Showing 1-7 of 7 results
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Aprovaca Orquídeas
For the best selection of orquídeas (orchids) in the area, visit the pleasant Aprovaca Orquídeas. Some 32 volunteers work to maintain the lovely flowers inside the greenhouse and the grounds, and they welcome visitors to show off the 96 varieties of orchids cultivated - it's well worth a visit. Look for the 'Orquídeas' sign on the way into town.
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Chorro de las Mozas
The most accessible of the handful of waterfalls that cascade down the surrounding hillsides into the valley is the 'Young Women's Falls', located on the original site where the prehistoric lake breached, forming the scenic cascades you see today. This is a popular local spot for taking a dip and lounging about, especially since there's near perfect spring weather in El Valle virtually year round.
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Chorro El Macho
The most famous waterfall in the El Valle area is the 85-high Chorro El Macho, which is located a few kilometers north of town near the entrance to the canopy tour. As its somewhat humorous name implies, this towering waterfall is more dramatic than its dainty counterpart, and makes for some excellent photographs. If the summer sun is beating down more than usual, you can take a refreshing bath at the base of the falls.
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La Piedra Pintada
The Coloured Stone or La Piedra Pintada is a huge boulder adorned with pre-Columbian carvings. Locals often fill in the grooves of the petroglyphs with chalk to facilitate their viewing, but their meaning isn't clearer. That doesn't prevent children from giving their interpretation of the petroglyphs, (in Spanish only).
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Museo El Valle
On the eastern side of El Valle's conspicuous church is the very modest Museo de El Valle, which contains exhibits of petroglyphs and ceramics left by the indigenous peoples who lived in the area hundreds of years ago. There is also some religious art (the museum is owned by the church next door), mostly statues of Christ and the Virgin, as well as some historical and geological information on El Valle's volcano.
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Pozos Termales
Located on the west side of town (follow the signs), Pozos Termales is the perfect place to soak the afternoon away. The forested complex is remote and rustic, and home to a series of pools with varying temperatures and supposed curative properties. After your bath, there is an area (a bucket, to be more precise) for applying healing mud to your skin. The next step is to take the requisite photo or two, and then head to the showers to rinse off.
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Zoo El Níspero
Most Latin American zoos are sad, cruel places, and unfortunately this is such a place. Here, for example, there are numerous eagles and hawks in a cage smaller than a walk-in closet, and the margays and ocelots on display look listless and depressed.
Showing 1-7 of 7 results
