Cano Cristales
Cano Cristales
5
7:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
7:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
7:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
7:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
7:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
7:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
7:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
7:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Duration: More than 3 hours
Meets animal welfare guidelines
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listingTours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
Full view
Top ways to experience Cano Cristales and nearby attractions
The area
Reach out directly
Best nearby
We rank these restaurants and attractions by balancing reviews from our members with how close they are to this location.
Attractions
1 within 10 kms
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
5.0
441 reviews
Excellent
402
Very good
30
Average
4
Poor
2
Terrible
3
S1PRADA
Cali, Colombia362 contributions
Oct 2021
This is simply out of this world. Unique natural beauty, without any human intervention. A must see without a doubt.
No safety issues. No fancy restaurants. No fabricated playgrounds for adults. As life is there.
No safety issues. No fancy restaurants. No fabricated playgrounds for adults. As life is there.
Written 29 October 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
7marthalu10
Kansas City, MO167 contributions
Aug 2022 • Family
Amazing place to visit in El Meta state, Colombia. No body will see that wonder of the world on orherr place, but only in la Macarena Colombia.
Love it, i will go back soon
Love it, i will go back soon
Written 31 August 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ChrisKuks
Amsterdam, The Netherlands7 contributions
Oct 2010
Last year I had a great experience in Colombia, I went to Caño Cristales, the river of colors. The “Macarenia Clavijera” ( an aquatic plant that gives the red color to the river) has a life cycle that depends on the river flow. The plant dies in the dry season while in the rainy season it extends along the river bed. This is why the season of visits ranges from June to November. The river has very interesting rock formations, natural swimming pools and waterfalls. This place is still an undiscovered travel destination in Colombia for foreigners. En excellent trip! The most recommended company which does trips to Caño Cristales is Caminantes del Retorno (www.caminantesdelretorno) who has a long time experience in the region. The trip is strongly recommended.
Written 27 April 2011
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
elispapafrita
Bogota3 contributions
Don´t go by yourself. It´s a very dangerous place, as it is near of the guerrilla´s red zone
Written 14 February 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
oridoll
Bogota, Colombia85 contributions
Aug 2012 • Couples
It is beautifully exotic. Safe hiking, unique sightseeing and great swimming by wonderful waterfalls. Red subaquatic plants give an extraordinary touch to the river and all surroundings.
Written 1 September 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LePapito
France484 contributions
Jun 2014 • Friends
If you have the opportunity don't miss the trip to Caño Cristales bit be aware that a few things need to be improved on the organization side .
Before you go tour operators might forget to tell you a few things
- use of sun creams and repellents are prohibited in the park ( to prevent these chemicals to poison the aquatic plants ) thus you might want to go with long sleeves .
- visiting season May to November is the rainy season because it is the moment the plants and the colors are nicest ; thus tropical rain is likely to pour down , you might want to take along some protection for heavy rain ( or buy it in La Macarena ) . Next day might be very hot .
- you must have a guide to enter the park ; local guides are nice people but not very prepared to tell you a lot about flora, fauna or geological formation ; do your own search on internet before .
- if you need to keep in touch with the outside world , the only available cell signal is from Claro; there is a small Internet cafe , managed by a clever deaf and mute guy , connection is just extremely slow .
- the nicest hotel , by far, is the Punto Verde , staffed with very nice people ; just try to have a room at the far end of the garden , sure you will hear the roaster calling at 5 30 but not the noise of the hotel discotheque the whole night . They even have a small swimming pool and outside temperature water in the shower ( not hot but not cold either )
Be aware that some of the excursions , without being tough , can include a bit of rock climbing , water crossing ...
Safety can be sometimes light , especially when after strong rains , the rivers go up , the road is cut and you have to cross river holding a safety line with both hands ..
Plan at least three days , two nights there and remember that the planes come and go depending on unknown rules .
Before you go tour operators might forget to tell you a few things
- use of sun creams and repellents are prohibited in the park ( to prevent these chemicals to poison the aquatic plants ) thus you might want to go with long sleeves .
- visiting season May to November is the rainy season because it is the moment the plants and the colors are nicest ; thus tropical rain is likely to pour down , you might want to take along some protection for heavy rain ( or buy it in La Macarena ) . Next day might be very hot .
- you must have a guide to enter the park ; local guides are nice people but not very prepared to tell you a lot about flora, fauna or geological formation ; do your own search on internet before .
- if you need to keep in touch with the outside world , the only available cell signal is from Claro; there is a small Internet cafe , managed by a clever deaf and mute guy , connection is just extremely slow .
- the nicest hotel , by far, is the Punto Verde , staffed with very nice people ; just try to have a room at the far end of the garden , sure you will hear the roaster calling at 5 30 but not the noise of the hotel discotheque the whole night . They even have a small swimming pool and outside temperature water in the shower ( not hot but not cold either )
Be aware that some of the excursions , without being tough , can include a bit of rock climbing , water crossing ...
