Lake Guatavita tour from Bogotá: El Dorado legend and hike

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Free cancellationExcellent quality

1/11

Duration7h

GroupPrivate

LanguagesEN · ES

PickupAt your hotel

Seven hours, two towns, one legend: the lake where El Dorado was born

A full-day guided tour from Bogotá to Lake Guatavita and New Guatavita town, with hotel pickup, entry to the lake and an expert guide who tells the history of why the original town was flooded and rebuilt. The tour includes a traditional lunch option and covers the hike around the lake while explaining the ancestral myths and local legends tied to the El Dorado story. All-risk insurance is included.

Step-by-step itinerary

Explore Guatavita and Lake Guatavita

Visit Guatavita Town
Hike to Lake Guatavita
Learn El Dorado legend
Enjoy lunch at Tominé Reservoir

The Experience

The day starts with pickup from your Bogotá hotel and a drive out of the city toward the highlands where Lake Guatavita sits. Your guide meets you and walks you through the story of El Dorado—the legend of a sacred ritual and a lake that held gold—as you approach the water. The landscape shifts from urban to mountain as you climb, and the guide explains why the original Guatavita town was submerged when a new reservoir was built, forcing the community to relocate to New Guatavita higher up the slope.

Once at the lake, you hike the trail that circles the water, taking in views of the highlands and the town below. The guide points out the geography and the cultural significance of the site, grounding the El Dorado myth in the actual history of the Muisca people and their ceremonies. The hike is manageable for all fitness levels, and the path stays close enough to the water that you can see why this place mattered so deeply to the people who lived here.

Lunch happens at a restaurant in town with views of the Tominé Reservoir and the villages along the route—a traditional menu of the day, included if you chose that option at checkout. The guide can answer questions about what you've seen, and you have time to walk around New Guatavita if you want. The return to Bogotá takes the afternoon, and the guide drops you back at your hotel by evening.

What’s included

Entry to Lake Guatavita.
all-risk insurance.
hotel pickup and drop-off in Bogotá (or airport pickup for layovers).
expert guide in English or Spanish.
traditional lunch at a restaurant in town with reservoir views (if you choose it at checkout).

Good to know

Easy physical levelPublic transport nearbyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Gran Colombia Tours

Is this one for you?Book this tour if you want the story behind the lake, not just the view—the guide ties the landscape to the Muisca history and the El Dorado legend, so the hike becomes a walk through myth and real history at once. The full day and the included lunch mean you are not rushing between stops or eating on your own schedule.