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Venezuela is an incredible country from the landscaping point of view, from the snows from the Andes to the Caribbean coast, from legendary rainforest and amazonian forests, to the rich flora and fauna (faone), dominated by unique mountains with vertical walls and flat tops denominated tepuis (kind of mountain) and lonely landscapes of the Gran Sabana.
You can practice adventure sports or relax. One can visit indigenous colonial cities and villages that conserve old customs. We also found great shopping malls and centers with all the world-wide trademarks in Caracas.
Venezuela is famous by its wealth of natural resources but, surprisingly, these do not seem to be enjoyed by the Venzuelans at least this has been our impression. Hugo Chávez, the country’s famous and charismatic leader can be seen and heard on televising regularly and seems very convincing but when one speaks with the local people such as the drivers of "por puestos", with taxi drivers, waiters, posada owners, a doctor of Caracas, several people of medium-high class of Caracas, we must say that we did not find absolutely anybody favorable to Chávez; It was all “displeasure”. Curious.
Summarizing we think that Venezuela still has far to go to advance in its tourism offer, but is a very recommendable country to visit. Here you can find anything you could wish for and more!
Date
From July 28th to August 22nd 2006.
Itinerary
Day 2: ... - Coro - Maracaibo - ...
Day 3: ... - Mérida
Day 4: Mérida - ...
Day 5: ... - Valencia - Ciudad Bolívar
Day 6: Ciudad Bolívar
Day 7: Ciudad Bolívar - La Paragua- Canaima
Day 8: Campamento Salto del Ángel
Day 9: Campamento Salto del Ángel - Canaima - C. Bolívar
Day 10: Ciudad Bolívar - Tucupita
Day 11: Tucupita- Delta del Orinoco
Day 12: Delta del Orinoco - Tucupita - Río Caribe
Days 13-14: Río Caribe
Day 15: Río Caribe - Mochima
Day 16: Mochima - Cumaná
Day 17: Cumaná - ...
Day 18: ... - Caracas - Los Roques
Days 19-21: Los Roques
Day 22: Los Roques - Caracas
Day 23: Caracas - ...
Day 24: ... - Madrid - Barcelona
We chose to go from west to east of the country, going anti-clockwise, starting in Coro and finishing in Los Roques to be able to rest a little. We decided to go to Coro because we like the colonial cities, but if you only have a few days you could quit Coro, particularly if you have seen other colonial cities. It is not the most spectacular one than we have seen. It’s cute but only include it if you have sufficient journey time.
Ciudad Bolívar peculiarly it is not within the cities that the guide Lonely Planet emphasizes as being beautiful or worth visiting. To us Ciudad Bolivar was very nice and charming and also we much liked the cities of Río Caribe and Mérida.
The option to go to the Roques is a very expensive one, but they are the typical Caribbean islands where we fancy getting lost for some days. You must know that when you go to Los Roques, you always depend on the “peñeros” (boat men) , the guys that get around the islands and from island to island.
We did not go to Isla Margarita, because we think (we know) that the beaches are not spectacular and that the island is operated with resorts geared for mass tourism. All this was told us by a friend who worked in a resort there during two years. It’s also a Duty Free island.
We remained with the desire to do one of the trips to Los Llanos, also the trip to the Caura River and to the Gran Sabana, but we would have needed 16 days more vacation to be able to do them because each one of the trips is around 5 days.
Money
In Venezuela we changed our money in banks, in the different travel agencies that offer touristic services, and the agencies that organize trips or even in “posadas”. At Caracas airport we changed 300 US$ and the bank kept 6% comisión for State Taxes and a Bank Commission (we “gave” 37 US$ to Hugo Chávez and company in total). The official change is 2.100 Bs per dollar, and 2.500 Bs per Euro.
In agencies or “posadas” the exchange rate is much better since they do not take commission, so that overall the rate of exchange is much more favourable. Also there is the possibility to change money in the street, but we felt too inexpereinced or simply lacked the trust so we did not try this and therefore cannot explain if changing in the street works or not.
