Manizales and Pereira to receive Ecuador’s team in the Triangle of Coffee

In the presence of almost 100 Ecuadorian wholesalers, travel agencies and media representatives, PROCOLOMBIA continued last Monday the Latin American tour to promote Colombia’s tourist destinations for the Under-20 World Cup to take place between this coming July 29 and August 20.

Colombian goalkeeper, Oscar Córdoba, attended the event and after a class of football-tennis encouraged wholesalers and travel agencies from Ecuador to include Colombian destinations in their tour packages with the possibility of enjoying the football festivities.

The Manizales Culture and Tourism Institute, Bogota District Tourism Institute, Confamiliares of Manizales, Contactos and Hotel Caribe of Cartagena; Welcome, Panamericana de Viajes and World Tours of Bogotá and Valletours of Cali participated in this event organized by PROCOLOMBIA.

Following a presentation of the benefits offered by Colombia as a tourist destination, the Manizales Culture and Tourism Institute and the Bogotá District Tourism Institute presented their offer for the Under-20 World Cup. Later, the entrepreneurs met face-to-face with Ecuadorian wholesalers.

The invitation we extend to Ecuador is to visit Manizales, host city of the Ecuadorian team. In Manizales you can find the park of Los Nevados, just one hour away, with its snow-capped peaks that showcase the most spectacular landscapes, and only half-an-hour away we invitation you to the coffee-growing region, a place where you can enjoy the whole coffee grain culture, growing, processing and gastronomy. Our offer includes the city of Manizales, the Coffee Triangle and the warmest hospitality,” says Carolina Vásquez-Botero from the Manizales Culture and Tourism Institute.

Also, Adriana Infante of the Bogotá IDT, noted that tourists would have a full round of activities in the Colombian capital, closely linked to the Under-20 World Cup. “We have museums, visits to Zipaquirá, seven gastronomic hubs, shopping at very competitive prices, the designers’ street, amusement parks, 29 churches; we are a world-class example of urbanism. There’s a lot to see and enjoy,” she pointed out.

Entrepreneurs highlighted Colombia’s potential as a tourist destination. Mariana Garcés, representative of Hola Tours from Ecuador noted that “there are great opportunities for tourism. This is the time of year when young people are out on school holidays, and of course football is the country’s favorite sport – and prices are really affordable.

Pablo Lara from the wholesaler Sol y Luna of Ecuador confirmed that Colombia was prepared for an event as significant as the Under-20 World Cup. Apart from the proximity, the football tournament “will allow for getting to know other places that are new to us. This is the added attraction of attending these events and knowing about the destinations that Colombia presents to us.”

Football-tennis, the best invitation

The best invitation that could have been organized for Ecuadorians and media was the football-tennis show with Colombia´s goal-keeper Oscar Córdoba as top player.

The Colombia goalie played more than 10 games with different opponent couples wishing to try out their ball skills. At the end, each one received an autographed ball and souvenirs of Colombia, as well as a booklet of the campaign entitled “Colombia, the only risk is wanting to stay”.

But nobody wanted to miss their chance. Businesswomen and men and journalists alike accepted the challenge which Córdoba sometimes won or lost.

The Under-20 World Cup promotion tour will head this Tuesday to Caracas and from there on to Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires.

The Ecuadorian team’s destination

Once the World Cup begins for Ecuador, when they play against Australia at the Palogrande Stadium in Manizales on July 31, the charm of the landscapes and the region’s coffee will be at hand for all visitors.

Ecuadorians will find that Manizales and Pereira, the host cities assigned to the Ecuador team for the Under-20 World Cup, will be right in the heart of the Coffee Triangle, one of the most interesting and attractive regions of Colombia.

The so-called Triángulo del Café (the Coffee Triangle) encompasses the departments of Risaralda, Caldas and Quindío, and it is recognized as having the most deeply-rooted coffee-growing culture in the country – and the most hospitable people.

It is also considered to be the primary rural destination in Latin America, since farmers have converted their traditional farms and houses into tourist accommodations where guests can really experience the life of the countryside and the coffee plantations.

It has a wonderful range of activities, including ecotourism, nature and adventure tourism, bird-watching, hot springs and theme parks for all the family. Among the most representative of local dishes there is cazuela de fríjoles (bean casserole), sancocho (stew), mondongo (tripe), arepa con hogao (corn griddle cakes with onion, tomato and oil sauce), river trout, calentado paisa (a mixture of diced yucca, potatoes, green plantains, meat, chicken and pigs’ trotters) chorizo (hard pork sausage), morcilla (black pudding) and chicharrón (crackling).

In Manizales, also known as the "city of open doors" because of the hospitality of its people, you can also take short coffee tasting courses at the Escuela de Cata of the Recinto del Pensamiento (literally “Place for Thought”) or visit the Hacienda Venecia in the neighboring Municipality of Chinchiná.

Manizalitas, as people from Manizales are called, are very kind and open to visitors and passionate about football and their own team Once Caldas, which won the Copa Libertadores de América in 2004.

If you decide to go to Manizales, don’t miss the opportunity to visit the Nevado del Ruiz National Park, home of El Cisne visitors’ center at 4,500 meters above sea level, or the Otoño Hot Springs where you can plan your route through the mountainous scenery and the rain forests.

And Pereira, where the Costa Rica team will play against Ecuador on August 6, is not only the most populous city of the Coffee Triangle but one of the most blessed by nature. In one single territory Pereira is home to climatic zones ranging from the warm to the freezing moors.

Also called "the Pearl of Otún", the capital of the Risaralda Department has been a traditional destination for tasting coffee in all its servings, enjoying a walk through the shrine at Otún Quimbaya or spending a day shopping in its shopping malls.

Find out more about Manizales and Pereira at www.colombia.travel