Coban

The city is located in the central part of the country, 219 km north-east of the capital, at an altitude of 1320 meters above the sea. Its name comes from the language of Kekchi Indians and has several versions of interpretation, one of which is from the phrase Cob An (misty place). This is one of the cities that are most beneficial for the traveler who wants to relax inexpensively.

Today Coban is quite large city by local standards, the home to 86 thousand of people. In addition to its administrative functions, it serves as a large agricultural center of the region where coffee is grown. It allows you to call Coban as the city of coffee: in its stores and on its streets you can buy all kinds of grain, and this drink is preparing here with a great skill! By the way, an important contribution to the development of the city was made by the German coffee growers who settled here in the late XIX century.

Coffee lovers should definitely visit a coffee plantation Santa Margarita, where they will be shown and told how the process of cultivation and post-processing of coffee beans is made.

There are many German nineteenth-century buildings in Coban, and it’s quite natural: more than two thousands of Germans lived here before 1941, and they have made a significant contribution to the development of the city. However, their efforts were not appreciated, and the residuary representatives of the "people non grata" had assimilated quickly. There are many descendants of European settlers in Coban today, but there are also representatives of the Native American peoples.

The city is surrounded by mountains covered with orchids. Monja blanca, very rare variety of orchids, is a symbol of the region. Near the town there are several nature reserves. They are represented with a lot of caves, waterfalls and forests that are the home of the rare bird – Resplendent Quetzal. Therefore, Coban is a popular destination for eco-tourism.