Credit cards are accepted everywhere and at all the hotels, but they charge between 3% and 5% of commission.
Medium change (in travel agencies):
1 € = 2.700 Bs
1 US$ = 2.400 Bs
Travel expenses
(one person)+ 850 € (flight BCN-Venezuela-BCN)
+ 410 € (flight and stay of 5 days- 4 nights at los Roques)
+ 150 € (transportation: buses, por puestos and taxis)
+ 210 € (hotels)
+ 120 € (Restaurants, juices and supermarkets)
+ 28 € (souvenirs & others)
+ 45 € (trips and entrance fees)
= 1.813 € (Total)
Average daily budget: 27 €/day, flights aside.
Visado
It is compulsory to have and show a valid passport and to keep the Immigration entrance card until the end of the travel because it will be requested at the airport customs. A visa is only necessary if you want to stay in Venezuela more than 90 days.
Health
It is not necessary to be vaccinated to enter Venezuela, but if you want to go to the Rainforest it’s advisable to be vaccinated and to take pills to prevent Malaria. The recommended vaccines are for Yellow Fever, Hepatitis A and B, Typhoid, Meningitis and to be up to date on vaccines for diphtheria and tetanus.
You need to be vaccinated at least one month before beginning the travel, and the tablets of the malaria must also be taken 1 week before the trip and for the full 6 weeks. To get the vaccine you must go to the centres qualified by the department of health of the Generalitat de Catalunya (Tel. 93-443 05 07). The vaccines and consultation cost around 30€. We recommended asking for an appointment, a minimum of 3-4 months in advance, because as the number of travellers to exotic destinations is growing, you may not otherwise get your preferred time.
Curiously in Venezuela, we saw some places that they obliged us to have a tetanus vaccine, for instance in the bus station of San Félix. As we had with us the vaccine card that we were given at the consultation of the Catalan Government, it was no problem and we did not have to have another vaccination.
Security
Venezuela is a South American country unfortunately well-known for its high crime rate, and all the Venezuelans we met - even before travelling or at the airport -advised us to be very careful especially in Caracas, as beside the robberies, thieves carry guns and are dangerous. They have been known to shoot if you do not immediately give them your valuables. We therefore chose not to stay in Caracas so we have no personal experience but people we met in other cities who had stayed in Caracas, said it was fully ok. In the other cities and villages around Venezuela we felt safe, but we always stayed around the posada at night.
I must say that when it went dark, there was almost nobody in the streets and it was strange to see the streets empty or with only a couple of tourists around at 8 pm. We remained close to the posada when it was darker. Robberies happen, but if you take care of your valuables, nothing should happen. Of course it’s advisable to travel without jewelry or without flaunting our wealth.
Our experience was fully positive, however it is obviously advisable to take the same sort of precautions one would normally take in an unknown city or as for usually travelling around (or even walking in Barcelona), in crowded places and at night and dark places.
Transportation
Although distances in Venezuela are not huge, when you use public transport, they do seem to be longer than they actually are. Taxis or buses do not drive over 70/80 km per hour and what could be done pretty fast, takes longer, sometimes by many hours.
Generally, the road infrastucture is not good though generally better in the North, around Caracas, regional roads are poor with many pot holes. I think it is strange that the roads are not better as the Venezuelan economy and wealth is predicated upon the production of oil and gas.
Airplane. We took 2 internal flights and both were small light aircraft. It’s a good option to move around the country but it’s not cheap.
General information on flying in Venezuela:
• Volar en Venezuela - Gaceta Aérea - Asociación de Líneas Aéreas de Venezuela
Venezuela airlines:
• Avior Airlines -
Rutaca Airlines - Aeropostal - Santa Bárbara Airlines - Aeroejecutivos -
• Aserca Airlines - Transaven Airlines - Laser Airlines - Solar Airways - Aerotuy - Conviasa
Bus. The inter-urban buses are a good and cheap option for moving around the country. The different companies operating between the cities, have similar prices, and this means that before deciding which company we travel with, we must check which kind of bus they offer. We would strongly emphasise one negative aspect:- the polar cold that you find in the buses. We had to buy a big blanket so as to be able to survive on the different night routes we did.
