City Park in Zona Cafetera

By Brenda Yun

Visitors to the Zona Cafetera indulge in the senses — from hot thermal springs to the cold of Cocora Valley or from sweet berries to bitterly rich coffee. Manizales, Pereira, and Armenia are the capitals of the departments that make up the Zona Cafetera, and each provides a different angle from which to look at the country’s rich offerings. In Manizales, a treacherous trip to the top of La Basilica is not to be missed; near Pereira, travelers should set aside a full day in the Parque del Café or a few hours basking in the hot thermal springs of Santa Rosa; and the Museo del Oro Quimbaya in Armenia remains one of Colombia’s best preserved and organized gold collections. Also of note is Salento, a small town tucked neatly along the skirt of a mountain, where farm-grown trout is deliciously prepared upon a large, circular patacón pancake.