• What to know if you go • Photos

William Rawlings/Special (ENLARGE)

The Mayan ruins of Joya de Cer?n -- called 'the Pompeii of the Americas' -- mark the site of a village buried by a volcanic eruption around A.D. 640 and discovered only in 1976.

William Rawlings/Special (ENLARGE)

A young vendor sells squash at a market in Juay?a, El Salvador, the site of a twice-weekly food festival where locals go for music and relaxation.

William Rawlings/Special (ENLARGE)

These colorful flowers in a stone bowl brightened the author's visit to El Jard'n de Celeste, a rustic hostel set amid coffee plants.

San Salvador, El Salvador — In all honesty, El Salvador would not have been our first choice for a long weekend out of town. On the other hand, less than 24 hours after arriving, we were plotting our return for a leisurely vacation of a week or two.

El Salvador seems to be inextricably linked in the American psyche with "civil war" and "death squads," chilling words that would give pause to anyone thinking of spending a vacation here. But times have changed. This smallest of the Central American countries, while not yet the tourist magnet that Costa Rica and Guatemala have become, has much to offer the adventure traveler wanting to be among the first to explore an exciting new destination.

Think of Costa Rica in the 1960s, when prices were cheap, the people friendly and the atmosphere authentic. Imagine villages that seem scarcely changed for the last hundred years, their cobblestone streets lined with whitewashed adobe houses with handmade red tile roofs. But unlike Costa Rica — where you're likely to run into your neighbor from Alpharetta on the beaches near Quepos — you'll think you have the whole country to yourself.

A quick flight

My brother and I ended up in El Salvador based on three simple facts. We speak poor but passable Spanish and enjoy traveling in Latin America. We had one particular weekend in late April when we could both be away. We didn't want to waste our limited time on long flights and airport layovers.

More or less by exclusion, we ended up booking a nonstop Delta flight from Atlanta to San Salvador. With a travel time of less than 3.5 hours, we reasoned that we could squeeze in an extra day of touring.

We spent our first night at Los Almendros de San Lorenzo, an exquisitely restored 200-year-old hacienda in the heart of the village of Suchitoto. Under the careful hand of owner Pascal Lebailly, a former Parisian, it has been transformed into a six-room inn, with gardens, a pool and a restaurant. With nightly rates of less than $100 including breakfast, it is expensive by Salvadoran standards but an amazing value to U.S. travelers.

The village of Suchitoto itself is a jewel — "Central America as it used to be," in Lebailly's words. Located about 28 miles northeast of San Salvador, the capital, it's perched high atop an escarpment that overlooks the beautiful (but polluted) Lago Suchitlán, a man-made reservoir for hydroelectric power.

Town once in heart of rebel territory

During the long civil war in the 1980s and '90s, Suchitoto lay in the heart of rebel territory and was essentially abandoned. It is now undergoing a renaissance as an unspoiled tourist destination. The village church overlooks a cobblestone square surrounded by classic colonial architecture. Several small hotels and guesthouses are within easy walking distance.

San Salvador sprawls across a broad valley between the active Volcán San Salvador on one side and Lago de Ilopango, a 6-mile-wide crater lake, on the other. It's a crowded, bustling city, founded in the early 16th century. Hotels are available in all price ranges, but they cater mainly to business travelers. While the central city has some mildly interesting buildings and parks, tourists should spend their time elsewhere in the country.

Northwest of San Salvador, in the fertile Zapotitán Valley, are the Mayan ruins of Joya de Cerén, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that is often referred to as "the Pompeii of the Americas." Ongoing excavations have uncovered a village buried under ash from a volcanic eruption about A.D. 640 and discovered only in 1976. Exquisitely preserved artifacts have given archaeologists a clear view of the day-to-day life of the Mayan people near the peak of their civilization. A new museum, with detailed exhibits, puts these important findings into perspective.

Mayan ruins of San Andrés

Nearby are the ruins of San Andrés, a major ceremonial complex that formed part of a Mayan regional capital more than 1,000 years ago. A series of pyramids and buildings there have been only partly excavated. More wonders, under dozens of tree-covered mounds, await the archaeologist's trowel.

The western part of El Salvador is a visual feast. The landscape is dominated by the Sierra Apaneca Ilamatepec and its volcanoes. The tallest of these is Volcán Santa Ana, at about 7,800 feet, a raw, black cone thrust up from the earth. The rolling terrain is fertile coffee-producing country, dotted with small villages.

We spent the night at El Jardín de Celeste, a rustic hostel with individual cabins nestled between coffee plants high on a volcanic slope. Dozens of blooming orchids of various varieties clung to every tree and wall, breathing the moist mountain air. We hitchhiked into the tiny settlement of Concepción de Ataco, where a late-evening snack of beer and pupusas set us back a couple of dollars. (Pupusas are a staple food in El Salvador, made of corn and water, similar to a Mexican tortilla but thicker.)