All the travellers had blankets and winter clothes even if outside it was 35 degrees, the Venezuelans were ready for the cold. We asked many times the drivers to switch off the air conditioning and they always said that it was fixed, that they knew of the problem but they could not change it, so if you must take the night bus, be aware that inside you will find 17-19 degrees.
Also the “bus cama”, bed-bus that we travelled on, is not as in other South American countries, which have “real beds”, but only offer confortable seats. Strangely in some buses they take pictures of passengers holding their passports. When I asked why, they told me this was for for security reasons,and in the case of accidents. To buy a bus ticket, a passport is required (or Venezuelan ID). They really check: As an anecdote, once we did not go to the counter ourselves but we gave our passport numbers to our friend to buy our bus tickets, but she could not make it, as we did not give her our dates of birth which is also necessary.
LThe biggest bus companies, have their own termini, called “terminal privada”, which usually are in front or very close of the main terminal. These private terminals are modern, cleaner and with a sense of higher security. There are a lot of bus companies, some with curious names, but the most important and with private bus terminals are:
• Aeroexpresos Ejecutivos - Expresos Occidente - Rodovías de Venezuela - Expresos Flamingos.
Por puesto. This is another good option between the cities in Venezuela, to take a “carrito” (=car), that is an old car for 6 people (driver + 5 people) that make fixed routes between cities with a higher price than the buses but faster. They do not leave until the car is full. The cars are really old, literally ramshackle, old American Dodge or Chevrolets from the 80’s and you always think they will break down.
Train. There is no passenger train service, only goods transportation.
Car. The car rental seems to be good as petrol is incredibly cheap for European pockets, one litre benzine costs 97 Bs and one of gasoil 73 Bs. To rent a car costs around 60 € per day.
Taxi. Taxis in Venezuela are cheap, they work without taximeter. Within the cities they usually cost between 3.000Bs and 6.000Bs per trip. In Caracas fares are around double this. It is better to agree the price for the trip before entering the cab,you can bargain and they will make it cheaper. If it is later than 8pm, the price is more expensive, around between 1000Bs and 3000Bs depending on the distance.
Lodging
Venezuela offers a lot of posadas where you can sleep for a reasonable price and with a variety of room types (with air condition, with fan or hammock…). Prices vary between 30.000 Bs and 150.000 Bs depending room choice. Breakfast is almost never included, but is usually offered for an additional 5.000 Bs or 10.000 Bs.
We did not make any previous hotel/posada reservation from Barcelona, we simply arrived and looked for a posada. We should say that we did reserve at posada Don Carlos in Ciudad Bolívar and in posada Shalimar in Río Caribe the day before arrival as we wanted to be sure that we got a bed to sleep in these two wonderful posadas and as these two cities are more visited by the tourists. Even in Ciudad Bolívar we met two Catalan and two Italian tourists that had to sleep in the main square as everywhere was fully booked.
It is always worth trying to bargain over the price, though Venezuela is not like other countries where it is easy to get cheaper price when asking. Here we were not as lucky as elsewhere. Information about lodging:
• Tripvenezuela - Hoteles.com.ve - Turismoparatodos
Gastronomy
Gastronomically Venezuela has been a big disappointment, mostly concerning the offer of fresh fruit. Fresh fruit does not seem to be part of the menus in the restaurants and you cannot find it much around, you cannot buy it in as many places as we expected. Given the climate one can be forgiven thinking it logical to find fresh fruit and vegetables but we did ot find it so easy. We did not even see many restaurants or bars where they offer freshly squeezed juice, only bottled varieties! The juices are called "batido". A "milkshake" is not a "milkshake" as we understand them here with milk, but that is natural juice. Also "juice" is the word used.
