Seven kilometers down the road from San Juan Ixcoy [1] is San Pedro Soloma, a fairly prosperous and surprisingly sizable town given its remote location deep in the mountains. It looks rather attractive from the surrounding mountainside as you descend into the green valley it occupies. The Mayans here also speak Q’anjob’al. Many of them have family members living in the United States, adding to the town’s prosperity.
Soloma is a good place to break up the journey if you’re headed north to Barillas [2]. Among the options for accommodations is Hotel Caucaso (3a Calle 3A-37, tel. 7780-6179, $7 d), one block northeast of the plaza, with bare-bones rooms.
The nicest place in town is Hotel Don Chico (4a Avenida 3-65 Zona 1, tel. 7780-6087, $20 d), where the comfortable rooms have hot water and cable TV. There’s also underground parking and an Internet access center next door on the edge of a large parking lot bordering the hotel.
Also found facing this lot is Restaurante El Eden (all meals daily), which serves good Guatemalan fare as well as pastas, sandwiches, and decent breakfasts.
Another decent choice is Restaurante Alma Latina, on the plaza.
The pavement ends in Soloma, the rest of the way being a fairly well-maintained dirt road.
Links:
[1] http://www.moon.com/destinations/guatemala/the-western-highlands/huehuetenango-frontier/san-juan-ixcoy-barillas
[2] http://www.moon.com/destinations/guatemala/the-western-highlands/huehuetenango-frontier/san-juan-ixcoy-barillas/barillas