12 Day Heart Of Colombia Coffee and Culture

This is an example of a fully customizable 10-day package tour.

Full list of Bogotá tours, Full list of Medellín tours, Full list of Coffee Zone tours

This 12-Day Package will take you deep into the heart of Colombian Culture, with an immersion into 3 very different zones, offering you the best tours and experiences available from the center of this great country. 
You will spend 4 days and nights in and around the capital of Bogotá. Including a night in the 400-year-old city of Villa de Leyva.
You will enjoy 3 days and 2 nights around the heart of the Coffee Zone.
Your last 5 days will be spent exploring Medellín and its surroundings. Including a night in Guatape and 4 nights in the heart of Medellín.

Arrive at any time, your driver will be waiting to collect you from the airport and take you to your hotel.
There are no activities planned for this day, so just relax and drink plenty of water to help you adjust to the altitude. 

You’ll be collected from your accommodation in Bogotá and taken on a guided excursion, where you’ll encounter the most important historical locations within La Candelaria. Just some of the stops on your tour through Bogotás oldest neighborhood will be Bolivar Plaza, Casa Nariño (The Presidents House), Palace of Justice, Catedral Primada de Colombia, Iglesia de San Francisco, Colón Theater, Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Carmen, Séptima (carrera 7), and the Chorro de Quevedo Plaza.

During your time in La Candelaria, you'll be enjoying a few hours strolling through El Museo del Oro (Gold Museum) of Bogotá. This grand 3 story museum displays a selection of pre-Columbian gold, other metal alloys, and a mix of pottery, stone, shell, wood, and textile objects, made from ancient indigenous Colombian cultures. With over 55,000 pieces of golden artifacts, this is the largest collection of gold artifacts in the world.

Once you have visited this amazing museum and seen the many beautiful sites La Candelaria has to offer, it will be time for you to ascend to the great height of 10,341 ft (3152m) and the summit of Monserrate; almost 2,000 ft higher than Bogotá. As well as learning the historical importance of this mountain to the indigenous Musica, you’ll also enjoy time to wander through the artisan markets, visit a beautiful 17th-century monastery and enjoy some of the most spectacular panoramic views of the capital city of this great nation. 

You’ll be picked up from your hotel in Bogotá and be taken directly to the salt mine of Zipaquirá, where you’ll uncover the ingenuity of the people who 590 ft (180 m) underground converted this ancient salt mine into the amazing church that receives as many as 3000 people every Sunday of the year.
Once you’ve finished your tour, taken many many photos and come to understand how important this location has been for hundreds of years to the locals of this area you’ll take the short trip to the town of Zipaquirá where you’ll wander the streets of Zipaquirá checking out the grand Plaza (main square), Independence Square and one of the oldest churches you can find in Colombia.

Next, travel onto Ráquira, a small artisan town and a dream location for anyone wishing to do a bit of shopping. You'll find everything here from hammocks to pottery and all Colombian made. For those interested in taking photos and not shopping, there are some fantastic streets and a wonderful town plaza full of life-size (and larger) clay statues.

Lastly, arrive in Villa de Leyva, a beautiful colonial town with cobblestone streets and 16th century architecture. You will be escorted to your hotel, and then you are free to enjoy the evening dining at a nice restaurant.

Following this, you'll continue onto the day's final destination of Villa de Leyva. Arriving in the late afternoon you'll enjoy a wonderful night with the cobblestone streets lite with the romantic light of the lanterns littering the sides and walls of the colonial buildings.

Day 4: Exploration of Villa de Leyva

Awake in this peaceful colonial city feeling like you're back in the 16th century. Following a delicious breakfast at your hotel, your guide will collect you to begin your tour of this unique location. Starting with a 1.5-hour stroll around the beautiful cobblestone streets leading to the largest plaza in Colombia and visiting the following 3 sites around Villa de Leyva:

• Monasterio Del Santo Eccehomo -  Declared part of Colombia’s architectural heritage in 1998, the initial convent was founded in 1620. This is simply a beautiful monastery built on a hillside and consisting of a wonderful cloister, church, cemetery, and plaza, with wonderful views.
• The Terracotta House - Explore the largest piece of pottery in the world. Wander through the many rooms taking photos from many angles. This really is quite amazing!
• The Fossil Museum - See, touch, and feel the bones of dinosaurs that once ruled this world.

