Cathedral de sal - Zipaquira

Salt Cathedral Bogota

Catedral de Sal ZipaquiraCatedral de Sal Zipaquira

Catedral de Sal (Salt Cathedral) in Zipaquirá, about 50 kilometers north of Bogota, is an underground church built in a tunnel deep inside a salt mine. It was built in an area abandoned by salt mining, everything you see here is salt. If you go to this underground church you get past 14 small chapels which represent the sufferings of Christ. The shrine at the bottom has three sections wich represent, the birth, life and death of Jesus.

The Salt Cathedral was first built in 1954, but the structural problems and safety concerns led the authorities to close the sanctuary in 1990. The present church was built between 1991 and 1996 approximately 200 feet below the ancient shrine, again using the hallways that were deserted by the salt mining. The result is interlinked rooms with different sizes with the largest area, the actual cathedral has a size of 75 meters in length and 18 meters in height, with a capacity for 8400 people.

There are some small simple rules established for the 1-hour tour:

  • No smoking
  • Weapons prohibited
  • No food and drinks are allowed inside
  • You must follow the guide
  • Stands for photo or film cameras are prohibited

Catedral de Sal Bogota Colombia

Rates & Hours

High season: Ash Wednesday, between June 15 and August 15 and December 1 and January 30.
There are several packages for sale. The cathedral is open all week from 09:00 to 18:00. On Wednesday, you get discounts on the entrance of the packages. The climbing wall will open in September 2009.

Packets from the Salt Cathedral
Package Content Adult
normal
rate
Adult
Wednesday
rate
Child
normal
rate
Child
Wednesday
rate
Salt Cathedral, 3D movie "Guasa Tesoro" COP 15.000 COP 10.000 COP 9.000 COP 6.000
Salt Cathedral, 3D movie "Guasa Tesoro", Route map COP 20.000 COP 15.000 COP 12.000 COP 9.000
Salt Cathedral, 3D movie "Guasa Tesoro", Visit Museum COP 17.000 COP 12.000 COP 11.000 COP 8.000
Salt Cathedral, 3D movie "Guasa Tesoro", Route map, Visit Museum COP 22.000 COP 17.000 COP 14.000 COP 11.000
Salt Cathedral, 3D movie "Guasa Tesoro", Route map, Visit Museum, Visit climbing wall COP 27.000 COP 22.000 COP 17.000 COP 14.000
Salt Cathedral, 3D movie "Guasa Tesoro", Visit climbing wall COP 20.000 COP 15.000 COP 12.000 COP 9.000
Salt Cathedral, 3D movie "Guasa Tesoro", Route map, Visit climbing wall COP 25.000 COP 20.000 COP 17.000 COP 14.000