Explore Bogotá
La Candelaria, on foot.
The neighbourhood where Bogotá began fits into a walk: little squares, free museums, chicha and murals. Tap a place to see the route from the hostel door.
Map and places
Walking minutes calculated with OpenStreetMap (OSRM foot profile) from the hostel at a flat pace — La Candelaria is steep, so uphill takes a little longer.
- 1
History · Culture
Chorro de Quevedo
≈2 min
It’s the oldest corner of the neighbourhood, practically round the corner from us.
Tradition places Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada’s 1538 camp on this little square. It’s named after a fountain installed by a friar called Quevedo in the 1800s; today’s fountain and San Miguel del Príncipe chapel are a 1969 reconstruction. In the afternoons it fills with storytellers, musicians and chicha bars.
The hostel’s own guide (2023) says 1 min.
- tip: A yarumo beside the chapel was declared a heritage tree in 2023; it was found dead standing and removed in 2024.
Calle 13 con Carrera 2, La Candelaria
- 2
Art · History · Culture
Callejón del Embudo
≈3 min
Street art and your first chicha, two minutes from the door.
A cobbled lane, narrow at one end and wide at the other — hence “the funnel”. In the 1950s it was home to shoemakers, tailors and bookbinders; today the façades are covered in murals and the street smells of chicha.
The hostel’s own guide (2023) says 2 min.
Carrera 2 entre Calle 12B y Calle 13, junto al Chorro de Quevedo
- 3
Food · Culture
La Concordia market
≈5 min
A traditional lunch among the fruit stalls.
The neighbourhood market hall: fruit, produce from across Colombia and traditional kitchens in a restored building. Around it, newer food and culture projects mix old Bogotá with the current one.
- Hours
- Daily, 8:00–17:00 (per visitbogota.co). (source, checked 31 Oct 2026)
Calle 12C #1-40, La Candelaria
- 4
History · Culture
La Candelaria church
≈5 min
It’s the church that gave La Candelaria its name.
The church of the Augustinian Recollects — the “Candelaria fathers” who gave the whole neighbourhood its name. Church and convent went up between 1686 and 1703 and hold colonial religious art; a National Monument since 1975.
The hostel’s own guide (2023) says 4 min.
- tip: The Candelaria feast is celebrated every 2 February in the historic centre.
Calle 11 con Carrera 4, La Candelaria
- 5
Culture · Art
Luis Ángel Arango Library
≈4 min
A quiet place to read or work, four minutes away.
Colombia’s most important public library, with some 5,000 visitors a day. Beyond the reading rooms it runs concerts, exhibitions, talks and workshops.
- Hours
- Mon–Sat 8:00–19:00; Sun 9:00–16:00; closed on public holidays. (source, checked 31 Oct 2026)
- Admission
- Free entry.
Calle 11 #4-14, La Candelaria
- 6
Art · Culture
Botero Museum
≈6 min
World-class art, free, five minutes’ walk away.
Born from the collection Fernando Botero donated to Colombia’s central bank in 2000: 208 works, 123 by Botero himself and 85 by international modern masters.
The hostel’s own guide (2023) says 5 min.
- Hours
- Mon and Wed–Sat 9:00–19:00; Sun and holidays 10:00–17:00; closed Tuesdays. Last entry one hour before closing. (source, checked 31 Oct 2026)
- Admission
- Free entry, no booking needed.
- tip: Closed Tuesdays (the Gold Museum closes Mondays).
- tip: No tripods, lights or flash.
Calle 11 #4-41, La Candelaria
- 7
History · Art · Culture
Casa de Moneda Museum
≈6 min
Pairs with the Botero in one free visit.
Santafé’s old mint, now a museum about how we assign value to objects and ideas. It shares the block with the Botero and the Miguel Urrutia Art Museum (MAMU).
- Hours
- Mon and Wed–Sat 9:00–19:00; Sun and holidays 10:00–17:00; closed Tuesdays. (source, checked 31 Oct 2026)
- Admission
- Free entry.