Following a wonderful lunch at one of the many fantastic restaurants, you'll travel back to the Capital city of Colombia!

Day 5: Santa Rosa Thermal Pools

Enjoy a short flight to the heart of the coffee Zone; Pereira, where your transport will be waiting to take you to the wonderful hot springs of Santa Rosa.

The Thermal Pools of Santa Rosa is truly one of the most picturesque locations you can visit while in Colombia. Set in a valley surrounded by tropical rainforest the hot springs are quite simply amazing! 

You can move through the pools finding your perfect temperature, as the boiling hot water enters from the center and the cool refreshing mountain water enters from the sides. You'll absolutely fall in love with the amazing waterfall that is an absolute must to visit.

Following this relaxing experience, you'll carry on to your hotel in Salento.

Day 6: Wax palms, Salento & Coffee

This morning you'll start your day with some beautiful views from the Salento Mirador (Lookout), and a look down into the valley you will soon venture through. 

Next, you'll take a trip into the lush Cocora Valley and a guided tour of the Wax Palm Forest. This valley is spectacular by itself, but when combined with the forest filled with the tallest wax palms in the world, it becomes an almost spiritual experience. You'll get to spend a few hours walking through this peaceful zone with more beautiful views in every direction. 

After you've stopped for a wonderful lunch you'll continue onto a sensational coffee tour. This is one of the best coffee tours in Colombia and so very unique. The reason being the philosophy of this single lady owner. She has created a Finca that is completely pesticide and machinery free. Every part of the entire process is done by hand and with this, you'll discover the traditional methods of growing the perfect coffee bean. You'll also get to explore this wonderful Finca and find so much more than just coffee is grown here, such as a large variety of fruits as well. You'll learn the complete process from the seed to the cup, including handpicking a few beans yourself.

Journey to one of the most colorful towns in Colombia; Filandia. Famous for its gastronomy, wonderful Colombian Culture architecture, and fabulous views, you'll enjoy a walking tour where you'll be able to take many photos of the beautiful buildings, along with a trip to the mirador (lookout) where you'll be amazed at the spectacular 360' views you receive.

Enjoy a short flight from Pereira to Medellín.

You'll be collected on arrival and taken directly to your hotel to check in and relax in your new settings. 

You'll start your day with a cable car ride over the hundreds of houses in Comuna 13. Many of these houses and settlements belong to many displaced people from rural areas. Due to a complicated internal conflict between the FARC, Colombian Military, Paramilitaries, and Drug Traffickers, over 7 million people have been displaced in Colombia.

Next, you get to venture inside Comuna 13, something that would certainly have been unimaginable 15 years ago due to the violence and lack of security. Not only is this location the most significant street art district in Medellin, yet it is additionally where the very first open-air electrical escalators in the world were mounted. You’ll get to ride these escalators and get the chance to learn the meanings behind much of the graffiti.

Following this unbelievable tour of the graffiti, you’ll be off to enjoy a fruit tasting of some of the most amazing tropical fruits at Plaza la America. This place has almost every fruit you can imagine and so many we guarantee you’ve never seen before!

Following this, you’ll continue your journey and visit a location full of surprises. Where not only will you find the Medellin Civic Center, administrative buildings like the Medellín City Hall, the Park of Lights, along with some of the most important heritage buildings in Medellin's history. Not only this but you’re also going to see the Eternal Flame, a monument to freedom speech, the biggest vertical garden in Medellín, the giant Monumento a la Raza by Rodrigo Arenas Betancourt, and other interesting sculptures and places.

Carrying on to your nest stop of Parque San Antonio, you’ll find 4 of Botero's sculptures, the most important ones are The Hurt Bird and the Peace Bird, one of the sculptures was destroyed after a terrorist attack in 1995, and the other one, an exact replica of the first one brought to Medellin in 2000.

Next, it’s off for a stop at Botero Plaza, an iconic place additionally referred to as Sculptures Park. This urban space displays 23 sculptures of the renowned son of Medellin and Master Sculptor Fernando Botero.