On Sunday afternoon, we hit the twice-weekly food festival at nearby Juayúa, mixing with locals out for an afternoon of music and relaxation. Hundreds of vendors' stalls serving everything from conejo (rabbit) to cangrejo (crab) lined the streets. Old couples danced to distinctly modern music while onlookers sipped chicha or aguardiente mixed with sweetened milk. As the only foreign tourists in sight, we felt as if we'd walked into the filming of a travelogue.

For our last night in El Salvador, we stayed at the beachfront Hotel Pacific Paradise on the Costa del Sol, southeast of San Salvador. Our guide said it was "very deluxe," and, indeed, the brochure described it as "Your Paradise on the Pacific: An Unforgettable Experience." Visually it was impressive, albeit reminiscent of the Buccaneer Motor Inn on Jekyll Island in the mid-1960s. Palm-tree-shaded cabanas and lush green lawns fronted on a wide volcanic sand beach.

Not for the average American

The amenities, however, were less than perfect. The single taps in the sink and shower produced only cold water. The generator that powered the hotel blinked on and off. We read the widely posted signs detailing what to do in case of an earthquake, but fortunately never had to heed the instructions.

As a vacation destination, El Salvador is not for the average American. The country is sorely lacking in tourist infrastructure, English is not widely spoken, and accommodation standards may be disappointing. As in many Third World countries, poverty is a problem, and basic government services are often overwhelmed by a growing population.

On the other hand, the people are friendly and hardworking, the cost of travel is relatively cheap, and it's a quick direct flight from Atlanta. My brother and I enjoyed ourselves immensely, and we would not hesitate to take our families back for a long stay in one of the smaller mountain towns.

The Salvadoran government is aware of the challenges it faces in attracting tourism. I suspect that, within a decade or two, El Salvador will become a regular retreat for Americans seeking respite in the sun. Until that happens, I'll be going back again and again.

William Rawlings of Sandersville is a physician and author. His fourth novel, "Crossword," is scheduled for publication in September.

IF YOU GO

Delta Air Lines flies nonstop from Atlanta to San Salvador. Expect to pay about $480 round trip, including taxes and fees.

When to go

The best months are from November to March, when the weather can be expected to be clear and dry. The rainy season lasts from May to October, and travel may be impossible then in some rural areas.

Getting around

There is an excellent system of local buses, with taxicabs in the larger towns. Rental cars are available at rates more or less comparable with the United States. (During the rainy season, consider a four-wheel-drive vehicle.) Unless you're fluent in Spanish, however, you'd be far better served to hire a guide and/or driver.

Where to stay

• In Suchitoto: Los Almendros de San Lorenzo (www.hotelsalvador.com); La Posada de Suchitlán (www.laposada.com.sv)

• In Joya de Cerén: Magazine article on El Jardín de Celeste (in Spanish with photos): www.elsalvador.com/mujeres/2005/09/escapadas/index.asp

Money and costs

The U.S. dollar was adopted as the official currency of El Salvador in 2001. Most prices are quite low by U.S. standards. As in many Third World countries, traveler's checks may be difficult or impossible to cash, and ATMs are available only in the larger cities. Credit cards, especially Visa and MasterCard, are widely accepted.

Travel resources

• Guidebooks: Rough Guides and Lonely Planet have Central American guidebooks with adequate sections on El Salvador. They provide all the basic information you may need to plan your trip.

• On the Web: For general information, go to

www.elsalvadorturismo.gob.sv or en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Salvador. For information on Joya de Cerén, go to whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=675.

Tour operators

We used Amor Tours (www.amortours.com.sv) and were pleased with the service and costs. If you'd like to contact an English-speaking guide directly, we'd recommend Moises Flores (moisesturismo@yahoo.com) or his sister-in-law, Irene Perez (sireneelsalvador@yahoo.com). Both are competent, fun and speak flawless English.

About El Salvador

• Location: El Salvador lies on the southern coast of Central America bordered on the south by the Pacific, on the northwest by Guatemala and on the northeast by Honduras. It is the smallest country in the region and the only one that lacks a Caribbean coastline.

• Size: About 8,124 square miles or slightly less than the state of Massachusetts.

• Population: Estimated to be 6.8 million, the most densely populated country in Central America. As many as 3 million expatriates (the exact number is uncertain) live elsewhere, driven out of the country by the poverty and wars of the 20th century. More than a million of these (some estimate 2 million) live in the United States, many as undocumented workers.

• Economy: It's based on agriculture (especially coffee) and manufacturing, with the United States being El Salvador's main trading partner. An estimated 17 percent of the country's gross domestic product comes from funds sent home by Salvadoran expatriates. The government would like to increase tourism.

• Travelers' safety: The consensus seems to be that El Salvador is neither more nor less dangerous than other Central American countries, including Guatemala and Costa Rica. Common-sense precautions are always necessary whether traveling at home or abroad. For current precautions, go to the State Department's Web site: travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1109.html.

Sources: Rough Guides' and Lonely Planet's Central American guidebooks; research by William Rawlings.