Salento, Colombia’s colourful coffee town, is an essential stop on every itinerary so in this guide you’ll find all the very best things to do in Salento, where to eat, where to stay, our top travel tips and transport info.
Originally published back in 2015 during our first visit, having returned to Salento last year, we have now updated it to include all the necessary information for a 2020 trip!
Salento is the tourist destination of the 'coffee' triangle', popular with backpackers and vacationing Colombians alike. In fact, should you visit on the weekend, it can be a little overwhelming.
The town we visited beforehand was Jardin, perhaps our very favourite place in Colombia; Salento had some big shoes to fill. Thankfully, our mid-week visit lived up to the hype.
Sure, there are more gringos than you can shake a stick at, every other shop is hawking bags from La Guajira and badly made ponchos but the countryside surrounding it is unquestionably beautiful.
So, stay in the town to enjoy the trout and the tejo, but make sure you head into the hills to truly understand why everybody loves Salento. Here's our quick guide to making the most of your visit.
Things to Do in Salento colombia
hike valle de cocora
On everyone's Salento to-do list is the spectacular Valle de Cocora. No doubt, you have seen the image of this remarkable spot before - it adorns many postcards throughout the country. But, to experience it yourself is quite remarkable.
We’ve written an entire post dedicated to helping you plan your Cocora explorations, so head on over here for the full details including route options, all the best spots along the way and lots of insider tips!
The details | Whilst you could theoretically walk to the entrance of the Valle, we’d recommend taking the colourful jeeps (locally known as ‘Willys’) that leave from the main square. Whilst a timetable does theoretically exist, due to the increasing popularity of the hike, after the first departure of 6.10 a.m., the jeeps leave at least every hour - and up to every 30 minutes if there’s the people to fill them. The journey takes 20-30 minutes and cost 4,000 COP for the return journey.
Whilst entrance to the park when we did it was free, we have been reliably informed by readers that you will now likely encounter some sort of fee - most people have paid 4,000 COP, but others have been charged 5,000 COP. If you experience anything different to this, we’d love you to let us know in the comments so we can keep this post useful for other travellers.
Take A Stroll down Calle Real
Home to restaurants, guest houses, low quality souvenir shops and authentic artisan stores, Calle Real is the main thoroughfare for visitors to Salento - and almost without meaning to, its where the throngs of people and your eager feet will lead you not long after arriving in this colourful town.
Having changed somewhat since our first visit, it’s clear that the brightly coloured details, beautiful doors and white washed walls along this street are under constant upkeep, and provide a consistent backdrop for the thousands of photos that are taken here every day.
If you’re visiting on the weekend, Calle Real will be absolutely heaving with local and foreign tourists so we’d recommend that you get up early at least once during your stay to appreciate its beauty without the people.
…Then make your way to El Mirador
If you walk to the very end of Calle Real, you’ll come to a set of very steep, very colourful stairs. Much more than just a photo op, they lead up to a viewpoint out over the valley below - Mirador Alto De La Cruz (you’ll know when you get there by the swing set and the number of Colombian tourists!).
Now, whilst this is not a bad viewpoint - you are still looking beyond into beautiful coffee triangle countryside, albeit with a lot of roofs in the foreground - the very best views require a little more effort to reach. So, instead of turning around and heading back down, hike a little further to your left and you’ll reach Mirador de Salento where you’ll be afforded really quite beautiful, uninterrupted views, with greens stretching out as far as you can see.
A perfect sunset spot, especially if you take set off with a couple of cold beers to pop once you arrive!
eat trout
Turns out it is almost impossible to go to Salento and not eat trout - it is literally on every single menu, with plenty of restaurants selling the region's favourite fish and little else.
Although you can have the trout with a myriad of toppings, the most popular seems to be baked in a creamy, garlicky sauce and topped with lots of cheese. Doesn't sound terribly healthy does it? But, by damn, it tastes delicious.
Word of warning, Emily went for the grilled galic option and was breathing fumes for two days after. Maybe not ideal if you're heading out in a small bus the next day!
