Barichara

Barichara has a fair claim to being the loveliest town in Colombia, and it is beautifully consistent: founded in the eighteenth century and built almost entirely from the honey-coloured sandstone quarried nearby, with whitewashed walls, ochre roof tiles, heavy wooden doors and streets paved in the same stone, all laid on a grid across a hilltop above the Suárez canyon. Preservation rules have kept it that way, so there are no jarring modern facades, and the effect at sunset when the stone warms is remarkable. The town is small and the pleasure is in wandering it, visiting the sandstone cathedral and the little cemetery with its carved gates, watching artisans work stone and paper made from fique fibre, and eating hormigas culonas, the roasted big-bottomed ants that Santander eats in season. From the edge of town the old Camino Real, a restored colonial stone path, drops for two hours down to the village of Guane.

What you actually see

• The sandstone streets - the honey-coloured stone town on its hilltop grid.
• The Camino Real to Guane - the restored colonial stone path down the valley.
• The cathedral and cemetery - the sandstone church and the carved cemetery gates.
• The canyon viewpoints - the outlook over the Suárez river valley at sunset.

When to go

December to March and July to August are the drier windows; the town is warm year-round and the light on the stone is best in the late afternoon. Weekends bring Colombian visitors up from Bucaramanga. The Camino Real walk is best started early to beat the heat.

Honest expectations

It is very small and very quiet, which is the point, but travellers wanting nightlife or a list of sights will run out of things to do within a day. Prices have risen as it has become fashionable with Colombian weekenders. The Camino Real is downhill to Guane and you will want transport back rather than walking up in the heat. The roasted ants divide people entirely.

Nearby

San Gil and its rafting are 45 minutes away; Chicamocha Canyon is close by road.