Zipaquirá (salt cathedral) gastro tour (Group Tour)
Bogotá, Colombia
- 8 to 9 hours (approx.)
- Pickup offered
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Step inside one of Colombia’s most unique architectural works on this full-day tour to Zipaquirá from Bogota, which saves you the hassle of arranging your own transportation. Venture underground to discover the vast salt mines of Zipaquirá, learn about the city’s long salt mining history, and see how the salt is collected. Finally, admire the grand Salt Cathedral of Zipaquirá, a church entirely made out of salt.
- Prebooking your tour guarantees your entry to this popular attraction
- Check off plenty of the attraction’s highlights in just one tour
- No hidden costs: Entrance fees and audio guide are included
- Enjoy round-trip transfers from central Bogota
What's Included
- Transportation roundtrip
- Entry to the Salt Cathedral (if this option is selected)
- Card Assistance
- Host during the tour
- Walking and experiences during the tour
- Food snacks during the tour
- Lunch
- Unspecified Expenses
- Pick up every hotel (do not lose time!)
Meeting and Pickup
You can head directly to your preferred meeting point, or request pickup.
Itinerary
1
Parque 93
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Zipaquira
20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
3
Catedral De Sal
2 hours • Admission Ticket Included
4
Zipaquira
40 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
5
Zipaquira
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
6
Zipaquira
15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
7
Bogota
40 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Infants must sit on laps
- Infant seats available
- Transportation is wheelchair accessible
- Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
- Passport name, number, expiry and country is required at time of booking for all participants
- Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately
- Please be ready at the time specified for your pickup
- Please, specify the starting point for your pickup
- Please do not forget to bring your vaccination card and document (it can be digital) to enter the attractions.
- no recomendado para viajeros con claustrofobia
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
Courtney L
My boyfriend and I did this tour our first day in Bogota with a guide named Alex. Alex made this experience just that much better he gave us a lot of historical and cultural information about Colombia, and even helped us with a luggage situation we had at the airport! Zipaquira is beautiful, and the salt cathedral is simply breathtaking. Once inside the salt mines, your driver/guide will leave you with a group tour that will take you through the mines. This is a very holy place, and a spiritual presence was very much felt here. We took the early morning option pick up at 8am and the mine was super empty. By the time we left, around noon, it was crowded and noisy, so I recommend going in the morning. After the salt mine tour, Alex took us to the most wonderful restaurant to try their local meats and traditional dishes. It was ALL amazing, thoroughly cooked, and there was so much food we didn't finish it american-style, y'all. This tour was awesome, and we enjoyed every second of it. Highly recommended.
Reviews
4.5
based on 252 reviews
Zhanar_K, Dec 2024
There were so many people that I’ve got lost and couldn’t reach the guide by phone. They didn’t give a contact of guide but the office, who didn’t pick up the phone and didnt reply for 3 hours. I felt not well there and was panicking and nobody could help.
Filipa_C, Jul 2024
You get what it says you'll get, but the Cathedral is underwhelming (and incredibly touristy. It was made just for that), the walk in town is basically just a rushed look at the two squares and the restaurant for lunch is not great.
vplakhani, Mar 2024
Guide was excellent and good in communication. Timing was perfect for tour . Really enjoyed the tour.
Zuleika_T, Feb 2024
What a breath taking experience! I highly recommend this tour. Our tour guide was amazing and knowledgeable!
Stuart_K, Jan 2024
Fantastic day out, our guide Steven was very knowledgable and friendly. Plenty of time to see the Cathedral and the town.
Robert_J, Jan 2024
Salt Cathedral guide only spoke Spanish and my headset malfunctioned. Bus ride was exceedingly bumpy. The phone number to call for help provided with the ticket confirmation was answered by a Spanish message and no help whatsoever. Diego the escort was very kind and knowledgeable.
