El Chal is a municipality in the Guatemalan department of Petén, located approximately 50 kilometres (31 mi) southeast of the departmental capital, Flores.

It borders the municipalities of Santa Ana to the north, Dolores to the east, Poptún to the south, Sayaxché to the west, and San Francisco to the northwest.

[5] El Chal lies in the watershed of the Pasión River,[6] being drained by its tributaries such as the San Juan, Poxte and Machaquila.

The largest body of water in the municipality is Lake Oquevix, which is located on the border between El Chal and Santa Ana and covers about 2.75 square kilometres (1.06 sq mi).

The first attempt at settling the area was made by the family of Ernesto Montejo and Felicita Cuoch in 1935, although they eventually returned to Santo Toribio near Dolores.

[7][2] On 4 February 2014, the Congress of the Republic of Guatemala decreed the creation of El Chal from territory previously part of the municipality of Dolores.

[1][2] Cattle farming has developed rapidly in recent years,[1] such that El Chal leads all municipalities in Petén in milk production, averaging 60,000 litres daily.

[2] The municipal seat of El Chal lies on Central American Highway 13, the main road connection between Petén and the rest of Guatemala.