Antigua Guatemala or Antigua (Caribbean)? How to Tell Them Apart When Booking

If you meant the colonial city in Guatemala, your flight goes to GUA, La Aurora airport in Guatemala City, and you continue by road. ANU is V.C. Bird International, on the island of Antigua in the Caribbean country of Antigua and Barbuda. A search for the word Antigua in IATA’s airport code directory returns one airport: ANU (read 10 November 2026).

In short: Check three things on any booking: the airport code (GUA for Antigua Guatemala, ANU for the island), the country in the hotel address (Guatemala, or Antigua and Barbuda), and the currency in the price (quetzales, or Eastern Caribbean dollars). They are two countries with different entry rules, and each has its own UNESCO listing.

The two Antiguas side by side

Airport codes from IATA’s code search; currency from Banco de Guatemala and the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority; UNESCO listings 65 and 1499; all read 10 November 2026.

The airport code is the fastest check

IATA’s airport code directory lists GUA as La Aurora Intl, city Guatemala City, and ANU as V.C. Bird Intl, city Antigua. That city field is where the mix-up starts: an airport search for Antigua on IATA’s directory returns ANU and nothing else, with no entry for Antigua Guatemala.

So a ticket to ANU is a ticket to the Caribbean. For the Guatemalan city, the flight lands at GUA and the last leg is by road: Atitlan Tours prints four shared shuttle departures from the Guatemala City airport to Antigua Guatemala, at 05:30, 10:30, 2:30 pm and 4:30 pm, each US$17 per person. The other sellers and the travel time are on Guatemala City airport to Antigua, and every Guatemalan airport code is on Guatemala airports and codes.

Two World Heritage sites, two different places

UNESCO describes Antigua Guatemala as the former capital of the Captaincy-General of Guatemala, built about 1,500 m above sea level in an earthquake-prone region, on a grid pattern inspired by the Italian Renaissance. Its fuller text says the city was founded in 1524 as Santiago de Guatemala and re-established in 1527; its third site, in the Panchoy valley, was inaugurated in March 1543 and served until the Santa Marta earthquakes of 1773, after which the capital was moved to what became Guatemala City. It was inscribed in 1979 under criteria (ii), (iii) and (iv).

The Caribbean listing is not a town but a naval base: UNESCO describes a group of Georgian-style naval buildings within a walled enclosure, set on deep, narrow bays surrounded by highlands that sheltered ships from hurricanes, and built by the British navy with the labour of enslaved Africans. It covers 255 hectares with a 3,873-hectare buffer zone and was inscribed in 2016. A hotel that advertises World Heritage without naming which listing could be either; the country in the address settles it.

Prices: quetzales or Eastern Caribbean dollars

Banco de Guatemala’s currency law names the quetzal, written Q and divided into 100 centavos, as Guatemala’s monetary unit. The Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority says the islands use the Eastern Caribbean dollar, sold at most commercial banks, and that many establishments also accept US dollars. A price in US dollars proves nothing on its own: Guatemalan shuttle operators such as Atitlan Tours also price in US dollars.

Entry rules are set by two different governments

The UK government’s travel advice, written for holders of a full British citizen passport, shows how far the two diverge:

• Guatemala: passport valid at least 6 months after arrival with at least 2 blank pages; visits of up to 90 days without a visa, counted across Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua together; an online immigration declaration to complete before entering or leaving; and an airport departure tax of 30 US dollars, which the UK’s travel advice says is normally included in the ticket price.
• Antigua and Barbuda: passport valid at least 6 months after arrival; no visa, with a maximum stay of 90 days on entry; an onward or return ticket; and ArriveAntigua.com, which the island authorities advise for faster entry but which is not mandatory and opens only within 72 hours of travel, on a phone or tablet.

Antigua and Barbuda’s own Immigration Department requires a passport valid beyond the date of the return ticket, a paid return or onward ticket, and may ask for proof of funds; it says visitors may be granted permission to land for up to six months. Other passports follow other rules: for Guatemala, see visa requirements by nationality.

If Antigua Guatemala is the right one and you are deciding where to base yourself, see Antigua or Guatemala City.

Sources

• IATA airline and airport code search for GUA, ANU and the word Antigua, iata.org, read 10 November 2026.
• UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Antigua Guatemala (list 65), whc.unesco.org/en/list/65/, read 10 November 2026.
• UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Antigua Naval Dockyard and Related Archaeological Sites (list 1499), whc.unesco.org/en/list/1499/, read 10 November 2026.
• Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority, FAQ, visitantiguabarbuda.com/faq/, read 10 November 2026.
• Banco de Guatemala, legislation on banknotes and coins, banguat.gob.gt, read 10 November 2026.
• UK FCDO, Guatemala entry requirements, gov.uk, read 10 November 2026.
• UK FCDO, Antigua and Barbuda entry requirements, gov.uk, read 10 November 2026.
• Antigua and Barbuda Department of Immigration, entry requirements, immigration.gov.ag, read 10 November 2026.
• Atitlan Tours, shuttle schedule, atitlantour.com, read 10 November 2026.