Colombia 2025 – Jardín

Jardin

Jardín, nestled in the lush mountains of Antioquia, Colombia, is a picture-perfect town that feels like a living postcard. Often hailed as one of the most beautiful and best-preserved colonial towns in the country, Jardín enchants visitors with its colorful architecture, flower-filled balconies, and a central plaza that buzzes with local life. It is a quiet colonial town in Colombia with a name that literally means garden.

It’s easily among the most charming towns in South America, with a vibrant central plaza, brightly painted houses, live music, fruit stands, delicious local cuisine, and inviting little bars, where daily life unfolds in a traditional rhythm, largely untouched by heavy tourism. This is an ideal spot to immerse oneself in classic Latin American small-town culture and set off on unforgettable countryside excursions.

What we did there

We spent four nights in Jardín to get to feel the town, walk around in the countryside to see nature, waterfalls and some really special animals, visited the incredibly scenic ”Cueva del Esplendedor”, and made a paragliding trip to float in the air above town.

Day 1

We took a bus to Jardín from Medellin, a scenic three or four hour ride, and arrived late afternoon. After arriving we had an early dinner in town, and marvelled about how scenic it was and the amount of people around the main square, the bars and the restaurant. This town is really alive at weekends.

Day 2

The second day we made an excellent walk around the surrounding countryside, seeing waterfalls, gardens, flowers, colibris, mountainviews, a squirrel and a lot more. The trip went first on the east part of the countryside, where we saw some waterfalls, then down through the main square and continued steep uphill to the beautiful viewpoint called ”Cafe Jardin”, where we had a simple meal, some empanadas.

From the cafe we passed another waterfall and luckily found an ”Eyelash Viper”, which is a very beautiful snake. It is one of the most visually striking snakes in the Americas, known for its vibrant colors and the distinctive “eyelash” scales above its eyes that give it a fierce, almost mythical look. Native to Central and South America, including Colombia, it thrives in humid tropical forests, often perched in trees or shrubs thanks to its arboreal lifestyle.

It was so calm and quiet, laying on a plant by the side of the road.

Then we looped back into town, where we relaxed to finally go to Reserva Natural Jardín de Rocas, a small but remarkable nature reserve located just 400 meters from the main plaza of Jardín. Nestled in the canyon of the Río Volcanes, it’s one of the best places in South America to observe the dazzling Andean Cock-of-the-rock (Gallito de las Rocas) in its natural habitat. The reserve features quiet trails, lush vegetation, and a peaceful setting that allows for close observation of one of South America’s most striking birds, famous for its flamboyant appearance and theatrical courtship rituals. Native to the cloud forests of the Andes, it’s especially known for gathering in communal display areas called leks, where males compete for female attention with elaborate dances, calls, and head-bobbing theatrics. Every afternoon, male birds gather here to perform their vibrant courtship displays, making it a must-visit for birdwatchers and nature lovers. Well, at least some months of the year, and not in july. Nevertheless we saw some of them, and that was so worth it. It was a wonderful experience.

Day 3

The third day we relaxed, because since Medellin we had a bad cold that had gotten quite terrible now. Nevertheless, we made one amazing trip to do paragliding over the town. I couldn’t bring my camera, but it was super-easy and a really great experience. We two instructors at an office, took a car to the steep hills above, and got to sail around for around twenty minutes, landing outside the town. What an amazing view we got!

After that we took a much needed relax for the rest of the day, trying to recover our cold.

Day 4

On the fourth day, we took a taxi into the mountains and set off on a countryside hike toward the renowned Cueva del Esplendor, a striking cave famous for its dramatic waterfall that plunges through a hole in the cave’s ceiling, creating a magical scene where sunlight, mist, and jungle greenery collide. The walk to the entrance house took about an hour, and we had the trail mostly to ourselves, seeing beautiful Colombian countryside. However, upon arrival, we were surprised to find a fairly large and diverse group of around 25 tourists already gathered, and that’s when we learned that groups are admitted roughly every 90 minutes, with each one returning before the next enters. So, it wasn’t as serene as we had hoped, but nevertheless a great sight.