Arrival at the Airport Bucaramanga Palonegro (BGA)

Transfer approx. 1 hour

Transfer approx. 1 to 1.5 hours

If you wish do optional watersports such as skiing or jet-ski for an additional cost, you will have the opportunity to do so before the transfer to San Vicente de Chucurí.

Transfer approx. 20 minutes

This region is Colombia´s largest producer of cacao producing 25% of the cacao in the country. It is located right next to the National Park Serranía de los Yariguies, an unique ecosystem and source of income for the people regarding the cacao, coffee and fruit growing, among others.

The region is also well known for the quality and the sustainable production of cacao, especially for the fair-trade product “Chocolate Santander”, a dark-chocolate bar that promotes the sustainable production of cacao in this region and that has won the Great Taste Award (UK) a few times among other international awards.

Upon arrival at the farm you will enjoy a refreshing drink or a coffee, chocolate or tea.

First, you will have a short talk will about the generalities of the farm and types of cacao fruit and you will learn about the artisanal toasting process (just the toasting takes 2 hours).

While the chef will toast the beans you will be shown the cacao plantation and will be given a detailed cacao tour.

The cacao tour will be made in a cacao tree forest on the farm, so you can learn about the agronomic management and you can admire the biodiversity of the crop. You will have the opportunity to interact with the farmers and the process in the different phases of production.

Lunch will be included after doing the tour in the forest.

After lunch you will do the cacao experience which means that you will make your own chocolate. It will be a great experience because you do not just watch the process, but are part of the process itself. For this experience the beans that have been toasted for 2 hours in the morning will be used.

We will provide you with the information about different options for dinner (dinner not included) and we will also provide you the transport to the restaurant.

Transfer approx 1 hour.

You will walk the paths of the Hacienda El Roble, a coffee estate with more than 100 years of tradition of producing one of the world’s finest coffee (officially the most expensive coffee of Colombia).

During the walk (approx. 1 hour) you will get to know the outside coffee museum including the coffee plants, the coffee planting and growing, and various types of coffee.

After the walk you will arrive at the production facilities where you will learn about the different steps of the coffee processing.

The tour will end with the coffee tasting where you have the possibility to taste the coffee grown on the farm and distinguish between the different tastes, aromas and attributes.

The coffee farm is certified by the Rainforest Alliance, ensuring that Los Santos Mesa coffee conserves biodiversity and ensures sustainable livelihoods for 127 species of birds that can be found within the Hacienda El Roble. The completely organic coffee is grown under a dense forest canopy and is certified by BCS ÖKO-Garantie, a leading international certifier.

After the whole tour and tasting you will have a delicious lunch at the guesthouse.

Enjoy the cable car ride through the Chicamocha Canyon going more than 1000 meters down the canyon and up on the other side (total length 6,3 km; duration of the ride 30 minutes).

Enjoy the unique landscape during the ride through the canyon which is with 2000 m even deeper than the Grand Canyon in Arizona, USA and has a total length of 227 km. The Canyon was formed more than 60 million years ago from what once used to be a great sea.

Afternoon

Arriving on the other side of canyon you will be entering the Chicamocha National Park.

The park is divided into 3 different parts:

The lower part at the cable car station is a tiny town representing the colonial town Barichara. Here you can find restaurants, shops, shops for souvenirs, a little chapel and the Guane Museum. The Guane Museum shows the culture of the indigenous Colombian tribe “los Guanes”, including information about their culture, items they used and even come skulls that show the cranial deformation.

Going up about 100 stairs from the town you will arrive at the Santander Monument “Monumento a la Santandereanidad” which represents the first step of the Colombian independence. The monument is build upon a large tobacco leave which represents a very important economic element of the region. The monument shows angry statues that all appoint at the Spanish Empire since they wanted to gain their independence. The reason why the monument is located in Santander is that the first revolts for the independence of Colombia and other Latin American countries took place in El Socorro which used to be the capital of Santander.

Walking up the hill for about 400 meters you get to the 360 degrees viewpoint where you can enjoy the majestic view on the canyon from different angles.

Additionally to these 3 parts you will find different activities in the park such as canyoning, an extreme swing, ziplining, an ostrich park, virtual reality, buggies, a waterpark, etc. (not included in the price).

At the end you will have to cross the canyon in the cable again to get back to the parking lot (approx. 30 minutes).

Approx. 1 hour and 20 min transfer

If this day is a weekend day (Friday/ Saturday/ Sunday), there is the possibility to stop at the farmer´s market on the way back to Bucaramanga.

“El Mercado Campesino” (Farmer´s Market) is a market that promotes fair trade. It is a place where the farmers can offer their fruits and vegetables among other products directly to locals. In addition, you will find entrepreneurs from the regions that offer their products in restaurants, bars, handcraft shops, etc.

Depending on the time of your departure flight we will bring you to the airport. The airport transfer lasts approx. 30 minutes.