Where Excellence Meets Experience: Guide Training 2025

Over 50 guides from five countries came together in the Yucatán this fall for Viaventure’s annual guide training. They traveled from Guatemala, Mexico, Costa Rica, Belize, and Panama. These veteran storytellers have spent years leading travelers through the region’s most remarkable landscapes. For one week, they became students again.

This training serves a clear purpose: create an environment where guides sharpen their skills, share their knowledge, and build a community of excellence. Our guides make our trips special. They transform itineraries into experiences.

Day One: Stories Take Shape

The training began in Pac Chen, a Maya community deep in the Yucatán jungle. On the first day, guides faced an immediate challenge. They were paired with colleagues from different countries, intentionally mixed to bring diverse perspectives together. Their task: create a story about teamwork during the short hike to the cenote.

As they walked through the jungle, strangers became collaborators. They had to craft narratives on the move, practicing the storytelling skills that define great guiding. Afterward, each pair presented their stories to the group. Then came the rappelling. One by one, guides descended into the cenote, supported by teammates they’d met just hours before. The day closed with zip-lining and dinner prepared by the Pac Chen community.

The Icebreaker: Palo Encebado

The next morning brought the activity that would transform the group dynamic. Someone had erected a palo encebado in the center of camp! This greasy pole is a traditional game throughout Latin America. Teams work together to climb a grease-covered pole and claim the prize at the top.

The guides split into six teams. What followed was equal parts strategy, chaos, and laughter. Teams built human pyramids, with guides climbing onto each other’s shoulders to gain height. They slipped, regrouped, and tried again. The competitive spirit emerged, but so did something more important, genuine camaraderie.

By the time someone finally reached the top, the formality of Day One had dissolved. These colleagues had become a team.

Building Systems That Work

With the ice broken, the real work began. Carolina, our logistics manager, led a session on operational best practices. She covered coordination and communication between guides in the field and our home office. For client companies partnering with Viaventure, this operational backbone is crucial. Seamless logistics and consistent communication ensure that every trip runs smoothly, no matter which country or which guide is leading it.

Next came the product development workshop. Over 50 guides in one room meant decades of combined field experience. They brainstormed new ways to reinterpret existing experiences and developed entirely new activities. One standout idea: a Day of the Dead bone cleansing ceremony that can be offered throughout the year, not just during the traditional holiday. The knowledge that emerged from this collaborative session will shape Viaventure’s offerings for years to come.

Moving to Akumal

On the third day, the group relocated to Akumal. The focus shifted to marine environments. Guides spent the day snorkeling and learning about sea turtle conservation efforts. Ivan Penie walked them through the sanctuary’s work and best practices for protecting these endangered creatures. For guides who regularly lead coastal trips, this hands-on training provides the context that transforms a snorkel tour into a meaningful conservation experience.

The Crescendo: Archaeology at the Cutting Edge

The final day brought the training’s highlight. Francisco Estrada-Belli took the floor for the closing session.

Estrada-Belli is a National Geographic Explorer and research professor at Tulane University. He specializes in Maya archaeology and remote sensing. He co-directs Guatemala’s Pacunam Lidar Initiative—the largest archaeological survey ever conducted in the Maya lowlands. His work with LIDAR technology has revolutionized how we understand Maya civilization. LIDAR uses laser mapping that can penetrate jungle canopy to reveal structures hidden for centuries.

“LiDAR is revolutionizing archaeology the way the Hubble Space Telescope revolutionized astronomy,” Estrada-Belli explained. Recent discoveries showed that Tikal, Guatemala’s largest Maya city, was at least four times bigger than previously thought. Researchers found raised roads, terraced fields, reservoirs, and defensive fortifications that had been invisible beneath the jungle.

For guides who work daily in regions where these discoveries happen, having direct access to the archaeologist making them is invaluable. The Maya world draws travelers to Central America and Mexico. As new sites emerge and our understanding expands, guides need to stay current. Estrada-Belli gave them something rare: a direct line to cutting-edge research they can share with their travelers.

What It All Means

That evening, guides gathered for a farewell dinner on Akumal’s beach. The group that had arrived as a mix of strangers and familiar faces five days earlier now exchanged contact information and made plans to visit each other’s regions.

We trust these guides to represent Viaventure in the field. They bring destinations to life through storytelling. They handle unexpected challenges with expertise. They create connections between travelers and communities. They coordinate seamlessly with our home office to ensure consistent, high-quality service.

Investing in their growth means investing in every trip we run. The palo encebado was the beginning. Together, they’d climbed toward a shared standard of excellence that defines guiding for Viaventure.