Palacio Nacional
Palacio Nacional
4.5
Historic SitesArt MuseumsHistory Museums
9:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
9:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
9:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
9:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
9:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
9:30 AM - 5:00 PM
About
The elaborate interior of this former presidential palace houses paintings and sculptures by famous Guatemalan artists.
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listing
Tours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
What is Travellers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles461 reviews
Excellent
233
Very good
156
Average
55
Poor
11
Terrible
6

Lando
Belize City, Belize9 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023 • Family
Tour was very good with plenty of historical information. Many beautiful symbolic paintings. Tour cost is Q40 and lasts around 45 minutes to an hour. Tour was done in spanish with english translation.
Written 6 August 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

world_citizen38
Los Angeles, CA242 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
When you first arrive there is security- secret service like men- who ask your nationality and a form of ID. For locals its free but for tourists there is a semi-small fee. We had to wait about 30 minutes for the next tour because the one inside had just stared. The security men are actually the tour guides. The tour lasts about 30 minutes and then they let you wander in a specified section that mocks a museum. As you walk around the guide explains the paintings on the wall, the plaques at the end of halls, and the history of the National Palace. You are encouraged to ask questions. They let you take pictures but it is polite to ask before you do. You should plan to go to the National Palace along with other places in the Capital because it does not take more than an hour, if you dont wait for the next tour. If you do the most time you would spend there is an hour and 45 minutes.
Written 2 February 2010
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

TimWandMelG
Austin, TX328 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2017 • Couples
How difficult is it to keep your potential customers updated on your planned opening times buy updating your own website? We travelled across the city on both Sunday 2nd July and again on Tuesday 4th July to see one of the top attractions in Guatemala to be told on the first visit they were closed for team-building or some other event (the story changed depending on which member of staff we asked) and then for another unspecified event the second time. We were therefore unable to see the National Palace as a result of sheer laziness and incompetence by the staff there hence this low score. If you’re not open, update the damn website.
Written 12 July 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

ECTravelerW
Ventura, CA59 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2013 • Solo
I tried to get a English tour in November 2013. Nothing free available in English or Spanish. Cost for Spanish language tour was more than $10.
Written 28 November 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Myo M
Coquitlam, Canada27 072 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020
On a "guided tour" for about 45 minutes, it was "fairly impressive" to see the 2 levels of this great building (one of a "pretty long" length to see from outside before entering) starting from its "inner courtyard" (also another similar one later on) to the great-sized & colorful murals beside 2 stairways (of which I was quite impressed by the one depicting a battle scene or such between the Spanish & the natives which is just "quite a detailed one" with plenty of human figures) to 2 rooms on the 2nd level each with "a fair amount of splendor" inside (one room with like a perfectly-kept big national flag on the wall straight ahead & an impressive dome above, and the other room with a number of beautiful stained-glass drawings on windows) back to the 1st level to go through some gallery-like area (with modern art paintings) and finally finishing the tour at the museum-like area back near the entrance (where on display some more paintings, a number of antique-type items & a "pretty-good-sized" miniature of this palace which I would also describe as a smaller "identical version" of this building due to its impressive craftsmanship!). And, it was overall a "nice work" by the lady who conducted the tour making sure that we saw all needed to be seen, and yes such a tour is a good idea I would say for this building with its interior kind of "spread out" (compared to the 2 other "national palaces" visited later in Mexico, namely in Merida & Mexico City, with their interior settings more-or-less similar to this palace but with "more limited" areas to walk around which can be done easily on one's own).

Located on the north side of the city's "main plaza" Plaza Mayor de la Constitucion, also to have a worthwhile time is on the "nicely spacious" plaza itself (with a fountain & a big national flag in the middle where there's also a "raised platform" to go up, and also with just plenty of pigeons seen at the time spread out all over its ground), and yes definitely should not be missed along with the Palace & Plaza is the city's "main cathedral" Catedral Metropolitana on the Plaza's east side (with its "main aisle" one of greatness lined with nice-sized paintings & "super-sized" medals of such never seen at any other cathedral). And if you're for some souvenir shopping & "local meals", a very nice place for those is Mercado Central in just a close vicinity to the Plaza (by turning left onto the "pedestrian street" from the far-left corner after the walk across the Plaza from this palace).
Written 12 December 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

trevelyon
oakland273 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020 • Friends
Checked out this landmark while in Guatemala City. Nothing facy. Good place to take a photo to memorialize a trip to Guatemala.
Written 18 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

LUCILA T
New Orleans, LA174 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2019
we admired the Palacio from the outside and also got to see the changing of the guards. it was amazing, the history was awesome.
Written 6 October 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jean-Marie S
Washington DC952 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2019 • Family
We went to National Palace on Thursday, got there 20 minutes before first tour at 10am. Sign outside listed five tours that day. Official guides told us to return in fifteen minutes for tour. Returned at 9:55. No tour: a group of schoolchildren apparently were occupying the Palace's 350 rooms. They told us to return for 2pm tour that "definitely" would take place. We built the rest of the day around it. Returned at 1:50. No tour: a "VIP is in the Place and no one can enter." The official guide told us to wait a few minutes, he would get us in. Three minutes later, he returned and said, "What am I going to lie for? There are not going to be any more tours today because we don't know when the VIP will leave." The irony is that when I lived in Guatemala in the 1980s, during a succession of military dictatorships, I came and went from the Palace whenever, including on the day of the March 23, 1982 coup. Net, net, don't waste your time. Go to the zoo, where they seem to be able to accommodate 20 busses of schoolchildren and a parking lot full of tourists, no problem.
Written 23 March 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Linda B
Raleigh, NC2 201 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2017 • Friends
Even though the tour book I had indicated it was open daily. The exterior is worth a look see. On the other corner from the Cathedral.
Written 1 January 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Silviafigueroagt
Escazu, Costa Rica110 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2016 • Family
Last year, I went to a "Palacio Tour". It´s incredible how many things you don´t now about your country, your presidents, and the magnificent things we have in Guatemala.
Written 31 January 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Showing results 1-10 of 158
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing

PALACIO NACIONAL (2024) All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

All Guatemala City HotelsGuatemala City Hotel DealsLast Minute Hotels in Guatemala City
All things to do in Guatemala City
Day Trips in Guatemala CityAmusement Parks in Guatemala City
RestaurantsFlightsHoliday HomesTravel StoriesCruisesCar Hire