Kaminaljuyú is a Maya city that grew for more than 2,000 years in the valley where Guatemala City now stands, and a park in zona 7 protects what the modern city left of it. The Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes lists it open every day from 8:00 to 16:00, at Q5 for Guatemalans and Q50 for foreigners, with guided walks from Thursday to Sunday (read 3 October 2026). It is not free: several guides, including older versions of our own pages, said it was.
The ministry translates the name as Colina o Cerro de los Muertos, the hill of the dead, for the many burials found in the 1926-27 excavations by Manuel Gamio and Antonio Villacorta. The SIC listing calls it the most important pre-Hispanic regional capital of Guatemala’s central highlands.
Quick summary
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Where | Parque Arqueológico Kaminaljuyú, zona 7, Guatemala City |
| Address | 11 Calle 25-50, Colonia Kaminaljuyu II, zona 7 (CulturaGuate); Calzada San Juan y 30 avenida (SIC) |
| Run by | Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes |
| Hours | Monday-Sunday, 8:00-16:00 |
| Guided tours | Thursday-Sunday, 9:00-12:30 and 13:30-15:00 |
| Entry, Guatemalans | Q5 |
| Entry, foreigners | Q50 |
| Legal basis for the fee | Acuerdo Gubernativo No. 282-2007 (cited by SIC) |
| Payment | Quetzales only |
| Elevation | 1,450 m (CulturaGuate) |
Sources: the ministry’s CulturaGuate page and the SIC listing, both read 3 October 2026. The two pages agree on the hours and both fees.
What you pay
| Visitor | Fee | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Guatemalan | Q5 | CulturaGuate and SIC, read 3 Oct 2026 |
| Foreigner | Q50 | Same |
The ministry’s page states the fee is collected only in national currency, so bring quetzales. The page lists the guided-tour schedule without a separate guide charge. Q5 and Q50 are the same pair our archaeological sites guide lists for Iximché and Mixco Viejo.
What you are looking at
- Two areas. The park, opened in the 1970s per the SIC, keeps two sectors called La Acrópolis and La Palangana, the second named for the sunken shape of one of its plazas. Both protect excavated original buildings.
- Earth architecture. Unlike most Maya cities, per the SIC, many buildings here were built of clay and pumice coated in hardened mud, with wood-and-thatch structures on top. The ministry’s page gives the earth construction as one reason the site’s history is hard to see today.
- A city mostly lost. The SIC counts more than 200 mounds once spread over about 5 km² around the former Laguna Miraflores, with at least 13 ball courts. Archaeologist Bárbara Arroyo, quoted on the ministry’s page, says fewer than 40 of the 200-plus buildings recorded by early explorers remain. She adds that the protection laws covered the mounds and buildings, not the plazas and patios that held much of the evidence of occupation and ancestral activity.
- Water and obsidian. At its Late Preclassic peak (400 BC-200 AD) the city built canals carrying water from Laguna Miraflores to its fields, and it probably controlled El Chayal, an obsidian source about 20 km northeast of the site (SIC; CulturaGuate). The SIC says the drying of the lake in the Early Classic brought a crisis and population decline.
- Sculpture. The SIC highlights zoomorphic monuments carved in basalt and andesite among the finds. Some of Kaminaljuyú’s Preclassic and Classic sculpture is in the Popol Vuh museum, per Guatemala’s state radio TGW.
See the finds: Museo Miraflores and the city museums
Museo Miraflores, a private museum in zona 11 (7a calle 21-55, Paseo Miraflores), presents itself as the story of Kaminaljuyú; its website lists Tuesday to Sunday 9:00-19:00. Our Guatemala City museums page has its ticket list, the national archaeology museum (MUNAE) in zona 13 and Popol Vuh, with fees and closing days.
How it compares with other ruins near the capital
| Site | Distance type | Entry, foreigner | What you see |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kaminaljuyú | Inside Guatemala City (zona 7) | Q50 | Earth mounds of a Preclassic city, two protected sectors |
| Mixco Viejo | Out of the city (see its page for the route) | Q50 | Postclassic fortress on a plateau, with restored temples |
| Iximché | Near Tecpán (see its page) | Q50 | Kaqchikel capital, still used for ceremonies |
Kaminaljuyú is the only one of the three inside the city; our sites guide puts Mixco Viejo about 2 hours north of Guatemala City.
A morning plan
| Step | Detail | Based on |
|---|---|---|
| Arrive | From 8:00 any day | Ministry hours |
| Guided walk | Thursday-Sunday, 9:00-12:30 or 13:30-15:00 | Ministry tour schedule |
| Leave | Before 16:00 | Ministry hours |
| Then | MUNAE (zona 13, Tue-Sun 10:00-19:00) or Popol Vuh (zona 10, closed Sunday) | Museums page |
Where to stay
Where to stay in Guatemala City
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More in and around Guatemala City
- Guatemala City museums: Popol Vuh, Ixchel and the national museums · Mixco Viejo ruins · Iximché ruins.
- Guatemala’s archaeological sites compared · Free things to do · Guatemala City overview.
- The Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes runs the site · all activities.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much is the entrance to Kaminaljuyú?
Q5 for Guatemalans and Q50 for foreigners, paid in quetzales only. Both the Ministerio de Cultura’s CulturaGuate page and its cultural information system (SIC) list those two fees, and the SIC cites Acuerdo Gubernativo No. 282-2007 as the basis (both read 3 October 2026).
Is Kaminaljuyú free?
No. Some travel guides, including an earlier version of our own pages, called it free. The Ministerio de Cultura publishes Q5 for nationals and Q50 for foreigners.
What are Kaminaljuyú's opening hours?
Monday to Sunday, 8:00 to 16:00, per the Ministerio de Cultura’s CulturaGuate page and its SIC listing (read 3 October 2026).
Are there guided tours at Kaminaljuyú?
Yes. The ministry lists guided tours from Thursday to Sunday, 9:00 to 12:30 and 13:30 to 15:00. Its page does not show a separate charge for the guide.
Where is Kaminaljuyú?
In zona 7 of Guatemala City. The SIC listing places the park at Calzada San Juan and 30 avenida; the ministry’s CulturaGuate page gives the address 11 Calle 25-50, Colonia Kaminaljuyu II, zona 7.
Why is there so little left of Kaminaljuyú?
Its buildings were made of earth, not stone. The SIC listing says they were built of clay and pumice covered in hardened mud. Archaeologist Bárbara Arroyo, quoted by the ministry, says that of more than 200 buildings counted by the first explorers of the valley, fewer than 40 remain, lost as the city grew.
How old is Kaminaljuyú?
The SIC listing gives more than 2,000 years of occupation, from the end of the Early Preclassic (1100-1000 BC) to the Late Classic (550-900 AD), with its peak in the Late Preclassic (400 BC-200 AD).