The Details | Prices vary depending on toppings etc, but expect to pay around $10,000 for grilled trout, and up to $14,000 for one baked in a rich sauce in a ma and pa type restaurant. We highly recommend Restaurante Andrea. It's on the main street on the left hand side if you walk from the plaza. Dishes come with fresh fruit juice, rice, HUGE patacones and some salad.
Other highly rated options include Venga Pues Mijo, Shalem and Donde Laurita.
Planning on hiking the Valle de Cocora?
Find everything you need to plan the perfect adventure in our guide!
play tejo
With a history that spans back more than 500 years and has its roots firmly in indigenous culture, tejo is not what you’d expect from a national sport.
A cross between darts and bowls, it involves throwing a heavy metal disc (the tejo) from about 20 metres away, towards a tray of mud (called a cancha), in the hopes that you’ll hit a metal ring (a bocin) with a small parcel of gunpowder inside (a mocha).
And how can you tell if you’re doing well?
There’s a little explosion and a massive bang.
Throw in the fact that you don’t pay to play, you pay to drink beers - and the tejo is for free - and this becomes a crazy-ass game that surely, only Colombians could have come up with!
Commonly found all over Colombia, in small rural towns to big cities, it has grown in popularity over recent years to become almost a must-do activity for foreign tourists - and Los Amigos in Salento is the perfect place to give your throwing arm a workout.
The details | As mentioned above, this is a play as you drink sort of place, and it pretty much only sells beer. Each person who wants to play has to purchase a bottle ($3500 per beer), plus pay a supplemental 1000 COP per person. You’ll find Los Amigos two streets north of Calle Real, on Carerra 4, halfway between Calle 3 and 4. If you get lost, just ask a local - everybody knows Los Amigos!
visit a coffee finca
Whilst many visit Salento purely in search of the area’s towering palms, its most enduring attractions are the nearby coffee farms which provide a necessary insight into the coffee growing and manufacturing process, and - importantly in a country that exports the majority of its beans - the opportunity to try some of Colombia’s highest quality coffee.
During our two visits to Salento, we’ve had two very different coffee farm experiences, each with a different budget and time commitment attached.
Don Elias
Located around 4.5 kms outside of Salento, Don Elias is a family run (his grandson is the main guide), organic coffee finca where all processing is done by hand. This is the finca that we chose to visit the first time we visited Salento, and offers a fantastic introduction to Colombian coffee and all the work that goes into creating a good cup of coffee without the use of machines or large scale production facilities.
The details | Tours cost 12,000 COP per person, last around one hour and can be in either Spanish or English (but re somewhat dependent upon the guides they have available). Tours do not need to be arranged in advance; simply turn up and await the next start time.
Reaching Don Elias is easy! Either hop into one of the jeeps leaving from the main square (3000 COP per person, each way) or take the really pleasant approximately one hour long walk to the farm (Google Maps). Simply head out of the town centre, cross the yellow bridge and keep walking straight. You will pass La Serrana and Yambolombia on your left hand side but there are signs all along the way for Don Elias.
If you choose to walk, be sure to stop at the little fresh juice shack (rickety hand-painted wooden sign) for a little refreshment.
El Ocaso
For our second trip to Colombia, we really wanted to delve a little deeper into the local coffee culture, to test our tastebuds and gain a deeper understanding of what exactly goes into, and makes a good cup. We did an awful lot of research into where best would fulfil these learning points and settled upon El Ocaso, and their three hour premium tour.
Beginning with a short presentation on all things coffee, you are led around a small section of the farm and provided with the chance to pick a few beans of your own before being given a tour of the processing section of the business. So far, so standard coffee farm tour.
What sets this particular tour apart however, is the ‘sensorial workshop’ in their coffee lab. Seated in a room very much reminiscent of an A-level chemistry class, you are provided with a variety of sensory challenges with the aim of educating your smell and taste buds to the real scents and flavours of good coffee.