In addition, we have seen that the Venezuelan eat too much fried food, there is much North American influence in the gastronomy. They eat "empanadas" round the clock accompanied by gaseous drinks, mostly cola. All the main plates are usually accompanied by rice, salad or some other alternative such as yucca or boiled potato. Quality of the meat is good, and quality of fish from the river or from the sea is very good.
Some restaurants where we went were simple, with plastic chairs open air affairs, without glasses. The price of most dishes was cheap, if you want you can eat for between 3 € and 5 € and one normally pays between 5 € and 10 €. At paying you must add sometimes 10% for taxes services.
Bottles of mineral water cost between 1.350 Bs and 3.000 Bs depending where we bought it. For wine lovers we must say that in Venezuela you mostly find Chilean and Argentinian wines and the prices in the restaurants are high. In Venezuela wine is also produced, in the area of Barquisimeto, in the Pomar cellars.
Curiosities
• The legendry of spoken beauty of Venezuelan woman is a total myth! We just saw some beutiful girls, but not more. We would emphasize, the essential difference in the way Venezuelan women dress compared to the majority do in Europe. Venezuelan women adopt a very exuberant style, worn very tight, regardless of whether they are thin or fat, and this exuberance is especially notable in the way they wear tight t-shirts!.
• Ice-cream brands in Germany are called Frigo, in Italy Ola, and curiously in Venezuela they are called Tío Rico (from Spanish “Rich uncle”).
• 80% of the cars have tinted windows. We asked why and were told that although the law forbiddes it Venezuelans prefer obscure windows so that from outside one cannot see what is going on inside! Besides that, it offers sun protection.
• Although Venezuela is producer and exporter of sugar, this product is rationated and very often the Venezuelan do not enjoy it as they cannot easily obtain it.
• Everywhere there is a very curious system for making phone calls: you can find a lot of simple plastic tables with 3 or 4 mobile phones and you can call with them and they charge you in Bolivares by the minute. Everone is therefore a potential entrepreneur, even children. If you want to pay less, you must look for a “Centro de conexión” where you can find telephones and internet. Internet costs per hour in Venezuela is between 800 y 1.200 Bs.
• There are many agencies for lotteries. Playing the Lottery must be extremely popular as the number of agencies is not proportional to the size of the population.
• Curiously there are a lot of shops specialising in lingerie from Colombia. The most famous ranges of intimate clothes or maybe those with the higher quality are from Colombia, and the extensive publicity always majors on the Colombian quality brand.
Weather
For the most part of Venezuela does not present big regional weather changes, neither in rain nor in temperatura nor humidity. Weather in Venezuela when we visited the country was extremely hot but not around Mérida (1.800 m. height) where at night it was fresher and during the day was warm but nice. Temperatures are even higher than 35 degrees during the day and around 28 degrees at night. It almost did not rain during all the days in Venezuela, only on our trip to Canaima.
Time difference
During European Summer Time Venezuela is six hours behind (seven from UK time).
Travel guides
Venezuela, Lonely Planet (italian version, March 2004).
When we traveled, Spanish version did not exist.
General information about Venezuela in Internet
• Venetur - Mintur - Venezuela Tuya - A-venezuela - Conocer Venezuela - Directorio de Museos y Parques
TRAVEL JOURNAL
CORO
We bought the ticket to Caracas in Viajes Iberia in Mataró (tel. 0034-93-755 25 80), we paid 850 €. We had to leave on July 28th in the morning, but unfortunately we were unlucky and we had an illegal strike of Iberia and finally we left on Sunday 30 july.
