Roaming South America

Girardot, Colombia

October 18, 2025

Girardot, Colombia, lies about two hours southwest of Bogotá. It has a population of around 110,000, with the metro area reaching about 143,000. Founded in 1852 and named after General Atanasio Girardot, it began as a simple trading post. Wikipedia mentions that it’s a tourist destination for Bogotanos, mostly because of the warm climate. Frankly, I see little else to draw visitors here.
Reference: Wikipedia

Girardot is a pleasant enough large town, walkable from end to end in under an hour. Thankfully, there are no moto-taxis buzzing around, though small motorcycles come close to filling the gap. Parks are scarce, with most of them clustered on the northeast side. The main plaza is, at best, uninspiring—mostly concrete, almost no trees, and few people braving the middle. Locals cling to the shaded sidewalks. The church across the plaza is easy to miss; it hides behind a gas station and, with its grey concrete block design, looks more like a bunker than a landmark.

Parque de la Locomotora houses the old train station and a rusting locomotive. The park itself is more concrete than green. You can walk the tracks out to the train bridge over the Magdalena River, which leads into a less attractive neighborhood on the far side. Below, on this bank of the river, Girardot once built a malecón, a riverside park—but it’s clearly been left to rot. Cracked paths, overgrown weeds, and broken trails make it more sad than scenic. There is, however, a small lookout point across town with a playground and a police booth, and from the top you do get a decent view of the valley across the river.

And that’s about it. Girardot may be a weekend escape for people from Bogotá, but for the passing traveler? Not much here. Stop for a meal if you’re on the way through, then keep going—there are better towns waiting down the road.