And it works.
We picked up tips and tricks that have stayed with us - and developed a sometimes frustrating inability to tolerate bad coffee.
For those, like us, that want to learn a little more about coffee, we honestly think that this a great experience!
The Details | Standard coffee tours at El Ocaso cost 25,000 COP, with English tours taking place at 9 a.m., 11 a.m., 12 p.m., 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. If you speak Spanish, you’re welcome to join a tour at 10 a.m., 1 p.m. or 3 p.m.
The premium coffee tour (the one we did that included the masterclass) costs 70,000 COP. There is an English tour everyday at 2 p.m., and a Spanish tour at 9 a.m. Given the limited places per day, it’s recommended that you book this particular tour in advance via their website. We don’t recommend booking this one, as although it includes transport from Salento, it is significantly more expensive than booking directly with El Ocaso.
El Ocaso can be reached via one of the ‘Willy Jeeps’ in Salento’s main square which depart every hour and cost 3,000 COP per person. Journey time is around 20 minutes.
…And then experience great coffee in town
“That moment that I saw my father enjoying a cup of coffee grown on his farm and roasted by his son, I realised my idea had been successful. That single cup of coffee came with my father’s history and a story of hard labour and dedicated perseverance. That was the day he told me that his coffee tasted like it always should have.”
Credited as being the man who saved Colombian coffee, Jesus Martin is a farmer, pioneer, coffee shop owner and proud Colombian all rolled in to one. And whilst the average tourist is not able to visit his finca in Santa Ana, they are more than welcome to spend a couple of hours sampling the (multi award winning) fruits of his labour in his eponymously named coffee shop within Salento’s bustling town centre.
Regularly quoted as being one of the best coffee shops in Colombia, Café Jesus Martin is in our opinion an absolute must-visit during your time in Salento.
They have a vast menu of coffee drinks from which you can choose, but if you really want to taste the coffee we’d highly recommend trying one of the pour-overs. The baristas are incredibly knowledgeable and able to guide your decision, and will provide a wonderful explanation of the coffee, the production, and the preparation whilst serving.
We also found that this was a lovely place to sit and get some work done, so a perfect spot for digital nomads too.
The details | Jesus Martin can be found on Carrera 6 # 6-14 (Google Maps) and is open 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day.
Hike to the Santa Rita Waterfall
Okay, so we didn’t do this hike - but we kind of wish that we had!
The truth is, we had done all the research, knew exactly how to get there, but then the weather turned to poop and muddy paths and more water just didn’t appeal in quite the same way.
However, if you happen to be reading this post and the sun is shining in Salento, then this is an excellent reason to stretch your legs and will allow you to see one of the town’s lesser explored attractions. The waterfall itself is said to be relatively impressive, the walk takes you through beautiful countryside, and the opportunity to cool off in the water is wonderful on a hot summer’s day!
The waterfall hike technically begins from Finca Santa Rita, where you’ll have to pay an admission fee of 3,000 COP (the waterfall is actually on private property), but in order to get to this point, you have a few options:
Hike | Begin by walking down Camino Inca at the end of the road from Plantation House, continuing until you reach a yellow bridge crossing the main road. Cross the yellow bridge, then turn right on to a dirt path to follow an alternative path along the river. Eventually you’ll come to Finca Santa Rita where you will pay the admission fee and they’ll point you in the right direction. The route is on maps.me and it’s advisable to have this offline on your phone before you set off.
Bus and Hike | Jump on a bus in Salento heading for Pereira or Armenia and ask to be dropped off at Boquia. The trail begins at the same yellow bridge we referred to earlier.
Bike and Hike | You can rent bicycles in Salento, and cycle to Finca Santa Rita and then join the waterfall hike. Bike rental from one of the tour companies in town cost 5,000 COP per hour.
