The Jardín Botánico is one of Guatemala City's calmer small pleasures, a green pocket attached to the country's natural history and university collections. It is not a sprawling tropical garden; its value is in the concentrated display of native and regional plants within the middle of the capital.
Visit when you want a breather from traffic and museums. The garden works well with nearby Zone 10 stops, and it gives a useful glimpse of Guatemala's plant diversity before or after trips into the highlands and lowland forests.