Should you visit the Salt Cathedral in Zipaquira?

The Salt Cathedral of Zipaquira is considered one of the wonders of Colombia. But is it really a must-see on any trip to Colombia? We wondered for a long time, and it took us just as long to decide to go and see for ourselves.

To tell the truth, we were a little afraid of going to see a rather kitsch show, based on sound and light to the glory of God.

Angélica, like all Colombian families from the Bogotá region, had been to the festival several times when she was a child. But it had been over 20 years since she’d last set foot there, and we knew that the cathedral had been completely remodeled in recent years.

So here’s our feedback on our visit to the Salt Cathedral!

History of salt in Zipaquira

Visit the Salt Cathedral

Before it was a church, the site where Zipaquira Salt Cathedral was built was a salt mine.

Millions of years ago, the area around Bogotá was actually a sea. Fossils of marine animals have been found near Villa de Leyva. It was therefore a process of sedimentation that formed the salt mountains we see today in Zipaquira, Nemocon and Sesquilé.

The use of salt in Colombia dates back to pre-Columbian times. In those days, salt was used as a currency of exchange. At the time, it was far more valuable than gold. It was used in trade between the various peoples living in South America.

In fact, the word “sal” (Spanish for salt) is the origin of the word “salario” (Spanish for salary).

Salt was so important at the time because, among other things, it was used to preserve food. It was the refrigerator of pre-Columbian civilizations. In fact, it’s a method of food preservation that’s still used today.

We can therefore say that salt mining in the region dates back to pre-Hispanic times. Traces of the use of salt from Zipaquira, Nemocon or Sesquilé can be found as early as the 5th century A.D. by the Muiscas, the region’s inhabitants.

At that time, the Amerindian populations used the salt water coming out of the mountains to make salt loaves by decantation.

Mining began in the early 19th century, with the construction of the first underground galleries.

The Zipaquira salt mine is still in operation today. The salt extracted is mainly used for industrial purposes.

History of Zipaquira Salt Cathedral

From salt mine to place of worship

The history of the cathedral itself dates back to the early 20th century.

The story goes that the miners were particularly religious, and that the galleries were covered with religious signs and small altars dedicated to patron saints. It was then decided to build a small chapel right inside the salt mine, so that the miners could practice their faith directly from their workplace.

Following this impetus, construction of a large cathedral began in the middle of the century, and the first Zipaquira Salt Cathedral was inaugurated in 1954. It immediately became an object of curiosity and a popular place of worship.

The old cathedral remained open to the public until 1992, when it was closed for safety reasons (structural problems). It was then decided to build a new one a few hundred meters away, which was inaugurated in 1995.

This is the cathedral you can visit today. The interior infrastructure and staging have evolved over time to offer visitors a variety of experiences and activities.

If you’d like to take this tour with an English-speaking guide from Bogotá, we suggest you contact our local partner, Felipe, using the form below.

Visit the Salt Cathedral

What you can see, what you can do

Zipaquira’s Salt Cathedral is a purpose-built site where everything is in place to welcome tourists. Many tours are available from Bogotá. But if you don’t speak Spanish well, we recommend you take a private tour with a english-speaking guide, so you can make the most of your day.

On site, there’s a large parking lot for vehicles, and on the esplanade at the mine entrance you’ll find various stalls, a restaurant, a climbing wall and a museum that complements the visit to the Cathedral.

The interior tour of the Salt Cathedral of Zipaquira takes us down more than 180m beneath the mountain. A mountain that has seen salt sediment over the millennia. The visit is divided into two parts:

• The Way of the Cross leading up to the dome
• The different naves of the cathedral accessible from below

We enter through a typical mine tunnel dug into the salt rock, then enter the galleries built to extract the salt from the mine. The first gallery has been transformed into a “Way of the Cross ” with 14 mystical steps taken from the Bible, each offering an interpretation of the cross carved in the salt.

This path takes us to the “dome”, a dome carved into the roof of the gallery, symbolizing the relationship with heaven, in the same way as the dome of a church in the center of the nave.

We then descend to the cathedral proper. Here, the sheer volume of the building is simply astonishing. Pillars worthy of the greatest cathedrals support three naves, the main one of which hosts mass every Sunday.

A video animation has recently been installed on the wall of the main nave. We sit among the faithful to watch a video mapping where evocations of nature, the formation of the earth and humanity intersect to form a surprising work that contrasts with this place. It was really cool. Please note that the theme of this projection changes according to the time of year.

This is the end of the tour. Visitors are free to continue soaking up the atmosphere, or to take advantage of the many stores in the adjoining galleries. Here you can buy souvenirs, emeralds and handicrafts. There are even cafés and restaurants for on-site sustenance. We’ve got it all covered!

There’s even a spa where you can enjoy the benefits of salt! and stores selling related products.

On the way back up to the surface, you can visit a mine museum, where you can learn about the history of salt in the region and the construction of the cathedral.

Other activities include rock-climbing on the outdoor climbing wall on the main esplanade.

Our opinion on the Salt Cathedral

Is it really a must-see?

We returned from Zipaquira’s Salt Cathedral with a mixture of charm and questioning.

Clearly, it’s impossible to remain unmoved by the impressive scale of the great nave. It’s also impossible not to be curious about the salt walls, their shapes, layers and visual landscapes, touching the walls and feeling the salty taste on the tip of your tongue…

We were also rather reassured by the visual effects. We were expecting a real show, and it’s nothing of the sort. The lighting is obviously flashy (green, purple, blue, etc.) but it’s not shocking, and even helps to create a certain atmosphere.

While we were less interested in the Stations of the Cross, we were really impressed by the cathedral itself. And the video mapping show was a welcome surprise in the end.

Of course, Zipaquira’s Salt Cathedral is also a temple to consumerism, and it’s impossible not to make the most of the financial windfall from the many tourists passing through. But it’s easy not to give in to the siren song of consumerism and simply turn back without paying attention to incongruities such as the “Tutankhamen Museum” and other emerald mine replicas (which have nothing to do with the salt mine).

In the end, we still have to ask ourselves: is a visit to Zipaquira’s Salt Cathedral worth it when you’re in Bogotá? Is it really worth driving (at least) 2 hours out and 2 hours back? Is the relatively high entrance fee justified?

On our way out, we made our way to Zipaquira’s main square and were pleasantly surprised.

The square is really pretty and offers several places to eat or have a coffee. You can quickly wander around the little streets of the historic center to discover the village atmosphere, and in the end you think it might be a nice outing to couple the cathedral with a meal or coffee break in the village.

The village of Zipaquira

Visit the salt cathedral without forgetting the village

In fact, if you’ve got the time, why not take a day (trying to think ahead to avoid Bogotá’s traffic jams) and visit the Salt Cathedral, then take a trip to the village, grab a bite to eat and head back to the capital?

This will allow you to discover the landscapes of the “Sabana”, the plateau to the north of Bogotá, where you can also discover the Nemocon salt mine and the Guatavita lagoon, for example.

But if you only have a short time in the capital, we’re not sure it’s a real must-see… As always, this is just our opinion. Many people think it’s superb and well worth the effort.

A good option might be toinclude Zipaquira’s Salt Cathedral as a stopover on the way to Villa de Leyva, if you’re planning to head into Boyaca afterwards.