El Salvador Highlights: Five Day Tour

Welcome to El Salvador, a small country located in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, Guatemala to the west, and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The country is known for its beautiful beaches, volcanoes, and national parks, as well as its rich history and culture.

The capital of El Salvador is San Salvador, which is located in the central part of the country. The city is known for its vibrant nightlife, cultural attractions, and historic landmarks, such as the Metropolitan Cathedral and the National Theater.

Other popular tourist destinations in El Salvador include the beach town of La Libertad, historical sites such as Tazumal and Joya de Cerén and the scenic Ruta de las Flores. The country is also home to several national parks, including El Imposible National Park and Cerro Verde National Park, known for its volcanoes, which offer hiking, birdwatching, and other outdoor activities.

El Salvador has a tropical climate, with temperatures ranging from 70 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit (21 to 32 degrees Celsius) throughout the year. The dry season runs from November to April, while the rainy season runs from May to October.

El Salvador is a welcoming destination for tourists, with a variety of hotels, restaurants, and other amenities catering to visitors. The country is known for its delicious cuisine, which features a mix of indigenous, Spanish, and African influences. Some popular dishes to try include pupusas (stuffed corn tortillas), yuca frita (deep-fried cassava), and platanos fritos (fried plantains).

Our five day tour is perfect for travelers who want to integrate their travel in El Salvador in a bigger tour programme in Central America and combine El Salvador with countries such as Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Your tour will commence in San Salvador where you’ll get to explore the capital as well as the nearby volcano El Boqueron, after which we’ll expand our history knowledge by visiting Mayan sites. We’ll then go on the winding road of Ruta de las Flores to discover its charming towns, coffee plantations, hidden waterfalls and thermal baths. Our tour starts and ends at the international airport of El Salvador and it’s also possible to pick you up and drop you off at  the border with Guatemala of Honduras. 

Our El Salvador tours are run in English or Spanish and we use well-maintained vehicles and midrange to upper midrange hotels and guesthouses. It is possible to upgrade your El Salvador tour to more luxurious accommodation, and yes, as a true Salvadoran tour company we also accept payments in Bitcoin of course!


Summary of your tour: 

Day 1: Arrival in San Salvador
Day 2: City Tour Of San Salvador and El Boqueron Volcano
Day 3: Joya de Cerén and Tazumal and Ataco
Day 4: Coffee and Ruta de Las Flores
Day 5: Departure 

Your tour in depth: 

Day 1: Arrival in San Salvador

We will pick you up at the international airport of San Salvador, after which we’ll bring you to your hotel. 

Day 2: City Tour Of San Salvador and El Boqueron Volcano

After breakfast we’ll start to explore the capital of San Salvador, a great start for your five-day adventure. You’ll notice many similarities with western cities, but also plenty of factors which make this city different and unique. Besides the many colorful houses, busy squares and well-preserved colonial houses, we also find modern malls, countless new buildings and western chains. San Salvador has many markets, food stalls and shops all around the city and everywhere we can hear the newest reggaeton beats. We will mostly circle around Zona Rosa, El Centro and the Boulevard de los Héroes today. We’ll visit the Antiguo Cuscatlán as well as some handicraft markets, the Iglesia Rosario, the national theatre, Plaza Libertad, Plaza Salvador del Mundo and other places of interest.

After a hearty local lunch with pupusas we’ll head outside of the city towards the El Boqueron National Park where we’ll hike on top of a volcano from where we’ll have great views over San Salvador. Afterwards we’ll head back to the city. 

Day 3: Joya de Cerén and Tazumal and Ataco

We’ll kick off our day with a visit to the ancient Mayan site of  Tazumal, at Chalchuapa, El Salvador, which is one of the most important Maya sites in Central America and the single most important archeological site in El Salvador. This place was an important ceremonial spot and trading center during the time of the Mayans. We’ll explore the Maya architecture, pyramids, plazas, tombs and also the ballcourt. Tazumal was known for its obsidian production, a type of volcanic glass that was used for tools and weaponry. The name Tazumal means "place where people are burned" in the Maya language as people were often sacrificed there, for example the losers of the ballgames, which were played at the court.

We’ll also visit Joya de Cerén,  a small village found in the west of El Salvador.The site is known for its well-preserved pre-Columbian village, buried by volcanic ash in 600 BC and it was only discovered in the seventies. Joya de Cerén provides a unique insight into the  life of the ancient Maya civilization, as the lava and ash helped preserve a large amount of artifacts and structures in their original state. Joya de cerén is now a UNESCO World Heritage site which attracts many visitors.

Overnight in San Salvador

Day 4: Coffee and Ruta de Las Flores

It’s impossible to visit El Salvador, without having a stop at a coffee facility or plantation as coffee plays an important role in San Salvador’s identity and culture. Throughout its history it has shaped El Salvador, but also has a dark history as it was an important factor during political instability and repression by the small elite who controlled all of the coffee plantations in El Salvador. Meanwhile it has been made illegal to possess more than 245 hectares and out of all the agricultural land, 95 percent is used for coffee, divided over 20,000 farmers who often have less than 20 hectares.

We’ll start our day with a visit to Concépcion de Ataco, located in green hills and the coffee plantations. We'll visit the coffee processing facility and get to learn everything about coffee and its production and explore the village with its beautiful murals. We’ll then explore the rest of the Ruta de las Flores and we’ll get to know the rest of this beautiful route with several picturesque little towns, as well as Izalco near the Izalco Volcano, Nahuizalco and Salcoatitan. We’ll then go back to San Salvador and check in at the hotel. 

Day 5: Departure 

Today we’ll bring you to the international airport of San Salvador for your flight back home. We can also help you with overland border crossing from El Salvador to Guatemala or Honduras if you want. 

Included: 

- Accommodation in midrange/upper midrange hotels/guesthouses
- All transport in private vehicles
- Professional, local English speaking guide  (or Spanish of course)

- All entrance fees and activities as describes 

Not included: 

- Visa and tourist pass 

- Flights 

- Meals and drinks 

- Tips and gratuities