"Lovely Barichara" Barichara by MalenaN

Barichara Travel Guide: 31 reviews and 138 photos

The cathedral by the main square - Barichara

Street in Barichara

Barichara is a charming colonial town with whitewashed houses and stone paved streets. The stone used on the streets is a brown stone found locally in Santander. Barichara was founded in 1705 and in 1978 it was declared a national monument. Since then the town has been carefully restored with a good result, and new modern buildings are not allowed to be built. Barichara is situated at an altitude of 1340 metres and the average temperature is 22° C, so it has got a pleasant climate.

The Guane Indians were the original inhabitants in this area and their word Barachalá (from which Barichara comes) means “a good place for a rest”. That is absolutely true today. Barichara is a very tranquil little town situated 20 km northwest of San Gil. I visited on a daytrip in the middle of the week and it was very quiet. I walked around the streets, visited the town’s four churches and a museum, had lunch at a restaurant and ate an ice cream at the central square.

In front of Iglesia de Santa Barbara

I had been recommended to take the track to the nice village Guane from Barichara. It is an old Spanish trail which has been declared a national monument. Since than the path has been restored and laid with stones so it is easy to walk and it takes about one and a half hour. There are beautiful views along the walk. Well, I didn’t feel I had the time, but if I ever come to Barichara again I would do the walk.

Last visit to Barichara: Jul 2008
Intro Updated Apr 17, 2009
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Reviews (8)

Restaurante La Breza Restaurants (1)

To come to the restaurant you have to go up some narrow stairs. The restaurant is an open-air restaurant under a... more travel advice

Capilla de San Antonio Things to Do (6)

Capilla de San Antonio is different from the other churches in Barichara in the way that it is partly painted white... more travel advice

Capilla de Jesús Resucitado Things to Do (6)

Another of the small churches in Barichara is Capilla de Jesús Resucitado, two blocks west of the cathedral. It is built... more travel advice

Casa de la Cultura Things to Do (6)

Casa de la Cultura is a museum situated in a fine colonial house on the west side of Plaza Principal. In the rooms... more travel advice

Transportation (1)
Between San Gil and Barichara

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Travelogues (5)

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Comments (9)

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balhannah Apr 4, 2013 at 9:46 PM

Time for me to take a virtual journey through Colombia. From the size of your meal, I don't think there is any chance of me starving!
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  MalenaN Apr 4, 2013 at 10:19 PM
  
  Thank you Dee for visiting! The lunch offers are very good in Colombia, it is cheap and you get a soup and a main course. Barichara is such a lovely little town, a place I would like to visit again.
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richiecdisc May 27, 2009 at 6:01 AM

Thanks for the great tips on a place I've wanted to go for quite some time. Maybe next year I finally make it.
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SLLiew May 18, 2009 at 3:45 PM

Great page of Barichara.
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Bwana_Brown May 15, 2009 at 11:20 AM

Both inside and out, Catedral de la Inmaculada Concepción is really beautiful! Barichara looks like a very picturesque town with the combination of blue sky, green foliage and orange stones in your photos!
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mircaskirca May 1, 2009 at 8:35 AM

Barichara looks lovely!! I would very much enjoy a stroll along the paved streets admiring those whitewashed houses. Very nice pictures in the travelogues!
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barryg23 Apr 26, 2009 at 2:42 AM

Lovely pictures from Barichara, bringa back nice memories, I was there about a week before you last summer! The walk to Guane is great, if you return I'd highly recommend it.
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Arkeolog Apr 16, 2009 at 11:38 PM

Hi Malena, you have a great page with those new tips. greetings from a beautiful morning of Istanbul...
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globetrott Sep 13, 2008 at 11:09 PM

a good start with a tip about local transportation, I first had the feeling that the white clouds in the back were snow-covered mountains ;-)
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yumyum Sep 1, 2008 at 11:09 AM

Peaceful looking place.