Safety can be sometimes light , especially when after strong rains , the rivers go up , the road is cut and you have to cross river holding a safety line with both hands ..
Plan at least three days , two nights there and remember that the planes come and go depending on unknown rules .
Written 1 July 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
MetalTraveller
Paris, France235 contributions
Aug 2013 • Couples
First, the "dangerous" and "go only with a tour agency" are not true anymore.
For years this place was off limits, and now one can visit it again.
You can go with a tour agency from Bogota or Villavicencio but it's best to go by yourself and arrange a guide there, you'll have more flexibility. There are flights from Bogota and Villavicencio.
Caño Cristales can only be visited with a guide, but this is for ecological reasons. Arranging a guide and finding a hotel in La Macarena is easy, and gives more flexibility, especially f you have a rainy day.
Also, allow at least 3 full days in La Macarena to visit all the places. When it rains, there's no point in visiting anything. I spent almost a week there and I think it's the right amount of time.
For years this place was off limits, and now one can visit it again.
You can go with a tour agency from Bogota or Villavicencio but it's best to go by yourself and arrange a guide there, you'll have more flexibility. There are flights from Bogota and Villavicencio.
Caño Cristales can only be visited with a guide, but this is for ecological reasons. Arranging a guide and finding a hotel in La Macarena is easy, and gives more flexibility, especially f you have a rainy day.
Also, allow at least 3 full days in La Macarena to visit all the places. When it rains, there's no point in visiting anything. I spent almost a week there and I think it's the right amount of time.
Written 9 November 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
duncan77Bournemouth
bournemouth12 contributions
Aug 2013 • Couples
We booked through Vinatur, took the bus from Bogota to Villavicencio, flights to La Macarena, canoe up river, 4x4 transfer, then a walk of 30 mins. The operators, local people, and our guide, were fantastic!! The river is gorgeous, a true wonder of nature, with beautiful red plants and plenty of natural swimming pools. Take rubber shoes, long sleeves, and a camera. The local people are so proud of the transformation in security, with the guerrilla coca farms and factories long gone, and a strong military presence making it super safe now. We stayed in Casa Hotel- clean and modern, if a little basic. The food was delicious, and everyone is so attentive. I can't recommend this trip highly enough. Please go!!
Written 19 August 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hannah C
London, UK1 contribution
Oct 2015 • Friends
We spend a long weekend in La Macarena to visit Cano Cristales. Lots of the advice suggests that you need to take a tour from Bogota but in fact it's very simple and easy to book flights independently and organise a guide when you arrive. We use the tourist information office in the tiny airport to book a guide for two day when we arrived. The guides were professional and knowledgeable and even stopped us from missing our flight! We'd highly recommend a tour with Unigma and our guide Duvan.
Written 27 October 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rachel C
4 contributions
Aug 2016 • Friends
Summary: If you go to La Macarena to visit Cano Cristales, I highly recommend that you make sure you do NOT get JORLEY for your guide.. She was heartless and gave us a very disappointing experience.
Background: Unfortunately, this trip was a huge disappointment for us. If you have looked at any photos online, your expectations are probably very high, and from what we saw, the discrepancy between those expectations and the reality is enormous, and it is hard to swallow after all the effort and logistics and cost of getting there. I expect that unless you get extremely lucky with the weather, it is not worth it.
We traveled to La Macarena via Satena Airlines,, and we knew we could line up our travel guide and lodging upon arrival in La Macarena. So we signed up for 2 and a half days of guided tours with the company that is co-located with the airport. The first (half) day was to a local swimming hole that was nice because it was so hot, but was not really spectacular. The next two days we went to El Cano Cristales with our guide Jorley. It rained and and was grey almost the whole time. The river had some purple in it, but even that was hard to see. The river was nice, but average, FAR from the most beautiful river in the world.
After hours of hiking, soaking wet, seeing basically nothing, it was everything we could do to try to maintain a good attitude. We crossed the river up to our waists and twice up to our neck. We tried to stay positive and hold out hope that eventually the sun would come out. Finally, it did. We were sad to realized that we still couldn't see the colors, because at that point, the water was too deep. Jorley had us stop for lunch at that point and we ate on the trail, all of us excited that we were finally going to get to swim in the sun and take pictures of the plants, which is what we had come for. It was seemingly perfect timing because we were about to arrive at La Piscina Turista.
After we ate, Jorley led us to the Piscina Turista but then told us we were not allowed to swim, even though other groups were swimming. She said we had just a couple of minute to take pictures and then we had to leave. She said our time was up, and that since we had swam earlier (in the rain) we could not swim again. None of it made sense, and deep in my gut I had the feeling she was being unfair to us. It was devastating, after all the disappointment we had already endured. I burst into tears as we walked away. She didn't care.