Adarsh_N, Jan 2024
The salt mine was nice, pick up was well coordinated, small group of people, time was kept also and nice
Casey_R, Jan 2024
This was booked as an English-language tour. The tour guides were very nice and did speak English well. However, most people on the tour spoke Spanish so English was an afterthought. For example, when describing the city square there was great detail given about the history and the buildings in Spanish. For English, this was all left out and only meeting directions were given. When first getting off the bus, directions about where to meet were only given in Spanish and we had to ask someone else where to meet. The transportation was good, however if we just wanted transportation only we could have booked that without the tour. I'm sure it's a great tour if you speak Spanish, but it should either be advertised as Spanish-only or everything should be given in English as well.
Rainer_G, Dec 2023
The salt cathedral is certainly an amazing place. In contrast to other English reviewers, I found the audio guide very useful and it allowed me to walk at my own pace. The explanations are a bit mysterious for a non Christian. Not sure why we had to spend an hour in the rain to explore Zipaquira, a town with very few redeeming features. Our tour guide's English was excellent, but he sometimes forgot there were non- Spanish speakers on board. Nevertheless, a day well spent!!
Michelle_P, Nov 2023
Good trip. Guide gives you information while on the bus. Once you arrive at the destination, the local guides (Spanish speaking) take over. No guided tour in the town.
Peter_C, Oct 2023
The fact it was supposed to be with a English speaking guide.Once we arrived we were given audio recording.
Taken for a meal when it would be better to have gone back to Bogota.
Finishing the meal only to have two Spanish speaking couple turn up and we had to wait for them to order and eat.
Basically if you are English speaking make your own way there.
Michael_S, Oct 2023
This tour offered everything that was expected. They were on-time, transparent, and got us where we needed to go. The Salt Cathedral itself was as expected. It was cool to see. We did find it odd that it was like walking into a completely different zone toward the end with the shops, but we were expecting that. Overall, if you've never been, it is 100% worth the day trip!
Yurong_F, Sep 2023
The trip was interesting!
You get transportation and a guide, but once you reach the salt mine you are passed on to a local guide within the mine which only lead the tours in Spanish. The English visitors are given these audio devices which are dull to listen to, I feel like I miss some of the live explanation from the guide so I tagged onto another bilingual tourist who translated some of the more interesting facts - I wish the guide that came with us on the bus did this instead of me having to go to rely on another tourist.
The main part of the cathedral is beautiful. The beginning can be a little boring for someone not religious as you walk through 12 crosses. At the end of the cathedral, there are lots of shops with items made of salt (gorgeous), cafes, and other types of shops for emeralds, spa/skin care etc. You can take this train to get out of the mine at the end.
The restaurant we stopped at for lunch is delicious and then a quick stop in the town before heading back to Bogota.
I was a solo traveler and met some other great solo travelers that we kept in touch and met up in other cities of Colombia so I would say overall it was a great tour!
Craig_M, Aug 2023
Sergio was a great tour guide to and from Bogota. He was very knowledgeable and helpful and answered all of our questions in both Englishna d Spanish. Inside the mine, the lady guide was also very informative and animated.
Chris_G, Aug 2023
Well worth doing this place is amazing
From the religious side to just the man power to create this amazing place
Mark_S, Aug 2023
We loved the tour. The guide was good and kept everyone organized and in time. we enjoyed a Colombian lunch after the tour. And met people from all over the world
Jodie_L, Jul 2023
This was a really good tour. Our guide Tyler was really excellent - friendly, engaging, and informative, and managing to do it all well in both English and Spanish. He made the whole day really easy. Our driver Nelson was also really friendly and we felt safe in his hands. The price is not too bad when compared to the cost and effort of doing it alone.
The food at the restaurant for lunch was good. It was overpriced, but thats to be expected for a tourist spot, and there was no pressure to eat there - you could wander off elsewhere if you wanted.
Rebecca_S, Jul 2023
Our guide Maria was very pleasant and did a nice job with English and Spanish. However, j think she could have done better about where we should find her when dropped off. It would have been helpful if she had a flag or a way to signal for us to stay together and follow, especially at the Cathedral when we were going in.
