A tour that we finally loved?
Short on time we booked this tour the night before, through Tripadvisor. At the moment of booking, only one traveler enters their information but for the day of the tour, make sure every person going brings at least one piece of ID (or even a picture) so they can fix you up with the insurance they offer. Also if you need an English guide, this is the time to lett them know, at the moment of booking so you know for sure you get it.
We met at “The Poblado Park” in a very nice “dedi-parado” part of town. Finding the guides is easy, they are wearing red t-shirts with the logo of Tours Guatape and they are smiling and happy to meet you, here is where you show your ID and they register you, as they suggest, show up at least 15 min before. We boarded at 7:45 AM, which was the time we where told, so very diligent schedule.
We then began our journey with a well versed guide who spoke excellent English. His name is Jesus! Our first stop was at a restaurant for a typical Colombian breakfast, arepa with cheese and your choice of coffee hot chocolate or agua panela caliente or fria (a hot or cold sugar cane drink). At this moment Meli and Me were beyond happy because we got our promised breakfast, as we mentioned in our last blog post, the last tour we did (completely different agency) we did not get breakfast among other things.
Our group was around forty people, and predominantly English speakers. We ate, then embarked again onto our next stop which was Marinilla, we arrived after a small nap.
We then walked this very traditional town that is the most common type of town for around 70 percent of the Colombian population. We had a walking tour that took us to a small museum, a Church and to a Zocalo or center plaza. Where we tried local fruit and juice after breakfast to hold us over till lunch and break up the trip to El Peñol.
We all pilled into the buss again, and on our way to El peñol, we arrived shortly after a scenic and spectacular drive through roads carving through hills and mountains showing us glimpses of the rock. We arrived and were given an hour and 20 minutes to climb which typically takes 20 minutes depending on your fitness level but more important the individuals in front of you. This amount of time is perfect to enjoy yourself and a little bit more without any rush. The tour does not include the admission to the rock, which is $20K COP (~ $8 CAD)
Once up there, after 705 steps and catching your breath you can enjoy beautiful views, and a mango michelada which is a beer with a salty rim and some green mango for 8K COP ($3 CAD) We triumphantly stand up top enjoying this beautiful vista and joseph rushes to get the drone footage haha. On your way down you will see how your legs shake like jello after killing all those stairs up and down!
We ended the rock and went to Guatapé to have lunch. You can choose between chicken, fish, and bandeja paisa (which is the typical lunch from this region.) We had this last one, but according to our family and the people beside us, the other dishes were amazing as well.
After lunch we went on a walk around town, our guide Jesus, explained the meaning of the murals on the walls of the houses which are called Zócalos and how they are depicting heritage and also government encouragement to bring tourism.
Right after this walk we rushed into the tuck tucks for an incredible ride around town what felt like the amazing race. Something you can only do with Jesus in this tour (Unless you are on your own and decide to do it)
It was amazing, an unforgettable trip and journey. Following this we headed home to what was a day full of great food, beautiful vistas and learning.
We had a great nap on the drive back home and got back to the same plaza we got picked up right on time. Jesus gave us some other recommendations and tips and we said good bye to our guides and our driver.
Thanks to Tours Guatape, our guides and our driver Luis, made this experience so enjoyable. You can also book directly with them on their website, Tours Guatape.
Voyage Express 