By air
Matecaña, Pereira (PEI), ~1 h to Salento
South America · Colombia
Coffee Triangle, Colombia
Wax palms and coffee farms
Getting there
Best time to visit
December to March and July to August — the drier spells
Don't miss
The Cocora Valley
Salento
A working coffee finca
Los Nevados
Things to do
The Cocora Valley hike among the wax palms
Coffee-farm tours
Salento's jeeps
Where to eat
Sources: Photo: Angela Calle and Daniel Di Palma · CC BY-SA 4.0
What to pack
Rain gear, hiking boots
A quieter corner
Filandia, a quieter painted village
Questions travellers ask
What are the best months for the Coffee Triangle?
December to March and July to August, the drier spells. Rain gear and hiking boots are still wise.
How do I get to the Coffee Triangle?
Fly into Matecaña, Pereira (PEI); Salento is about 1 h away.
What is there to do in the Coffee Triangle?
Hike the Cocora Valley among the wax palms, tour a working coffee finca and ride Salento's jeeps. Los Nevados is on the list too.
Is there a quieter village to visit in the Coffee Triangle?
Filandia, a quieter painted village. Stop for trout with patacones and a fresh coffee.
About Coffee Triangle
- Mountains
Where it is
The Coffee Triangle, or Eje Cafetero, covers the Andean departments of Caldas, Risaralda and Quindío in west-central Colombia, where coffee farms cover the slopes of the Central Cordillera below the snow-capped volcanoes of Los Nevados National Park.
History
Settlers from Antioquia moved south into these forested mountains in the 19th century, founding towns such as Manizales, Pereira and Salento and planting coffee, which became Colombia's main export. Their towns and farms were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2011 as the Coffee Cultural Landscape of Colombia.
People
The region's paisa people speak Spanish and have grown coffee on family farms for generations, often picking by hand on steep slopes. Old Willys jeeps, called yipaos, carry harvests and passengers, and some towns hold parades of jeeps piled high with coffee sacks and household goods.
Known for
- The wax palms of the Cocora Valley
- Coffee farm tours and tastings
- Salento's painted houses
- Hot springs near Santa Rosa de Cabal
- Colourful Willys jeeps
Did you know?
The Quindío wax palm of the Cocora Valley, Colombia's national tree, grows to 45 m and occasionally 60 m, the tallest recorded of any palm.
We haven't written a guide for this place yet — you can still plan a trip here.