Flight of 50 minutes until Madrid and Madrid to Caracas we took 8 hours and half. Within the airplane they gave two immigration forms that we had to fill in and to give in at the customs. The Maqueitía-Caracas airport is at 27 kms from Caracas. A taxi is around 70.000 or 80.000 Bs, to take a 4x4 taxi 4x4 120.000 Bs. We chose the UCAMC bus, the cheapest option which is the public bus, it costs 10.000 Bs, you can buy the ticket inside the national terminal, (we arrived at the internacional, so we walked from the international to the national terminal). It is well signed. It leaves from the airport until 9pm. The bus takes between 40 minutes and one hour and a half depending on the traffic. It only stops three times: Gato Negro, Plaza Miranda and Parque Central. As our objective is to take the metro, we stopped in the first one, at Gato Negro and from there we took the metro which costs costs 500Bs to the Terminal of Bandera, where the buses that go to the west of Venezuela leave from.
From the Terminal of la Bandera all buses to Coro depart, we bought the ticket at Expresos de Occidente, it cost 35.000 Bs per person. Pay attention when buying you must say Coro City, as there is another Coro - Punto Fijo which is another city further close to the beach. It’s a “bus cama”. It takes 6 hours to Coro, we were supposed to arrive around 5 am and finally we arrived at 2,30 am, so it took much less as foreseen!
In Coro we slept at Posada Don Antonio (Paseo Talavera, nº 11, zona colonial, Tel. 0058-268 2539578). Double room costs 55.000Bs with bathroom in the room, tv and no breakfast. It’s a typical colonial posada with a patio inside, when we were there, they were about to finish a new building in the second floor, this means that if you intend to go there, better ask for the new rooms.
In Coro we had breakfast in one of the bars nearby. We did not spend much time there, so we cannot advise you to go to any precise restaurant.
Coro is the State Capital of Falcón. It is a colonial, pretty and calm City. The historical center is known with this name, therefore if we go to Coro, to specify that we go to “historic centre of Coro”. UNESCO declared Coro a world-wide heritage site in 1993.
In Coro the most rewarding thing is to walk around. I must say it is a very small city, two hours there is more than enough. Those who have seen other colonial cities (Antigua, Oaxaca, Mexican Mérida....), will see that Coro offers more of the same but in small dimensions. What is very nice is the cathedral at Plaza Bolívar, it is completely white, inmaculate, built between 1580 and the last century. Two other noteworthy churches are San Francisco in street Zamora, and San Clemente, also in street Zamora.
We recommend taking a day trip to los Médanos de Coro, which is a national park with big sand dunes that appear to be a desert. I have not done it but other tourists told me it is really worth doing. Curiously we did not see any tourists in Coro.
MÉRIDA
We went to Mérida from Coro. We took a taxi from the city center of Coro to the bus terminal: 4.000 Bs. There are no buses until the afernoon and we decided to take a por puesto (very old) that cost 20.000 Bs per person until Maracaibo. This takes 3 hours, with one stop of more than 30 minutes for refreshments. The same way by bus would have cost 15.000 Bs.
At the bus terminal of Maracaibo we intended to take a “por puesto” but in 6 hours we spent waiting there, none left. The buses only leave at night, we took Expresos de Occidente to Mérida which leaves at 10pm, and costs 30.000Bs and it’s also a Bus cama. In Maracaibo you must pay an exit tax of 1.000Bs. It took 8 hours to arrive to Mérida, with only one stop to eat.
We chose Posada Luz Caraballo (Avenida 2 Lora, nº 13-80 in front of Sucre sq, Tel. 0058-274 2525441), where a double room with private bath and tv costs 70.000 Bs. In this case also they had just finished to build a new building and we were lucky to get one room in the new building. We recommend you to ask for the new rooms, as the difference is big. Moreover Mrs. Berta who manages the posada is really kind. The restaurant in the posada is also very convenient.