Calle 11 #4-93, La Candelaria
- 8
History · Culture
Plaza de Bolívar
≈10 min
Colombia’s seats of power, in stone, in a single glance.
Bogotá’s main square, laid out from 1539, with the Capitol, City Hall, the Palace of Justice and the Primate Cathedral on its four sides. Bolívar was received here in 1819 after the Battle of Boyacá.
The hostel’s own guide (2023) says 8 min.
- tip: The Independence Museum – Casa del Florero is on the south-east corner.
Carrera 7 #11-10, La Candelaria
- 9
History · Art · Culture
Gold Museum
≈12 min
Bogotá’s essential museum — free on Sundays.
The world’s largest collection of pre-Hispanic goldwork, including the Muisca Raft tied to the El Dorado legend. Bilingual galleries cover metalworking, cosmology and offerings.
The hostel’s own guide (2023) says 11 min.
- Hours
- Tue–Sat 9:00–19:00 (last entry 18:00); Sun and holidays 10:00–17:00; closed Mondays. Some permanent galleries intermittently closed until 6 November 2026. (source, checked 31 Oct 2026)
- Admission
- Foreign visitors COP 21,000; Colombians and residents COP 10,000; students COP 5,000. Free on Sundays, and always for under-12s and over-62s.
- tip: Free guided tours, no booking; in English Tue–Sat at 11:00 and 16:00.
- tip: Allow at least an hour and a half.
Carrera 6 #15-88, Parque Santander
- 10
Nature · Culture
Monserrate cable car & funicular station
≈22 min
Your ride to the summit if you’d rather not hike.
The lower station on Paseo Bolívar where the cable car and the funicular leave. The ride is half the fun, climbing the eastern hills as the city opens up below.
Uphill most of the way — allow extra time, or take a taxi.
The hostel’s own guide (2023) says 23 min.
- Hours
- Cable car & funicular: Mon–Sat 6:30–22:00; Sun 5:30–17:00; holidays 6:30–17:00. Subject to maintenance. (source, checked 31 Oct 2026)
- Admission
- Mon–Sat and holidays: return COP 35,000 (one way COP 21,000). Sundays: return COP 21,000.
- tip: In late October 2026 monserrate.co still showed a funicular-only notice — check before you go.
Carrera 2 Este #21-48, Paseo Bolívar
- ↗
Nature · History · Culture
Monserrate summit
cable car
From the top you see the whole city, La Candelaria at its feet.
At 3,152 m above sea level, the summit has Bogotá’s widest view, the Señor Caído sanctuary and restaurants. The El Paramuno trail is known for its hummingbirds.
On foot it’s a mountain hike with about 500 m of climb — easier to reach the station and ride up.
- Hours
- Basilica: Mon and Wed–Sun 6:00–19:00; Tue 12:00–19:00. Footpath: ascent 5:00–13:00, closed Tuesdays. (source, checked 31 Oct 2026)
- tip: The footpath closes on Tuesdays and doesn’t allow pets.
Cima del cerro (acceso por Carrera 2 Este #21-48)
Across the street
The poet of anthems.
On the house across the street — as Yarumo tells it in a reel — a plaque reads: “The poet of the anthems, Dr. Pedro Medina Avendaño, lived in this house.” He wrote the lyrics of the Bogotá anthem, chosen in the city’s 1974 contest, with music by Roberto Pineda Duque.
And a minute away, at the Chorro de Quevedo, stood a yarumo declared a heritage tree in 2023; it died standing and was removed in 2024.
Getting around
Getting here, getting around.
TransMilenio
The nearest stops are Las Aguas (≈11 min) and Museo del Oro (≈11 min), on the Eje Ambiental. The last stretch is uphill.
Altitude & weather
Bogotá averages around 13 °C and early mornings are cold. Monserrate sits at 3,152 m — take it slow and bring a layer.
Steep streets
La Candelaria climbs towards the hills: what looks flat on the map you’ll feel on foot. At night, a taxi or ride app is the better call.
Come on over
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