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You have the option to head into the attractive La Sabana countryside, dotted with greenhouses that assist the region's lucrative cut-flower industry. Zipaquirá is home to a still functioning, centuries-old salt mine. Nearly 200m beneath the earth is an extraordinary, mysterious salt cathedral, its vast pillars and walls made from glistening salt. There are 14 stations of the cross sculpted by different Colombian artists..jpg)
Today there is a full day excursion to the archaeological park, about 3km from the town. Here more than 100 statues, some of which are thought to date back to 3,300BC, stand amid the forested countryside. Alongside them are circular burial houses, only about a third of which have been excavated, into which human sacrifices and offerings to the gods were made.
Time will be spent at a coffee ranch and there is a guided tour of a local farm, where you gain an insight into subsistence agriculture in the region. Learn about fruit production and tropical flower cultivation as well as the intricacies of the coffee production process, including the picking, de-pulping, washing, drying and roasting of the beans. There are opportunities to sample the final product. There is also the chance to drive out to traditional village Salento, its houses adorned with balconies bursting with flowers, and with wonderful views of the Cordillera Central emerging from behind elegant colonial buildings..jpg)
Travel back to Armenia before boarding a flight via Bogota to the
Caribbean coast and the city of Santa Marta. From here it is a short 1.5
hour drive to the edge of the incredible Parque Nacional Tayrona where
your posada is located. This dazzling region is one of thick, humid
jungle and exquisite unspoiled beaches fringed by coconut palms and
peppered with vast, smooth boulders. It was once home to the indigenous
Tayrona indians. A private bus then takes you back past Santa Marta and then inland to the small provincial town of Aracataca (2.5 hours). The town is famous as the birth place of Gabriel García Márquez, and provides a good place to stop for lunch. Márquez is arguably Latin America’s most famous writer and his works; (including ‘One Hundred Years of Solitude’) often feature in lists of the greatest novels ever written. He was born in Aracataca in 1927, and his birthplace features in some of his stories as the fictional town of Macondo. Today the family house he was raised in is a museum, and you will have time to visit the home of the Nobel Prize winning author.
A further 5 hour journey past banana and oil palm plantations leads to the small provincial town of Mompos. Situated on the eastern banks of the Magdalena River, this 16th-century town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one feels as if transported into a Gabriel García Marquez novel, wandering streets fronted by whitewashed colonial buildings and mansions which were once home to powerful Spanish merchants (for whom the town was an important stopping-off point on the trade route to Cartagena). Spend 2 days in these beautiful surroundings, relaxing in the shady plazas, lapping up the atmosphere, and enjoy the natural scenery on the river banks on an included boat trip.
The day is spent travelling back by private vehicle to the Caribbean coast and the famous city of Cartagena.
Caribbean's most exotic and romantic colonial city, Cartagena was
founded in 1533, quickly blossoming to become the main Spanish port in
the Caribbean, and a gateway to the north of the continent. Treasure
plundered from native inhabitants was stored here until the galleons
could ship it back to Spain, and it therefore became a tempting target
for pirates. In order to protect their booty, the Spanish constructed an
elaborate system of ramparts, which still encircle the town.
Today, while Cartagena has expanded dramatically, the walled centre has changed very little, allowing a glimpse of 16th and 17th-century Spanish architecture and town planning. Enjoy the shade provided by the buildings in these labyrinthine, cobbled streets, and explore the monasteries, palaces, churches, plazas and imposing mansions where the overhanging balconies are heavy with flowers.
City |
Comfort |
Bogota | Casa Deco |
San Agustin | Hacienda Akawanka |
Coffee Region | Finca La Cabana |
Santa Marta | Casa del Piano |
Mompos | Casa Amarilla |
Cartagena | Don Pedro de Heredia |