Restaurant they recommended was nice and the food was pretty good and came out quick.
james_k, Jul 2023
Was very excited to go to the salt cathedral. Tour guide said meet infront of Juan Valdez - Hotel bh Bicentenario as shown in the screenshot of my booking confirmation. Arrived early but I could not find them. I messaged the tour guide but they did not message me back until 20 minutes AFTER they left. They then told me they were infront of the Hotel Aparta Suite Continental. Tour guide stated it was my fault and I should have known since the streets were small and vehicles could not park infront of Hotel bh Bicentenario. I'm sorry but I have never been in Bogota and there is no way I could have known that and I follow exact instructions. If it just stated to meet in front of the Continental hotel, I could've easily located the tour but they chose to say Hotel bh Bicentenario for reasons I do not now. Tour guide also stated they could not message me in time because they were too busy with other customers. Again, I'm sorry but I do not understand how that is my fault. I have been to countless tours with no problem, this was the first.
Kalee_B, Jun 2023
This is one of the most unique experiences you will have anywhere in the world. Our tour was fabulous with an awesome tour guide, Sergio. The Salt Cathedral will take your breath away with its grandiosity. Truly something you need to experience in person. Not only is the Cathedral itself incredibly impressive, the commerce area INSIDE the mountain is incredible. There is a legit spa in the mountain and you get to sample one of their products at the spa. Weirdly, we had some of the best wifi while we were in the cathedral.
Regarding the actual tour: The tour bus was very nice, clean, and comfortable. Sergio was a great tour guide who took time to answer any questions. He had a reservation for our lunch at a very very yummy restaurant (Brasas Del Llano) where there was live music and great Limonada de Coco. We arrived back at the pickup destination promptly when we were expected to although we all wished we could have spent more time in the Salt Cathedral. We recommend this tour!
Evelyn_S, Jun 2023
The tour was very interesting however wish it was a bit longer to experience other available options and shopping. Highly recommended.
Raymond_K, Jun 2023
Tyler was an amazing tour guide. Very kind and knowledgable. The restaraunt that they took us after the tour was wonderful. Highly recommend!
Gregory_Y, Jun 2023
The salt cathedral itself is beautiful and quite the unique place to visit. The tour also stops in the nearby town twice, once for some wandering before the cathedral and again afterward for lunch. There was plenty of time in each spot to freely explore and I felt I got the full experience of the salt cathedral. I also really enjoyed the food and live music at the recommended restaurant (the price of lunch is not included but my entire group ate at the recommended place so it was nice for a chance to meet other travelers). The tour guide, Maria, offered some good information on the ride but the convenience of the tour was what sold it for me. It picked up and dropped off right near my lodging in Parque de La 93 in Bogotá and provided transport to each of the places that might have otherwise been difficult for me to get to.
Adam_G, May 2023
This tour is simply amazing. Kudos to our tour guide Maria who made it a real fun too. The tour started on time and ended on time. The salt mine is a very unique place in the world, I have never seen before in my life. My tour companion were two native Bogota residents and they could not believe they such a gem so close to their home. Thanks again Viator for this amazing day. Mucho Gracias!
Keji_B, Apr 2023
The tour was very well organised. The salt cathedral was definitely one to experience! We stopped for lunch at a very eclectic local restaurant in Zipaquera town and the food was amazing! The only issue was the tour guide (on the bus) only spoke little English. She gave long explanations and historical context in Spanish but the English translation was always very short, so it was clear there was a lot of info that was left out. orher than that it was well worth it!
tquanglam, Apr 2023
Above average. A simple tour. The salt cathederal itself is amazing thing too see. Other things are just normal.
Harish_P, Apr 2023
Great experience. Must visit - spiritual, different and unique, hiking, learning experience.
1st wonder if Colombia
Thao_V, Apr 2023
I would give more than 5* if I could. My guide was excellent, nice and kind. He spoke English fluently and was very accommodating. He even walked with me to restaurants to buy my breakfast and helped me with internet connection. I love this tour and would definitely rebook!
Erika_G, Apr 2023
We had a great day with our tour guide and the trip was awesome. The Salt Cathedral was truly spectacular, transportation was great, lunch was delicious too! Highly recommend this day trip from Bogota.
Louise_D, Mar 2023
Great tour, the host was lovely! Cathedral was amazing and we all went for a lovely lunch before heading home
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Zipaquirá (salt cathedral) gastro tour (Group Tour)
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