Horse Riding Tour | It is possible to take a horseback tour to the waterfalls (45,000 COP, 3.5 hours). We have heard rumours that not all the tourist horses in Salento are treated well, so before agreeing to go on a tour with a particular company, we’d highly recommend checking both where the horses rest and the condition of the horse before you ride them.
take a walk to the river and discover the countryside
If you arrive in Salento at the weekend, the town centre can be a little overwhelming with tourists and touts literally everywhere. If you need to escape this, we'd recommend taking a walk down to the river.
Simply head up the stairs to the mirador and take one of the footpaths heading down the hill. Once you get to the road, take any path on the left and should find a track leading to the river. You will pass photogenic farmers, cows happily lining up to be hand milked and some of the lushest green fields we've seen in months.
A number of places also rent bicycles if you feel like doing it on two wheels.
Where to Eat in Salento
As Salento’s popularity has increased, so too has its food offerings, with a variety of local restaurants now sitting alongside backpacker favourites and exceptionally good vegetarian/vegan options.
These are a selection of our favourites:
Brunch de Salento | If you are looking for the ultimate in gringo-backpacker indulgence, Brunch de Salentois it! Run by an expat from Oregon, it provides mammoth portions - and their burgers were exceptionally good! Unfortunately we were too full to try one of their signature peanut butter brownies by they are, by all accounts, legendary.
If you’re in the mood for burgers, consider Hamburgueseria El Cacharrito which also comes highly rated.
Le K’fee | Whilst they don’t have a strictly vegetarian menu, Le K’fee offers up variety of hearty and healthy plant-based meals from their base along a quiet street in Salento. A little bit expensive for the truly budget backpacker, but their coffee is priced reasonably enough, and of excellent quality.
El Rincon de Lucy | A stalwart of Salento’s restaurant offerings, Lucy offers up large plates of simple home cooked meals for extremely competitive prices. It’s not great for vegetarians/vegans (unless you fancy a plate of rice, beans and patacones - something Emily would actually jump at given half the chance!), but the simple combo of trout, chicken or meat plus sides, juice and soup all for the princely sum of 8,000 COP is hard to beat.
Somevi Pizza | We have had some of the very worst pizzas of our lives in this part of the world, so when a good one comes up, we just have to pass on the info. Nice thin and crispy bases, good toppings and a kick-ass coconut lemonade.
Coco Bowl | Located at the end of Calle Real, Coco Bowl is the epitome of insta-cool, healthy plant-based food, and a particularly good breakfast/brunch option. The balcony is great spot to watch the world go by and, if you’ve had one too many plates of fried food and creamy sauces, this will balance you right out!
Café Bernabé Gourmet | Pushing the fold when it comes to fusion cuisine, Café Bernabé is definitely a fancier choice for visitors to Salento (rather than a backpacker staple), and whilst we didn’t actually eat here, but given its popularity and high ratings, we’d be remiss not to give it a mention.
As important as it is to recommend places we thought were great, we also think it’s good to tell you when we felt somewhere wasn’t quite what we were expecting - as in the case of Casa Eliana. Highly rated for its curries, we headed here last time we visited Salento and were really, really disappointed with their bland veggie curry offerings. The Lonely Planet does now acknowledge this but states that their pizzas are much better, so feel free to give these a go instead!
Where to Stay in Salento
Before you book your accommodation in Salento, there’s one important question you need to ask yourself: do you want to stay in town, or in the countryside?
Being in town means you’ll have a wealth of restaurant options within walking distance, be close to transport connections both into and out of Salento and easy access to local tour agencies, whilst being in the countryside comes with the joy of waking up to the sound of birdsong and enjoying a coffee with views out over the valley.
Between our two visits in 2015 and 2019 we were shocked at the number of accommodations that have opened up in the area, and there is now a hostel, hotel or beautiful guest house to suit all tastes and budget.
