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Montenegro is a nice town within the UNESCO World Heritage listed Coffee Cultural Landscape of Colombia. If you find yourself passing through on the way to one of the many recreational parks in the area and want to stop or stay the night, here’s some info to help.
Introduction to Montenegro, Colombia
Montenegro is located between the city of Armenia and the town of Quimbaya, about 20 minutes from each. It was founded on October 19, 1892, and was originally part of the municipality of Filandia. It became its own municipality on April 6, 1911. The economy is mostly agricultural, with coffee and plantains the main crops. Montenegro is also the nearest town to Parque del Café, a coffee-themed amusement park.
Getting to Montenegro, Colombia
Buses from Armenia and Quimbaya pass through the main streets of Montenegro frequently. They don’t stop at a terminal so you must get off the bus at the designated stop. I’ve used Nuevo Rapido and Expreso Alcalá in both directions.
Where to Stay in Montenegro, Colombia
We usually pass through the town on the way to one of the theme parks but on one trip we decided to stay a night.
Finca Los Girasoles
A great place to stay is Finca Los Girasoles. It’s only a ten minute drive from town but a whole world away. Finca Los Girasoles features 18 rooms divided among 4 separate buildings.
The rooms are situated in the main house, two small buildings near the entrance, and a historic colonial house. All rooms are clean, comfortable, and nicely decorated. The bathrooms are dated and a bit primitive, but it’s all part of the experience of staying on a finca.
The main house contains a restaurant where lunch and dinner can be reserved ahead of time. It’s a fixed menu and every guest is served the same dish, but staff does their best to accommodate everyone’s individual dietary needs. A decent breakfast is included in the room rate.
There’s also an outdoor terrace attached to the main house with fantastic views of Montenegro in the distance.
Other facilities include a bar serving beer, aguardiente, and rum, as well as a beautiful pool and a heated mini pool. There’s a football field and playground for kids.
Where to Eat in Montenegro, Colombia
This is another area in which we don’t have much experience.
Café Don José (Permanently Closed)
Next to the church in the Cadavid Building is a great little café, Café Don José. They have good coffee and the service is excellent. The place also has a lot of character. It looks like a tornado hit an antique shop.
Plaza de Bolívar
The town’s main plaza, Plaza de Bolívar, is a short walk from where the buses stop. The plaza is full of trees and has a couple monuments – one to Simón Bolívar (1783-1830) and another to the indigenous people. On the south side is a collection of colorful colonial-style buildings.
Church of San José
The Church of San José (Iglesia de San José), which hasn’t been open during my visits to the town, isn’t very attractive. It’s shaped like a barn and sits on the plaza.
Cadavid Building
To the left of the church is the Cadavid Building (Edificio Cadavid), which is one of the most beautiful historic buildings in town. It’s an architectural symbol of Montenegro and was built in 1936.
Coffee Mural in Montenegro
Finally, on the east side of town, near the road to Circasia, is a beautiful relief mural that tells the story of Colombia’s coffee culture and why the Coffee Region is a UNESCO World Heritage site. It sits next to the town’s former railway station. I was first made aware of these two points of interest while taking the coffee tour with Café Jesús Martín in Salento.
Las Bailarinas
Las Bailarinas Recreational Park (Parque Recreacional Las Bailarinas) is a waterpark featuring extreme sports and overnight packages. It’s a short drive south of Montenegro. We spent a Sunday at Las Bailarinas as a family. The cabins were fully booked so we decided to go for the day only. Reasonably priced day passes are available with or without lunch.
Nature Trail
Instead of going directly to the pool over the suspension bridge like the majority of visitors, we decided to take the nature trail, which is located right at the park entrance. The trail takes visitors through a forest past several fruit trees and over a couple of short bridges.
At one point, the trail splits into a path with tunnels and another without tunnels. We went to the tunnels.
One tunnel is literally up a waterfall with quite a strong blast of water coming at you. Another tunnel is without water.
After the tunnels, the trail takes you past a climbing wall (included in the price of admission) and up to the waterpark.
Waterpark
The waterpark features two large pools, one a bit deeper than the other, and some waterslides. Nothing spectacular.
Lunch
We were able to choose from a few different dishes for lunch when purchasing our day passes. There’s fish, chicken, beef, and pork, all served with rice, salad, soup, potato, and a patacón. The food is decent and you can choose a specific time for your lunch to be ready.
Extreme Sports
In addition to the trail and pools, there are extreme sports and a spa at an extra cost. Extreme sports include bungee jumping, a pendulum swing, a 360° swing, and Tibetan bridge.
Our Thoughts on Las Bailarinas
Overall, we would have preferred to spend a day elsewhere. It was overcrowded and nearly impossible to find a table at the pools. The pools weren’t the cleanest I’ve seen, either. The trail was nice but nothing to write home about, and we didn’t have interest in any of the extreme sports. There are much better places in the Coffee Region to enjoy as a family.
