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Travel Guide

Where to Go Glamping Close to Bogota

Posted on October 26, 2019

glamping close to bogota, where to, cheapest to most expensive

I did the research so you don’t have to. Also, I did the research because I’m looking for a place to go glamping for our honeymoon! We figured it would be nice to lay low and relax a little before traveling, and some glamorous camping fit nicely. Glamping seems to be getting extremely popular, and lots of places have sprung up in Colombia where you can glamp (is that even a word?). So here’s a list to help you choose where to glamp close to Bogota! I’ve arranged them from cheapest to most expensive (-$- to -$$$$$-), but you can be sure these are all the best spots for glamping close to Bogota at each of their price ranges.

Where to go Glamping Close to Bogota

(from cheapest to most expensive)

1. Glamping La Finca – $

Glamping La Finca isn’t quite as close to Bogota as others (about 3 hours), but it’s quite nice for its price. I would say the only thing I don’t love about the place is that the tents are lined up side by side like suburb houses. Each one of them has a hot tub, though, and they look super cozy. On top of everything, if you stay here, you’re in Villa de Leyva, which is one of Colombia’s coolest towns. There’s a ton to do. From eating at great restaurants to sweating outdoors – it’s got it all. Glamping La Finca’s prices range from $200,000 Colombian pesos (about $65 USD) to $320,000 pesos (about $100 USD) per night for 2 people depending on the day of the week and time of year. You can read about Villa de Leyva by clicking here!

2. Bajo el Cielo Glamping – $$

High in the mountains of Colombia, this glamping hostal is close to Guatavita, looking over the Tomine Dam. Their domes are spacious, minimalistic and well-designed, and their areas have everything you need for comfort. Their standard domes with private bathrooms and outdoor space cost $280,000 pesos a night for 2 people (about $87.5 USD). The domes with a Jacuzzi cost $380,000 a night (about $120 USD). These prices include breakfast, and they increase by $100,000 pesos on the weekends. Being close to Guatavita, there’s also lots to do around the area, such as hiking, town visits and even helicopter rides! Bajo el Cielo Glamping is only an hour and a half from Bogota.

3. Glamping Colombia in Guatavita – $$

This place is also close to the beautiful town of Guatavita, an hour and a half from Bogota. Each one of their glamping areas has a wooden platform, a dome with a view of the dam below, and a private bathroom. The domes are nice and spacious. Its location gives you lots to do while you’re there: you can visit lakes, hike, do outdoor sports and go for a helicopter ride. It costs $360,000 Colombian pesos for two people per night (about $110 USD) and that includes no meals. I’m also not completely sure how their prices change during weekends or the high season. I can’t speak for their customer service, but their online, pre-glamping customer service is pretty bad.

4. Niddo Suesca – $$$

Only an hour from Bogota, we’ve heard a lot about Niddo because it’s close to Colombia’s most popular climbing area. Its tents look extremely warm and homely, and are well-designed and spacious. Of all the glamping close to Bogota I’ve researched, it also looks like the most romantic spot for glamping close to Bogota. The tents are nice and far apart, although not as much as I’d like (you don’t feel as much in the middle of nowhere). The cheapest I found was the smaller Niddo at $233,000 (about $72 USD) and the most expensive was the large Niddo at $490,000 (about $150 USD). These prices are per night for two people and don’t include any food. The prices do vary depending on the day of the week and time of the year.

5. La Villa Suiza – $$$

High in the mountains, this “Swiss Village” (the name, translated) looks over one of our favorite camping areas – the Neusa Dam. I’m not exactly sure if it counts as glamping because what they have is some wonderful chalets, but they look so warm and inviting that I had to include them on this list. They have standard chalets and deluxe chalets. Their prices range from at least $350,000 pesos (about $110 USD) to $450,000 pesos (about $140 USD) for two people per night depending on the day of the week and the type of chalet you’d like to experience. If you want one with a hot tub, though, the price spikes up to $550,000 pesos!

6. Kingdome Glamping – $$$

As you may have deduced from this place’s name, they have glamping in domes. What this place boasts is their 2-story domes with internal, private hot tubs. Their spaces are big and beautifully decorated, surrounded by woods. Like 2 other places for glamping close to Bogota, this one is in Guatavita, so there’s lots to do other than glamping as well. Their 2-story domes with hot tubs cost $450,000 pesos (about $140 USD) and their standard dome costs $400,000 pesos (about $125 USD) per night for two people.

