Mt trip to the only hotel near los nevados national park
While planning my trip to the famous coffee region of Colombia (the Zona Cafetera / Eje Cafetero – coffee triangle), I did not think of visiting Hotel Termales del Ruiz rightaway.
More I thought about…. doing a tour on a coffee plantation, spending the night in a coffee finca and drinking lots of cups of the delicious “black gold” …
But, as I was doing some surfing on the site of booking.com, the hotel immediately caught my eye. Hotel Termales del Ruiz is a former ski resort, located on an altitude of 3500 meter. It’s the only hotel near los Nevados National Park, with the active volcano Nevado del Ruiz. The hotel looked very appealing, being located in a nature reserve with two hotsprings!
The exciting idea of staying so close to the active volcano Nevado del Ruiz did not let me go and when I read that I could book a day trip to the park from the hotel, I was sold and booked 3 nights.
Thus my itinerary in the coffee triangle was complete: flight from Bogotá to Pereira, contintue to Hotel Hacienda Combia in Calarcá, drive to Santa Rosa de Cabal and continue to Hotel Termales del Ruiz before flying back via Manizales to Bogotá.
After our visit to the Anato -tourism fair in Bogotá and a few wonderful days at the coffee finca in Calarcá, we continued our journey to Santa Rosa de Cabal, starting point for the trip to Termales del Ruiz.
From Santa Rosa de Cabal, my travel companion was going back to Curaçao and I would continue on my own. A severe throat infection almost ruined my plans, but after an emergency consultation with the Angeles al Llamado and a few days of rest in Santa Rosa de Cabal, the car ride to Termales del Ruiz could begin.
Just to get there was already an adventure in itself. From Manizales to Termales del Ruiz, the road climbed slowly and the green landscape turned into the páramo landscape with the extraordinary Frailejones trees.
Along the way, we made a stop to enjoy an arepa de chocolo with chocolate caliente. The hot chocolate was comforting, as it was getting pretty chilly.
With the GPS on an altitude of 3476 meters, we were almost there.
It was almost unreal to see the hotel in the “middle of nowhere.” Up to this moment, I was used to the green hills in the coffee region, but here we were really in the mountains.
After the driver dropped me off at the hotel, I went to check in….brr it was soo cold! There was no heater at the front desk and this “Dutch Caribbean girl” was happy to go to the room and turn on the heater. Surely these were different temperatures from the 30 degrees on my island in the Caribbean Sea! A bathrobe was already waiting for me in the room and I immediately wanted to jump into the warm water.
I thought at first that I could walk out to the bathtub in my bathrobe, but I really couldn’t. It was sooo cold! I quickly turned around, went back to the room and put on my thick coat. I changed clothes downstairs in the locker room. The feeling of sliding my cold body into the hot bath was amazing. An employee of the hotel came to ask if I wanted something to drink and I thought a vino caliente (hot red wine) would be perfect to complement the whole experience -:).
In the evening, I settled myself in front of the fireplace in the restaurant with an aromático (herbal tea).
The next morning I joined a tour of the bird sanctuary.
During the hike, the hummingbirds were the star of the show. It was easy to see, that the reserve is a hot spot among birdwatchers and photographers, because one photographer had an even bigger lens than the other! Not surprising, considering that there are over 160 species of birds in the nature reserve.
With my smartphone I also managed to take pictures of the hummingbirds, but I liked it better to explore the reserve itself -without the photo shoots- and so I did in the afternoon.
There were trails past viewpoints and small waterfalls, and there was a nice chill spot with a view.
The first day at Termales del Ruiz was more than successful!
On to the next day, with a new adventure, the private tour to Los Nevados National Park.
Written by Jeanette
Travel period: March 2019
#ColombiaMyWay tips
(Updated: August 2025)
- Check here for more info about hotel Termales del Ruiz
- Prior to your trip, we recommend to stay in a place that is already a bit higher, between 1500 and 2500 meters, such as Manizales or Santa Rosa de Cabal. This will allow your body to gradually get used to the altitude.
- The hotel is very remote and cannot be reached by public transportation. You can only get there by your own car or by private transportation. I had arranged a private driver through the hotel in Santa Rosa de Cabal, but Manizales is closer (approx. 1.5h)
- You go to Termales del Ruiz to relax, hike in the bird sanctuary and take a trip to National Park los Nevados (car ride in the park of 5km, with no hike or trek). There is nothing else to do, unless you are a cycling fanatic and want to take a mountain bike ride to Los Nevados National Park.
- I stayed in a room with great views of the mountains and thermal pools, but not all rooms have this view. Ask about this if you want to make a reservation.
- There is heating in the hotel rooms, but not in the restaurant or other public areas of the hotel. Therefore, bring a nice thick sweater or coat.
- If you’re traveling back to Manizales on a Sunday, make a stop in the village of Termales. On Sundays, all the BBQ restaurants are open and it’s quite a happening to go there for lunch. Whole families go out to grab a bite to eat at their favorite little restaurant, especially the specialty Chorizo is very popular.
Check out our travel guide Coffee Triangle for more information on Colombia’s coffee region. If you are traveling from the coffee region on to Jardín or Medellín, check out our travel guide Medellín and surroundings.
We do not accept direct payments from touroperators or hotels for our reviews and we pay for our own stay and tours. Every recommendation is based solely on our own experiences and honest opinions. However, some of our links are affiliate links, which means we earn a small commission if you book through them. This commission comes at no extra cost to you and helps us maintain our website.
