A Coffee Lover's Paradise: 10 Best Things To See In Armenia, Colombia

Things to do in Armenia
Nina
Nina 
Updated
| 3 min read

Do you know where to get the best coffee? Go to Armenia. They are known to have the best brews in the world. Armenia has coffee plantations as well as a coffee themed park. But there’s more to this city than just a good cup of coffee. Explore this little town in Colombia with these interesting must-dos:

1. National Coffee Park or Parque del Cafe

Colombian National Coffee Park 172
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user Uria Ashkenazy used under CC BY-SA 2.5

You will learn all about the history of coffee when you visit the National Coffee Park in Armenia. They opened in 1995 and have received millions of visitors since. The park offers a coffee garden, coffee-based food stalls, museums, exhibitions, and other interesting attractions.

National Coffee Park

Address: Km 6 vía Montenegro Pueblo Tapao, Montenegro, Quindío, Colombia

Website: National Coffee Park (in Spanish)

Visited this place?

2. Coffee Amusement Park

Editor's Note: There's no photo available at the time of writing

Coffee Theme Park is another area inside the National Coffee Park. Visit them after learning about the history of coffee inside the museum. The park offers fun roller coaster rides, coffee products, and different kinds of coffee plants. You need to try the food all made from coffee. If you can, try to also catch the shows! They’re just as good.

The coffee theme park is one of the most beautiful parks in the world that’s inspired by coffee. There’s actually nothing else like it.

Coffee Amusement Park

Address: Km 6 vía Montenegro Pueblo Tapao, Montenegro, Quindío, Colombia

Website: Coffee Amusement Park

Visited this place?

3. River Rafting on the Rio de la Vieja

Río La Vieja
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user Hoako used under CC BY-SA 4.0

Enjoy a slow river raft trip on the Rio de la Vieja. You and a few others will be on a bamboo raft for five hours, just enjoying the cruise and the scenery. Lunch is already included in the package. There are no big waves in the river, so it’s safe to bring kids with you. They can even swim in the river with their lifejackets on. The river rafting will give you a whole new experience in the city of Armenia - do make sure you’ll try it.

River Rafting on the Rio de la Vieja

Address: Cauca River, Colombia

Visited this place?

4. Museo del Oro Quimbaya

Museo del Oro Quimbaya
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user CamiloBer04 used under CC BY-SA 4.0

This is an interesting gold museum exhibit that you need to see when you visit Colombia. It will educate you on how the natives lived before. It’s free and won’t take too much of your time. If you want to know about their culture, find time to visit the Museo del Oro Quimbaya.

Museo del Oro Quimbaya

Address: Carrera 19 No. 40 N-80, Armenia, Quindío, Colombia

Website: Museo del Oro Quimbaya (in Spanish)

Visited this place?

5. La Estación Metropolitan Cultural Center

Editor's Note: There's no photo available at the time of writing

This is formerly the old railway station and is now converted into a cultural center. The center is a National Heritage Site in Armenia and frequented by tourists. It holds exhibits and other art activities.

La Estación Metropolitan Cultural Center.

Address: Quindio, Armenia

Visited this place?

6. National Center for the Study of Bamboo

Editor's Note: There's no photo available at the time of writing

When you see the houses and bridges made of bamboo, that means you’re already at the National Center for the Study of Bamboo - Guadua. The center promotes and educates the public about Guadua bamboo and how it is a “steel product” because of its strength. Among the thousands of bamboo species in the world, Guadua is by far the most important. It can be used for building both houses and furniture - the product is that strong.

It is also effective at removing carbon dioxide and it’s been proven that construction made by this type of bamboo can’t be destroyed by earthquakes. This why Armenia dedicated a center to further develop technologies that will produce more Guadua bamboo.

National Center for the Study of Bamboo

Address: Quindio, Armenia

Visited this place?

7. Plaza de Bolivar

Armenia centro turistico
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user MirfakVelez_92 used under CC BY-SA 3.0

Get to know the locals and Colombian culture by visiting the Plaza de Bolivar. It’s a beautiful park with a church in the center. Some vendors sell coffee stuff here and other interesting food items are also inside. The plaza is a great place to pass the time and talk to some locals. Just be extra careful with your things, some tourists have mentioned that there are pickpockets in the area.

Plaza de Bolivar

Address: Armenia, Quindio, Colombia

Visited this place?

8. Colina Iluminada Viewpoint

Mirador Colina Iluminada
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user Pedro Agudelo Gaona used under CC BY 3.0

If trekking is your thing, bring hiking boots with you and climb Colina Iluminada. The view from above is breathtaking and it will only take you about 10 minutes to get there. There are some jeepneys here that can also take people directly to the viewpoint, but hiking is better. Colina Iluminada Viewpoint is actually known for being featured in some Colombian TV shows because of the views from the top.

Visited this place?

9. Parque de los Fundadores

Barranquilla parque de los Fundadores 1
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user Jdvillalobos used under CC BY 3.0

There are plenty of tall trees and benches at Parque de los Fundadores. It’s a perfect place for a solitary afternoon walk. Some interesting monuments are also found inside the park, but most of it is just nature.

Parque de los Fundadores

Address: Armenia, Quindio, Colombia

Phone Number: +57 300 4409498

Visited this place?

10. Cafe Jesus Martin

Editor's Note: There's no photo available at the time of writing

You can come to the Cafe Jesus Martin daily, as they serve really good cakes and coffee! You can even purchase coffee beans from them and brew them at home. Most of the guests visit this cafe because it’s highly recommended, even by locals.

Cafe Jesus Martin

Address: Armenia, Quindío, Colombia

Website: Cafe Jesus Martin

Visited this place?

When do you plan to visit?

Armenia, Quindio, Colombia
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user Jimmy Gómez N used under CC BY-SA 3.0

Armenia is the capital city of Quindio, in Colombia. It’s a small city with only a population of a little over 300,000, yet albeit small, it has countless of interesting things to explore. You will never run out of activities in Colombia, but when you do – get a cup of coffee. It’ll make things so much better.

Visited this place?
Any must-sees we missed? Tell us about them in the comments section or write a post here to help out fellow travelers!
Disclosure: Trip101 selects the listings in our articles independently. Some of the listings in this article contain affiliate links.

History


Get Trip101 in your inbox

Unsubscribe in one click. See our Privacy Policy for more information on how we use your data

 Want to contribute as a Local Expert?
Explore Armenia
x
Good things are meant to be shared!
Back to top
Visited any of these places? Click this button to activate our "Add a Tip" feature to share your experience.