Guatemala or Colombia for a Trip: Advisory Levels, Visa-Free Days and Entry Steps Compared [2026]

On the official travel advice alone, neither country wins outright: the U.S. State Department rates both Guatemala and Colombia Level 3, Reconsider Travel, and the UK gives British tourists 90 visa-free days in each. What differs is how much of the map the advice rules out. The UK FCDO advises against non-essential travel to two areas of Guatemala, a strip along the Mexican border and three towns in Huehuetenango, and to parts of more than a dozen Colombian departments. Colombia also asks for proof of an onward ticket; its online pre-registration, Check-Mig, is optional, while Guatemala’s online immigration declaration is required. Every rule below was read on the governments’ own pages on 4 November 2026.

TL;DR: Same US level (3), same UK visa-free stay (90 days). Guatemala’s UK no-go list is two areas; Colombia’s covers parts of more than a dozen departments. Guatemala: fill in the online immigration declaration before you fly. Colombia: carry an onward ticket; Check-Mig is optional. British travellers to Guatemala: bring US dollars, not pounds.

Quick summary

US$30 is about C$42 or £23 at Banguat’s cross rates for 3 November 2026; our exchange rates page has today’s quetzal rate.

The advice, government by government

United States. Both countries are Level 3. The Colombia advisory adds that U.S. government employees there may not travel to Colombia’s land borders without special authorisation, ride motorcycles, flag down taxis on the street or take any public transport. In Guatemala, the advisory points travellers to ASISTUR, the tourist assistance line, on 1500 from a Guatemalan phone.

United Kingdom. For Guatemala, the FCDO’s list is short: a 5 km band inside the Mexican border running from the Pacific to the Gracias a Dios crossing (included), plus three Huehuetenango towns, Santa Ana Huista, San Antonio Huista and La Democracia. For Colombia, it runs region by region. Among the areas it names:

• Venezuela border and the north: all of Norte de Santander (including Cúcuta) and Arauca, Puerto Carreño municipality (Vichada), and a 5 km band along the rest of the Venezuelan border. It also tells travellers to avoid every land crossing into Venezuela.
• Pacific coast and Panama border: Chocó, except Quibdó, Nuquí, Bahía Solano and Capurganá; western Valle del Cauca including Buenaventura; Jamundí; three regions of Nariño; and parts of Córdoba, Antioquia and Bolívar.
• Central Colombia: Guaviare except San José del Guaviare; six municipalities in Caquetá; and southern Meta’s Ariari region, Caño Cristales excepted, which it says to visit by flying in from La Macarena with an established tour operator.
• Ecuador border and the south: areas near the Ecuador border and seven municipalities of Putumayo.

The FCDO also reports that security forces were sent to Cúcuta for a limited period on the President’s order of 29 October. Its standing warning covers both countries: going against FCDO advice can void your travel insurance.

The Guatemala side, with homicide figures and Canada’s advice, is on our Guatemala safety page and in Guatemala or Belize.

Entry: what to have at the airport

For US passports, this page does not state Colombia’s entry rules; read the State Department’s Colombia page before booking.

Altitude, water and money

• Altitude. The FCDO names Bogotá and parts of Antioquia, Boyacá, Cundinamarca and Nariño as altitude-sickness risks. In Guatemala, Guatemala City, Antigua, the Lake Atitlán towns and Quetzaltenango sit at about 1,510 to 2,350 metres, and the volcano summits run up to 4,203 metres at Tajumulco (Smithsonian GVP); the town-by-town table is on our altitude page.
• Water. Bogotá is the one Colombian city whose tap water the FCDO calls drinkable.
• Money. Guatemala uses the quetzal; Banguat’s reference rate on 3 November 2026 was Q7.63621 per US dollar. The FCDO says pounds are often impossible to exchange in Guatemala and dollars much easier, so bring US dollars.

Costs

For Guatemala, our travel budget page adds up prices read in September 2026: three example days in Antigua came to about US$34, US$52 and US$101 per person before transport and entry tickets (about C$47, C$73 and C$141, or £26, £41 and £79). This site holds no Colombian price set read on the same basis, so this page does not compare daily costs. For a longer-stay comparison of the two countries, see Retire in Guatemala vs Colombia.

Choose Guatemala if

• You want the shortest no-go list to plan around. The FCDO’s restricted areas in Guatemala are two: the Mexican border strip and three Huehuetenango towns.
• You are combining it with Belize, Mexico or Central America. El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua share Guatemala’s 90-day CA-4 allowance (Britons can visit Honduras without a visa since 31 October 2026).
• You have ten days to two weeks. Our itinerary planner fits the full Antigua, Lake Atitlán, Semuc Champey and Tikal loop into ten days.

Choose Colombia if

• The places you want are outside both governments’ lists. Check your route against the FCDO’s regions above and the US Do Not Travel departments.
• You can show an onward ticket inside the 90 days and are ready to complete Check-Mig before you fly.
• You are prepared for altitude on arrival if you fly into Bogotá.

Sources

• U.S. Department of State, Colombia Travel Advisory (31 March 2026) and Guatemala Travel Advisory (12 March 2026), read 4 November 2026 via the State Department’s advisory feed
• UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, Colombia travel advice (updated 30 October 2026) and Guatemala travel advice (updated 13 August 2026): warnings, entry requirements, safety and health sections, read 4 November 2026
• UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, Honduras entry requirements
• Migración Colombia, Check-Mig, read 4 November 2026
• Altitudes: SEGEPLAN and GeoNames via our altitude page; Guatemala prices: Hostelworld, Airbnb and Antigua menus read 24 September 2026, via our travel budget page
• Banguat cross rates for 3 November 2026, via our exchange rates page