanted by it. It is the most beautiful, unique hotel I have ever visited and the service was impeccable. We were in a gorgeous villa with a kitchen and the chef delivered our dinner every afternoon for us to warm when we were ready to eat. The food was incredible. The grounds are meticulously kept by a very kind groundskeeper. Every aspect of the hotel was designed by its proprietor, Lucio and the place is dripping with style and beauty. The infinity pool overlooking Lake Atitlan, accompanied by the hot tub which also overlooks the lake is perhaps the most incredible aspect of the hotel. Additionally special is breakfast-- set at a large outdoor table overlooking the lake, with a lattice dripping with gorgeous flowers and hummingbirds overhead. Lucio was very helpful in helping us decide which adventures we wanted to explore around Lake Atitlan. The setting of Lake Atitlan itself is a thing of breathtaking beauty, but having spent 5 weeks at various locations around the Lake, Tzam Poc was my favorite place by far.

Having read one of the other reviews for this hotel, I think it is important to stress that this is not a typical hotel. The driveway is extremely steep, and our taxi had to stop half way up. So it is best to plan to walk your baggage up the driveway. This is actually true for many places around Lake Atitlan-- it is built on the slopes of volcanoes, so easily portable bags are recommended (I learned this the hard way!) and being in good shape is a plus. Tzam Poc is not the kind of hotel where you are waited on hand and foot throughout the day, as you might find at an all-inclusive resort-- it is more of a bed and breakfast. You are left on your own throughout the day, but the groundskeeper or Lucio is always available for help. However, at breakfast, your every need is anticipated, and dinner is delicious. I believe that for bigger groups, group dinners can be arranged that would be more typical of a restaurant-type dinner.

I highly recommend this hotel for anyone with a sense of adventure and an appreciation of natural beauty and incredible style. Among my world travels, Tzam Poc might be my favorite place to stay. We cannot wait to go back and hope to bring friends next time!

My girlfriend was born in Guatemala, and the occasion of a pair of family weddings called us there. In between the weddings, we traveled to three locations outside of the capital city, including the beautiful and mysterious Lake Atitlan. We chose Tzam Poc at Atitlan based on the photos of what looked like a dramatic view of the lake and the volcanoes beyond. The view was all that and more, but it is only part of what makes Tzam Poc special.

Tzam Poc is more accurately described as a bed and breakfast, not a resort. They'll cook dinner on request (for a small extra charge) too, but you have to let them know early in the day so they can get fresh ingredients from the market. It's perched on a hill just beyond and above the village of Santa Catarina. (Hint: when entering the grounds via a very steep access road, DON'T STOP. Better yet, rent a 4X4!). It consists of a series of small buildings, each containing no more than 2 units (on different levels), and the main house where the owner lives. Thus, it takes ramps and stairs to get from one place to another, but also provides a feeling of total privacy in each unit.

It is very much the product of the somewhat eccentric imagination of its owner, Lucio Mamberto, who is an architect. Imagine a Mediterranean villa (the owner was born in Italy) crossed with a bit of Antoni Gaudi and Dr. Seuss. If that's not your cup of tea, I understand. And the quirkiness can lead to a few things not being particularly efficient or logical. No matter. It's magic. Lucio is a charming host with a lifetime of interesting and somewhat mysterious stories, and you are treated like a personal guest in his home.

Home cooked breakfast is served on the terrace (dinner in the dining room of the main house). There is a patio with a swimming pool, jacuzzi, and wood-fired sauna. This patio provides some of the most spectacular vistas I have ever seen, multiplied tenfold by the optical illusion of the pool hanging directly over the lake. At night, the sounds of the village float up the mountain, sounds of musical instruments and parties.

Lucio is a local now, having lived there for many years. He employes a handful of residents as cooks and maintenance people, and it very much feels like a family operation. So, when we decided to take a boat ride across the lake to one or more of the surrounding villages (there are 12), arrangements were quickly made with a pilot who was a friend of someone on staff. This proved to be a huge bonus, as we were spared having to negotiate with the many boat captains that gather at the dock in the village. We got a ride down in the back of a pickup, introductions were made, and off we went. Enrique, our pilot, knew who was who in the villages as well, and would call ahead on his cell to make sure the right tuk-tuk (a kind of three wheeled mini-taxi) driver was waiting for us. Without going into too much detail, suffice it to say that we were guided to an inside view of local culture by locals, and I'm pretty sure we owe it to our decision to stay at Tzam Poc.

If you are looking for orderliness, anonymity, and typical luxury, Tzam Poc my not be for you. If you are seeking something truly unique, you'll find it there. Given how magical Lake Atitlan itself is, that seems entirely appropriate

We did not have a pleasant experience at Tzampoc Resort. My expectations and my family's were of a more modern hotel. The pictures in the website were too good and we were disappointed with what we found. Just to get to the hotel we had trouble with the car since it is an incline of good 45 degrees. The place did not seem to have good maintenance, it was not very clean, lots of step to get to the villas. The views were amanzing, but we were so uncomfortable that we did not enjoy them as much. The weather did not help, there was a storm and it rained for more than 24 hours. The worst experience was that my sister and her family got intoxicated with charcoal fumes that was left in the room for heat. In the middle of the night we did not get any assistance and we did not even have a flashlight. We had reservations for three nights and we cut it short to one night. I will not recommend this hotel to any of my friends.