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Chicamocha National Park (Parque Nacional del Chicamocha) is a large theme park in Colombia centered around the spectacular Chicamocha Canyon. It’s got lots of different attractions that are great for families, several good restaurants, and is good for a half or full day visit.
The park contains a waterpark, cable car, and several different activities. We decided to see just the main park and take a ride on the cable car. It was a very hot day and the water park would have been nice, but we were mainly interested in seeing the canyon.
Other attractions, such as extreme sports, an ostrich park, and more, can be paid for directly at each activity. Be warned: it’s a disneyfied place that tries to distract visitors from the true attraction – the canyon – and take as much money from visitors as possible.
Getting There
If you don’t have your own transportation and are staying in either Bucaramanga or San Gil, you can hop on one of the shuttles in either city. You have to arrange it in advance. You can find the contact info here.
Plaza de Banderas
Once you purchase your tickets, you walk up 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.
Village
In the main part of the park, you start with a walk through a small replica village with shops, restaurants, and more. Also in the village, you can 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).
Lunch at Menzuly
We had a quick lunch in the village at Menzuly. They specialize in fish but we had a delicious local meal of goat and rice. One plate was large enough for two people.
Guane Museum
Next, we passed through the Guane Museum (Museo Guane), which features pottery and artifacts used by the indigenous Guane people. There were also some skulls displaying intentional cranial deformation that was practiced by the Guane.
Plaza of the Ants
From the village, there’s a stairway up to the Plaza of the Ants (Plaza de las Hormigas), where there’s a fantastic viewpoint of the canyon as well as food vendors. The entrance to the ostrich park is nearby.
Monument to Santander Heritage
Just above the Plaza of the Ants is the Monument to Santander Heritage (Monumento a la Santandereanidad). This gigantic monument is shaped like a ship and features figures from the history of the department of Santander. A speaker explained the meaning of each figure in both English and Spanish.
Viewpoint
Next, there’s a long walk up to a 360° viewpoint. You can either walk up or take a chiva. There are a couple 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.
Conclusion
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 the cable car. There was a lot more walking than expected, but it was enjoyable. My only advice is to bring sunscreen and drink lots of water. It can be very hot.
