The Most Unique Day Trip from Bogotá (Our Honest Experience)
When we planned our time in Bogotá, we were looking for the best day trips to add to our itinerary. One place kept coming up: the Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral.
But honestly… this one caught us completely off guard.
A cathedral… inside a salt mine? 😳
We thought it would be interesting. And to be fair, our friend Eddie had mentioned it to us before. Still, we didn’t do much research, so we didn’t really have the full picture in mind.
We were just expecting… a salt mine.
What we didn’t expect was for it to become one of the most unique experiences of our entire Colombia trip.
In this blog, we’re sharing our personal experience visiting the Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral, along with practical tips to help you plan your own visit from Bogotá.
🎬 Watch Our Full Experience
We captured the entire journey—from Bogotá to inside the cathedral—in our vlog.
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Why Visit the Salt Cathedral from Bogotá?
If you’re looking to add a meaningful experience to your Colombia trip and searching for day trips from Bogotá, this one stands out immediately.
Not only is it close (about 1.5 hours away), which makes it easy to visit in a day without feeling too tired, but it also combines:
- History
- Culture
- Faith
And most importantly, it offers something you probably won’t see anywhere else.
The Salt Cathedral in Zipaquirá is the largest of its kind in the world, followed by the Wieliczka Salt Mine in Kraków — another incredible underground experience.
From our experience—and everything we learned along the way during the guided tour—this isn’t just a tourist attraction. It’s a place shaped by centuries of mining, often referred to as “white gold” in the region.
Getting to Zipaquirá (The Easy Way)
We had heard that it’s possible to get from Bogotá to Zipaquirá by public bus, and some travellers do it that way.
However, from what we’ve seen—and even heard from other travelers—it can take more time and requires a bit more planning, especially if you need to connect to another bus to reach the salt mine.
For us, we decided to keep things simple.
We booked our tour through GetYourGuide, and honestly… it made the whole experience much easier.
Why we recommend a guided tour:
- ✅ Hotel pickup included
- ✅ No need to figure out transport
- ✅ Local guide explaining the history
- ✅ Smooth and stress-free experience
- ✅ Option to include your entrance ticket at a lower price + skip the lines
Within about 90 minutes, we arrived in Zipaquirá—a quiet town that feels very different from Bogotá.
👉 We booked this exact tour here (skip-the-line + entrance included): https://discoveringdestinations.com/gyg-frombogota-tosaltcathedraltour
💡 Our tip: If you’re short on time or prefer a hassle-free day, the guided tour is 100% worth it. Public transport can work, but it’s less flexible if your schedule changes.
Buses
If you prefer a more budget-friendly option, traveling by bus from Bogotá to Zipaquirá can also work well.
We personally chose a guided tour for convenience, but we know some travelers prefer to go independently. In that case, tools like Busbud can be helpful to compare routes, schedules, and prices in advance.
💡 Our tip: If you go by bus, make sure to check the return schedule carefully. Depending on your timing, getting back can be a little less flexible than joining a tour.
Private transportation
If flexibility matters more to you, private transportation may be the best fit.
This option gives you more control over your day, which can be great if you’re traveling with kids, carrying extra gear, or just want a smoother experience without worrying about bus schedules. Private transfers or Uber can be worth checking depending on your budget.
💡 Our tip: It’s a comfortable option, but usually more expensive than booking a tour or taking the bus.
🚗 Uber & Flexible Transport Option
If you’re looking for more flexibility to get to the Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral, Uber can also be a convenient option.
It was actually recommended to us by locals (including our friend Andrea), and we found it to be a simple and reliable way to get around Bogotá.
That said, keep in mind that while getting there is usually easy, the return trip from Zipaquirá may take a bit more planning depending on availability and timing.
💡 Our tip: If you want flexibility without committing to a full tour, Uber can be a great alternative—but always check your return options in advance.
👉 Bonus: If you’re new to Uber, you can use our referral code x1wvvpx3zfgn to get a discount on your first ride.
Pro tip: When traveling in Colombia, we used an eSIM to stay connected. We personally use Holafly for its unlimited data, which makes it incredibly easy to navigate, update maps, book transport, and add new places on the fly — without worrying about roaming charges.
Stay Connected Wherever You Travel
We’ve used Holafly eSIM in Colombia and other destinations, and it gave us reliable coverage with no roaming surprises. It helped us check transport, stay in touch with family, and share our journey as we traveled.
