Top Things to Do in Jerico, Colombia
Jericó is a beautiful small town in Antioquia that makes a great off-the-beaten path travel destination in Colombia.
As tourism develops throughout the country, Jericó is one destination where you can still experience authentic, traditional culture.
We hope you enjoy the following guide to Jerico, Colombia for independent travelers!
About Jerico, Antioquia, Colombia
Known to locals as the birth place of Colombia’s first and only canonized saint, Madre Laura, Jericó has much more to offer than religious significance.
The surrounding countryside is absolutely stunning with family-owned coffee farms and waterfalls.
The town is rooted in art, with more painting, wood-work, leather crafts, music, and other artisans than you would ever expect in such a small population.
The town itself is full of color. Its colonial and traditional architecture remains well preserved, earning Jerico an official designation as a pueblo patrimonio.
In this post, we will cover:
– What to do in Jericó, Colombia
– How to get to Jericó and when to visit
– What and where to eat in Jericó
– Where to stay in Jericó: hostels, hotels, and guest houses
– An interactive Jericó Map with recommended places to visit
Last updated: 2022. Originally published: November 2018.
Traveling to Jerico
Jericó (pronounced heh-ree-KOH) is about 3.5 hours by bus from Medellin (soon to be shorter, with improved highways). While it’s technically possible to visit in a day, we highly recommend doing an overnight trip from Medellin.
We traveled to Jerico after visiting another pueblo patrimonio nearby called Jardin.
Transit between the Jardín and Jericó goes through the town of Andes via a daily chiva ride on mostly unpaved roads. The open-air ride was a fun adventure in itself!
When to visit Jerico
The majority of tourists going to Jerico are Colombians who tend to visit on weekends and holidays. To have a more tranquilo experience, visit on a week day – you may even find some accommodations are cheaper as well.
Like much of Antioquia, Jerico has a mild climate almost year round.
Rain and thunderstorms are more frequent in October and November, which is when we visited. We found that some trails were a little muddy. Other than that, there was usually plenty of time in the day to explore before the afternoon showers.
Special thanks to the local tourism group for hosting us during our stay in Jericó. We were treated to many of Jericó’s best activities, accommodations, and restaurants so we could share Jericó’s offerings with other potential visitors on our blog as well as provide visual content to the individual businesses. Nonetheless, all opinions found here are completely our own.
This post also contains some affiliate links. That means if you book or purchase through one of our links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.
Best Things to Do in Jerico Colombia
Scroll down to the end of this post for our interactive Jerico map with location, tips, and photos for all of our recommendations.
1. Visit the Cristo Salvador viewpoint and Jardin Botanico
Jerico’s botanical garden is a nice way to make the climb up to the Cristo Salvador statue. This is one of Jerico’s most iconic landmarks and offers a great view overlooking the town.
The botanical gardens are open daily (free entrance) 6am to 6pm.
Alternatively, you can also reach the viewpoint by walking along the road, Carrera 1, or hiring a tuktuk/moto-taxi to drive you up. (There is a cable car as well, but it wasn’t in use when we visited.)
2. Enjoy Jerico’s main square
The main square of Jerico is between Carrera 4 and 5, and Calle 6 and 7. It is surrounded by bars, restaurants, cafes, and – of course – a large church. There are usually a few vendors selling produce and snacks from small carts as well.
If any events are going on in town, they’re likely to be at the plaza, too. On weekends, the square really comes to life as more visitors come to town!
3. Visit a church in Jerico
Church bells are one of the most common sounds you’ll hear in Jerico, with 17 churches in this small town.
Among Jerico’s many prominent leaders who have made their impact on Colombian history, most of the crowds come for Madre Laura. She’s first saint of Colombia, and her childhood home is in the town center.
In the Templo Inmaculado Corazon de Maria, you can find tokens of gratitude for various healings that have been attributed to Madre Laura.
