Colombia (Lonely Planet, 5th Edition) - Jens Porup [193]
There are plenty of buses to Bogotá (COP$37,000, eight hours) and to Cali (COP$20,000, 3½ hours). There are regular minibuses to Pereira (COP$5000, one hour), Manizales (COP$16,000, three hours) and Salento (COP$3000, 30 minutes). There are also direct buses to Popayán (COP$30,000, six hours).
TRAIN
There is infrequent passenger train service from La Tebaida (near Armenia) to Cali (Click here).
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AROUND ARMENIA
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Jardín Botánico del Quindío
Armenia’s 15-hectare botanical garden ( 742 7254; Km3 Via al Valle, Calarcá; admission COP$12,000; 9am-4:30pm) has the best mariposario in the Zona Cafetera. The 680-sq-meter butterfly house is in the shape of a giant butterfly and houses up to 1500 butterflies (up to 50 different species). There’s a 22m-tall lookout tower amid the secondary forest with views of the gardens and butterfly house. There’s also a small museum with a collection of dead butterflies, a geology exhibit, and a new interactive show for kids is planned – 2m-tall robotic insects will discuss their importance to the environment.
The gardens have an extensive collection of palms, ferns and orchids, and more than 110 birds have been recorded here. A guide is mandatory (tipping is optional). Two speak some English. The best time to see birds is before dawn – call a day or two in advance to organize a guide. Give yourself at least two hours to leisurely stroll through the gardens.
To get here, take a bus to Calarcá (COP$1000, 20 minutes) from the bus station, and ask the driver to let you off at the gardens. You can also pick it up at Parque Fundadores.
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Coffee Farms (Fincas)
Coffee-farm tourism began here in Quindío, and there are hundreds of fincas catering to a variety of tastes, mostly Colombian. Numerous publications catalog and rate them. The Armenia tourist office has a lengthy list of options. Also check out Haciendas del Café (www.clubhaciendasdelcafe.com) and Hoteles con Encanto (www.loshotelesconencanto.com).
Finca Villa Nora ( 741 5472, 310 422 6335; fincavillanora@hotmail.com; r per person COP$140,000; ), about halfway between Armenia and Pereira, is a working coffee, avocado, macadamia and guava farm offering accommodations in its traditional white-and-red-trimmed house with a wide wraparound verandah. It’s simpler in style than many, and the owner runs both the lodging and the farm. There’s a small pool and a barbecue. Many rooms have shared baths, and there’s only one TV. Staff can pick you up from Armenia airport (COP$40,000) or from Quimbaya (free).
The exclusive, quiet country retreat Bambusa ( 676 2645, 311 506 9915; www.haciendabambusa.com; r COP$235,000-250,000; ) is ideal if you want an English-speaking host and guide. The owner’s son is an artist and former traveler who speaks excellent English. More than 200 species of birds have been recorded here, and you may also spot foxes, armadillos, or maybe even a jaguar. It used to be a coffee farm, but now they grow plátano and run some cattle. It’s a long way off the main road and cannot be reached by public transport. Staff can pick you up from Armenia (COP$55,000).
El Delirio ( 741 5106; casadelirio@hotmail.com; Km1 Via Montenegro; s/d/tr COP$120,000/140,000/200,000; ), just outside Montenegro, is an old-fashioned farmhouse that feels like grandma’s house, with decorative lacy pillows, flowers, antiques and B&W photographs of long-dead matadors. The house is surrounded by a small coffee plantation, and there’s a pretty pool. There are hammocks you can laze around in, accompanied by the sounds of birds.
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Panaca
This farm-themed park ( 1 800 012 3999, 310 404 2238; www.panaca.com.co; admission COP$27,000-41,000; 9am-6pm Tue-Sun) caters to city Colombians nostalgic for their rural past. Located just outside Quimbaya, a short bus ride from Armenia, it has more than 4500 domestic animals, including many rare domestic breeds. The real highlight of any visit are the animal