A Natural Paradise, one of the most popular destinations on the Pacific coast, the Monterrico Natural Reserve offers beaches, boat tours, birdwatching and an educational center featuring live sea turtles and iguanas. The reserve covers 28 square kilometers, 65% of which consist of lakes, canals, mangroves and saltwater marshes, all teeming with birds, fish and other wildlife.

Most visitors stay in the beachfront town ofMonterrico, one of five villages located within the reserve. a paved road leads to the town of La Avellana, and from there visitors take a boat which carries them about a kilometre along the mangrove-lined, ChiquimulillaCanal to Monterrico.

The western half of Guatemala’s Pacific coast offers a fascinating Maya ruin, a water park and more volcanic beaches. The region’s most popular beaches are from near the port town of Champerico, which drawn weekend crowds from Quetzaltenango, while the Tulate beach further east near Mazatenango is popular with Spanish school students studying in Xela.

Several excellent restaurants and hotels will be found in the coastal town of Retalhuleu, which serves a convenient base for exploring the coast. Located just a few minutes out of town, the Xocomil water park makes a great place for family outings, with a wave pool, water slides and a tubing stream, as well as restaurants and picnic facilities.

Guatemala's most popular beaches are found on the eastern half of the Pacific Coast, beginning with Las Lisas and Monterrico, in the department of Santa Rosa. The Monterrico Natural Reserve includes a protected expanse of mangrove swamp and volcanic, black sand beaches where sea turtles lumber ashore to lay their eggs. Facilities at Monterrico include several hotels and restaurants, as well as an educational center with information on turtles and iguanas. Boats may be rented for a tour of the mangroves, where birders will find some local specialties such as Boat-billed Herons, Lesser Yellow-headed Vultures and Mangrove Warblers.

Beaches in the busy port town of San Josè are popular with weekend vacationers from Guatemala City, as are the beaches at Chulamar and Iztapa. A nearby, drive-through zoological park, known as Autosafari Chapìn, boasts a collection of exotic and local animals, as well as picnic areas, a restaurant and swimming pool.

The Pacific Coast consists of the lowlands departments of Santa Rosa, Escuintla, Retalhuleu and Suchitepèquez. The coast is mostly dedicated to cattle ranching and the growing of sugar cane, cotton and fruits. The climate is hot and humid. Principal tourist attractions are the Pacific beaches and archaeological sites, such as abaj Takalik.