Relive the route to independence

Several of Colombia’s departments keep traces of the great feat by patriot troops that led to independence.

The route to independence refers to the path the patriot troops went through along Colombia seeking independence. Led by Simón Bolívar and Francisco de Paula Santander, these heroes went from Arauca all the way to Boyacá in order to assault the Spanish Army led by Barreiro.

This track is remembered in every town and road the liberators passed by.

Where to relive history?

28 settlements saw the Bolivarian troops that rested at nights after the battles. To relive that track and get to know the settings of Colombia’s independence, there is an array of car and bus tours.

Boyacá’s beautiful landscapes embraced the route to independence. These include Ventaquemada, the Boyacá Bridge, the Vargas Swamp (where one of the most important battles took place on July 25^th 1819), the Chivatá Shrine, Gámeza, Tunja, Paipa, Sogamoso and Socha.

In Cundinamarca one can enjoy destinations such as the Bridge of Commons in Chía (an emblematic period passage by which Bolívar’s army entered Santafé victorious) and heritage sites near the capital like the traditional municipalities of Villapinzón, Chocontá, Suesca Nemocón, Zipaquirá and Cajicá.

One can find the architectural traces of the independence period in Bogotá’s historic center. The city, destination to Bolívar’s heroic committee, has Colombia’s history in its museums.

Institutions, companies and travel agencies, along with the Government, created the Route to Independence Alliance in order to relive and enjoy the independence feat.

The first tour includes Bogotá and Cundinamarca. Another one visits landscapes and towns in Boyacá’s countryside, where decisive battles took place. The third circuit, ideal for track experts, goes over the journey towards the East Plains. The fourth one goes from the capital to the Plains through Villavicencio and ends in Casanare’s Savannah and Arauca, the region where the independence campaign originated and where troops began to form.

Learn more about the Route to Independence chronology and the agencies that offer the tours and discover why when it comes to heroism, the answer is Colombia.