Villa de Leyva Day Trip from Bogota
Description
Discover the enchanting colonial town of Villa de Leyva. Wander its well-preserved streets, visit the expansive Plaza Mayor and stunning cathedral, explore the ancient archaeological site El Infiernito, and marvel at the Blue Ponds and a prehistoric Kronosaurus fossil.
Tour Options
Itinerary
You will hardly find in Colombia a place that takes architectural preservation work as seriously as Villa De Leyva. This population was built by Spanish colonizers in 1572, and it gives the feeling that it remained frozen in time thanks to the way in which it has been preserved as a heritage town. The tour starts by picking you up at your hotel at 7:00 am. After a 3 hour drive, you will arrive at Villa de Leyva and tour its main highlights such as the enormous Plaza Mayor and Villa de Leyva's Cathedral with our knowledgeable guide. After visiting the village you will go to El Infiernito (little hell), an ancient Muisca observatory used to calculate the optimal time for harvesting. You will then have time to have lunch (at your own expense) before heading to the Blue Ponds, some vivid blue water reservoirs in the middle of the desert that contrast beautifully with the arid soil and vegetation around it. Optionally, you can visit the 7M long fossil of a Kronosaurus; a predatory dinosaur that lived 120 million years ago when this area was submerged under the ancient Atlantic Ocean. With so many things to do in this village, we highly recommend arranging at least a one-night stay here, as you can also arrange activities that can vary from hiking to natural parks, buggy races, horseback riding, bird watching, or visiting archaeological sites and museums. You will return to Bogotá via Ráquira. A picturesque and colorful village that has become famous for its long tradition of pottery work. This is a perfect place to make a stop on the way back and get some really beautiful handicraft souvenirs. You will be taken to your hotel in Bogotá arriving at approximately 7:00 pm.
The tour starts by picking you up at your hotel at 7:00 am. After a 3 hour drive, you will arrive at Villa de Leyva and tour its main highlights such as the enormous Plaza Mayor and Villa de Leyva's Cathedral with our knowledgeable guide.
After visiting the village you will go to El Infiernito (little hell), an ancient Muisca observatory used to calculate the optimal time for harvesting.
You will then have time to have lunch (at your own expense) before heading to the Blue Ponds, some vivid blue water reservoirs in the middle of the desert that contrast beautifully with the arid soil and vegetation around it. Optionally, you can visit the 7M long fossil of a Kronosaurus; a predatory dinosaur that lived 120 million years ago when this area was submerged under the ancient Atlantic Ocean.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
Pick up service from Bogotá Hotels /Accommodations. Please enter your pick up details. * Note: pick-up from other towns have an additional cost (including but not limited to Chía, Cota, Funza, Mosquera, La Calera). Please contact us to arrange it.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- We recommend wearing comfortable clothes and shoes.
Reviews(18)
Nice place, warm people, cheerful atmosphere. Delicious food, has very beautiful colonial style sidewalks, little shops to choose between very beautiful souvenirs.
Thank you for your wonderful review! We're thrilled you enjoyed Villa de Leyva's charming colonial style, warm people, and delicious food. It's great to hear you found beautiful souvenirs in the local shops. We hope to see you again for another family adventure! - Impulse Travel Team
In Villa de Leyva, you can go to Aventura park that is 32 minutes of the principal park, is a good and funny place in where you can do a lot of activities; I advice you that go with extreme people for more enjoy. Also, you can go to different museums for meet the history of the place. Villa de Leyva is a cold place, I recommend go with hoodies, jackets and trousers.
We had an amazing time on this trip. The village is so beautiful and full of history. The surroundings are worth the visit as well, especially the Casa de Barro. The way there was 3 hours but it was a fun and entertaining conversation with our guide Juan who gave us a very insightful perspective on Colombia's current matters and history. I'd really recommend taking this trip with Impulse.