4. Explore Jerico’s Art Hub: Bomarzo
Co-existing alongside Jerico’s highly religious community is a vibrant community of artists. Both modern and traditional art, from painting to handicrafts to music, are flourishing in Jerico.
Bomarzo is a hub for art and artists that was relatively new when we visited.
It has shops featuring various artisans, a cafe, bar, candy store, and large courtyard to host concerts and events. It’s a really neat space and worth poking around to each of the rooms.
Artists from around the globe can take part in the residency program. They stay at Bomarzo and work on an art series for a period of three months. Then proceeds from the sale of their work covers the cost of their stay.
5. Take a tuk tuk tour around Jerico town
Tuktuks motorcycle taxis are a fun way to explore the town of Jerico. Your hotel can likely set you up with a driver who also doubles as a guide. (If your Spanish is strong, Jaime is a great guy to take you around – otherwise, you may want to arrange for a translator.)
Jaime seems to know everyone in town! On our tour, he introduced us to local craftspeople and showed us places important to local culture that we otherwise never would have discovered on our own.
Without a guide, it can be challenging to get the most out of many of the local attractions, especially if you don’t read Spanish.
6. Hike Cerro Las Nubes
If you enjoy hiking, Cerro Las Nubes is a must do.
The name of the nature reserve refers to the clouds that frequently drift over the mountains. The hike can be 3 hours or more, depending on the route you take. When the clouds part, the views from above are incredible.
We had the opportunity to do the hike with a local guide, Jaime, which can be arranged through your hotel. Jaime is passionate about protecting his homeland and respecting the environment. His Spanish is very clear and easy to understand, which is great if you’re learning the language.
Since there had been daily rains before our hike, there were some parts of the trail that were slippery to descend.
Jaime had us take the long way down to avoid those more risky spots, so we walked about 5 hours in total.
7. Visit a coffee farm
Jerico is surrounded by coffee farms. It is the source of livelihood for many farmers, although the struggle to make a living off of coffee is not easy.
Las Cometas Tours (no longer online) offered amazing community tourism experiences to local coffee farms. It’s unclear if they’ll pick up again after the pandemic.
On the coffee tour, you’ll have the opportunity to visit the home of a local coffee farmer. You’ll see how they pick, process, and dry coffee beans in their backyard.
With the Jerico Travel tour, you’ll try your hand at planting and picking on Don Gabriel’s finca (farm). The farm experience can be combined with an overview of local coffees at Saturia Cafe in town.
Las Cometas Tours brings you to a family farm in a truly magical setting – perched above the Rio Cauca canyon and overlooking a rainbow waterfall. You’ll enjoy a hearty farmer’s lunch and learn all about coffee production in the community.
8. Sample Colombian coffee
Cafe Saturia is an excellent place to taste any of Jerico’s local coffee producers. They offer almost every brewing technique you can desire.
You can visit as part of the Jerico Travel coffee tour, mentioned above.
The owner, Juan, taught us how to use the Chemex to brew a local coffee named after his daughter. (And we savored it from wine glasses!)
Read on for our other favorite cafes in Jerico where you can enjoy local brews.
9. Shop for leather products
You can find a number of leather craft workshops and stores in town. If you’re lucky, you’ll be able to see the work in progress.
The carriel is a traditional handbag frequently worn by men in the region. It’s designed to open like an accordion folder, with multiple hidden pockets throughout.
If you keep an eye out, you’ll be sure to spot some older gentlemen wearing these expertly crafted bags around town.
10. Ride horses around Jerico
Horses are a common sight in Jerico. And a horse ride is another great way to experience this area, especially the beautiful countryside just outside of town.
We enjoyed a short afternoon ride with Mauricio Suarez of Paseos A Caballo Jerico.
We’re not experienced horseback riders but it wasn’t a problem. We followed him out to a hillside farm with a nice view of town. Longer trips are also possible.
11. Paraglide in Jerico
Certified tandem paragliding is offered in Jerico by Nube Extrema.
