Salento: what to see, where to stay and how to get around
Salento, founded in 1842, is the oldest town in the department of Quindío, in the coffee region of the Colombian Andes, at about nineteen hundred metres. Its painted houses of bahareque — bamboo and mud — and the coffee farms around it are part of the Coffee Cultural Landscape, a World Heritage site since 2011. In 2024 Colombia cut diplomatic relations with Israel; check the current entry rules. Half a day on foot.
A short history of Salento
Salento was founded in 1842 and is the oldest town in Quindío department, in Colombia's coffee region. It grew up on the old road that crossed the Central Cordillera of the Andes. The colourful houses with wooden balconies were built by settlers from Antioquia. Near the town is the Cocora Valley, where wax palms, the tallest palms in the world, grow, and in 1985 this palm was declared Colombia's national tree. In 2011 the region's coffee landscape was recognised as a World Heritage Site.
The ten best sights in Salento
1Plaza de BolívarThe square where the jeeps leave
2Los Amigos tejo hallThrow a puck at gunpowder
3BoquíaThe river valley below town
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4Finca El Ocaso
A coffee farm tour
5Finca Don ElíasA small organic coffee farm
6Cocora ValleyThe giant wax palms
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7Cocora viewpoint
The view over the palms
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8Acaime
A hummingbird house in the cloud forest
9FilandiaA quieter coloured town
10ArmeniaThe capital of Quindío
Scan with your phone camera to open the map there
What is an audio walk?
Tours in Salento →A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Salento:
Free walking tours in Salento
The coffee town
Salento, founded in 1842, is the oldest town in the department of Quindío, in the coffee region of the Colombian Andes, at about nineteen hundred metres. Its painted houses of bahareque — bamboo and mud — and the coffee farms around it are part of the Coffee Cultural Landscape, a World Heritage site since 2011. In 2024 Colombia cut diplomatic relations with Israel; check the current entry rules. Half a day on foot.
- Plaza de Bolívar · The main square, where old Willys jeeps — American army surplus that arrived after the Second World War — line up to carry people, coffee sacks and even livestock up the valleys — still the region’s workhorse.
- Calle Real · The main street of houses painted in bright colours with wooden balconies, climbing to a viewpoint at the top of a long stair; the town lay on the old mule track over the Quindío pass that Bolívar’s armies used.
- Los Amigos tejo hall · A hall for tejo, Colombia’s national sport: players throw a heavy metal puck at a board of clay in which small paper triangles of gunpowder are set, and a hit makes them explode with a bang. Beer is usually part of the game.
- Boquía · The valley of the Quindío river below town, where trout farms supply Salento’s favourite dish, trout served with a huge thin patacón of fried plantain.
- Finca El Ocaso · A coffee farm reached by a walk down a valley, where tours follow the bean from the plant to the cup — picking, depulping, fermenting, drying and roasting. Most Colombian coffee is still picked by hand, cherry by cherry, on steep slopes.
- Finca Don Elías · A small family farm growing organic coffee among bananas and other fruit trees, where the family itself gives the tour and serves the coffee in the kitchen.
The Cocora Valley
East of Salento lies the Cocora Valley, a green valley of cattle pasture dotted with the tallest palm trees in the world. The loop walk takes five to six hours through cloud forest; the jeeps leave from the square early in the morning.
- Cocora Valley · The Quindío wax palm, Colombia’s national tree, can grow up to about sixty metres, the tallest palm on earth. Its wax was once scraped off for candles and its leaves cut for Palm Sunday, nearly wiping it out; it has been protected by law since 1985.
- Acaime · A small farmhouse high in the cloud forest where, after the swinging bridges over the river, walkers stop for hot chocolate with cheese dropped into it while dozens of hummingbirds of several species buzz at the feeders.
- Cocora viewpoint · Above the valley, a viewpoint from which the wax palms rise above the pastures and the mist, the image on the posters of the coffee region.
- Filandia · A town north-west of Salento with the same painted houses and far fewer visitors, known for its basket weavers and for a tall wooden lookout tower over the green hills.
- Santa Rosa hot springs · North in Risaralda, thermal pools at the foot of a tall waterfall in the mountains, heated by the volcanoes of Los Nevados.
- Pereira · The largest city of the coffee region, whose main square has a giant bronze statue of a naked Bolívar riding a horse, by the sculptor Rodrigo Arenas Betancourt.
Armenia and the coffee parks
South-west of Salento, the city of Armenia and the farms around it hold museums, gardens and the theme parks of the coffee region. A day by bus or car.
- Armenia · The capital of Quindío, rebuilt after the earthquake of 25 January 1999, which destroyed much of the city and killed over a thousand people across the region.
- Museo del Oro Quimbaya · A museum of the gold of the Quimbaya people, master goldsmiths of these valleys. Their finest treasure was given by Colombia to Spain in 1893 and is in a museum in Madrid; Colombia has been trying for years to get it back.
- Jardín Botánico del Quindío · A botanical garden of the Andean forest with a butterfly house built in the shape of a butterfly, holding hundreds of butterflies of dozens of species.
- Parque del Café · A theme park founded by the coffee growers themselves, with a museum of coffee, a show of the region’s dances, a cable car over the coffee bushes and roller coasters.
- Armenia bus terminal · The hub of the region’s buses, where small buses leave for Salento, Filandia and the other coffee towns through the day.
- Armenia Airport · The El Edén airport, with flights from Bogotá over the central range of the Andes, a short hop compared with the long mountain road.
Getting to Salento and getting around
- Armenia Airport · Flights from Bogotá; about an hour to Salento
- Armenia bus terminal · Buses to Salento about every twenty minutes
Cheap eats in Salento
Salento eats trout from the valley with a patacón the size of a plate; bandeja paisa, a platter of beans, rice, minced meat, chorizo, crackling, egg, plantain and avocado; and arepas off the grill with cheese. Coffee here is excellent at the farms, though much of the best is exported. A trout plate costs about seven or eight dollars.
- Plaza de Bolívar · Trout and arepas around the square
- Acaime · Hot chocolate with cheese
- Filandia · Bakeries on the square
Museums in Salento
The region’s museums tell of Quimbaya gold and of coffee.
- Museo del Oro Quimbaya · Quimbaya gold
- Parque del Café · The coffee museum
Nature and day trips near Salento
Cloud forest, wax palms, coffee slopes and hot springs.
- Cocora Valley · The wax palms
- Acaime · Hummingbirds
- Santa Rosa hot springs · Hot pools
Things to do in Salento with kids
With children: a jeep ride, a butterfly house, a coffee theme park and swinging bridges.
- Parque del Café · Rides and shows
- Jardín Botánico del Quindío · The butterflies
- Plaza de Bolívar · Ride in a Willys jeep
Nightlife in Salento
Salento’s nights are tejo halls, small bars on Calle Real and live music on weekends.
- Los Amigos tejo hall · Tejo and beer
- Calle Real · Bars on the main street
Frequently asked questions about Salento
What is there to see in Salento?
The top sights in Salento are Plaza de Bolívar, Los Amigos tejo hall and Boquía. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.
How many days do you need in Salento?
Three to four days are enough to see the best of Salento without rushing, including at least one walking tour.
Is there a free walking tour in Salento?
Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Salento, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: The coffee town.
How do you get to Salento and get around?
The main ways are Armenia Airport and Armenia bus terminal. Full details are in the transport section on this page.
Where to stay in Salento, and for how much?
sleepntrip shows only rooms in Salento that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.
Looking for a hotel in Salento for your dates?
Only rooms that meet nine conditions, up to $80 a night.