Attractions:

• Casa Elemento: Home of the world’s largest hammocks. From the center of town, you can either hike up here (2 hours and 30 minutes) or get on the back of a motorbike for a very bumpy 30 minutes (costs 20,000 COP). Either way, I would recommend visiting as the views are amazing!

• Hike: Minca is home to many great hikes, a few of which can be found below (this information is courtesy of Practical Wunderlust's website):

  • Las Piedras: This short 15 minute hike from town leads to a a great swimming spot with miniature rapids.

  • Pozo Azul: A group of three swimming holes and a waterfall that are a 45 minute hike from town. You can also cliff jump here! To get here, follow the road up the hill until you see a sign for Pozo Azul. The swimming holes are 15 minutes downhill from here.

  • Las Cascadas de Marinka: These lovely waterfalls are a 1 hour hike from town. To get here, identify the church on Minca’s main road. Keeping the church on your left, head up the hill. Eventually, you will see a sign “Finca la Esperanza, La Cascadas Minka”. Entrance to the falls costs 3,000 COP.

  • Los Pinos: This 5-7 hour loop hike through cloud forest takes you past both Pozo Azul and Las Cascadas de Marinka. Note: There is a 2 hour stretch of this hike that is nearly completely uphill.

  • Cerro Kennedy: This trail gives some incredible views of Los Nevados! The hike takes 7-9 hours up and 6-8 hours down; therefore, it requires spending a night in the mountains and two solid days of hiking. Either bring a tent or stay at the hostel in San Lorenzo along the trail. Be sure to stay on the main path (as the track is not marked well) and bring plenty of food and water (as there are no places to purchase these along the way). If you feel uncomfortable doing this hike without a guide, you can hire one from town.

• Coffee Plantation Tours: If you are a coffee aficionado, there are plenty of coffee plantations in Minca. The best two are La Candelaria (which also has chocolate) and Finca La Victoria Plantation/Nevada Cerveceria (near Pozo Azul)!

• La Ciudad Perdida (The Lost City) Hike: Depending on which hike you do, this trek will take between 4-6 days and will cost around $350 USD. I have heard that this hike is astonishing!

• Other attractions include: Jungle Joe, EL FAUNAL Nature Reserve, and Estación Experimental San Lorenzo.