When we left town, we asked the tour office about all of the excuses Jorley had given us. They said no, she should have let us swim. She probably just wanted to get home, and that they had received complaints about her in the past. So I guess we were unlucky, in more ways than one. I'm sure the river can be amazing, if you hit it right. But its definitely too much trouble for me to ever go back, so I guess I will never know for sure. But if you go, make sure you do not get the same guide that we did, Jorley.
Background: Unfortunately, this trip was a huge disappointment for us. If you have looked at any photos online, your expectations are probably very high, and from what we saw, the discrepancy between those expectations and the reality is enormous, and it is hard to swallow after all the effort and logistics and cost of getting there. I expect that unless you get extremely lucky with the weather, it is not worth it.
We traveled to La Macarena via Satena Airlines,, and we knew we could line up our travel guide and lodging upon arrival in La Macarena. So we signed up for 2 and a half days of guided tours with the company that is co-located with the airport. The first (half) day was to a local swimming hole that was nice because it was so hot, but was not really spectacular. The next two days we went to El Cano Cristales with our guide Jorley. It rained and and was grey almost the whole time. The river had some purple in it, but even that was hard to see. The river was nice, but average, FAR from the most beautiful river in the world.
After hours of hiking, soaking wet, seeing basically nothing, it was everything we could do to try to maintain a good attitude. We crossed the river up to our waists and twice up to our neck. We tried to stay positive and hold out hope that eventually the sun would come out. Finally, it did. We were sad to realized that we still couldn't see the colors, because at that point, the water was too deep. Jorley had us stop for lunch at that point and we ate on the trail, all of us excited that we were finally going to get to swim in the sun and take pictures of the plants, which is what we had come for. It was seemingly perfect timing because we were about to arrive at La Piscina Turista.
After we ate, Jorley led us to the Piscina Turista but then told us we were not allowed to swim, even though other groups were swimming. She said we had just a couple of minute to take pictures and then we had to leave. She said our time was up, and that since we had swam earlier (in the rain) we could not swim again. None of it made sense, and deep in my gut I had the feeling she was being unfair to us. It was devastating, after all the disappointment we had already endured. I burst into tears as we walked away. She didn't care.
When we left town, we asked the tour office about all of the excuses Jorley had given us. They said no, she should have let us swim. She probably just wanted to get home, and that they had received complaints about her in the past. So I guess we were unlucky, in more ways than one. I'm sure the river can be amazing, if you hit it right. But its definitely too much trouble for me to ever go back, so I guess I will never know for sure. But if you go, make sure you do not get the same guide that we did, Jorley.
Written 18 September 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hola, unos amigos y yo tenemos pensado ir en septiembre y quisiera que me pudieran dar tip para mi visita. Sobre todo me intesa saber si es más recomendable contratar al guía una vez estando en la Macarena.
En fin cualquier consejo es de mucha ayuda!
Written 26 February 2024
Hola, unos amigos y yo tenemos pensado ir en septiembre y quisiera que me pudieran dar tip para mi visita. Sobre todo me intesa saber si es más recomendable contratar al guía una vez estando en la Macarena.
En fin cualquier consejo es de mucha ayuda!
Written 26 February 2024
Forever y
Guangzhou, China
Hello,Could you please tell me how can I buy satena’s ticket on the internet?
Written 11 February 2024
is there river colour left in the second half of november
Written 10 November 2022
3123152169 o al 3103005294 contacto Oscar Hernández
Written 27 July 2022
Hello! We were wondering if we can book through an eco friendly place in la Macarena instead of booking through a tour company. Any suggestions?? Through the hotels there in La Macarena as well. Thank you!!
Written 18 September 2019
Then I would try through this or other platform, I would not go there without a reservation! As time and conditions change, different types of tourists are attracted. Availability will vary as well. I speak fluent Spanish and would not take a chance. But if you don’t mind spending at least a day or two “whatever”, then, I would say is another type of experience... How ever you do it, JUST DO IT!!!👍🏼👍🏼
Written 20 November 2019
Hello - I am interested in going to Cano Cristales. We are looking to go to Colombia December 22 through December 28th. Is this possible? What city should we arrive to?
Written 22 August 2019
Hello! Are you doing this on your own, no travel agency???
I would recommend you don’t just show up in La Macarena. You may be able to find a place to stay, but your activities, including and mainly visiting the river, is not guaranteed!!! In any case you fly into Bogotá y take another flight to La Macarena! Good luck!!!👍🏼
Written 28 October 2019
Cuánto tiempo (horas o días) lleva conocer este lugar?
Cuál es la frecuencia de los vuelos hacia Macarena desde Bogotá?
Written 29 June 2019
All agencies said that the period July to October is the best period. We were there in early September but due to the fact that in the last few weeks didn't rain there the level of river was low and we cannot see it in all his splendor. So it is a lottery.
Written 22 June 2019
Hi what company would you reccomend?
Thank you
Written 1 June 2019
…
Showing results 1-10 of 148
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing