Buenavista is a small traditional village of about 3,000 inhabitants in the Quindío region of Colombia’s Coffee Region. Armenia is 33km away and Salento is 60km away. It is one of those places we have wanted to visit for years. Now Buenavista is not on the beaten path and is a detour if you are going to villages like Salento and Filandia travel. So why this detour you might think? The reason we were curious about Buenavista is that Colombia’s most awarded coffee beans are grown here, namely at the Hacienda San Alberto coffee plantation.

This of course made us coffee lovers very curious. But the coffee was certainly not the only reason, we were especially curious about Terrazza San Alberto. This terrace is known as one of the most beautiful terraces in the entire coffee region, with sweeping views of the landscape with coffee plantations.

Therefore, Buenavista was included in the itinerary of our tour of the Colombian coffee region in September 2024, from Armenia to Calarcá, Pijao, Filandia and Salento. On the way from Glamping Entre Rios in Calarcá to Pijao, Buenavista was a perfect stopover.

It was Sunday and it was a lively crowd, especially around bar El Mirador.

We stopped to take a look around the square. In the middle of a square are the colorful letters “Mirador del Quindío Buenavista.” Also there is the beautiful -white and blue- Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Carmen.

We also saw restaurants offering a cheap daily menu, such as El Social Buenavista Restaurante Bar.

Several people had recommended we have lunch at Restaurante Concorde, which is located between Pijao and Buenavista. Not only for the good food but also for the beautiful view over the green hills.

photo @ Restaurant Concorde

But…we had set our sights on a nice cup of coffee and, after our brief stop in the village, continued on to Terazza San Alberto.

When we got there, the view was indeed beautiful and we chose a table with the best view.

Meanwhile, we were given the menu and could choose from different methods of preparing coffee, using different filters.

We kept it simple because we were in the mood for a cappuccino. Our cappuccino was ok but could have been a little stronger as far as we were concerned.

We stayed a while to enjoy the quiet before getting back into the car.

#Colombia tip: You can also do a coffee tour or workshop at Terrazza San Alberto. You have to book this in advance, though.

How to get to Buenavista?
We arrived by car with driver Angelo, who took us from our glamping in Calarcá to Buenavista and Pijao, where we would stay for 2 nights. The drive took about 45 minutes. If you come from Salento or Filandia, first catch the bus to Armenia and from there travel on to Buenavista. You can walk to Terrazza San Alberto, but this is steep uphill. You can also take a Willy Jeep, for a short ride.

Dhe bus tickets to Buenavista can also be ordered online from the Coomoquin bus company, using this link.