During the pandemic my family and I wanted to take a trip near Bogota to clear our heads and came across this tour. What a blessing! The organization and communication for the pick up was perfect. Our driver David was very funny and cordial, he showed us local music, however the best part of our trip was our guide Raul, we thought that doing this whole trip in 1 day would be too much, however he made everything so flexible and enjoyable that we didn't realize at what point we did so much. Great memories as a family.
I’m so glad to have booked this experience. From the very first moment the communication with the provider was very fast, they told us every single trip detail. Our guide Andrés had all time a very good mood, he took us to magical and hidden places and gave us this remarkable experience. we really loved this town. I highly recommend this tour to any one.
It was just perfect!!! The team was very very nice, it was super planned and really interesting and funny :) we would love to come back!!
My tour to Villa De Leyva was a one with a detour that took us on a path we had not planned for giving us a day of memories I won’t soon forget. In the morning we lost our car on our way to Villa De Layva. Instead of waiting for a replacement car, our tour guide Daniel Pedraza Archila was able to quickly get us on a local bus to the nearest of Tunja. From Tunja, we boarded another bus to our final destination of Villa De Layva. The local bus experience was awesome. Once we arrived in Villa De Layva, we explored the old street that have not changed much since 1620 when the city was founded. By the time we finished lunch, the Impulse tour company had a new car waiting for us to continue with our stops outside of Villa De Layva. What I liked the most about this trip was exploring the streets of Villa De Layva, seeing the unique architecture of Casa Terracotta and the morning local bus rides seeing a different side of Colombia. Thank you Daniel for being a professional guide making a situation that could have been a disaster into a memorable experience. Thank you Impulse Tour Company for getting the replacement car and driver so quickly. I am a very satisfied customer.
Hi Strother! Thank you so much for sharing your comments regarding your trip to Villa de Leyva. I'm glad to know that despite the circunstances you really enjoyed the trip and ride, Daniel is a very professional tour guide. You're totally right, people use to enjoy experiences more when they are not in the plans. Sorry for the inconveniences, we worked fast to give an alternative that did not affect your experience. Hope to be your host in your next time in Colombia. Kind regards, Valeria
This was a fantastic day with guide Juan and our driver Leonardo. it was a long day but was made so enjoyable with the great chats we had. Juan was an amazing guide and made a solo female traveler very comfortable and I had a great time. highly recommend this trip!
Hi Jamie! Thanks for taking you time to share your comments regarding your experience in Villa de Leyva. We're thrilled to know that you had such a fantastic trip with your tour guide and driver, both are kind a wonderful and kind persons. In Impulse Travel we want to make memorable experiences even if you're a solo traveler, our staff will do an effort to give you the best experience. Hope to host you in your next time in Colombia. Kind regards, Valeria
This is a beautiful quaint town that is worth a visit if you are going to Colombia. We were here around Christmas and the town was quite beautifully decorated. As far as Impulse travel services are concerned I would give them 3.5 stars. They are responsive to your queries but it takes them few hours to respond to your emails. This can be a problem if you are in a time crunch and need some resolution soon. The transportation was good. They provided a comfortable van for our party of nine that showed up on time. We had booked a guided tour and and our guide, Andrea, was very good. We had also booked a tour with them to the Zip salt mine cathedral. I guess they sub-contract the transportation services. The route that the driver was instructed to take to the salt mines was not familiar to the driver himself. We had to turn around a few times to get onto the right road. Moreover, a good part of that route was unpaved. The return trip was much smoother with a known paved road all the way to Bogota. My main issue with Impulse travel was that they should provide you with a dedicated number to call when needed
Spend a good afternoon in this place, opposite the main square of Villa de Leyva there is a restaurant on the second floor with a balcony and panoramic view of the square called RESTAURANT EL CHIPA, they serve good dishes of well cooked meat and at very good prices. Near Villa de Leyva there is a very interesting place called CASA DE TERRACOTA, not to miss visiting that place, it is really a coronation seal a day away from staying in the area of Villa de Leyva.