To have breakfast we recommend the bakery Roma (Street 24, at the entrante of the Teleférico, Tel. 0058-274 529095) with thousands of choices. We went to a wonderful restaurant for dinner: La Abadía (Avenida 3 between streets 17 and 18), moreover it has internet free. La abadía del Ángel, another charming place, also belongs to the same owner. Another restaurant we went is Cheo’s (at Plaza de las Heroínas). In Mérida you can find most unusual ice cream shop Coromoto, which curiously has the Guinness record for the number of different flavours of icecreams. They say they have more than 827 different flavours. We can confirm this, moreover over and above the traditional ones they have strange names and flavours like: Spaghetti with Cheese, Viagra, and Smoked Salmon (Avenida 3, nº 28-75, diagonal to the church el Llano, Tel. 0058-274 252 35 25). Opening times 14,30 to 21,45 and Mondays closed.
Mérida is the Capital of the State with the same name. It's a city very open and cosy where all is very calm and. It is not as warm as you find everywhere in Venezuela, being surrounded by mountains
In Mérida we felt good and we must say that we saw many tourists. What is most worth while doing in Mérida is walking around and going to the Plaza Bolívar, Plaza de las Heroínas, to Plaza Milla, and to visit the Metropolitan Cathedral. The Archeological Museum is very recommendable to visit, as well as the Museum of Colonial Art.
The most important touristical thing in Mérida is the teleférico (cable car) that brings people up to the top of Pico Espejo at 4.765 metres. The Teleférico is the longest one in the World and was built in 1.958. It has 4 sections, each one takes around 11 minutes and once you reach each station you must wait for a while to get used to the height and then you can take the next cable car. The Teleférico costs 55.000Bs, children 38.000Bs and seniors 33.000Bs. Each day only 800 people may gio up, so if you intend to go up in one day by the cable car, it is better to make a reservation online and pick it up once there. They open at 7,45 am and close at 2,45 pm (last ride 2 pm). At the top it snowed and it was very cold, so it is better to go with suitable clothes and if you do not have them (like us!) at the entrance of the Teleférico you can rent hats and gloves for 1.000Bs, coats between 3.000 and 4.000Bs.
Another very recommendable thing to do is a day trip to los Páramos. Mérida is surrounded by wonderful mountains (it reminds one Switzerland!). On this day trip we went to the top of Pico del Águila at 4.118 metres, and on the way we visited the church made of little stones by the local artist Juan Félix Sánchez, also the National park of Sierra Nevada and the Mucubají lake, and also we rode horses for 30 minutes, which costs 5.000B (+ 5.000Bs if you want a guide who leads the horse). Also we fished for trout and for that we paid 5.000Bs (if you do not catch anything, you do not pay). Also on this trip you must bring suitable clothes as it is cold in the top of Pico del Águila. The trip is the whole day 9 am to 6 pm. We bought the trip at Gravity Tours (Gustavo Viloria, Calle 24, entre Avenida 7 y 8, Tel. 0058-274 2511279), it costed 35.000Bs per person.
The best trip from Mérida is los Llanos. We did not make it as due to the delayed Iberia flight we had to cancel it as we had 3 days less in Mérida. Gravity Tours are the operators of this trip and it costs around 350.000Bs per person for 5 days and 4 nights. We believe that this trip is really worthwhile. Moreover they also offer other trips with a bit more adventure like parachuting, rafting, climbing, etc.
CIUDAD BOLÍVAR
To arrive there from Mérida there is the option to fly to Caracas and from there another flight to Ciudad Bolívar, but this can cost around 300U$. The bus is the cheapest choice. It takes many hours, but it has been our choice.
The bus terminal in Mérida is far from the city center and to arrive there we paid 5.000Bs for the taxi. We took a bus at Expresos Flamingo to Valencia, leaving at 19,30 and takes 10 hours and a half including a dinner break. We paid 40.000Bs plus 1.000Bs for exit fee. Other companies also go to Valencia: Expresos Los Llanos, Expresos de Mérida. Another posible itinerary would have been Mérida-Barinas-Ciudad Bolívar, but we did not find tickets for this option.
