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Alcalá is a small town located in the department of Valle del Cauca.
Introduction to Alcalá
Alcalá was originally founded in 1791 by a Spanish Creole from Cartago, Sebastián de Marisancena. He was registered as a trader in Cádiz, Spain, and originally named the town San Sebastián de la Balsa. The name was later shortened to La Balsa and renamed Alcalá on March 31, 1919, when it became its own municipality.
The main industry is agriculture, which is dominated by coffee. Other crops include yucca, sugarcane, plantains, and oranges. Nature tourism is also a growing industry. Some rural areas of the town are included in the UNESCO World Heritage listed Coffee Cultural Landscape of Colombia.
Getting to Alcalá
To get to Alcalá, there’s direct service from the bus terminal in Pereira with Expreso Alcalá. It takes about 90 minutes and buses leave roughly every 15 minutes. You can also get there from the nearby town of Quimbaya. Buses stop at the terminal a couple blocks from the main plaza.
Where to Stay in Alcalá
The town has a few recreational fincas and some rural accommodation.
Campi Hotel Guayacanes
We spent one night at Campi Hotel Guayacanes, which is a short drive south of the town center. They offer camping packages including a tent, mattresses and blankets, campfire wood, breakfast, and lunch. We weren’t too happy with the place overall and definitely wouldn’t go back.
Our group of 11 had a private site with 4 tents. Two of the tents flooded during heavy rain that lasted all night. The fact they provided wood for the campfire was a nice touch, but they didn’t have enough grills for us to place over it to prepare our dinners. If you don’t want to cook, there’s a restaurant with a few decent options.
As far as the common area, the pool had murky water even before the rain as well as an unpleasant odor. The recreational area with pool tables, ping pong, and foosball was our favorite part. Thankfully, staff is friendly and accommodating. Breakfast was good but we couldn’t wait to leave and didn’t stick around for lunch.
One of the biggest negatives was enforcement of the rules. There are signs all over the place restricting the use of speakers as well as quiet hours after 10pm. Unfortunately, most campsites were blasting music and there were people shouting and laughing until well after 2am.
Our tent site itself was fairly clean and secluded but once you left for the common areas the entire place felt overcrowded. Unfortunately, it’s a scene we’ve witnessed in many places in Colombia in which businesses squeeze in as many people as possible at low prices to eke out a slightly bigger profit. They could do much better. Furthermore, the bathrooms were abysmal and seemed way too dirty to take a shower.
Parque Principal
There really isn’t anything of interest in the town, but Parque Principal, the main plaza, is pleasant. A single samán tree with far reaching branches sits in the center, providing shade to the entire plaza. It was planted on November 14, 1917, by Rosana Gutiérrez Ruiz de Mazuera, in honor of the 100th anniversary of the death of national hero Policarpa Salavarrieta (1795-1817).
Church of Our Lady of Perpetual Help
The Church of Our Lady of Perpetual Help (Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Perpetuo Socorro) is on the east side of the plaza. It was built in the late 19th or early 20th century and has Gothic elements.
The church consists of a central nave with two aisles separated by arched columns. Side chapels line the aisles. Special features include the Door of Forgiveness, a large image of the Virgin at the altar, and a beautiful parquet ceiling.
