For those wanting to enjoy Holy Week in a traditional setting, ten of Colombia’s most beautiful colonial towns are offering cultural celebrations and natural wonders to delight their visitors.
The towns are part of Colombia’s Country’s Heritage Towns Network, a selection of destinations considered the most picturesque in the country and the most representative of Colombia’s colonial heritage.
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Barichara (Santander)
In the eastern Colombian town of Barichara, tourists can enjoy dances, puppetry, theater and art exhibitions, all while taking in the immense beauty of the town’s cobblestone streets, white colonial houses and lush gardens.
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Honda (Tolima)
Honda’s musical traditions are the focus of Semana Santa in this beautiful town. Visitors can enjoy numerous concerts from local groups as well as a performance Friday from the Tolima Conservatory Symphony. Visitors can also enjoy Honda’s lovely climate and natural beauty with a fishing excursion or a ferry ride on the Magdalena River.
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Giron (Santander)
Giron is known for its captivating religious processions and rich colonial history. Here visitors can enjoy a polyphonic choral concert on Palm Sunday, a procession of 600 lanterns on Good Friday, or if they need to lighten up a bit, get a laugh at one of the many clown and harlequin performances.
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Lorica (Cordoba)
In Lorica, the church works to feed the soul while the locals make sure to feed the body. Culinary preparations begin two weeks before the Holy Week in this Caribbean town. Visitors can try local delicacies such as shrimp souffle, creole chicken stew, and a variety of traditional indigenous candies.
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Mongui (Boyaca)
Theater lovers will find Mongui to their liking for the Holy Week. The festivities start on Thursday March 29 with the Holy Thursday Infant, a performance of bible stories by 300 local children. On Thursday evening, young actors will also perform “Agony in Hetzemani” which tells the story of Christ’s last supper, trial and crucifixion. The town is also home to the patron saint of Boyaca: Our Lady of Mongui, and claims to possess a ring of hers.
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Mompox (Bolivar)
The solemn celebrations of this town, which is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, focus particularly on the town’s historical importance. Maundy Thursday is one of the most important days of the Holy Week here. The day begins with the blessing of robes at midnight followed by the Procession of Leave Taking in which residents take up sticks and recreate the ancient conflict between the Franciscans, Augustinians and Dominicans. Activities also include a solemn march, which while only four blocks, has been known to take up to seven hours.
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Playa de Belen (Norte de Santander)
In this town near the Venezuelan border, visitors can experience the intense spirituality of the town in their numerous processions and community built altars which adorn every corner of the town. Visitors can also enjoy one of Colombia’s most beautiful protected areas, the Estoraques, which houses mesmerizing rock formations whose intricacy rivals that of some of the town’s most ornate churches.
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Salamina (Caldas)
The celebrations in Salamina focus on showcasing the town’s extensive collection of art and fine jewelry. On Palm Sunday a masterfully crafted wooden carving of Jesus is carried through the town on a donkey. Later in the week processions carry paintings through the town, some of which are hundreds of years old and were brought over from Europe by priests such as Father Jose Joaquin Barco Angel.
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Santa Fe de Antioquia (Antioquia)
Music is a central focus of the solemn celebrations in Santa Fe. Visitors can see performances from the Medellin Philharmonic Orchestra, the Symphonic Band of the Graffiti, the String Orchestra of the Network of Schools of Music Medellín, Bello Township Coral and the Santa Fe Band. Exhibitions also showcase mannerist, baroque, rococo and neoclassical paintings, and many townspeople dress in traditional Sevillan costumes.
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Villa de Leyva (Boyaca)
This year the beautiful colonial town of Villa de Leyva will honor both local and international talent in their Holy Week celebrations. The town will welcome musical acts from France, Spain and Switzerland, as well as hold tributes to three pioneers of Colombian music: Jose Ignacio Perdomo, Eduardo Vargas and Bernard Lievano.