Colombia · Distrito Capital de Bogotá · Bogotá
La Candelaria, Bogotá — Area Guide & Where to Stay
La Candelaria is Bogotá's colonial old town, a grid of steep streets around Plaza de Bolívar and the Primary Cathedral.
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Where to stay in La Candelaria
Where the beds are, and what that means for the visit.
La Candelaria is Bogotá's historic core. Rooms fill the colonial houses within a short walk of Plaza de Bolívar, where the Primary Cathedral and the Capilla del Sagrario face the square, while quieter guesthouses climb the lanes toward the ridge below the Monserrate Sanctuary. The Gold Museum and the Botero Museum sit near the northern edge, where the old town meets the wider city.
Where you settle in La Candelaria comes down to how lively you want the night.
Find hotels in La Candelaria
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Plaza de Bolívar
Colonial houses around Plaza de Bolívar put the Primary Cathedral and the Capilla del Sagrario a few steps from your door, at the ceremonial centre of the old town.Find hotels in Plaza de BolívarMuseum-first travellers pairing the Gold Museum's collections with the Botero Museum nearby.Museum quarter
Rooms near the northern edge sit between the Gold Museum and the Botero Museum, where the district's lanes open toward the modern city.Find hotels in Museum quarterYou who want steep, quiet blocks under Monserrate and easy morning climbs.Monserrate slope
Guesthouses on the eastern lanes climb toward the ridge crowned by the Monserrate Sanctuary, trading traffic for the quiet upper streets of La Candelaria.Find hotels in Monserrate slopeHotel links are affiliate links: booking through them may earn us a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never affects how places are ranked. How this works
Things to do in and around Bogotá
Ranked by global recognition; descriptions from Wikidata (CC0).
Museums & Galleries
6- Colombian National Museum Heritage
- Museo de la Independencia Casa del Florero Heritage
- Museo Casa de Moneda Heritage
- Museum of Colonial Art Heritage
- Claustro de San Agustín Heritage
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- Fundación Gilberto Alzate Avendaño Heritage
Churches & Religious Sites
8- Primary Cathedral of Bogotá Heritage
- Church of San Francisco Heritage
- Church of Our Lady of Carmen, Bogota Heritage
- Iglesia San Ignacio - Bogotá Heritage
- Iglesia de Santa Bárbara Heritage
Show 3 more →
- Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de Egipto Heritage
- Iglesia La Capuchina Heritage
- Capilla del Sagrario Heritage
Landmarks & Notable Places
1- Silva Poetry House Heritage
worth knowingacross 3 categories in and around Bogotá
About La Candelaria
What are the main landmarks in La Candelaria?
Plaza de Bolívar anchors the district. The Primary Cathedral and the Capilla del Sagrario stand along its eastern flank, and the Casa del Florero, where the events of 1810 began, holds the square's northern corner. West and downhill lie the Gold Museum, with its pre-Hispanic goldwork, and the Botero Museum, whose rounded figures fill an old colonial house.
The Church of San Francisco and the Iglesia San Ignacio mark the parish streets, while the Monserrate Sanctuary crowns the ridge above. Museums abound.
What is the history of La Candelaria?
La Candelaria holds the founding ground of Bogotá. Its grid of colonial houses grew around Plaza de Bolívar, where the Primary Cathedral and the seats of Spanish authority rose along the square through the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The Casa del Florero fixed the district in national memory when the demand for a broken flower vase there sparked the events of 1810 that opened the road to independence.
Museums later filled the old mansions, from the Museo Casa de Moneda, once the colonial mint, to the Claustro de San Agustín. The stones remember.
Where is La Candelaria?
La Candelaria climbs the eastern edge of central Bogotá, a compact grid of steep colonial streets that rises from Plaza de Bolívar toward the ridge below the Monserrate Sanctuary.
Common questions
What is the best area to stay in La Candelaria?
Plaza de Bolívar: Guests who want the cathedral square and government palaces of La Candelaria at their doorstep.. Museum quarter: Museum-first travellers pairing the Gold Museum's collections with the Botero Museum nearby.. Monserrate slope: You who want steep, quiet blocks under Monserrate and easy morning climbs..
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Updated October 2026