Guatemalan Ties

The safety of adoptees and their families is of the utmost importance to The Ties Program and we work very hard to keep adoptees and their families as safe as possible. You can read the Dept of State advisory in detail here.

Guatemala is at a "reconsider travel" level and has been for at least as many years as Rebecca has worked there (since 2017). The Guatemalan travel advisory is related to crime: there are certain areas that are considered unsafe for people to travel to, while other areas are considered quite safe. This is true in most cities in the U.S. - there are areas of every city that you may not want to go to due to safety concerns. Note in paragraph two of the advisory it says, "U.S. government personnel and family members are prohibited from traveling to/throughout the above-mentioned areas for personal travel but are permitted to travel throughout the rest of Guatemala, including tourist destinations such as Tikal, Antigua, Lake Atitlán, and Pacific coast areas in the Santa Rosa and Escuintla Departments." While travelers with Ties fly in and out of Guatemala City (it's the only international airport in the country), our trips travel largely to Antigua and Lake Atitlan; some trips also go to Tikal and to the pacific coast (which are also considered safe).

Guatemala closed to intercountry adoptions on January 1, 2008. Therefore, as of January 1, 2026, all intercountry adoptees from Guatemala will be 18 years of age or over. This means our trips to Guatemala are largely adult adoptees. The majority of these are between 18 and 30 years of age, but there are Guatemalan adoptees who are over the age of 50. On occasion adoptees who were born in the U.S. and have Guatemalan heritage (a birth father and/or mother are of Guatemalan heritage) will travel with Ties as well, and they are sometimes younger than 18 (and are such a joy for us to have on the trips!).

Our Classic Ties heritage trips to Guatemala are capped at 38 participants as we've found (after more than 25 years running heritage trips to Guatemala) this is the best size group travel with in Guatemala. Hotels tend to be smaller family-run establishments and large buses are not safe on the mountainous roads. For those who are used to large cruise ships for travel, 38 sounds small. For those who aren't accustomed to group travel 38 sound large. We promise, it's the perfect size when you divide it between adoptees and those who maybe traveling with them. Some adoptees will travel solo, others will travel with five or more companions. On average, there are 9 to 13 adoptee and loved one groups that travel. It's the perfect size to get to know everyone and have a few close friends!

There are no visa requirements for U.S. citizens entering Guatemala for up to 90 days. In fact, Guatemalan adoptees are considered citizens by the Guatemalan government and are not required to follow the 90 day rule and they can come and go as they please (see more in next FAQ). There is a digital entry form you'll need to complete 48 hours before entering and exiting Guatemala.

Yes! You do need to follow a process to update and obtain the required paperwork but you can reapply for Cedula/DPT and Guatemalan passport and can even vote in Guatemalan elections. We do recommend that you always travel on your U.S. passport, however. Reach out to Rebecca for more information. Adoptees with Guatemalan Roots also has some information about this.

Yes and no. How adventurous are you? Rebecca (our program manager) thinks everyone should travel to to Tikal for it's majesty, BUT... you need to be prepared for an adventure, and not everyone is ready for that. It's HOT and HUMID (it's a rainforest!) and there is no A/C. There are bugs - including scorpions. If you can handle 36 hours of that, then YES!