Once in Valencia, the bus left us in the private terminal of Expresos Flamingo which is in front of the main bus terminal of Valencia. A little further (by foot), we found the private bus terminal of Rodovias where we bought the ticket to Ciudad Bolívar (34.000 Bs), leaving at 7,30 in the morning and arriving at 7 pm in the evening. In Ciudad Bolívar we took a taxi to the city center which costed us 6.000 Bs. Day time it costs 5.000 Bs per trip.
Posada Don Carlos (Boyacá St nº 26 with Amor Patrio, behind Governación, Tel. 0058-285 6326017). We made a reservation here from Mérida as Ciudad Bolivar is a popular city we wanted to be sure to get a bed in this cute posada with only 10 rooms (building 4 more). It’s a posada that belongs to the German Martin Haars, who has lived in Ciudad Bolívar for many years. It is wonderful as it has colonial style and two inner patios. Moreover they offer dinner service (15.000 Bs or 25.000 Bs if there is meat) and breakfast (5.000 Bs), another option is to cook on your own and use the kitchen for 1.000 Bs. Internet is for free and washing the clothes 500Bs per kilo. A double room with bath and air conditioning costs 50.000 Bs. Also you can chose a cheaper option without aircon but with a fan or just an outside hammock. Another much more expensive option and almost luxury is the newly opened Casa Grande where a double room costs 140.000 Bs if you go directly there, if you try per internet, they told us that the price is almost the double. It has a swmming pool in the terrace with wonderful views of the Orinoco.
To eat you must be aware of the time, as the restaurants close at 7pm, with one exception: Tasca Marisquería la Ballena (street Urica with street Zea, sector Casco Histórico, local 12, Tel. 0058-285 6320231) where they serve big portions for a nice price. We also ate for lunch at market Carioca, which is the most typical market in Ciudad Bolívar, where it is better to go only for lunch as it’s far from the centre. There are many restaurants there but we were advised to go to El Rincón de los Papillos, we ate typical fish from the Orinoco: Lau-lau, delicious and also nice price. We believe that in Ciudad Bolívar there are not enough restaurants, and it’s possibly a perfect idea for investors.
Ciudad Bolívar is one of the favourite destinations of travellers especially because from this city depart two of the most appreciated trips in Venezuela, the one to Salto del Ángel and the one to the Gran Sabana. For us Ciudad Bolívar was a nice surprise as the city was cute and very charming. Surprisingly as well, because in the travel guide Lonely Planet does not mention that it'is a relevant point to stop at. Ciudad Bolívar is on the Orinoco river and it was the first time we saw this huge river.
Ciudad Bolívar is a colonial city founded in 1764 on the Orinoco and still keeps its fluvial port character and many buildings from the colonial period. The city has a long walkway along the Orinoco and just the other side of the street is full of shops. At the end there is a belvedere: Mirador Angostura which is the narrowest point in the river and where it is nice to sit and drink something fresh and observe how children fish and enjoy themselves. You can also see from there the only bridge that crosses the Orinoco and it’s 5 km long. The city has a lot of way up and down, it is very clean and it’s very well conserved, mostly everything well restaured and painted in nice colours. The city center is organized around Plaza Bolívar where is also the cathedral. All the city centre is full with beautiful buildings: la Casa Piar, la Casa de los Gobernadores, la Casa Parroquial, la Alcaldía de Heres, la Casa del Congreso de Angostura... Only a couple of kms further following the Orinoco there is the market La Carioca where reside the market itself, there are many fish restaurants. Curiously in Ciudad Bolívar between 7 and 8 in the evening most of the restaurants close, it was not easy for us to find a place to eat. Actually one of the days we did not eat as everywhere was closed.
More information about Ciudad Bolívar in Ciudad Bolívar/Venezuela virtual.
