Nature, history, culture and adventure, that's Cundinamarca. A destination that imposes itself with different routes and plans for all audiences.Here you can enjoy the landscape of Chingaza National Natural Park,live the experience of climbing rocks in Suesca, practice canoeing in Tobia or ecological walks along the trails and reserves of La Vega; fly paragliding in Sopó and La Calera and walk the cobblestone streets through which the Route Libertadora passed in municipalities such as VIllapinzon, Choconta, Nemocon, Zipaquira, Cajica and Chia. It is a destination to taste a varied gastronomy impregnated with exquisite Andean and indigenous flavors. This department attracts, in addition, by its diversity of climates, contrast of landscapes and excellent hotel options.
Municipality of La Calera
Located only 16 km from Bogota is one of the most frequented places on weekends by tourists and Bogota that escape the noise of the city and seek different gastronomic options. La Calera offers ecological and adventure tourism activities, such as horseback riding, hiking, paragliding, quad biking and paintball, as well as one of the main entrances to Chingaza National Natural Park.
Municipality of Nemocón
It is a land of salt and culture, a magical and charming tourist destination. The perfect plan to share with the family is to visit the Salt Mine, the historical center, the main park, the parish temple, the artisan ovens, the Casa del Encomendero or the Salt Museum; the latter houses around 135 objects and exhibits scenes that illustrate the activities of exploitation of this mineral from the Muisca period until today, with the different changes that have been implemented over time. The Tatacoita Desert is another natural scenery to visit and carry out ecotourism activities; upon arrival you will find a striking canyon of sand and stones with labyrinths and sinkholes, reddish in color, formed by erosion; a landscape that contrasts with the fertile lands of the surroundings.
Nemocón also stands out for its gastronomic offer, where the miner's dish is the protagonist: Beef and pork meat, black pudding, chorizo, avocado, ripe banana and potato in brine cooked with bigua salt in ovens; at dessert time try curd with melao or almojabanas with masato.
Nemocón Salt Mine
From the bowels of the earth, Nemocón's heart beats for the world'' says the invitation to visit this marvellous salt mine, located more than 80 m underground. The route begins descending through tunnels, where you arrive at the chamber of natural mirrors of Salmuera, old saturation tanks in which the Salt crystals, with more than 80 years of formation; the chapel of the Virgen del Carmen, where there is an enormous sphere of 1300 kilos, carved in salt rock, which symbolizes the world; further on, there is the chamber of the heartbeat or of the lovers, the most important rock of the mine: a heart of alita (purest salt) crystalline, carved by the miner Miguel Sánchez in 1963; it follows the chamber of stalactites and stalagmites and finishing the tour is a replica of the Dead Sea and the Santa Bárbara tank, the largest natural underground brine mirror in the world, 15 m long by 6 m wide and 5 m deep.
The mine has a new attraction, the replica of the phoenix capsule 2 of the film Los 33, recorded there and which tells the story of the miners who were trapped for two months after the collapse at the San José mine in Chile. Cl 2 # 0 - 05. www.minadesal.gov.co
Municipality of Zipaquirá (Township)
With great tourist development, Zipaquirá stands out for its hotel infrastructure, gastronomic offer and places to visit, among which stand out the Archaeological Museum, which exhibits more than 1.400 units made of metal, bone, clay, stone and textiles belonging to 14 pre-Hispanic cultures; the house of Don Salvador Algarra-Centro Cultural, interesting for its architecture and where notable figures such as Gabriel García Márquez studied; the main park, the Diocesan cathedral and the tourist train station of La Sabana, as well as the Salt Park, a complex that houses the miner's square, the brine museum, the Salt Cathedral, restaurants and ecological routes.
Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral.
Declared in 2007 as the first wonder of Colombia, by the readers of the newspaper El Tiempo. It is 180 m underground and the initial axis of its route are the 14 stations of the Way of the Cross, represented by salt carvings adorned with colored lights. Then you arrive at the Choir, where you can appreciate in the background the central nave, the imposing 16 m high cross. Further on there is a space dedicated to the patron saint of the miners: La Virgen del Rosario or Morenita de Guasa. At the end of the guided tour, tourists can choose activities such as living the Route of the Miner, with work equipment and own safety, visit the town and acquire emeralds boyacense, see the 3D movie Guasa or see the water mirror and the exhibition of lights and sound. Cl 3 # 8 - 36. www.catedraldesal.gov.co
HUILA
The valleys of the Magdalena River are an enchanting and fertile land, characterized by its coffee, fruit and tobacco plantations. In the middle of its marvelous landscapes are hidden surprising places and towns wichs preserve temples and plazas; it has a great tourist offer, focused on the beauty of places like the Tatacoa desert or the archaeological heritage of the sculptures of Parque San Agustin (San Agustin’s Park), one of the greatest treasures of Pre-Columbian America.