| San Agustin |
Bogota-Pitalito-San Agustin
The road from the capital, Bogota to Pitalito (only 45 minutes from San Agustin) is surprisingly good. Its
about 500km and takes only eight hours. There is hardly any traffic on this road and it is hard and fast which
explains why it takes only eight hours to cover the distance. I took the 10.15pm direct bus from Bogota to
Pitalito, arriving at six the next morning. I was having breakfast in San Agustin town before eight in the
morning.
The road from the capital, Bogota to Pitalito (only 45 minutes from San Agustin) is surprisingly good. Its
about 500km and takes only eight hours. There is hardly any traffic on this road and it is hard and fast which
explains why it takes only eight hours to cover the distance. I took the 10.15pm direct bus from Bogota to
Pitalito, arriving at six the next morning. I was having breakfast in San Agustin town before eight in the
morning.
San Agustin is blessed with numerous hotels and fincas. Due to the quantity of foreigners living in and around San Agustin, 26 at last count, there
are a lot of very good/ cheap foreign owned hotels as well as many Colombian ones. Unless you go during a Colombian holiday I don't think you will
run into a lot of people at the hotels/ hostels. There are so many. You can stay in the town centre from only 8.000 pesos w/out bathroom or 12.000
pesos w/bathroom. A great choice of where to stay is
a Swiss/ Colombian owned hostel with a great location and separate cabanas where you can stay with your friends or family. Rene and his wife
Paloma and there lovely little baby have lived in the area for many years and can help you with all your travel needs
Another option is the Casa de Nelly, which is a nice twenty minute walk from the town centre. The gardens are beautiful and the house has a
great fireplace ready to be lit. There is hot water and you can use the kitchen or get the lady who runs the place to cook for you at a cost. The
price of a bed is 15.000 pesos a night. The cabanas are also very nicely done. When I was there there were only three of us. It does not seem that
these laces ever get many people.
are a lot of very good/ cheap foreign owned hotels as well as many Colombian ones. Unless you go during a Colombian holiday I don't think you will
run into a lot of people at the hotels/ hostels. There are so many. You can stay in the town centre from only 8.000 pesos w/out bathroom or 12.000
pesos w/bathroom. A great choice of where to stay is
a Swiss/ Colombian owned hostel with a great location and separate cabanas where you can stay with your friends or family. Rene and his wife
Paloma and there lovely little baby have lived in the area for many years and can help you with all your travel needs
Another option is the Casa de Nelly, which is a nice twenty minute walk from the town centre. The gardens are beautiful and the house has a
great fireplace ready to be lit. There is hot water and you can use the kitchen or get the lady who runs the place to cook for you at a cost. The
price of a bed is 15.000 pesos a night. The cabanas are also very nicely done. When I was there there were only three of us. It does not seem that
these laces ever get many people.
For me the best thing to do in this town is just chill out. A must is the horse-riding. Being my second visit I did not bother checking out the musuem
or visiting the park which is where most of the sculptures are located. I was happy just to hang around the hostel, read a book, have a few beers
and light the fireplace in the house.
or visiting the park which is where most of the sculptures are located. I was happy just to hang around the hostel, read a book, have a few beers
and light the fireplace in the house.
Other trips
There are a couple of good trips to be done from San Agustin. The guide, Pacho, who took us around the hills and
statues will pretty much go anywhere you want. He will even take you to Ecuador on horses if you want. Thats a three
week trip and you have to buy the horses. Apparantly you sell them in the market in Otavalo, Ecuador. In his guest
book is a report from two New Zealand girls who did the first Ecuador run with him ten years ago. A shorter trip,
perhaps 3/4 days is to the source of the Magdalena river. The cost depending on how many people you get should
be around 250,000 to 600,000 pesos. I'm quite keen to do this one in the coming months. You stay in the houses of
local campesinos along the way. The good thing about the guide Pacho, apart from him being a great and trustworthy
guide, is that he has the reports/ recommendations of at least two hundred backpackers in his book over a period of
ten years. So he;s got to be good.
There are a couple of good trips to be done from San Agustin. The guide, Pacho, who took us around the hills and
statues will pretty much go anywhere you want. He will even take you to Ecuador on horses if you want. Thats a three
week trip and you have to buy the horses. Apparantly you sell them in the market in Otavalo, Ecuador. In his guest
book is a report from two New Zealand girls who did the first Ecuador run with him ten years ago. A shorter trip,
perhaps 3/4 days is to the source of the Magdalena river. The cost depending on how many people you get should
be around 250,000 to 600,000 pesos. I'm quite keen to do this one in the coming months. You stay in the houses of
local campesinos along the way. The good thing about the guide Pacho, apart from him being a great and trustworthy
guide, is that he has the reports/ recommendations of at least two hundred backpackers in his book over a period of
ten years. So he;s got to be good.
A UNESCO protected world heritage site since 1995 is this beautifully scenic area in the south of Colombia. The
landscape is dotted with statues, no one is quite sure why, that are several hundreds of years old. In general this is
a very pleasant place to visit for a couple of days and do some horse-riding, sightseeing and just get away from the
cities. It is in my opinion best combined with a trip to Tierradentro only five hours away and quite a different place.
Previously there have been issues with regard to the safety situation in this area. In my opinion its a safe area as
are the roads in and out. If it was not safe there would not be at least 26 foreigners living in and around the town. I
saw two of them myself, Swiss who have bought land and planted coffee.
landscape is dotted with statues, no one is quite sure why, that are several hundreds of years old. In general this is
a very pleasant place to visit for a couple of days and do some horse-riding, sightseeing and just get away from the
cities. It is in my opinion best combined with a trip to Tierradentro only five hours away and quite a different place.
Previously there have been issues with regard to the safety situation in this area. In my opinion its a safe area as
are the roads in and out. If it was not safe there would not be at least 26 foreigners living in and around the town. I
saw two of them myself, Swiss who have bought land and planted coffee.
There is an ATM in town from which to withdraw money.
There are several internet cafes.
There are several internet cafes.
What to do
Where to Stay
Getting there and away
Other stuff
El Maco
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