Salto del Ángel. The typical trip that leaves from Ciudad Bolívar is the one to the Salto del Ángel. To do it there are many different possibilities and we bought the cheapest one with Adrenaline Expeditions (ask for Luís Guillermo; corner street Dalla Costa with the Boulevard, Tel. 0058-285 6324804). In Adrenaline also can keep the backpacks and acts as a tourist information centre for the city. We paid 650.000 Bs per person for the three days and two nights trip in a hammock leaving from the La Paragua airport which is 3 hours from Ciudad Bolívar with everything included. The flight from La Paragua to Canaima lasts only 30 minutes and it is in a small plane for only 12 people (on the way back it was even a smaller plane for 6 people!). Canaima is the ensemble of posadas and a little airport, nothing else. There is a small beach if you want to rest.
Canaima
Arriving to the National Park of Canaima you must pay an entrance fee of 8.000 Bs (3.000 Bs if you are from Venezuela). Once there you are given the lunch and afterwards you take a little boat to see the 5 falls, to the same lake that we crossed. Once in the other side of the lake, you walk to the Sapo which is another fall, where you can walk behind the water fall and this makes this experience unique, but be aware because the water falls with such a force that you must take the ropes to avoid falling and as well just go there with a bathing suit and with your cameras very well protected in plastic bags. I think it’s better you take swimming goggles as the weather and spray is very very heavy and it hurts the eyes, even if you wear contact lenses it’s dangerous as then you also risk losing them. Afterwards you walk one hour and a half and two more hours in a little boat through the tepuis (high mountains with flat top and with scarped walls) to the camp. The two camps where we stayed were really simple: no electricity. Food was just ok, but at night, as we slept in hammocks and during the evening rains a lot, it was really cold. We were given a blanket but it was not enough. That’s why I advise taking a jacket or similar.
The day after very early you go again with the little boat for two more hours to another camp at the Salto del Ángel (Angel Falls) (you can see it even from the camp). Then you walk/climb the mountain for one hour and you arrive to the impressive Salto del Ángel. It’s 979 meters height and really beautiful. We were lucky as that day we had no clouds and we could see it from the top to the river downstairs. This is really rarely as often there are clouds. Once there there is a belvedere, and further 10 minutes walking there is a natural swimming pool at the feed of the Salto, and it’s real nice and refreshing, just be aware of the stream. Water is cold and feels great after walking and climbing for more than one hour. We slept in the camp down to the Salto and it’s as well really simple. The third day you go again 4 hours in the boat to Canaima and you just wait your turn to take your flight to La Paragua or Ciudad Bolívar. The airport La Paragua should not be called airport, it’s just a sand track where planes land, nothing else.
A lot of the posada owners from Ciudad Bolívar, for instance Martin from Posada Don Carlos, also sell this trip but leaving from the airport Ciudad Bolívar and spending the first night at one of the posadas in Canaima and the second night in a hammock. Price 710.000 Bs. We believe is not worth to leave from La Paragua to save a couple of bolívares, you spend too much time that you lose afterwards. In Adrenaline also offer this trip from Ciudad Bolívar. Another option to see Salto del Ángel is watching it from a plane, only one day. It’s the most expensive option of all and could cost around 300 €. We think this trip can also be made on your own, without agency, but we do not think you can get better prices for it as the agencies have already dealt with the posadas, with the camps and with the boat owners the prices, and here you must count the time you loose trying to organise times and prices.
Gran Sabana. Another interesting trip rom Ciudad Bolívar and that Adrenaline organizes and operates is the one to the Gran Sabana, which is one of the most fascinating and unusual regions that exist. The most important thing there are the tepuis, big flat mountains. Roraima is the most well known one and a 6 days and 5 nights trip costs 750.000Bs.
Río Caura. Another different and fantastic option is to go up the Caura river, organized and operated by Posada Don Carlos. It costs 270€ everything included. You spent 4 nights in hammock and make 120 kms river up to the indigenous communities, walking through the rain, birdwatching, and arriving to the waterfalls Pará.
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Yolanda Vila & Toni Pozo