7. Terramaga Glamping – $$$$

Terramaga is located in the town of San Francisco, about an hour and a half from Bogota. This place looks like a near-perfect glamping spot – each space is nice and isolated, everything is in the woods, and some of the glamps are even right by a river. It looks super romantic and outdoorsy. That being said, it is one of the most expensive because of how great it is. Each space costs $480,000 pesos (about $150 USD) during low season and $550,000 pesos (about $170 USD) during high season per night for 2 people. They book on AirBnB.

8. Yuva Glamping – $$$$$

Yuva Glamping is probably the most expensive glamping spot close to Bogota, but also one of the most amazing I found. Each dome’s individual area is huge and nicely far apart. One of them (maybe more) is right by the river, and I can just imagine falling asleep to its gentle lull. Also, all of the glamping areas have Jacuzzis. It’s about an hour and a half from Bogota in the town of San Francisco. Two of their glamping spaces cost $530,000 pesos (about $165 USD) per night for two people and the other two cost $630,000 pesos (about $200 USD). Those prices include breakfast and they increase by $100,000 pesos during the high season.

Well, that’s that for the best places to go glamping close to Bogota! I hope this list helps you narrow down your options for a super fun experience.

If you’re looking for outdoorsy things to do close to Bogota, click here to read our blog post!

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Travel Guide

How to Get to Parque Embalse el Hato

Posted on June 21, 2019

Very close to the Neusa Dam is another smaller dam that is also great for camping, walking, fishing and simply enjoying nature. It’s called the Parque Embalse el Hato, or Hato Dam Park. This place is a little further from Bogota (about 2 hours). However, since it’s small, it can feel more crowded even though there aren’t that many people. It also seems to attract a different crowd than the Neusa Dam. During our experience, there was loud music until 1 am and drunken singing until 3 am. This is based on one visit, and I try not to judge, but I would still recommend the Neusa Dam over this place. Despite that, we’ll always remember the Hato Dam dearly because Lala and I GOT ENGAGED HERE!! There’s also lots to do around Ubate, the closest town. This is how to get to Parque Embalse el Hato.

Find out how to get to the Neusa Dam here!

How to get to Parque Embalse el Hato

*Note: the map to get to Embalse el Hato from Bogota is at the end of this post!

In Public Transportation:

Go to Bogota’s Terminal de Transporte (Main Bus Terminal) and take a bus to Ubate. The bus companies that have a route there are Expreso Gaviota, Flota San Vicente and Rápido El Carmen.
Once you get to Ubate, ask around at the bus terminal for transportation to Parque Embalse el Hato. If that doesn’t work, go to Ubate’s main plaza, find the government building or a tourism company and get them to help you out. You could also walk to the dam, but it would take 1 to 1.5 hours.

In a Car:

With a GPS: enter “Parque Embalse el Hato” into Google Maps or Waze and follow the directions.

Without a GPS:

In Bogota, exit the city headed north.
Stay on the highway following the signs to Chia. Shortly after a toll, you’ll head right to go under a bridge.
At the next bridge, stay right on the bridge and follow this road until you see a Homecenter on the right. Then, turn right where you see a sign to Zipaquira and Ubate.
Stay left to cross the next bridge, following signs to Ubate.
Not long afterwards, you’ll get to a round-about. Take the second exit and stay on this road, which will take you through Sutatausa, all the way to Ubate.
When you’re right outside of Ubate, you’ll get to a round-about. Take the second exit towards downtown Ubate.
When you get to a fork in the road, go left on the road that doesn’t have a stoplight. Stay on that road until Calle 5 and turn left onto it, where there’s a red store called Almacen Montevideo.
Go until you cross a bridge, where the road ends, and turn left again.
From here, stay on the main road until you see a white sign that points to Embalse el Hato to the left. Head left and you’ll arrive in a few minutes!

If you’re bored of the city, here’s a list of outdoor activities to do close to Bogota!

What to do at Embalse el Hato:

Camp

Just like the Neusa Dam, most people come here to camp with friends and family. Camping costs $21,500 Colombian pesos or about $7 dollars. This fee covers up to 3 consecutive nights of camping! The area is pretty new, but has a good bit of amenities. There’s actually a bathroom with toilet paper! Also, starting random campfires is prohibited. If you want fire and warmth, you have to use a kind of grill structure they rent out to people. I listed the prices of everything below, but you can also find prices at this link (which is in Spanish, though), where you can also rent a cabin room if you’d rather not camp.

