San Carlos
San Carlos is a small town close to Medellín and Guatapé. It is known for its waterfalls and beautiful nature. The perfect place for hiking and swimming in natural swimming pools.
For me, it was one of my personal highlights in Colombia.
Most people are really in love with Jardin, which is really touristy. That’s why I would recommend going to San Carlos. There are almost no tourists. The only tourists there are some students of the Spanish Adventure school.
San Carlos has a bloody past, but the town is now calm and peaceful. Most inhabitants left the town in the late 90’s because of a fight between leftist guerrillas and right-wing paramilitaries. By 2004, 80% of the 20 000 inhabitants had left, which turned it into a ghost town.
What to do
There are a lot of waterfalls with natural pools around San Carlos. These are all worth visiting:
El Chispero
Los Patios has 3 waterfalls
Pasitos
Cajones
La Planta
A popluar hike is to Piedra del Tabo, the top of a 1 800 meter peak near San Carlos, visible on the third photo. It’s a 4 hour climb to the top, the views are amazing!
Learn Spanish
Spanish Adventure is a small school in San Carlos. It can house 10 students, sleeping in dorms. During the morning you will have 2 or 3 hours of Spanish class, in the afternoon you will go explore the waterfalls, go for a hike,… At night, you all cook dinner together and do an evening activity like dancing salsa, a quiz,…
Spanish Adventure offers different packages on their website. Lunch and dinner are included in the prices. The longer you stay, the cheaper it gets.
San Carlos is the perfect place to go to a Spanish school, there are only locals who don’t speak any English.
How to get there
From Medellín there are busses leaving all day to San Carlos. A ticket is 22 000 COP, about 5 euro. The drive takes 4 to 5 hours. The concrete road makes place for a dirt road for the last hour.
If you are in Guatapé, it is 2 hours to get to San Carlos. Take a bus to San Rafael and change busses to head to San Carlos.