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Chicamocha National Park (Parque Nacional del Chicamocha), also known as Panachi, is a theme park centered around the spectacular Chicamocha Canyon in the Santander department of Colombia.
Introduction to Chicamocha National Park
Chicamocha Canyon (Cañón del Chicamocha) is the world’s second largest canyon. It’s 227 kilometers (141 miles) long with a maximum depth of 2,000 meters (6,600 feet). The name is a Guane word that translates to silver thread on a full moon night in the mountain range.
Chicamocha National Park is situated at one of the most beautiful sections of the canyon. It features lots of different attractions and activities that are great for families, including some good restaurants, a waterpark, cable car, and small museum.
Other attractions, such as extreme sports, an ostrich park, and more, can be paid for directly at each activity. Be warned: Chicamocha National Park is a Disneyfied place that tries to distract visitors from the true attraction – the canyon – and take as much money from visitors as possible.
Getting to Chicamocha National Park
Bucaramanga and San Gil are the nearest cities to Chicamocha National Park. If you don’t have your own transportation, you can arrange a ride from Bucaramanga with Transportes Especial El Mochuelo or from San Gil with Transporte Cotransangil.
Visiting Chicamocha National Park
Chicamocha National Park is good for a half or full day visit. There are a few different packages available with pricing for adults and kids. Kid’s prices apply for ages 2-8, and all kids under 2 are admitted free of charge. The cost of admission (current as of November 2024) is as follows:
- The main park only at COP$42,000 for adults and COP$32,000 for kids
- The waterpark only at COP$40,000 for adults and COP$30,000 for kids
- Both the main park and water park at COP$60,000 for adults and COP$50,000 for kids
- The main park and cable car at COP$78,000 for adults and COP$53,000 for kids (our choice)
- The main park, cable car, and waterpark at COP$90,000 for adults and COP$70,000 for kids.
Check the official website for more info and operating times because the park is sometimes closed on certain days.
The Main Park at Chicamocha National Park
Let’s start with the main part of the park, which is good if you’re mainly interested in seeing the canyon.
Plaza de Banderas
Once you purchase your tickets, you walk down a path to Plaza de Banderas, a small plaza with the “gate” to the park. From there, you can either take the cable car to the other side of the canyon or start exploring the main part of the park.
Replica Village
The park begins with a walk through a small replica village with shops, restaurants, and more. You can also pay to watch a 4D movie, go souvenir shopping, visit a chapel, and try hormigas culonas (a local delicacy made of large pan-fried ants).
Guane Museum
The Guane Museum (Museo Guane) is another feature of the village. It displays pottery and artifacts used by the indigenous Guane people. There were also some skulls highlighting the intentional cranial deformation practiced by the Guane.
Plaza de las Hormigas
From the village, there’s a stairway up to Plaza de las Hormigas, where there’s an observation deck with fantastic views of the canyon as well as food vendors. The plaza is named for the aforementioned hormigas culonas, a delicacy in Santander. The entrance to the ostrich park is nearby.
Monument to the Heritage of Santander
Just above Plaza de las Hormigas is the Monument to the Heritage of Santander (Monumento a la Santandereanidad). This gigantic structure is shaped like a ship and features figures from the history of the department of Santander. The meaning of each figure is announced over a loudspeaker in both English and Spanish.
Observation Deck
Next, there’s a long walk up to a 360° observation deck. You can either walk up or take a chiva. There are a few cooling stations spraying a cool mist on the way up if you choose to walk. At the top is a food vendor and coin-operated telescopes.
The views from the top are excellent. You can see the canyon, the insane winding mountain road towards Bucaramanga, and the entire park.
Chicamocha Canyon Cable Car
The highlight of any trip to Chicamocha National Park (Parque Nacional del Chicamocha) is riding the cable car. At 6.3 kilometers, it’s one of the longest cable cars of its kind in the world. It heads down to the bottom of Chicamocha Canyon and up the other side to Mesa de los Santos.
A ticket that includes entry to the park and a ride on the cable car must be purchased from the ticket booth at the entrance to the park. The entrance to the station is on Plaza de Banderas, a short walk past the ticket booth.
It takes about 10 minutes to reach the cable car station at the bottom, but you can’t get out there. From there, it crosses the river and heads up to Mesa de los Santos. On the way up, it’s possible to spot the small simple homes of people living in the canyon and even a school. The entire ride takes about 25 minutes.
Mesa de los Santos
Once at Mesa de los Santos, you can stop to have a drink or meal and enjoy the view. We were able to spot the main part of the park and get a different perspective of Chicamocha Canyon.
There’s also a small village with several restaurants and shops, just like at the main part of the park.
Return Leg
After a spending a good hour at Mesa de los Santos, we decided to head back to the main part of the park. I’ll leave you with some images from the return leg:
Where to Eat at Chicamocha National Park
The park offers several opportunities to eat, from full-service restaurants to street food and snack vendors.
Menzuly
We had a quick lunch at Menzuly, which is located in the replica village. They specialize in fish but we had a delicious local meal of goat and rice. One plate is large enough for two people. Meals are reasonably priced.
Our Thoughts on Chicamocha National Park
Overall, we enjoyed our visit to the park and weren’t swayed by any of the extra attractions. We went there strictly for the scenery, enjoyed a great lunch, and took a ride on the cable car. There was a lot more walking than expected, but it was worth it. My only advice is to bring sunscreen and drink lots of water. It can be very hot.
