Best Things to Do in Minca, Colombia

In northern Colombia, Minca sits high in the cloud forests of the mountains. It’s the perfect place to visit if you are looking for a peaceful adventure hiking in the jungle and enjoying nature. I loved how safe and relaxing Minca felt. Also, cloud forest has a distinct way of making the scenery feel just a little bit magical and otherworldly.

Staying in Minca felt like a jungle retreat. It’s easy to add to most Colombia vacations because it’s quite close to another stunner of a destination, Tayrona National Park. I highly recommend making room for it in your itinerary because it will leave an impression and feel like you are much more remote than you actually are, it’s only about 30 minutes from the bustling city of Santa Marta.

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When to Visit Minca

I visited in late March and found that the weather was absolutely perfect. I had just missed the coffee plantation blooming but the forest was beautiful at that time. January to March is the dry season so it is a good time to visit. Overall the temperature is fairly consistent throughout the year but rain starts to pick up in May and goes through October. It’s best to be prepared for rain at any time though so pack a raincoat.

Is Minca Worth Visiting?

Minca is absolutely worth adding to your Colombia itinerary. If you are looking for a stay in the rainforest this is the perfect place to do it. Minca is set up in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains and the lush landscape that you are welcomed by is perfect for hiking, birdwatching, jungle waterfalls, and relaxing. Even though it is heavily touristed, I found it easy enough to get away from the crowds here.

The rainforest here is worth a visit and is much easier to visit than the Amazon Rainforest that you can find near Leticia, Colombia. It is quite different though because the forest in Minca is a mountainous cloud forest while the Amazon rainforest is wet, lowland rainforest. I also found Minca to be quite different than the forests of the Cocora Valley as Minca felt a little bit more pristine.

Getting to Minca and the Masaya Casas Viejas Hostel

To get to Minca you will first need to get to Santa Marta as all of your options are going to leave from there.

For this itinerary, I arranged transportation with the hostel from the Santa Marta Airport as I first needed to take a taxi or bus into Minca and from there either a 4×4 truck or moto taxi to the Masaya Casas Viejas hostel. If you are staying right in Minca you will only need a regular taxi between Santa Marta and Minca. Santa Marta is very close to Minca, it’s only about 45 minutes. Taking a taxi and 4×4 is definitely the most expensive option as it ended up costing 130,000 pesos.

The drive up to Minca takes you down some very twisty roads so if you get car sick make sure to pack some anti-nausea tablets.

How Long to Spend in Minca

I planned my time in Minca so I would have two full days there. It felt like the perfect amount of time as I got to see and do everything I was hoping to. I honestly could have stayed longer though as it was one of my favourite places in Colombia and it has a very relaxing vibe.

Minca is also close enough to Tayrona National Park and Santa Marta that you can do a day trip if you are short on time. Group day trips to Minca leave from Santa Marta are good for experiencing some jungle waterfalls and coffee plantations, this is a good tour option for that.

Where to Stay in Minca

While you can stay right in Minca, I really enjoyed the vibe of staying further out. I stayed at Masaya Casas Viejas Hostel and it was perfect. Don’t let it being a hostel scare you away, it’s a seriously beautiful property. It’s set in the mountains near the La Victoria Coffee farm. You have tons of privacy and an infinity pool overlooking the jungle. It’s a great budget option if you don’t mind sharing a room or you can book private rooms that have wonderful views over the mountains. It was easily my favourite place that I stayed in Colombia and I would happily return. I loved that there were really great tour options to explore the jungle and nearby surroundings as well.

What to Do With Two Days in Minca, Colombia

With two full days in Minca, you will have enough time to check out the waterfalls and cloud forests that make Minca such a delight. I could have happily spent more time there exploring more of the jungle and enjoying the beautiful sunsets from the infinity pool.

Check Out the Sunset Spot

Just a short walk up a hill from Casas Viejas Hostel is a beautiful spot to watch the sunset over the  Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains. Make sure you take a headlamp or have a flashlight for the walk down. On the way up to the sunset spot, I saw so many birds. Toucanets, crested oropendola that make tons of noise, loud cicadas buzzing. It’s the perfect jungle experience.

