BEST OF SALENTO & THE COCORA VALLEY IN 3 DAYS
Since I only travelled the south of Colombia (due to time constraints), Salento & the Cocora Valley were my absolute highlights of Colombia. The main intention to go to Salento is to visit the Cocora Valley, with these enormous palm trees sticking out the ground, covering an entire landscape. Riding a horse up to one of the mountains in the Cocora Valley was a magnificent experience. However, Salento has much more to offer. This village is a gem, around it you can hike around waterfalls, visit coffee farms and drink probably the best coffee you’ll ever taste.
Getting to Salento
Before we get into the attractions, you need to get to Salento and I’m going to explain you how. There are only two cities connected to Salento, which is Pereira and Armenia. That means, if you are coming from the south (Cali) or west (Bogotá) you need to head for Armenia. There are direct bus connections to Armenia from both cities. If you are coming from the north (Medellin) you need to head to Pereira. Both Armenia and Pereira have airports connected to Medellin and Bogotá and Pereira even connects to the coastal cities Cartagena and Santa Marta. However, save the environment and keep the spirit of overland travelling and just hop into a night bus 
I used the night bus from Bogotá to Armenia and changed to a smaller bus from Armenia to Salento. However, there was a road blocking and the travel time literally doubled from 8 hours to 16 hours. Road blockings are unpredictable in South America and can always happen. Yet, I had only two issues with road blockings, and this was number 1. Just be patient and flexible in your plan and everything’s going to be alright. To check for connections, I advise to use rome2rio.com. However, you can buy your ticket in the bus station with no issues, because the buses leave so frequently. If you opt for a premium seat however, you should buy your ticket in advance. The only company I used for overnight buses is the most reputable one “Bolivariano”.
Sidenote:
If you’re arriving in Pereira and aren’t in a rush, head to “Termales Santa Rosa”. These hot springs are an hour ride away from Pereira and are supposedly quite good. I haven’t been there, but a local person in Salento advised me to go there, which I didn’t do since it was too big of a hassle from Salento and I was heading south, so it wasn’t on the way for me.
Where to Stay
I stayed at Salento Plantation House, which is a coffee farm as well. The owner is a British guy who came here 20 years ago and started a family. They are really nice people and I like the garden, but the rooms weren’t that great. The price was 17 € / night for a private double room. No matter where you decide to stay, I recommend staying in the outer perimeter of the village, because there are some really nice views over the valley which invite to stay for another day or two extra and just enjoy the quiet vibe of this special place in Colombia. Also, the walking distance from the outer perimeter to the village center is very doable, it’s a 10-minute walk.
DAY 1: Café Jesus Martin, Calle Real, Coffee Finca Tour and Tejo Game
This is your first day and you’re probably too tired to do the Cocora Valley right away, plus you might have arrived too late to do it anyways. This is why I suggest doing Salento itself first. In the morning you stroll into the city and head for Café Jesus Martin, where you can try their excellent coffee and very affordable food. Actually, this was the mightiest and best coffee I ever had the privilege to put my lips on.
Enjoy the atmosphere, pet the cat and get ready to walk over to Calle Real (just two blocks away). If you are into artisanal stuff, here you can get it. But be cautious, Salento has become quite a well-known tourist spot and thus this street is basically made for tourists, which means that prices are also made for tourists and you shouldn’t bother to bargain a bit. Even if you don’t buy anything, strolling this street is fantastic, because it’s so colorful. Consider going there tomorrow in the early morning, when no tourists are around and you can enjoy the colorful buildings just by yourself.
When you reach the end of the street, there are stairs going up to a viewpoint. If the weather isn’t the best, just go up there now and enjoy the views. Otherwise, keep that place in mind for sunset. Now head the street back to “Plaza de Bolivar” (the main square) and get a ticket to visit one of the Coffee Fincas in the surrounding area. The ticket price varies from Finca to Finca, but transport is always included. I’ve been to Finca Buenos Aires and the tour was good, though not extraordinary, compared to what I’ve heard from other Fincas. The price was 38,000 COP (7.50 €) and we were picked up and dropped off right at the plaza, all included. From what I’ve heard Finca El Ocaso is supposed to do the best tours. They also offer a 3-hour tour in English everyday at 2 PM for 80,000 COP (16 €) where you can also make your own coffee in a workshop. Unfortunately, I found out about that too late and didn’t book early enough, so I couldn’t do it. Unlike the normal tours that happen every 2 hours or so and need no reservation, the 3-hour tour with workshop requires reservation, which you can do here. I highly recommend doing such a tour, because it’s an comparatively inexpensive activity and you can learn everything about coffee. Though I only did the “small tour” I was shown which materials they use, what it requires for a coffee plant to grow, planted my own little coffee plant, collected coffee myself and was shown every process from seed to cup. Very interesting and worth it!
When you arrive back in Salento it is likely to be evening already. If it’s sunset time and the weather is good, head to the viewpoint “Mirador Alto Cruz” now! Afterwards get some food. There are plenty of “western” restaurants around, but I would recommend you look for a small Colombian restaurant that sells “Trucha” which is trout and honestly, South America makes the best trout I’ve ever had. Food in the Andes countries was really not my favorite, with the exception of trout, which is an absolute delight. From Colombia to Bolivia, you can find trout everywhere and if you haven’t tried it yet, do it now! After you finished your meal, head over to “Cancha De Tejo Los Amigos” and you gonna find out about the crazy evening activity Colombians engage in. The game is called Tejo and can be found all over Colombia. Basically, its alcohol and explosives. Entrance is free, but buying a drink (it doesn’t have to be alcohol, but typically you order a beer) is mandatory. Essentially, you throw a metal ball from the distance into a kind of mud, where paper triangles with gun powder are positioned. Depending on how good you’ve thrown and whether or not you triggered an explosion, you get different points. The first one to reach 21 points wins the game! You can find the rules on the right.
