Bogotá, the nation’s capital, is a city of seven million inhabitants stretching across the Cundinamarca-Boyacá savannah at more than 2 600 meters (8530 feet) above sea level and set off by the imposing backdrop of the eastern mountains that give the city its unique identity.

Bogotá is a city of great contrasts with traditional and colonial neighborhoods such as the Candelaria where one gets a real feel for how the city was in the 19th century, as well as large areas featuring modern architecture, industrial zones, many large parks, English-style neighborhoods (a la Bogotá), and rural suburbs with large homes and beautiful gardens.

Bogotá was applauded at the 2006 Venice Biennale for its exemplary transformations during the last fifteen years, the fruit of joint efforts by several of the city’s administrations.

Bogotá’s economic and cultural activity has made it one of Latin America’s leading international centers.  Over the past fifty years the city has hosted the Bogotá Industrial Fair, where products from five continents are exhibited and sold; the Ibero-American Theater Festival; the International Book Fair, and many others.

The city has also become a gastronomical and commercial focal point for people from all over the continent thanks to the great variety of high-quality restaurants and shopping centers.

The Gold Museum, unique in the world, contains the most complete and exquisite collection of pre-Colombian metalwork by the ancient peoples who once inhabited Colombia.  Other noteworthy museums include the National Museum, the Museum of Modern Art, the Museum of Religious Art, the architecture of its many churches, the many contemporary art galleries, the Botanic Gardens, Maloka (the children’s science and art museum), etc.

There are several of the world’s largest and most spectacular paramos ( Andean moors) close to Bogotá, including the Chingaza, Las Cruces and Sumapaz paramos.  Nearby wetlands are host to a great variety of birds (Colombia is a world leader in number of bird species); lagoons and lakes; rivers and streams; the Magdalena River valley (the country’s most important river) with its many river towns only two hours from the capital by car; as well as town and villages in cool and temperate climates, each with its own unique charms.

Most of the country’s audiovisual activity is concentrated in Bogotá – film, television and advertising spots – because of the city’s superior and more extensive technical infrastructure for all kinds of productions (recording studios, sound studios, equipment rental companies, the main private television channels, and international advertising agencies) and because much of the provincial technical and professional talent has relocated to Bogotá.

Two hours from Bogotá by highway lay the vast hot-weather lands of the Magdalena River valley and cities such as Girardot, Melgar and El Nilo that enjoy a well developed tourist infrastructure.  Towns such as Honda along the Magdalena River have preserved 19th-century buildings and structures.  This city was once the final destination for those traveling from Cartagena to Bogotá by river boat.

Temperate zones close to Bogotá also feature old coffee plantations with cobblestone footpaths and beautiful homes; vast fields of fruit trees; and gorgeous recreational estates with magnificent gardens surrounded by the exuberant flora and fauna typical of Colombia’s temperate zone.

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Plaza de Bolívar, the Primada Cathedral, the Candelaria neighborhood, Monserrate, National Museum,  Gold Museum, Botero Museum, Museum of Modern Art (Mambo), José Celestino Mutis Botanic Gardens, Maloka, the Calera Scenic Viewpoint

Nearby: the Salt Cathedral in Zipaquirá, Fuquene Lagoon, Neusa Reservoir, Tominé and Sisga, Panaca-Savannah Park, Tequendama Falls

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Instituto Distrital de Turismo
Carrera 5 No 36-21. Piso 2 Parque Nacional
Email: info@bogotaturismo.gov.co