We didn’t try it ourselves, but we visited their stunning take off site and it came highly recommended by a friend.
13. Check out Jerico museums
With its status as a heritage town and cultural center, Jerico has a number of small museums to explore:
– Casa Museo de Santa Laura – Saint Madre Laura’s house, run by the religious community she founded. Features relics and articles from Laura’s history.
– Centro de Historia – The town’s municipal history center, with a document library and portrait hall of illustrious Jericoanos
– Museo de Arte Religioso – Religious art museum
– Museo Antropologico y de Arte (MAJA) – Exhibits on local artifacts as well as rotating modern art exhibits
Many of these are free or charge a small fee (3,000 COP, about $1 USD).
14. Enjoy a healing massage
If you could use a relaxing massage after a long day of travel and exploring – or if you’re looking for a place to keep up your regular massage therapy – we recommend visiting Kelli at BalancEnergy.
She speaks English and Spanish and offers a variety of spa services in the center of Jerico.
What to eat & Best restaurants in Jerico
Food specialties in this area include:
– El Postre Jericoano – a sweet cake made from papaya, pineapple, coconut, rum, panela and arequipe (sugar and caramel)
– Cardamom candies – a variety of sweets made with locally grown cardamom seeds
– Coffee – be sure to get some that’s locally grown
– Bandeja Paisa – A hearty regional meal that includes lots of meat and starches, like chicharron, ground beef, chorizo, arepa, fried egg, ripe plantain, rice, and beans
– Menu del dia – Most restaurants offer a set lunch deal, which typically includes meat, rice, another side or two, and fresh fruit juice for 9,000 – 12,000 COP ($3 – $4 USD)
Grilled meat and trout are common dishes you’ll find in local restaurants. Burgers and sandwich restaurants can also be found. Good vegetarian options are still a bit hard to come by in Jerico, although that’s slowly changing.
Isabel Parrilla Restaurant
Casa Isabel, listed as Isabel Parrilla restaurant, is in the former house of the owner’s mother and beloved citizen of Jerico, Isabel.
The restaurants are decorated with articles own by the family as well as rotating art displays from regional artists. Each room has a different theme.
Their specialty is grilled meat. The Morillo Isabel – sweet marinated beef cooked for 6 hours in its own juices and then grilled – was delicious and so tender you could almost eat it with a spoon.
The pork rib eye was also tasty. We also enjoyed the ceviche de chicharron (though it had Jedd worried about cracking a tooth) and some nice Intis wine from Argentina.
We were too full for desert but came back later in the week for their chocolate cake!
See the location and more menu photos of Isabel Parilla on our interactive map at the bottom of this post.
La Gruta
La Gruta restaurant was recommended to us for both menu del dia at lunch and for hearty dinners. They specialize in local dishes like grilled meats and fish as well as pizza.
We ordered a solomito de res (beef) which came with a large salad, potatoes, and really tasty croquettes. The trucha a la plancha (trout) was also really tasty and came with salad, plantain, and fried yuca.
The fresh juice, which can be made with water or milk, were so large we couldn’t finish them.
See the location and menu of La Gruta on our interactive map at the bottom of this post.
Tomatitos Pizza & Parilla
Tomatitos Pizza & Parilla is another popular restaurant on the main square. They make great pizzas as well as burgers, pasta, wok dishes, and grilled meats.
We enjoyed their Hawaiian pizza and patacon burger. This is a hearty beef burger with tomato, bacon, lettuce, and cheese on two flattened plantain patties. It was not the easiest thing to eat, but definitely an interesting local twist on a burger!
The fries were awesome, as were the limonadas de coco (coconut milk and lime juice).
See the location and menu of Tomatitos on our interactive map at the bottom of this post.
Cafe Don Rafa
Cafe Don Rafa is a nice coffee shop with plenty of tables, outlets, and decent internet.
A cappuccino is 6,000 COP ($2 USD) and a traditional Colombian tinto coffee is only 1,000 COP (35 cents) – 2018 prices.