👉 Use our discount code DISCOVERINGDESTINATIONS
Enjoy 5% off any Holafly plan, for any destination, on your next purchase.
Where to Stay in Bogotá for Your Zipaquirá Day Trip
When planning your visit to the Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral, where you stay in Bogotá can really impact your overall experience—especially for day trips.
When we arrived in Bogotá, we planned our airport transfer in advance. Since we stayed at Fairfield by Marriott Bogota Embajada, the hotel offered a free airport shuttle, which made our arrival smooth and stress-free.
However, for this specific tour, we were actually the first to be picked up and the last to be dropped off. That meant spending extra time in the van while the group was being collected and dropped off across the city.
👉 It’s something to keep in mind when choosing your location.
📍 Areas we recommend for convenience:
If your goal is to explore Bogotá and take day trips like Zipaquirá, these areas may be more practical:
- Chapinero – a great balance of location, restaurants, and local vibe
- Zona T / Zona Rosa – more upscale, lively, and very walkable
- Usaquén – quieter, charming, and closer to the direction of Zipaquirá
💡 Our tip: Staying closer to the northern part of Bogotá can help reduce travel time for tours and day trips, making your experience more comfortable—especially on longer days.
Find your stay in Bogotá:
👉 We usually compare options using platforms like Hotels.com or Booking to find the best location, price, and flexibility.
First Impressions of Zipaquirá, Colombia
Our first stop, before visiting the Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral, was the small town of Zipaquirá—and it turned out to be much more than just a gateway.
If you’re planning a day trip from Bogotá, this is where your journey begins.
Long before the Spanish arrived, this area was already known for its rich salt deposits. Indigenous groups, especially the Muisca people, were extracting and trading salt here—so valuable it was often called “white gold.”
Later, when the Spanish colonized the region, they expanded mining operations. Over time, a settlement grew around this activity. So while the city wasn’t built exclusively for workers, its development has always been closely tied to the salt mines and the people who worked in them.
👉 In other words, Zipaquirá exists because of salt.
Zipaquirá town – What surprised us most
We didn’t expect to enjoy the town itself as much as we did.
Zipaquirá has:
- A beautiful main square
- Charming colonial-style architecture
- A peaceful, local vibe that feels very different from Bogotá
One detail we loved learning about? The balconies.
Our guide explained how different styles—Spanish, English, and French—can reveal the history and architectural influences of each building.
👉 It’s one of those small details that makes you slow down and appreciate the place even more.
🌟 A quick cultural note
Here’s something we didn’t know before visiting.
Zipaquirá is home to a cultural center dedicated to Gabriel García Márquez, the Nobel Prize–winning author of One Hundred Years of Solitude.
He lived here during his adolescence, and his work—known for blending reality with magical elements—helped define the style of magical realism.
👉 In a way, visiting places like Zipaquirá makes you understand how Colombia itself can feel a little magical.
Entering the Zipaquirá Salt Mine
Before even stepping inside the Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral, there’s a moment to pause.
The entrance area feels like a small plaza. Buses arrive and leave, travelers gather, and you’ll find a few shops, restrooms, and quick spots for snacks.
💡 Tip: If you’re visiting with a tour and want to buy something, it’s best to do it here at the entrance. After the Salt Cathedral, most tours head straight to lunch in Zipaquirá.
Also, if you need to use the restroom, we recommend doing it before going inside. It can take a while before you find another one once you’re in the mine.
👉 We booked this exact tour here (skip-the-line + entrance included): https://discoveringdestinations.com/gyg-frombogota-tosaltcathedraltour
🎟️ Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral – Entrance & Tickets
After a quick stop at the entrance plaza, you’ll make your way toward the ticket area of the Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral.
At first, we noticed ticket machines near the entrance, which seemed to be the main option for visitors buying tickets on-site.
However, in our case, we chose the option “Zipaquirá: Salt Cathedral with Pickup & Entrance Ticket” through GetYourGuide.
Because of that, everything felt much easier.
Instead of waiting in line, we followed our guide through a separate entrance. They handled all the tickets directly with the staff, which made the whole process smooth and stress-free.
Before going in, you’ll also find useful information displays about the mine, including maps, depth, and other interesting details that help you better understand what’s waiting underground.
💡 Tip: Bring a light jacket. It gets cooler once you’re inside the mine.
