Cartago travel guide

Cartago, Colombia

By the Travel Wiki editorial team

Cartago

Introduction

Cartago sits in the far northern part of the Valle del Cauca in southwestern Colombia, roughly 301 kilometres west of Bogotá. The city lies very close to Pereira in neighbouring Risaralda, about a 20-minute drive away, which makes it a convenient stop for travellers moving between the two departments.

As one of the larger cities in the Valle del Cauca, Cartago has an urban character distinct from the department's better-known southern centres, with Pereira's services and connections within easy reach.

Getting there

Buses are the most straightforward way to reach Cartago from San José. Catch a Lumaca bus downtown along Avenida 2; they leave frequently throughout the day and the ride takes about three-quarters of an hour. If you're coming from San Isidro de El General, the "indirect" buses bound for San José stop on the outskirts of Cartago beside a local bus stop, so you can connect onward from there.

By car, the route from San José and the rest of the Central Valley runs along Ruta Nacional 1 (Interamericana), which also serves arrivals from the south, including Pérez Zeledón and Panamá; from the Caribbean side, approach through Turrialba. A commuter train also links San José with Cartago, calling at a handful of stops between Estación Atlántica and the Cartago railway station, with a few services continuing to Los Ángeles. The train avoids rush-hour traffic but is considerably slower than the bus or a car, and departures are limited, so plan your journey around its timetable.

Getting around

Cartago's downtown is compact — perhaps the smallest of the Central Valley's main cities — so you can cover it comfortably on foot, with shops, cafés, plazas and the main commercial streets all within a short walk of one another. Walking is often the fastest way between nearby points, and it's best done during daylight; for longer or later trips, take a taxi or a ride-hailing app instead.

Where to stay

Cartago itself has a handful of places to stay, including a lodge on the north side of the Basílica with double rooms that have balconies and private baths, breakfast included, and a restaurant on the first level. North of downtown, on the road toward Irazu volcano, you'll find a hotel set at the Cot-Pacayas crossroads, convenient if you plan to head up to the volcano.

Most of the area's lodging clusters in the Orosi valley, a short drive from Cartago. There you can choose a large resort, a lodge in Orosi city, a guesthouse, or a spot with an overlook and restaurant. Several smaller lodges and hotels are scattered through the valley and around Orosi, so you can base yourself among the coffee-covered hills rather than in the city center.

Food & drink

When you eat in Cartago, ask for comida típica — the typical food of Costa Rica. Restaurants serving it cluster along the routes toward the area's visitor destinations, including Irazú Volcano, Paraíso, Orosi and Turrialba. In the downtown you'll find typical and international restaurants alongside familiar chains such as Burger King, McDonald's, Pizza Hut, Papa John's, Pollos Campero and Pollos AS.

For a drink, seek out chaguite, a beverage invented in Cartago long ago. It is hard to find these days, but you can ask for it at the central market; it has a sweet flavour reminiscent of anis. Guaro Cacique, the national drink of Costa Rica, is similar to vodka and is available in bars, restaurants and supermarkets.

What to see and do

Downtown Cartago centres on two free landmarks. The Basílica de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles marks the spot where, by legend, a figurine of the Virgin Mary appeared to a local girl, Juana Pereira, in 1635; you can fill a bottle with holy water on the premises, and the stone where the figurine kept reappearing sits to the left and behind the altar. In the middle of the main square, the Ruinas de la Parroquia de Santiago Apóstol are carefully preserved ruins with a small garden, usually behind steel gates rather than open to the public; legend ties their repeated destruction to a priest who killed his brother out of jealousy and built the church in penance.

East of downtown in Paraíso canton, the Lankester Botanical Gardens hold the largest collection of orchids and epiphytes in Central America, along with open-air collections of bromeliads, cacti, succulents, heliconians, bamboos, palms and ferns, a patch of secondary forest and a Japanese garden. Further east, the Orosi Valley is a valley town surrounded by mountains and coffee plantations, with hostels, hotels and restaurants easy to find. There you can see the Ujarrás Ruins, a Spanish-built church in peaceful surroundings with a hot spring nearby, and the Iglesia de San José de Orosi, a carefully preserved colonial church from 1743 that is still in use and a national monument. Tapantí National Park has four hiking trails for all levels, views of El Salto waterfall and a spot to swim in the Grande de Orosi River. The Ujarrás and Orosi overlooks on National Route 224 both give views over the valley, and the usual approach is a loop on that route starting and ending in Paraíso. Around the Cachí Dam and its artificial lake, trout producers let you fish and then fry your catch, with plenty of restaurants nearby, and La Casa del Soñador sells wood crafts made from coffee roots. The now-dormant Volcán Irazú, about 30 km from downtown, is among Costa Rica's best-known volcanoes, and the abandoned Sanatorio Durán, built in 1918 for tuberculosis patients, draws visitors for its views, fresh air and scary stories.

Three days in Cartago

Day one: Settle into Cartago and get your bearings on foot, starting around the Basílica and the central streets. Walking is the easiest way to cover the centre, and taxis are on hand if you need to cover more ground. As the afternoon cools, take a look at the Estación Atlántica and the older quarters of the city before an early dinner.

Day two: Head out of the city toward Irazú, where the weather can turn cold and windy, so bring layers. Continue on to Cot and Pacayas, both within reach of Cartago, and take your time on the rural roads. Buses and taxis connect these places, though services thin out later in the day.

Day three: Choose between the Caribbean side and the south. Toward Turrialba the air turns warm and humid, and the landscape shifts as you descend. Alternatively, follow the Interamericana south through Pérez Zeledón toward the Panamá border, or head west into the Central Valley toward San José, Pereira and Risaralda. Fares are modest, and buses are the usual way to travel these routes.

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