They do have a small menu on top of their coffee selection. We had breakfast there one day and returned a couple times to work or chat with a new friend.
Don Rafa has another location in Medellin. To see the menu, location, and other photos, check out the interactive map at the bottom of the page.
Cafe El Saturia
Cafe La Saturia is a hub of local coffee production in Jerico. They work with 30+ family growers in the area, each with their own brand.
The cafe offers nearly every method of brew available – from espresso to pour over to iced granitas.
You can buy their beans in the shop, learn about how they were produced, or simply enjoy a drink. The owner, Juan, is a great coffee educator and is working to develop new coffee products that will benefit the local industry.
Pollo Loco Restaurant
You can get a great view of the main square from Pollo Loco, located on the second story corner of Calle 7 and Carrera 4.
We were advised to share a half order of roasted chicken, which comes with french fries. It was delicious, definitely a good amount for two people, and very affordable!
They also provide plastic gloves so you can eat without getting your hands messy.
See our interactive map for photos and location of Pollo Loco.
Meson de la Poeta
A nice option for menu del dia set lunches is Meson de la Poeta. The menu typically includes soup, meat, salad, rice, potato, and juice for about $3.50 USD (2018 price).
See our interactive map for photos.
Accommodations in Jerico, Colombia
El Despertar boutique hotel
El Despertar is the boutique hotel in Jerico.
The owners, a Spanish-Colombian family, remodeled the property first to be their house and then opened 8 private hotel rooms. There is a beautiful courtyard with dining area, hot tub, and open views of the mountains.
Each room is stylishly decorated with art and furnishing from local craftsmen. The shower fixtures are especially cool! A nice Colombian breakfast is available with coffee, tea, or hot chocolate.
If you’re looking for a relaxing, spacious place to stay, we highly recommend El Despertar Hotel.
Check rates and availability for El Despertar on booking.com >>
Cabanas y Flores Finca Hotel
If you’re looking for a more natural setting that’s still in walking distance to town, check out Cabanas y Flores finca hotel. They offer seven different self-contained cabins with parking and plenty of space between each cabana.
This can be a great option for families who want to stay together, or for folks traveling with pets. There’s a lot to explore, just make sure to cover up or wear insect repellant for sand flies. The grounds are landscaped with various flower gardens, yard art, open air BBQs, and even a natural pool.
An open-air breakfast and spa area are available with a spectacular view of the town below. Definitely a lovely setting!
Check rates and availability for Cabanas y Flores on Booking.com >>
Parcerito’s Hostel – formerly Las Cometas
If you’re on a budget, or just want a more international community experience, head to Jerico’s only hostel: Parcerito. It’s under new ownership since we visited, but still maintains a traveler vibe and excellent central location.
Las Cometas hostel has small, private rooms with or without private bath, as well as 6-bed mixed dorm rooms.
Shared kitchen and various open-air common spaces are available to guests.
Check rates and availability for Parcerito Hostel on Hostel World >>
Casa Coffee homestay
For a homestay experience hosted by a warm and welcoming mother and son duo, check out Casa Coffee Jerico.
The home is well located, one block from the main square. They have one small suite with private bath as well as a few hostel-style rooms with a shared bathroom.
Angelo teaches immersion Spanish classes from the house and loves to show guests around if time allows. We had a lovely time with Angelo and Mama Luz and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a more personal connection in Jerico.
Check rates and availability for Casa Coffee Jerico on Homestay.com >>
Our Jerico Map
Click on the map icons to see more info and photos. You can open the list of places by click on the icon in the upper left corner.
We hope this has been helpful to you! If you visit Jerico and discover any changes or want to suggest something new, please let us know by email or in the comments below.
✈️ Protect your Jerico Colombia trip with Travel Insurance – We’ve started using Nomad Insurance by Safety Wing for affordable evacuation, international medical, and trip coverage.
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