Intercity travel after sunset anywhere in Guatemala is extremely dangerous. Travelers in private vehicles have been robbed, abducted, and murdered. There have also been incidents during daylight hours. Large capacity rented vehicles and travel agency vans are sometimes targeted by highway bandits. If confronted by armed bandits, those who accede to all requests without arguing are usually not physically harmed.
Bandits often shoot at travelers who try to outrun roadblocks.
Travel to the lake by any other route is dangerous. Boat travel on Lake Atitlan is dangerous in the late afternoon because of frequent bad weather conditions. Travelers need plenty of time to complete border crossing formalities, which can be lengthy, in order to arrive at a major town before dark. U.S. citizens may register at the Consular Section of the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala City to obtain updated information on travel and security within Guatemala. When the army was divested of its governing role as a result of the 1985 democratic elections, it rededicated itself to the professionalization of its forces and to combat against the insurgents.