Colfrance

My family has a tradition while we’re traveling back from Villa de Leyva of stopping at Colfrance. Ubate is known for its milk, and Colfrance is known for everything that has to do with dairy. And it’s French. We always get a glass of milk and a pandeyuca, and people look at us funny. You can also get sausages, coffee, cheese, desserts and lots of typical Colombian foods. It’s right outside of Ubate and worth a visit! I marked it on the map below.

Cerro de Chegua

A whole lot of hikes in Colombia and around the world end with a cross at the summit. One summit close to Embalse el Hato has an actual church, or sanctuary, on top of it, and it’s a very significant landmark of Ubate. You can get pretty close to it in a car and then you have to hike about half a kilometer. The sanctuary is nice, but the view is what’s truly beautiful.

Some Things to Know:

Towards the end of the trip, the road towards Embalse el Hato becomes unpaved, but is in good enough conditions for any car.
Take cash, because very few restaurants, stores, etc. will take your credit or debit card!
You’ll pay 3 tolls on your trip: two on the way there and one on the way back to Bogota.
The park is closed on the first business day of every week.
Schedule: Tuesday to Sunday 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM. You can arrive to camp until 6:00 PM Tuesday to Thursday and until 9:00 PM Friday to Sunday and Holidays.
It costs $5,500 pesos ($2 dollars) for citizens to enter the park and $10,500 pesos ($4 dollars) for foreigners.
Camping costs $21,500 Colombian pesos ($7 dollars) and pays for 3 successive nights of camping. If you pay for camping, you don’t have to pay the entrance fee.
Parking costs $3,000 pesos for cars and $2,000 pesos for motorcycles (about $1 and $0.75) , only if you’re there for the day. If you’re camping, there is no parking fee.
Renting a grill structure costs $5,000 pesos ($1.5 dollars).

We hope this helps you find out how to get to Parque Embalse el Hato, and that it motivates you to go!

Another place that’s pretty close to Ubate, and is actually closer to Bogota, is Sutatausa. There, you can rock climb, hike and camp. Read about how to get to Sutatausa here!

Travel Guide

Outdoor Adventures Close to Bogota

Posted on September 28, 2017

Outdoor Adventures Close to Bogota

Bogotá is one of the densest, most chaotic cities in the world. And it’s pretty darn beautiful.

But sometimes a big city can become really tiring. Well, as it turns out, there are a lot of places to go on outdoor adventures close to Bogota! Whether you’re a Bogotano looking for something to do on the weekend or a foreigner looking to take a break from the urban tourism that Bogotá offers, we have got you covered!

The following is a list of places where you can have epic outdoor adventures close to Bogotá. We have been there and recommend them. You can even check out directions for how to get there by clicking on the links that are on each of the places’ names. Get out there, go an an adventure!

Chingaza National Park: directly to the east of Bogotá, this gigantic national park is a treasure of the Andes Mountains.

Chicaque Natural Park: to the south of Bogota lies a magical natural park known as a Cloud Forest. We love this place for its lookouts, starry nights, how wild it is, and, of course, its clouds.

Pionono Park: straight above the town of Sopó is this Ecological Park that offers beautiful hikes and views of the savannah of Bogotá. There is also a place to go paragliding right outside of the park.

Laguna Verde (Green Lagoon): way above the Neusa Dam is the Laguna Verde. This place is pristine and so fresh. You’ll be surrounded by frailejones and every shade of green. If it’s about getting to know the Colombian páramo (alpine), this place is exemplary.

Las Moyas Trail: with a trail-head right on the outskirts of the city, this trail will lead you up the mountains on the east of Bogotá to a height of about 3,100 meters (10,200 feet) above sea level.

The Neusa Dam: known for its cold water, comfortable camping, and closeness to Bogota, let me tell you a little more about this place – starry nights, perfect stillness at dawn, and wooded pine forests. Dam. Here are some tips for car camping!

The Sisga Dam: we love biking, and there’s a route that goes all around the Sisga Dam. On top of being moderately difficult, which we love, you get to enjoy the landscape from all of its angles.

The Tatacoita Desert: this desert that lies hidden outside the town of Nemocón is a wonderful place to hike, bike, picnic, and camp.

Check out videos for most of these places on our YouTube channel!

*We will update the list many times throughout the years! Be on the lookout or subscribe to our mailing list to stay on top of updates!

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