San Jose del Guaviare

San Jose sits on the Guaviare river where the Andean foothills give out into the Amazon and Orinoco basins, and it is the base for everything in the department: the Lindosa rock art panels, Ciudad de Piedra's weathered formations, the Damian well and other sinkholes, and the seasonal coloured river channels at Tranquilandia. All of that was inaccessible for decades - the region was under armed group control and outside visitors did not come - and it opened after 2016, with community tourism associations formed to manage sites and provide guides, which is now how nearly everything is visited. The town is a working frontier centre rather than a tourist one. Deforestation in Guaviare has been among the highest rates in Colombia.

What you actually see

• A base for the Guaviare sites - rock art, sinkholes and coloured rivers.
• Where the Andes give out - into the Amazon and Orinoco basins.
• Community tourism associations - formed after the region opened in 2016.
• A working frontier town - not built for visitors.

When to go

December to March for the drier roads; the coloured rivers need the wet months. Several days.

Honest expectations

Sites require guides and community fees - independent visits are generally not permitted. Roads are rough and slow. Heat and insects are heavy. Check regional conditions before travelling; this remains a frontier area.

Nearby

Cerro Azul and Ciudad de Piedra are close; Tranquilandia is south.