Guatapé · Antioquia
The place
Almost every hotel in Guatapé picks one: either in town, or on the water. La Madriguera did not pick.
Step out the front and you are on the zócalo streets, ten minutes from the main square. Step out the back and you are at the reservoir. Drag the line to see both sides.
← Carrera 20 · the streets of GuatapéPeñol-Guatapé reservoir →
The reservoir
Being in town almost always means giving up the water. Not here: the back of the hotel runs down to the reservoir and ends at its own dock.
That is where the kayaks and paddleboards go out, and the afternoons when nothing happens. The boats too, if you want to go as far as the Piedra.
Wake up with the reservoir in front of you.
The Peñol-Guatapé reservoir is not a natural lake: it is water held over the valleys that stayed below. That is why it has those arms and peninsulas reaching in between the mountains, and why it is always still.
Mornings are the good hours: the water is flat and nobody is out yet. Late in the afternoon the sun drops on the other side and the water takes the colour of the sky.
Rooms
Nineteen rooms across eight types. All of them include breakfast, a private bathroom and internet; what changes is which way they face and how much space they have.
The ones that say with a view face the reservoir. The rest look onto the greenery and the mountain.
The largest
King bed, a private terrace over the reservoir and two different ways to slow down: the hammock and the hot tub. The windows run wall to wall, so the view comes in without asking.
Catamaran net
The balcony has a catamaran net for lying out over the drop and watching the water. Inside, a bathtub by the window for the end of the day.
Bathtub on the balcony
The bathtub is outside, on the balcony, facing the reservoir. It is the room people still remember months later.
Cabin
A separate cabin, with a deck balcony and a hammock hung facing the water. The windows run down to the floor.
Wide windows, its own balcony and plenty of daylight. The straightforward way to have the reservoir in view, nothing added.
Under the pitched wooden roof, with a private bathtub inside. A quiet room for slowing down without leaving town.
Bright and simple, with the window open to the greenery. The most straightforward way to stay in the centre of Guatapé.
Up to 5
For coming with family or friends without splitting into two rooms. A bunk with two double beds and a single bed, all in the same space.
Restaurant
The restaurant is open from morning to night: breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner and cocktails. Breakfast is included with every room.
It is where the day starts before heading down to the dock or up into town, and where it ends when you no longer feel like going out again.
Some places feel like a pause.
Breakfast included, with eggs, arepa, fruit and coffee from the region.
Brunch and lunch, without going down into town and back.
Dinner and cocktails, with the town lit on one side and the dark water on the other.
Guatapé
Guatapé is a town for walking. The houses carry zócalos — those painted friezes along the base of the façade — telling trades, animals and scenes from village life. No two are alike.
From the door it is ten minutes to the main square, and fifteen by car to the Piedra del Peñol.
Book direct
When the booking comes to us directly, the rate is the same or better than on any portal, and we can get things ready in advance.
With no middleman commission, the saving stays with you. The same room, less money.
Anniversaries, birthdays or a late arrival: tell us and we will have it ready before you get here.
A direct WhatsApp line to put the plan together: boats to the Piedra, a dinner table, or the transfer from the airport.
Guests
The scores come from Booking.com and are written only by people who stayed. The highest of all is for personal: 9,7, and it is the one that comes up most in the comments.
The view from the room is simply fantastic. The kindness of all the staff surprised me — I really did feel at home.
The location is excellent, only a 10-minute walk from the main square. You also have the option of kayaking and other sports.
A real treat, the bathtub on the terrace looking out to the Piedra and the water. Very close to town, a few minutes on foot.
You are close to the centre and you also get lovely views towards the Piedra del Peñol. The place felt very welcoming.
It is really welcoming, everything very clean and quiet, and the staff are lovely — so attentive.
Kindness from all the staff working there. We will be back without a doubt.
Guide
Almost everyone arrives, climbs the Piedra, walks the town and heads back the same day. Guatapé feels different when there is time to look at it.
The plan we give to anyone arriving for the first time and staying the night:
The monolith is 4,1 km from the hotel: fifteen minutes by car, or a little longer by tuk-tuk from the square.
It is 740 steps by a stairway wedged into the crack in the rock. At the top there is a lookout where the whole reservoir opens out in arms.
When to go: as early as you can. By mid-morning there is a queue on the stairway and the sun is straight on. You pay at the base, and it is worth bringing water.
Zócalos are the painted friezes along the base of the façades, and they are the reason Guatapé looks the way it does. They began in the middle of the last century and today there is no house without one.
Each zócalo says something about whoever lives there: the family trade, an animal, a scene from the countryside. The Calle del Recuerdo, covered in coloured umbrellas, is the most photographed, but it is worth getting lost in the ones beside it.
Guatapé sits at 1,900 metres above sea level: mild days and cool nights all year round. Worth bringing a layer even when it is sunny.
From Medellín it is about two hours by car along the Medellín-Bogotá motorway. By bus, they leave every hour from the Terminal del Norte to Guatapé.
From the José María Córdova airport (Rionegro) it is about 47 km, roughly an hour and a quarter. We can arrange the transfer in advance.
If you are coming by car: the hotel has free private parking, which in the centre of Guatapé is no small thing.
The hotel dock is where you take out the kayak y el paddle, among the things you can ask for at reception.
The boat trips follow the arms of the reservoir and pass near the ruins of old El Peñol, the town left under the water when the dam was built in the seventies. In the dry season the level drops and you can make out the cross.
There is fishing too, though for that you need to head out from the hotel.
Frequently asked questions
In town. We are at Carrera 20 #27-01, inside Guatapé's town centre, about a ten-minute walk from the main square. What makes it different is that the back of the hotel runs down to the reservoir and has its own dock — not something you often find in the centre.
No. The ones with «con vista» in the name — Cedro, Laurel, Caoba and the Suite La Madriguera — face the water. The rest look out onto the greenery and the mountain. When you book it is clear which is which.
Yes, with every room. It is served in the hotel restaurant, which also opens for brunch, lunch, dinner and cocktails.
Yes, free private parking inside the hotel, with no need to book it. In the centre of Guatapé that is hard to come by, especially at weekends.
Yes. Supplements may apply, so it is best to tell us when booking so it is agreed beforehand.
Check-in is from 15:00 to 22:00 and check-out is until 12:30. Reception is staffed around the clock, but the entrance is closed between 22:00 and 05:00, so if you are arriving late it is best to let us know beforehand.
Yes, from the hotel dock. We also arrange boat trips across the reservoir towards the Piedra. Ask at reception, or over WhatsApp before you arrive.
4.1 km away, about fifteen minutes by car. You can also take a tuk-tuk from the main square. It is 740 steps to the lookout, and it is worth going up early.
Yes. Buses leave every hour from the Terminal del Norte and the trip takes about two hours. From the Guatapé bus terminal you can walk to the hotel. From José María Córdova airport it is 47 km, and we can arrange the transfer.
Contact
Carrera 20 #27-01
Guatapé, Antioquia
Colombia
Check-in · 15:00 to 22:00
Check-out · until 12:30
Reception open 24 hours
Entrance closed from 22:00 to 05:00