www.panajachel.com
Panajachel (Pana) is a town in the southwestern Guatemalan Highlands, less than 90 miles from Guatemala City, in the department of Sololá. "Panajachel is isolated in the Guatemalan highlands and provides breathtaking views of three volcanoes that embellish perhaps the most beautiful lake in the world, Lake Atitlan." Panajachel is the doorway to Lake Atitlan's magnificent indigenous villages, Santiago Atitlan, Santa Catarina Palopo, San Pedro, San Marcos, Santa Cruz, Jaibalito, San Juan, San Lucas Toliman and San Antonio Palopo, all are famous for its weavers typical clothes. The elevation is 1,597 metres (5,240 ft). Population is estimated as 15,000 now (Insituto Nacional de EstadÃstica de Guatemala). "Panajachel" derives from the Kaqchikel language and roughly translates to "place of the Matasanos," the white sapote fruit tree. To learn more about traveling through Panajachel, go here. If you are Interested in taking Spanish classes in the Panajachel area, we've been recommended one of the best schools in the area, Jabel Tinamit.