Night Walk in the Forest

If you’ve never gone for a walk in the forest at night this is the perfect place to try it out. This guided tour leaves Casas Viejas at 5:30 pm when it’s getting dark. You never know what you are going to see on any wildlife hike as it depends on the whims of the creatures and weather. On the night hike I went on, even though we didn’t get any great views of night-time mammals, we had a ton of fun finding some of the smaller creatures that go bump in the night. Tarantulas, daddy-long legs, crickets with massive antennae. Okay, it sounds like mostly we saw creepy crawlies. But there were also some cute frogs and sleeping birds as well. If you’re lucky you will spot an anteater or armadillo. I did catch a glimpse of an opossum as it scurried down some bamboo right outside the hostel. As long as you don’t have a spider or insect phobia, then I would happily recommend doing this tour. I would even have repeated it in hopes of spotting something new, and indeed a friend that visited a month later did have better luck with spotting night creatures.

Bird Watching

Minca is supposed to be the best place in Colombia for birdwatching. With over 160 species of birds, you are sure to spot a few. The birdwatching hike leaves at 6 am from the hostel so, unfortunately, no sleeping in. Luckily it’s a small group, when I went there were 4 of us along with a guide. The hiking was quite short as this area is full of birds. In addition to plenty of hummingbirds, some of the highlights here were colourful tanagers, orioles, and toucans. At the time I visited, there was a kite, a type of bird of prey, that had a baby in a nest and we were able to see the bird catch a cicada in the air before taking it to feed to its baby. In just a couple of hours we were able to see over 30 species of bird. You can check out what birds are in Minca here.

Waterfall Hike

My favourite thing I did in Minca was the waterfall hike that Masaya Casas Viejas does on their private grounds. Because it’s private you can only visit as part of the tour. If you aren’t staying at this hostel, I still would recommend trying to join this tour or another one that visits other private waterfalls as it is a magical experience.

The hike takes you through beautiful rainforest, including a pretty bamboo grove. The grounds are an old coffee plantation so there are some small canals along the way and you can also see the canals where coffee would be dumped in to transport the beans down the mountain to the processing station. On this hike, you end up seeing 3 nice rainforest waterfalls and you only have to share them with the hiking group. There is nowhere to change so make sure you have your bathing suit on if you would like to swim as you can swim in two of them.

The hike ends at the La Victoria Coffee farm where you have an opportunity to try the coffee and grab lunch or a snack. It’s a cute establishment that serves up yummy treats.

The hike takes most of the morning so you will still have the afternoon to spend relaxing at the hostel or perhaps exploring more of Minca.

Morning Yoga Among the Hummingbirds

If you’re staying at Masaya Casas Viejas Hostel, they offer morning yoga sessions. It’s a great way to wake up in the morning and enjoy the atmosphere of the hummingbirds getting their morning nectar from the flowers that surround the hostel. There are 17 species of hummingbird that call Minca home so watch out for some of the different species here. Outdoor yoga is the best kind of yoga and it’s perfect if you’ve been spending a lot of time sitting on a bus or a plane recently.

Exploring the Famous Waterfalls of Minca

Minca is famous for its waterfalls. To visit them from the Casas Viejas Hostel I recommend getting the hostel to call for a moto-taxi for you as it is quite a far walk down the mountain to get to the first one, Pozo Azul.

Pozo Azul is free to visit and because of this, it’s massively popular. Honestly, I ended up disappointed and spent only a couple of minutes here before immediately leaving. It is so busy that there are people everywhere and it would be nearly impossible to find anywhere to sit. I visited on a weekday around 2 pm so if you are able to visit earlier than that it may be a more pleasant experience. I was still happy to see it though because I would have felt like I missed out even though it didn’t end up being the best experience.

After popping by Pozo Azul, take a moto-taxi from the moto-taxi stand here up to the Marinka Waterfalls. Again, you can walk this mostly uphill walk from Minca as it does look like a beautiful area but the moto-taxi will definitely save you a lot of time.

Marinka Waterfalls is privately owned and you do have to pay an entry fee. It is worth it though as you have access to bathrooms as well as lots of sitting areas, a restaurant, and huge net hammocks with views of the falls. I could see how it’s possible to spend a whole afternoon here exploring and swimming in the falls. If you only have time for one of the waterfalls in Minca, I would recommend it to be the Marinka Waterfalls.

Minca, Colombia is a Must Visit

Honestly, when I was making my itinerary for Colombia, Minca almost didn’t make the cut. I wasn’t sure if it was unique enough from other destinations to make it worthwhile, and I wasn’t really sure what to do there. I’m so glad it made the cut. Minca was a fantastic place to visit. It really felt like a nice retreat from the busyness of the cities in Colombia like Cartagena. I loved being able to get into the cloud forest and just enjoy the beautiful nature of Colombia.

I would happily visit Minca again and enjoy its relaxing vibes, vibrantly-coloured birds, and jungle hikes. If you’re looking for another unique and relaxing destination in Colombia, the Rosario Islands are a fantastic option.

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