Private tour to Jardín, Antioquia, from Medellín

01 · First stop · Breakfast at Macanas

Town of Jardín

The tour begins in Jardín, one of the Heritage Towns of Colombia, founded in 1863 among the mountains of southwestern Antioquia. Its main park, cobbled and full of colorful tables, opens in front of the Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, a stone church with a Gothic air that presides over the plaza. Around it, streets of white houses with colorful woodwork and wooden balconies laden with flowers. Here we start the day with breakfast at Macanas, one of the most iconic restaurants in town, before heading for the mountains.

Breakfast included

• Breakfast at Macanas, one of the most iconic restaurants in Jardín.
• The Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, in carved stone, and the main park: church and park have been a National Monument since 1985.
• Streets of colorful facades and flower-filled balconies, the hallmark of this Heritage Town.

02 · Second stop · Road to the mountains

Flower and river trails

We leave the streets of Jardín behind aboard the traditional Willys jeeps and, with every bend, the landscape changes: coffee fields, pastures and mountains opening over the valley. Where the road ends, the hike begins. The trails wind among hydrangeas, dahlias and agapanthus, cross streams running down from the mountain and enter the native vegetation, with hummingbirds hovering around the flowers and the chance to watch the birds of a town renowned for its birdlife, with the Andean cock-of-the-rock as its emblem. Among flowers, water and green, the name Jardín, which means garden, makes sense before our eyes, before we continue to the traditional farm.

Living nature

• A Willys jeep ride from the town to the start of the trails.
• A hike among hydrangeas, dahlias and agapanthus, with streams along the way.
• Native vegetation and the mountains of southwestern Antioquia in view.
• A chance to watch birds: Jardín is renowned for its birdlife, with the Andean cock-of-the-rock as its emblem.

03 · Third stop · Country pause

Traditional farm

After the trails, the pace changes. We arrive at a traditional farm of the coffee landscape of Jardín: a corridor of clay tiles and wood, open-air tables, hydrangeas and agapanthus along the stone path and the forested mountain closing the horizon. It is the pause of the tour, a break to rest among pastures and gardens and share traditional snacks of the region, included in the experience. With energy restored, the final stretch begins: the descent among trees and small streams that leads, little by little, down to the Cueva del Esplendor.

Snacks included

• A pause at a traditional farm in the rural landscape of Jardín.
• Traditional snacks of the region, included in the experience.
• Corridor, gardens and open views over the mountains.
• Start of the descent among trees and streams toward the Cueva del Esplendor.

04 · Last stop · The grand finale of the tour

Cueva del Esplendor

From the farm the final descent begins. The path drops among trees and crosses several water sources: streams leaping over moss-covered rocks, rapids among tree ferns and pools of clear water that announce what is to come. At the end awaits the Cueva del Esplendor, in the La Linda district, on the ridge that joins Jardín with Támesis: a cavern that the river runs through and where the waterfall enters through an opening in the rock and falls into the pool, with daylight filtering in from above. It is the grand finale of the tour: time to contemplate, to take photographs and, for those who wish, to bathe in its cold waters beneath the fall.

Swim in the cave

• Descent among trees and streams from the farm.
• Passing several water sources: streams, rapids and pools of clear water.
• Arrival at the Cueva del Esplendor, the cavern the river runs through.
• Time to enjoy and bathe beneath the waterfall.

Included

• Breakfast included
• Snacks and water for the hike
• Willys jeep transport and admission to the Cueva del Esplendor
• Medical assistance

Not included:

• Lunch: free time in town to have lunch on your own

Schedule and conditions

Departure 5:30 a.m. · about 12 hours including pickup and return

• Private tour: only for the people in your booking.
• Transport included, with one pickup point and one return point of your choice within the Medellín metropolitan area, at no extra charge. They can be different places.
• Guide in Spanish or English, at no additional cost.

Children under five: no surcharge as long as they do not require a change of vehicle; their meals and tickets are paid by their parents. From age five they pay the regular rate.

Other private experiences

• Private tour to Guatapé and Piedra del Peñol
• Private Medellín City Tour: Plaza Botero
• Pueblos Mágicos: four towns of eastern Antioquia
• Private Coffee Tour near Medellín
• Private tour of Comuna 13 in Medellín
• Private tour to Hacienda Nápoles from Medellín
• Ecos del Pasado: a memory tour in Medellín
• Different City Tour: Medellín, Sabaneta, Envigado