After wandering through and marveling at this al fresco gallery, you’ll move onto the Cultural Palace, a beautiful neo-Gothic style building, and a visit to the very first church built in Medellin during the colonial period; the Candelaria in 1776, along with the 2nd oldest church la Iglesia de la Veracruz, built-in 1803.

Starting your tour at 8 am you begin your adventure with a stop is Old Peñol Replica Town in Guatape.  This town square was constructed to look exactly like the sunken village of Old Peñol at the bottom of the manmade Peñol-Guatapé reservoir. Here your guide will explain how, why, when, and show you photos of exactly how this town once looked.

You then venture to Guatape Rock also known as Piedra del Peñol, where you can climb the 740 steps to reach the top and have an amazing 360° view of the surrounding area including the 500 km shore-perimeter dam.

Next, you'll travel the short distance to Guatape town (The City of Zocalos) where you’ll walk the streets of this beautiful town and learn what is the Zocalo tradition and why it started. You’ll also get to visit the Plaza (main square), Remembrance Street, boardwalk (Malecón) the church, and maybe enjoy a tuk-tuk ride.

To complete your day you'll check-in to your hotel and enjoy the night in this wonderful lake side setting.

Collected from your hotel around 7am, you’ll relax in your private transport for a drive of around 3 hours to a Cocoa Finca close to the town of San Rafael. Once here you’ll be greeted with a wonderful breakfast of fresh fruit, eggs, Arepa (flat cornbread), and of course one of the freshest hot chocolates you’ll ever have in your life!

Next, it’s off to explore this chocolate farm with an easy hike of around 1.5 hours through the cocoa plantation of a variety of different cocoa trees. Taking a path through areas of bamboo, bananas, cocoa, giant Yarumo trees, you’ll encounter a natural spring that feeds much of this area. And of course, with such an abundance of wonderful flora, you’ll also find a wide variety of fauna. With an amazing number of tropical birds, along with many Marmoset monkeys, sitting in the trees and watching you go by.

Following this exceptional experience in this natural wonderland, you’ll be starting to feel a bit peakish and will make your way back to the main house for a traditional lunch called a Fiambre (Wrapped in banana leaves and consisting of rice, sausage, fried pork, ground meat, boiled or fried egg, platano, and arepa)
Next, it’s time to make some real chocolate yourself. Using a traditional artisan method, you’ll toast the cocoa beans are on top of an open fire until well cooked and you begin to hear a cracking noise. Once they’re ready you’ll put them into a grinder, and you guessed it… you’ll grind the cocoa beans to create wonderfully thick chocolate that is 100% Cocoa. Following this, you’ll add your choice of mixes, nuts, sweets, and create your very own delicious chocolate bar.

Your tour continues with a short walk to the Arenales river for a swim and an exfoliation with a mixture of fresh chocolate and the husk of the cocoa bean. You may be skeptical of such a beauty treatment. But we can assure you, your skin will love the results.

Day 11: Jardin  or Jerico / Medellín

To enjoy the beautiful heritage-listed town of Jardin you'll want to leave early, as the travel time there can be between 3-4 hours. So you'll be collected at 7 am from your hotel to enjoy a wonderful drive through the Antioquia countryside to arrive at the simply beautiful town of Jardin. 

On arrival, you'll enjoy a walking tour of this picturesque town wandering the streets and marveling at the colonial buildings and balconies full of flowers.

Not only this but you'll also get to visit the Jardín de Rocas. This is where you encounter the simply beautiful bird species called the Gallito de Roca (Cock Of The Rock). An absolutely beautiful bright red bird that is absolutely spectacular for birders and all nature lovers alike.

Next, it's off to Cafe de Jardin to discover the wonderful view of Jardin down below. After you've enjoyed the view and a refreshing drink it'll be down into the valley and start your relaxing ride back to Medellín in the late afternoon.

or 

Enjoy a day in Jerico. 

Day 12: Departure Day

We’ll have transport waiting to take you to the airport at your desired time. 

• 11x nights in a double room in your choice of 3-star hotel
• 11x breakfasts, 1x lunch
• Private transfers in an air-conditioned car
• Rides in teleferico (aerial tramway), funicular, cable cars, Willys Jeep
• Airport transfer on first and last day
• Private excursions
• English-speaking bilingual guide on all excursions
• All entrance fees

• International and domestic flights
• Travel Insurance

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