Accommodations in Salento Town
Coffee Tree Boutique Hostel | A new hostel, but already a firm favourite amongst visitors to Salento. This huge farmhouse set in acres of land and with beautiful views of the surrounding countryside is situated at the edge of town, six blocks from the town centre. Big, well-equipped rooms (both dorms and privates) and wonderful common areas is touted by many as ' the best hostel in South America'. Breakfast not included in the price. Check availability and prices on Hostelworld or Booking.com
Viajero Hostel | Just a few block from the centre of town but another option with spectacular views, Viajero is a firm favourite amongst backpackers who love the top-notch facilities, large rooms and variety of classes put on (yoga, salsa, language lessons). At £34 a night for a double, it’s a bit pricier than some in town, but still a great option. Click here for availability and prices.
Hotel El Jardin | People have nothing but good things to say about El Jardin. Luxurious finishes, from rooms to common spaces, in a stunning building that epitomises the coffee region style. Excellent owners who also provide a great breakfast. Definitely a great option for those that like their accommodations to sparkle a little! Check availability and prices here.
La Casona de Lili | Our time at Casona de Lili felt like staying in a fabulous family home; a lovely setting to get to know travellers whilst watching a movie inside or over a beer in the garden. Excellent location on the main street with probably one of the nicest kitchens we had in all of Latin America! Check availability and prices here.
If you’re looking for another recommended budget option, Atardecer De Salento has double rooms from £9 a night and Casa La Eliana has rooms from £15 a night.
Accommodations in the countryside
Montana Glamping | By far the most unique accommodation in Salento, you’ll have the option of a plush glamping tent or a ‘bubble’ with top-notch facilities, and the most fantastic views. To maintain the relaxed vibe, they only have a small capacity, so if this sounds like something you might enjoy, definitely consider getting it booked quick. Check availability and prices here.
Montana Guesthouse | Rooftop Jacuzzi? Check. Incredible views out over the valley? Check. Giant hammock just screaming out for a photo? Check. Montana Guesthouse is absolutely not a budget back packer option but if you’re on a short trip and looking for something extra special, it’s a fantastic option! Check availability and prices here.
La Serrana*** | A Colombia style hacienda located on a 20 hectare farm with 360 degree views of rolling mountains and valleys. Sound good? Keep reading. High ceiling rooms in a full of beautiful antiques, a well-stocked guest kitchen (with popcorn machine!) - you can even buy fresh milk from their very own cows. Talk about a countryside experience! Check availability and prices here.
***We’re not sure if La Serrana is still open - you can no longer book online but their website is still live. If anybody can’t provide further information, we’d love to hear from you in the comments.
How to Get to Salento
From Armenia
Minibuses run to / from Armenia every 20 minutes between the hours of 5.20 a.m and 8 p.m. (45 minutes, 4500 COP per person. Note that the bus passes through town, via the plaza before leaving Salento via the Transport Office (Google Maps). If you’d prefer to take a taxi, this should cost around 85,000 COP.
From Pereira
A direct bus service runs between Pereira and Salento at 6.50 a.m., 1.30 p.m. and 4.30 p.m. on weekdays, with buses at 6.50 a.m., 7.30 a.m. then hourly until 5.30 p.m. on weekends. It’s also possible to take an Armenia bound bus to Las Flores and change, crossing the road to jump on a Salento bound bus from Armenia.
To get to Perieira from Salento, make your way to the Transport Office where there are hourly buses on the weekend, and thrice daily buses during the week.
From Medellin
There are four express vans per day from Terminal del Sur in Medllin with Flota Occidental (47,000 COP, seven hours), departing at 9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Vans leave from Salento Transport Office to Medellin at 8 a.m., 10 a.m., 12 p.m. and 4 p.m.
From Bogota
There are no direct buses from Bogota to Salento. Instead you will need to take a bus from Bogota’s Terminal De Transporte Salitre to Armenia, and change. It appears that only one company is operating the Bogota-Armenia route (Boliviariano) with departure times at 8 a.m., 10.30 a.m., 8.45 p.m., 9.15 p.m. and 9.45 p.m. Journey takes 9 hours and costs 45,000 to 50,000 COP. Follow the above listed directions for onward connections from Armenia to Salento.