DAY 2: Hiking to the waterfalls and enjoying the atmosphere
Today you are having a more relaxed day. If you didn’t manage to do all the activities of day 1, you can do the remaining ones today. Otherwise, enjoy the nature around Salento. Go to the “Terminal de Buses de Salento” where you arrived yesterday and grab a colectivo down the street to Boquia. Jump off the colectivo right after the metal bridge over the Quindio River. From there turn right and keep walking to Finca Santa Rita. You will pay a small entrance fee, because the hiking area is private property and then you can hike the entire area that has many waterfalls and is quite beautiful.
The waterfalls aren’t the most impressive ones, but just having a walk there is really nice. Ideally, you take a lunchbox with you and enjoy your food at one of the waterfalls. If you want to hike the entire round, you will need about 3 hours. I would recommend not just to hike through but consider planning for 4-5 hours and just sit there once in a while and savor the fresh air and alluring scenery. It used to be possible to ride horses there from “El Rancho de Salento” that is located right before the bridge where you hopped off. However, the owners of the land prohibited that and now you can only go hiking there. When you come back to the bridge after your hike, you can still grab a horse and do a tour in another area. 45 min on the horse cost you just 40,000 COP (9 €). However, be aware that you are going to have a much better opportunity to ride a horse tomorrow in the Cocora Valley! If you have time, I recommend doing it both days, riding a horse in South America is always worth it!
When you are done, just wait next to the road and soon a colectivo will pass by, ready to bring you back to Salento. It shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes of waiting and you have to do no more than waving your hand. Usually just staying there and looking at the driver is enough to signalize you want to have a ride 
DAY 3: Horseback Riding and Hiking in the Cocora Valley
Ready for one of the most amazing sites in all Colombia? You better wake up early, because the agenda is big today! Head to the town square “Plaza de Bolivar”. At the same place where you bought your Coffee Finca Ticket you can buy a ticket for the Jeep that goes to the Cocora Valley (8,000 COP Round-Trip). I recommend waiting long enough for people to fill up the car, so you can stand on the platform on the backside of the Jeep. 3-4 people are allowed to just hold on to the Jeep and have the fun of being outside for the 20-minute ride. As soon as you arrive, people will approach you and offer you horseback riding. And hell yes, you should do that! Just find some more people to join you, because the more you are, the cheaper it gets. 2 h of horseback riding that goes up on the mountain cost 80,000 COP per person. However, you have to pay another 80,000 COP for the guide, which is the cost you can share. Meaning, if you are alone it will cost you 160,000 COP (31 €), if you are two people 120,000 COP per person (24 €) and if you are four people 100,000 COP per person (20 €). Believe me, its so much worth it!
My Experience with Horseback Riding
The day before at Santa Rita I rode my first horse ever and the day after in the Cocora Valley it was my second time ever. The horse at Santa Rita was quiet, didn’t do anything crazy, was smooth and listened perfectly to my clumsy commands. The horse in the Cocora Valley (her name is Suñadora) was much bigger, absolutely stubborn and didn’t care about commands. I pulled the rope to make it stop, but Suñadora just shaked her head and kept going. Also Suñadora couldn’t stand to be the last one, so she was always upfront with me. It really took us some time to become friends. But after a while, I adjusted the way I’m commanding her by doing everything with more confidence and Suñadora instantly started listening to me. She has a very strong character and I felt like we just fitted together after I understood that. I had such a great experience riding her and soon I felt so confident, that I just left behind everybody and galloped with her though the wilderness, over ridges and rivers. It was absolutely stunning and one of the best things I’ve done in my life. Feeling this temperament and strength and still being able to control this beautiful creature, feeling the respect we credit each other was something else. I enjoyed this experience a lot and I hope you will feel it just as much as I did. Please do me a favor! If you end up reading this post and actually went to the Cocora Valley, ask for Suñadora and send me a message on Instagram, how she is doing and give her a hug from me. I will never forget this horse.
Actually, the price of the horseback riding is even 10,000 COP less for each person, because that’s the admission fee for the national park, which is included in your ride. When you later cross the gates to the hiking paths, you can show them the receipt or a picture of you on the horse and they’ll let you in for free!
So, there are two hiking circuits you can do. One takes 2 hours and the other one takes 5 hours. I would highly recommend doing the 5 hour one, which I didn’t manage to do because I woke up too late and didn’t account for the horseback riding. Even the 2-hour hike was amazing, and the views are stunning. Don’t pin me on that, but I think this landscape is unique. I’ve never heard of a place like that and certainly haven’t seen anything like it. You should enjoy it to maximum extent and do the 5-hour trek. A map is positioned right at the entrance and there are enough signs, so no worry, you won’t get lost! Just be back around 5 PM when the last Jeeps leave back to Salento, if you miss them, you’ll have to take a taxi, which is much more expensive, than the 4,000 COP you paid for the Jeep transport.
That’s the end of your 3-day itinerary through Salento and the Cocora Valley! If you are feeling rushed and want to take a day off stay another day, because Salento is a really great place to just chill and relax. Otherwise, head to Armenia or Pereira and grab your next bus to wherever you want to go. My next destination was Cali, which you can reach within a few hours and doesn’t require a night bus.
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