BEST + CHEAPest + MOST FUN
MAYA BEACH communities
PETÉN GUATEMALA

Am from San Diego California and spent several days at la Danta. Had a beautiful time – the beach is beautiful here – best beach on the lake. The Maya town is lovely – wonderful people – beautiful. Highly recommended. Definitely come! Have a good time!

This place was amazing and a perfect break from our motorcycle trip to Panama. Dranks some beers. Hung out at the beach. Swam every day. It was perfect!

Had a really good time here. Built some kitchen counters, a bed, a chair. Dranks some beers. It was perfect. Look at the view!

Me gustó mi estancia con la Danta y su antifiron Memo, es una excelente persona me dio estancia de manera amable, me platico sobre el proyecto de la Danta que es muy interesante ya que realmente ayuda a la comunidad Maya de San José PetenFue una experiencia agradable, sería bueno regresar para quedarme más tiempo a ayudar en le proyecto, 100% recomendable. ;) Pd. La ubicación es excelente tiene la laguna enfrente de la casa y es muy fácil llegar desde ahí a Tikal o hacer el recorrido con guías locales (el mejor precio que vas a encontrar) a él sitio arqueológico el Mirador.

la Danta es un perfecto lugar a descansar y conocer Peten Guatemala. La casa en la playa es muy hermosa con bueno vista del lago. Memo el antifiron es muy amable. Recommendo mucho!

La Danta project was an unexpected heart-warming experience for me. Had a brilliant time hanging at the beach house and helping local Maya families. There are lots of activies and possibilies for doing good in the Maya beach communities – do it. La Danta Project is exactly what adventure travel should be about – give a little (or a lot) and you get a hell of a lot of love back. Just a wicked idea, wicked location, wicked people and an absolutely GROOVY beach house host. Anyone with a good heart, go to la Danta Project and explore it to the fullest!

The beach house is on a very nice lake with a lots of adventure travelers and interesting talks with people from all over the world.

Memo is the ultimate beach house host for la Danta Project – wants nothing more than to help the local Maya people – talking with with him is very interesting. When you go to la Danta Project, stay longer. Always lots of adventure travelers. Enjoyed the beach house where you can swim, no crocodiles! lol

Met some wonderfully kind and skilled local Maya families. Learned to make coconut oil, traditional Mayan food and Maya medicinal rainforest plants. So close to the beach – huge plus. Thanks, Memo!

What a nice week spent with our Maya family! Thank you for your hospitality, it was a stay full of inspiration for us. We learn so much about medicinal plants, plus how to Cook tamalitos and how to make organic soap. We would definitely come back!

Had a really good time with la Danta Project. Met interesting and kindly local Maya families, learned about permaculture and made some amazing coconut oïl. It was a very enriching experience.

la Danta Project is really interesting. The Maya families involved are amazing! Definitely recommend!

Spent one month with a Mayan family and all the people and volunteers who are part of la Danta Project. Had a great time. Felt like home. Surrounded by kindness and love. la Danta Project was the best way to start my travels. San Jose is a nice Maya village and the lake is amazing. Flores, El Ramate, Tikal and El Mirador are close and easy to reach. The Maya families organize very interesting workshops: medicinal plants, coconut oil, natural soap, traditional Maya food and lots more. It was a super experience!!!

la Danta is a really cool project – it’s all about helping, learning and improving the lives of local Maya people. Very nice experience to be in a small Maya town and everyone is so kind. Perfect if you want to do the el Mirador Trek.

The Maya families of la Danta Project are amazing – helping them feels sooo rewarding – you become part of their Maya family – it’s very easy to get attached. Recommend staying for at least three weeks – especially if you’re planning on doing the El Mirador Trek. The natural soap and coconut oil workshops are really good. If you’re interested in natural medicinal plants there are great Maya people to teach you. The Maya families of la Danta Project are amazing – helping them feels sooo rewarding – you become part of their Maya family – it’s very easy to get attached. Recommend staying for at least three weeks – especially if you’re planning on doing the El Mirador Trek. The natural soap and coconut oil workshops are really good. If you’re interested in natural medicinal plants there are great Maya people to teach you.

la Danta Project has been one of my favourite travel experiences. Spent a month in this Maya community and it became a second home. Stayed with two Maya families – both were the kindest, most generous people. This was absolutely an ‘authentic’ stay and I made so many friends in this Maya community. There’s so much to learn here, coconut oil and soap to name a few. There’s also ample opportunity to improve/ learn Spanish as it is fully immersive and you can help the families with cooking meals and so you learn plenty of local dishes. All payments are made directly to the local Maya families and you can see how it is not only benefiting the one family but others in the community as well. Absolutely recommend la Danta Project, especially if you’re looking to make true connections with local Maya in Guatemala. Again, I had an amazing experience at la Danta Project.

