North and Central America and Caribbean

Insurance

 

We recommend that you obtain comprehensive travel and medical insurance before travelling.  You should check any exclusions, and that your policy covers you for all the activities you want to undertake. For more general information see our Travel insurance page.

If things do go wrong when you are overseas then this is our How we can help page.

Registration

Register with our LOCATE service to tell us when and where you are travelling abroad or where you live abroad so our consular and crisis staff can provide better assistance to you in an emergency. 

More information about registering with LOCATE

You may also register in person by calling into the British Embassy in Guatemala City.

 

Passports

Passports should be left in a hotel safe/deposit box.  You should ensure that your passport has sufficient validity and a plentiful supply of unused pages before you travel.

The British Embassy in Guatemala City does not issue standard passports. Applications for new passports should be sent to the UK Passport service for the Americas and Caribbean in Washington. Details  of the process can be found at their website www.ukinusa.fco.gov.uk/en/passports. The process may take up to 10 working days. If a courier is used, the cost will be borne by the applicant.

However, in emergencies and some circumstances, we are able to process emergency passports in Guatemala, but it is dependant on your situation. This document is only available if you have held a full passport previously. Please note that this passports is restrictive and only allows for one nominated journey and is not valid via the United States.

Money

You should not rely on debit cards as a means to transfer funds to Guatemala: ATMs sometimes reject them.  Credit cards and travellers' cheques are more reliable.  If credit cards are lost or stolen there may be difficulties obtaining a replacement as the main international courier services from the UK are refusing to accept them for delivery to Guatemala. See the Crime Section above for advice on changing and withdrawing money in Guatemala.

 

The US dollar is the only foreign currency that is freely exchangeable in Guatemala.  It is possible to change Sterling only at the Banco del Quetzal.