Antigua’s New Parking Fees Explained

As requested by many readers of La Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo, here are the new parking/entrance fee regulations of La Antigua Guatemala.

About a 1.5 kms (1 mile) before the entrance there is sign that Welcomes you to La Antigua Guatemala, declared an UNESCO World Heritage Site. See the first photo below and click it to see an enlarge image.

About 100 meters (yards) after the first sign, there is second sign that explains that Free Locomotion is a Right (Guatemalan Right, that is), parking, on the other hand, is a privilege. Please cooperate by paying the established fees that sign begs. See the second photo below and click it to see an enlarge image.

Finally, there is a third sign (large photo above) that displays the new parking fees for an entire day on the streets of La Antigua Guatemala:

Carro (car): Q10 ($1.25)
Microbus (van): Q20 ($2.50)
Autobus 30 pasajeros (30-passenger bus): Q40 ($5)
Autobus 30 o más pasajeros (30+ passenger bus): Q50 ($6.25)

People who live within the La Antigua Guatemala Municipal (county) borders are exempt from paying any fees and are given a “Orgullosamente Antigüeño” (Proud Antigüeño) sticker to up on the front windshield. People living within the municipality of La Antigua Guatemala are required to present at least one utility bill to verify their residence status and thus obtain the exemption sticker. See the third photo below and click it to see an enlarge image.

People who live outside the borders of the Municipio (County) de La Antigua Guatemala are required to pay the above fees. Unless, of course, they buy a frequent visitor sticker for Q200 ($25) per year.

Any questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to ask and I will comply with a prompt answer or research it for you!

16 Responses to "Antigua’s New Parking Fees Explained"

Pamela says:
April 3, 2009 at 5:33 am
Diccionario Guatemalteco – Canario
Carro = Coche (a carro is a supermarket trolley and we think it very funny that you might drive a top of the range BMW or 4×4 “supermarket trolley”.)
Microbus = Furgón o furgoneta
Autobus = Guagua
Sorry, it just struck me and, of course, is a similar phenomenon to that which divides Britain and North America by “a common language.”
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Eric says:
April 3, 2009 at 7:12 am
Rudy, thank you very much for these photos. Me encantan! As you say, although the photos you post may not always be the most typical, you are indeed providing an insider’s view of the everyday life in La Antigua, Guatemala.
Mi favorito es <>. Very true for a unique city like La Antigua. Now, all the money collected will be used to maintain the city and improve the quality of life for all Antiguenos … verdad?
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Stephanie says:
April 3, 2009 at 8:30 am
What is the reaction of people to the parking fees? This is quite usual in large cities in the US — Depending on where you park it can be very expensive. (One time I paid $45 to park for an afternoon at Navy Pier in Chicago.) Other places are cheaper (paying meters often runs $1-$2 per hour). In London you must pay to and I understand it has greatly reduced traffic with more people using public transit. But I gather this is a major change in thinking in LAG. Do you think it will actually reduce the number of cars? Would people with cars use the buses? Or will it just raise revenues to maintain the streets?
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Andreita says:
April 3, 2009 at 1:01 pm
😀 voy a hacer un enlace de mi pag a la tuya, ayer hice un post sobre “la nueva regulación”, pero el tuyo ayuda mucho para los extranjeros, feliz día 🙂
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Jose says:
April 5, 2009 at 8:41 am
You should do more ethical work.
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Jose says:
April 5, 2009 at 8:42 am
Do more ethical work. Investigate your facts. Stop publishing false information.
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Rudy Girón says:
April 5, 2009 at 12:21 pm
@Pamela, welcome back my dear and thanks so much for diccionario guatemalteco-canario.
@Eric, according to the city press releases, the money collected from the parking fees will be used to pay an additional 160 traffic and tourist cops, for the free Internet cloud over La Antigua Guatemala, to pay for the maintenance all the security webcams around town and yes to repair and maintain all the streets in Antigua Guatemala.
@Stephanie, actually there has been a great deal of resistance from people, especially from Guatemala City. I don’t know if there will be less vehicles coming in to La Antigua Guatemala, but at least there will be a new revenue source to pay for repairs and maintenance. See my response to Eric above.
@Andreita, gracias por la visita y ya fui a leer tu nota sobre la nueva regulación. Muy buena la información que ponés.
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Eric says:
April 6, 2009 at 7:50 am
Thanks for the extra info. I do not drive my own car in La Antigua, nor do I rent one, but anything that will help preserve La Antigua para los Antiguenos, I am behind it 100%.
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Alfredo says:
April 6, 2009 at 10:55 am
I do not agree with the way this is being used. What would happed if I just want to get through the city or pick up a friend. They are forcing me to pay the parking fee, but I am not parking, and the security in the parking lot is not enough. I believe that they a limiting my constitutional rights.
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Eric says:
April 6, 2009 at 12:51 pm
Oh, a very good point from Alfredo. Does La Antigua need a “Drop off/Pick up” lane, like at the airport ? Lo siento, Alfredo, I never would have thought of that.
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Rudy Girón says:
April 7, 2009 at 11:37 pm
@José, I do not understand what you mean by ethical work, could you please elaborate.
@Eric, I am sure the measure also is trying to curb off the massive traffic of vehicles from Guatemala City and surrounding departments which is really hurting the over 500-year old colonial city.
@Alfredo, honestly I do not know if there are exceptions, I sure there are, but I am not sure. Well the entrance or parking fee is not different than the fee you would pay at Amatitlán or Lake Atitlán or other municipios which began charging entrance, parking and passing-through fees long time ago. Also, I don’t think the entrance/parking fee is extraordinary, you pay fees to enter or pass-through Tikal, Tecpán, and other national parks; why should La Antigua Guatemala be any different if you consider that is Patrimonio de la Humanidad (World Heritage), which in other words should be protected as a national park, the Mayan ruins, or any museum.
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Eric says:
April 8, 2009 at 7:05 am
Another good point, Rudy, re: “curbing off the massive traffic”. This is why I love your blog so much – the windows into daily life in La Antigua. In this case, windows from several different sides of the issue. Now I will have more to talk about with the taxi drivers, tuc-tuc operators, etc. ( I am sure they will have an interesting view on this issue).
I also like your entry about the Roman soldiers. Para mi, compared to some of the costumes used here in los EEUU for our parades, the Roman soldier costumes are actually quite good. I think the broom ends for the tops of the helmets are very inventive – typical of guatemalteco ingenuity.
Still cold and rainy here in Massachusetts. Save a chair at Fernando’s for me, por favor ? Ja-ja-ja
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Kathy D. says:
April 10, 2009 at 4:13 pm
Where does one pay the fee now? Is there a toll booth–so is this making traffic back up– or do you pay somehow when you park?
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Rudy Girón says:
April 11, 2009 at 7:51 pm
@Kathy, the payment is made at the entrance, thus the traffic backs up for about 500 meters or more.
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MaggieD says:
April 11, 2009 at 8:40 pm
Rudy – thank you for taking the time to do the video. It was inspiring and gave me cold chills to hear the drums. Now, if you could just figure a way to transport the smell of pom and other fragrances of the season through the website!
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1. Rudy Girón says:
  April 11, 2009 at 11:54 pm
  @MaggieD, sure, let me see if I can find the Smell plugin to add to the web site. I will let know! 😉
  Reply

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