Stayed with la Danta Project in the beautiful Maya community of San José for two weeks, when I only planned to stay for one. I can tell you, la Danta Project is a gem. Stayed with a local Maya family, shared a lot of stories and experiences with both local Maya people as well as other adventure travelers. Learned how to make natural soap, coconut oil and loved it all.

What a nice week spent with our Maya family! Thank you for your hospitality, it was a stay full of inspiration for us. We learn so much about médicinal plants, plus how to Cook tamalitos and how to make organic soap. We would definetely come back! Gabriella de France

Spent 2 beautiful weeks in this amazing place! la Danta Project is very interesting. You can learn many different types of things: how to make a coconut oil, how to cook local Maya dishes and lots more. What is more important, you can stay with a local Maya family. Lake Peten Itza is amazing! Visited Tikal – incredible!! Thank you la Danta Project for everything!

la Danta is a great project, excellent way to integrate different cultures and experience another culture hands on. Memo is super understanding and willing to work with you, Vaca is always entertaining and the Mayan families are extremely friendly and fun to get to know. This project has a lot to offer, and is definitely something I would return to. As stated on the website, I wish I went there at the beginning of my trip so I could have spent more time and done more workshops. Even so, I had a great experience and highly recommend la Danta Project to motivated individuals who like to get a little dirty.

We had a really nice time with la Danta Project. Memo and all the Maya families are very welcoming, thank you for everything !

Muy agradable la estancia en casa de Memo, la recomiendo muchisimo! Todos son muy buena onda, el proyecto es genial y el lugar frente al lago es hermoso. Me hubiera gustado quedarme mas tiempo para involucrarme mas en este proyecto, si regreso tal vez! Suerte a todos!

“felt like I was able to get to know the community so quickly. Memo has a wealth of knowledge and a lot of passion for his work. Staying here was definitely a unique Maya experience and one that made my trip extremely memorable and meaningful. Highly recommend paying la Danta Project a visit when you’re in Guatemala!”

This is a very nice project ! I enjoyed it sooo much that I stayed much longer than expected :)

“Go there! Really nice host family and one of the best places we slept. There is a lot of life and love around the place with the children running around and a lot of animals. Everyone at la Danta Project was very helpful and they have the most amazing tours. Recommend this place to all travelers!”

“My peaceful little bungalow at la Danta Project was a great space to get away from the bustle of ordinary life and return to my roots. La Danta is a very cool social development project that’s 100% worth supporting. Whether or not you’re interested in natural medicine, permaculture, Mayan crafts, or back-to-basics living, I know you’ll appreciate waking up with the birds in this lush, tropical wonderland. If you want to hang out in Northern Guatemala to explore Tikal or Yaxhá, this place is a great complement to your journey. They’ll even help out with the transportation arrangements. They hooked me up with a local tour-group for Tikal with the most knowledgeable tour guide ever, which really enriched my experience. Memo also recommended some cool spots in and around Flores that I may never have found otherwise. It was definitely a great alternative to the cookie-cutter tourist trap hotels of Flores! <3"

“Merci à Memo et la Danta Project pour leur accueil ! Ça fait plaisir de découvrir la culture du Peten avec eux. Angelica a une connaissance pointue des plantes médicinales et avis aux amateurs ou aux personnes qui se font dévorer par les moustiques : elle vous apprendra à fabriquer votre huile de coco à cuisiner ou à mettre sur la peau (bien plus puissant que les trucs chimiques des pharmacies occidentales) ! D autre part, humainement, ce sont des gens qui font que votre voyage sera inoubliable ! Si vous voulez vraiment connaître la culture maya, n hésitez pas à leur demander quel est la Danta Project! Muy interesante ! Et merci encore !”