Entering the Salt Mine: The Experience Begins
Once past the entrance, everything starts to change.
Step by step, the outside world begins to fade. The light softens, the air feels cooler, and the sounds from the plaza slowly disappear behind you.
And then you notice it.
Everything around you… is salt.
The walls, the ceiling, even the ground beneath your feet—completely carved from it. It’s one of those moments where you stop for a second and think, “Okay… this is already different.”
Walking Through the Cathedral
The path takes you through a series of stations, each representing moments from the journey of Jesus.
Some areas feel quiet and intimate. Others feel more powerful, almost overwhelming.
Each station is carved directly into the salt rock, with unique shapes, textures, and lighting that change the atmosphere as you walk.
And then… it opens up.
The tunnels give way to a vast space, and suddenly you’re standing inside a massive underground cathedral.
At this point, our guide from the Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral tour shared more about how this place came to life—explaining how miners first carved small prayer spaces, which eventually evolved into the cathedral we see today.
After that, we were given time to explore on our own. We walked around, took photos, and simply took it all in.
👉 It’s one of those rare moments where you can really feel the history, the scale… and the faith behind it.
👉 We booked this exact tour here (skip-the-line + entrance included): https://discoveringdestinations.com/gyg-frombogota-tosaltcathedraltour
The Moment It All Comes Together
Up until that point, it still feels like a mine.
But here, everything shifts.
It becomes:
- A place of reflection
- A work of art
- Something completely unexpected
What stood out to us the most was the lighting. It transforms the salt in different ways depending on where you look.
The textures, the shadows, the scale…
It’s much bigger—and much more impressive—than we imagined.
And honestly, it’s one of those places that pictures just can’t fully capture.
More Than Just a Cathedral
After the cathedral, comes something we honestly didn’t expect.
There’s an entire underground complex beyond it.
As you continue exploring, you’ll find:
- Small shops
- Exhibits and a museum
- A short 3D film about the mine
- Even restaurants
At first, we weren’t sure how we felt about this. It felt a bit unexpected for a place that had just felt so quiet and reflective.
But the more we explored, the more it made sense.
👉 It adds another layer to the experience. It’s not just about seeing the cathedral—it’s about understanding the full story behind it.
Best Time to Visit (Important Tip)
If you can, avoid visiting during Holy Week (Semana Santa).
Our tour guide mentioned it gets extremely crowded—thousands of visitors per day.
👉 Go on a weekday if possible for a calmer experience.
Final Thoughts: Is It Worth Visiting?
We went in curious, not really knowing what to expect.
And we came out genuinely impressed.
The Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral is more than just a tourist attraction. It’s a place where history, culture, and creativity come together in a way that feels completely different.
What stayed with us the most was the feeling behind it all.
You can sense, in every sculpture and every detail, the energy and faith the workers poured into creating this sacred space—one that now welcomes thousands of visitors and stands as the largest salt cathedral in the world.
👉 If you’re spending a few days in Bogotá, this is one experience we truly recommend adding to your itinerary.
🎬 Watch Our Full Experience
We captured the entire journey—from Bogotá to inside the cathedral—in our vlog.
Plan Your Trip to Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral
Planning your visit to the Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral? Here are a few tools we personally used to make our trip easier and stress-free.
🎟️ Book Your Tour
We chose a guided tour with transport + entrance included, which made everything simple.
👉 We booked our tour here (easy + stress-free)
🏨 Find your stay in Bogotá:
👉 We usually compare options using platforms like Hotels.com or Booking to find the best location, price, and flexibility.
📱 Stay connected
When traveling in Colombia, we used an eSIM to stay connected. We personally use Holafly for its unlimited data, which makes it incredibly easy to navigate, update maps, book transport, and add new places on the fly — without worrying about roaming charges.
Stay Connected Wherever You Travel
We’ve used Holafly eSIM in Colombia and other destinations, and it gave us reliable coverage with no roaming surprises. It helped us check transport, stay in touch with family, and share our journey as we traveled.
👉 Use our discount code DISCOVERINGDESTINATIONS
Enjoy 5% off any Holafly plan, for any destination, on your next purchase.
🔎 Explore More Travel Tools
👉 For everything else (transport, insurance, car rental, and more), check our full list of trusted travel tools:
👉 Discovering Destinations Travel Tools
https://discoveringdestinations.com/discovering-destinations-travel-tools-planning-tips/
