Santo Tomas Church
Santo Tomas Church
4.5
About
Mayans enter through the front door, but others are relegated to the side door of this unusual 1540 church which combines Catholic and Mayan spiritual practices.
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listingTours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
Full view
Revenue impacts the experiences featured on this page, learn more.
Plan your visit
The area
Address
Best nearby
We rank these restaurants and attractions by balancing reviews from our members with how close they are to this location.
Restaurants
23 within 5 kms
Contribute
Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
Popular mentions
We perform checks on reviews.
Tripadvisor’s approach to reviews
Before posting, each Tripadvisor review goes through an automated tracking system, which collects information, answering the following questions: how, what, where and when. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our community guidelines, the review is not published.
When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site.
Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our community guidelines.
Learn more about our review moderation.
4.5
324 reviews
Excellent
163
Very good
114
Average
41
Poor
5
Terrible
1
Anneliese T
28 contributions
Feb 2023
A very beautiful but simple church. A lot of wood was used to build altar and side panels. It was quite a refreshing site from the usual opulence we are finding in Catholic Churches
Written 13 March 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.
VeganMadeEasy
Glen Ellyn, IL1,552 contributions
Nov 2022 • Couples
Place of worship in the middle of a market. Interesting how catholic and Mayan religion meet here. Certainly a place you want to spend a few minutes.
Written 17 November 2022
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.
Luis F
Guatemala City, Guatemala129 contributions
Dec 2020
Severe, intriguing, blackened by centuries of smoke, this is a place to remember. It is like time traveling.
Written 29 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.
guatemejor
Tikal National Park, Guatemala64 contributions
Mar 2020
is good for the visitors that stay in chichi the night before to the marketto know that all the rituals insght the chrch start by 10 Am that time the mass end (CATHOLIC)THEN THE ALTARS AREplaced for the Mayan rituals,you would like to experience the mass that take place in english and Quiche,but it woul be boring if you have no patients,Also you can view the people of the cofradias coming to or living the church.
Written 2 April 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.
colonial
County Galway, Ireland160 contributions
May 2019
This church needs to be painted and restored it is used as a loitering ground for vendors. Such a shame.
Written 15 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.
BRodrig
Hillsboro, OR45 contributions
Feb 2020 • Friends
We had an “authorized guide” (with a special guide vest) take us through both churches and the murals by the museum. It was totally worth the cost. She was very thorough and was able to answer all our questions. It makes more sense to go through the main church with someone explaining the Catholic and Mayan traditions held within and outside the church.
Written 16 February 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.
PandaHouston
Houston, TX6,233 contributions
Dec 2019
We came to Chichicastenango on a Sunday as a day trip from Guatemala with Gray Line tours.
We walked around the market first before coming to the Santo Tomas Church. On the steps, there are a lot of vendors trying to sell you things. When we came on Sunday, they were holding mass and photos were not allowed. We were allowed to go in and observe. It is not a big church.
We walked around the market first before coming to the Santo Tomas Church. On the steps, there are a lot of vendors trying to sell you things. When we came on Sunday, they were holding mass and photos were not allowed. We were allowed to go in and observe. It is not a big church.
Written 15 December 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.
GTravellerG80210
Denver, CO594 contributions
Oct 2019
The church has very steep steps. On Sundays, the market spills on the church's steps making them even more treacherous. Inside you will find penitent worshipers lighting candles, chanting, burning incense, and expressing their faith. A must see stop in Chichicastenango.
Written 6 November 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.
GregEng
Little Rock, AR32 contributions
Jul 2019 • Friends
A must see when in chichi. Very crowded on market days with LOTS of flowers and incense. Picturesque
Written 29 July 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.
Rufli K
London, UK500 contributions
Apr 2019 • Couples
Interesting church, but then there are many like this all over Guatemala and this one does not justify the long drive there. Clearly the center of town. Sadly most of the old paintings are totally black. When we enquired why they were not restored, we were told that if renovated they would be stolen!
Written 26 May 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.
No questions have been asked about this experience
Revenue impacts the experiences featured on this page, learn more.
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 listingSanto Tomas Church, Chichicastenango
Frequently Asked Questions about Santo Tomas Church
- Hotels near Santo Tomas Church:
- (0.14 km) Hotel Museo Mayan Inn
- (0.14 km) Hotel Giron
- (0.20 km) Santo Tomas Hotel
- (0.28 km) Posada El Arco
- (0.29 km) Hospedaje San Jeronimo
- Restaurants near Santo Tomas Church:
- (0.02 km) Q'ukumatz Placita
- (0.06 km) La Cocina Del Rey Kiche
- (0.09 km) Casa de San Juan
- (0.13 km) Las Brasas
- (0.09 km) Restaurante Don Pasqual