Overview
Quetzaltenango is a city in Guatemala’s western highlands. It’s set against a backdrop of volcanoes, including towering Santa María with its active Santiaguito lava dome.
Description
Overlooking Central America Park, Espiritú Santo Cathedral has a baroque colonial facade and a 20th-century interior. The city is known for its neoclassical buildings, including the House of Culture and the restored Municipal Theater.
Quetzaltenango is Guatemala's second city. It has a great atmosphere – not too big, not too small, enough foreigners to support a good range of hotels and restaurants, but not so many that it loses its national flavor. The Guatemalan 'layering' effect is at work in the city center – once the Spanish moved out, the Germans moved in and their architecture gives the zone a somber, even Gothic, feel.
Quezaltenango, Quetzaltenango
Guatemala
URL:
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/guatemala/western-highlands/quetzaltenango-xela