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Is traveling off-the-beaten-path your jam? Then you will absolutely love Los Estoraques Unique Natural Area in Colombia. This hidden gem is located in the Norte de Santander department and is close to the lovely tourist-free town of La Playa de Belén. The park is known for its unique geological formations and, even though it’s quite small, it’s absolutely worth it to make a detour from the well-trodden gringo trail. In this post, I’ll tell you everything about Los Estoraques Natural Park, when to visit and what to expect!
The start of the hike in Los Estoraque Nature Reserve
Los Estoraques Unique Natural Area is one of the smallest park in Colombia. It is located in the Norte de Santander departement and is known for it’s unusual geological landscape consisting of large pillar rock formations that are known as “estoraques”.
Formations of Los Estoraques Unique Natural Area, Colombia
These formations are the result of erosion processes that have been going on for millions of years. These erosion processes have sculpted the clay and sand of the terrain into the pillars and gorges that you can see in the park today.
Expect to see an otherwordly landscape when you visit Los Estoraques Natural Area that is hard to find anywhere else in the world. In a way, it feels a bit similar to the grey Tatacoa desert near Villavieja in the south of Colombia. The erosion processes are the same, however, the Tatacoa desert lacks the distinct pillars that you can see in Los Estoraques.
Los Estoraques, Colombia, South America
Los Estoraques Unique Natural Area is located in the North Santander region of Colombia. It is only a short walk from the cute colonial town of La Playa de Belén, which you can use as a base to start your explorations.
Town center of La Playa de Belen, Colombia
Do note that La Playa de Belén might not be the place for you if you love to be spoiled with choice regarding hotels, restaurants and activities. This is a quiet and authentic town with a small local community that is still not used to tourists.
The closest city and transit point to reach Los Estoraques National Park is Ocana. In contrast to La Playa de Belén, Ocana does have a lot of restaurants, shops and a buslting city center if that is more your cup of tea. You can reach La Playa de Belén by local minibus from Ocana in half an hour.
Nature at its best
Los Estoraques Unique Natural Area is only 6 km2 (2.3 sq mi) but it boosts some impressive lookout points and the landscape is stunning. Because of its small size, half a day is enough to explore Los Estoraques.
There are two things to do in the park, follow a short hiking trail around the park and visit the small gorges at the end of the trail. After your walk, you can have a drink and snack at the small eatery at the entrance of the park.
In contrast to what other blogs might say, there is only one official trail in Los Estoraques Unique Natural Area. It is about three kilometers (1.8 miles) long and takes you past the rock formations and ravines to some great viewpoints.
Start of the hiking trail
There is signage in the park and sometimes you will pass by boards with information but they are all in Spanish. What is important to know when you visit Los Estoraques is that these formations are very fragile.
I have seen other bloggers and influencers online that appartently climbed to the tops of these formations to take awesome looking Instagram photos. Please, travel consciously and don’t do this. Behaviour like that destroys this incredible marvel that nature created.
There is plenty enough to see if you stay on the designated trail that runs through the park. It will take you paste various viewpoints and the terrain is pretty easy to walk on. You will have no problem walking this trail with a basic level of fitness.
At the end of the trail, you will see a sign that points you to the cueva de Los Esqueletos. Don’t expect to find caves here in the traditional meaning of the word but they are rather small gorges that are just wide enough to walk in.
Cueva de los Esqueletos (Skeleton caves)
I have no idea why the caves are called ‘the skeloton caves’, I dindn’t see any bones or such so I assume it’s probably related to a local lore or an historic event. It’s also possible that they named it this way because the structure of the caves resemble a bit of a bone structure.
If you visit the park and inquire about this, please give me a message through my contact page and I’ll happily add the information right here!
After you’re done with the caves and the hike, you can have a look at the small souvenir shack near the entrance and have tinto or juice at the snack stand.
If you are a conscious traveler who like to stray off the beaten track then by all means: Yes. You will love Los Estoraques Unique Natural Area and the small town of La Playa de Belén. I’m so happy that we decided to take this detour because we liked it a lot more than other touristy places we visited in Colombia like Villa de Leyva and Minca.
Los Estoraques National Park
Aside from Les Estoraques National Park, there’s not that much to do in the area but that’s the whole charm of this place. It invites you to travel slowly and just soak in the sights and the laidback atmosphere of this picturesque region.
If you are a bit of a daredevil, you will probably enjoy the Tibetan bridge that is installed between two tall mountains in Parque Natural Yaragua, a recreational area that you can access from the center of La Playa de Belén.
Los Estoraques Unique Natural Area is open every day from 8.30 A.M. to 5.30 P.M. Do take into account that life goes a bit slower here and it’s possible that the ticket booth will still be closed if you arrive at 8.30 A.M.
Ticket booth and eco-friendly flower pot at the entrance of Los Estoraques
Upon arrival, you will be asked to pay the entrance fee of 8.000 COP and you will need to write your name in the registry. If you want to stock up on snacks or drinks to take with you into the park, there’s a lot on offer here from patacones and empanadas to a variety of drinks.
If there’s something that you shouldn’t be worries about at Ls Estoraques Unique Natural area is to find parking space. There is a large parking at the entrance of the park and at the time of our visit (high season in Colombia) it was deserted.
Aside from one tour group that seemed to come from Ocana or further away, we were the only people visiting Los Estoraques National Park.
The best place to base yourself to visit Los Estoraques is the small village of La Playa de Belén. This little town sits beautiflly in between the unique mountainous terrain of the region and offers a few accommodation options, from small guesthouses to fancy campsites.
I stayed at Hostal don Gota, a basic homestay with a kind family that offers rooms with a private bathroom for 55.000 COP/night. If I would go back I would consider staying at El Portal Restaurant and Cabanas. The cabanas are beautiful and their restaurant is the best in town (and they cater to vegans!).
There you go! I hope you enjoyed this guide to Los Estoraques Unique Natural Area. Let me know in the comments below if you have any questions or drop me a message through my contact page.
Also, don’t forget to check out my resources page with my favorite booking platforms and tips to start planning your trip. Additionally, have a look at my favorite travel gear if you want to pack more consciously!
ENJOY!
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Hi! I am Annelies and this is Travelers & Dreamers, a blog about conscious travel which means traveling in a more mindful way, with a positive impact on the world and yourself!
On this website, I cover different topics like slow travel, plant-based food guides, responsible travel, sustainable packing, eco-travel, and more!
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