'''Mérida''' is located in Venezuela, at the foot of the Andes, only fifteen kilometers from Venezuela's highest point. It is the centre for outdoor activities in Venezuela.

(As of September 2006, 1 US dollar is worth approximately 2150 Venezualan Bolivars)

Understand

Get in

By plane

The Alberto Carnivalli (MRD) national airport services Merida with daily flights from Caracas (though due to flight scheduling, you may have to stay overnight in Caracas). The El Vigia Juan Pablo Perez Alfonzo airport (VIG) is not too far away, and you can take a long taxi ride from there in case of emergency.

By car

By bus

The bus terminal is a few kilometers out of the center. A taxi to the center cost around Bs.8000 (BsF 8.00). There are daily connections to Barinas, Maracay, Caracas and several other destinations in Venezuela. If you want to go across to Ciudad Bolivar and avoid going north to Caracas or Valencia, then take the bus to Barinas (about 3.5 hours) and then the overnight bus, leaving at 10pm, to Ciudad Bolivar (11 hours).

On departure a Bs. 1000 (BsF 1.00) departure tax is collected.

Get around

See

Do

  • The '''Teleférico''' [http://www.telefericodemerida.com/] is the city's main attraction. It's the worlds longest and highest cablecar. For a mere Bs.55,000 (25 US$) it will lead you to Pico Espejo (4765m) with two stops on the way. It's best to pick a clear day and go in the morning as early as possible to avoid queues. Many travellers go up on the teleferico, and then descent via mules, hiking and SUVs. This means that during the busy season, upward tickets may be sold out days in advance, but this can be circumvented by reversing the trip. Typically, locals in SUVs will wait in the morning near the base of the teleferico to drive tourists up to Los Nevados for $15US, where mules can be hired for the final ascent. The top is usually covered in clouds later in the day. Take warm clothes. Be warned that the cable car is frequently closed for maintenance. It stops running in early afternoons.
  • Climb the '''Pico Bolivar''' or '''Pico Humboldt''', for serious mountaineers, these can be organised through tour agents (see below). A local guide who speaks a little bit of French is Jose Betancourt [mailto:josenancandi@latinmail.com]. Remember too that the altitude differential between Merida and the top of the teleferico is huge and that an attempt to climb Pico Bolivar or Pico Humboldt should wait for the next day, least you experience mountain sickness.
  • '''Adventure activities''' are offered by several tour agents. Mountain-biking, paragliding, white-water rafting and canyoning are all available in Merida. Four tour agents are ''Arassari Trek'', Calle 24 No 8-301, 0274-252-5879 [http://www.arassari.com/] ''Jakera'', Calle 24 no 8-205 0 274 2529577 [http://www.jakera.com/] and ''Gravity Tours'' [http://www.gravity-tours.com/inlges/index.htm]. ''Abadia Tours Travel & Destinations'', Av 3 entre calles 17 y 18, 0274-2513115, [http://www.grupoabadia.com/]
  • '''Spanish Language Schools.''' Merida is a good location to learn Spanish.
  • '''JAKERA SPANISH SCHOOL''' was voted by the Language industry as one of the top three Spanish schools world wide (LTM awards) and is therefore highly recommended. [http://learn-spanish-in-latin-america.com/]and [http://www.venezuelaspanishschool.com] '''VENUSA College''' in Merida caters to North American university students and Venezuelan EFL students. [http://www.venusacollege.org]

    Buy

    Mercado Principal has a wide assortment of artesania and other touristy goods, as well as fresh fruits and vegetables on the first floor.

    Eat

  • '''Panaderia Roma''', Calle 24 No 8-68, 0274 2529095, [http://panaderiaroma.8m.com/]. Bread, pasteries and coffee. Popular spot for breakfast. Cafe con leche costs Bs 3.500 and a pastry around Bs 3.000
  • '''La Montaña''' Calle 24 6-47. Excellent meals for a reasonable price. Try the chicken in orange sauce and the lemon pie. A main course costs around Bs 10.000.
  • '''Delicias Mexicanas''' Calle 25 7-48. To satisfy your cravings for Mexican food.
  • '''Heladeria Coromoto''' Avenida 3 28-75. Has an entry in the ''Guinness Book of Records'' for being the icecream parlour with the most flavours. It has around 800 flavours including hamburger or rice flavoured ice cream. But on any given day it only serves around 100 different flavours.
  • '''La Abadia''', Av. 3 between calles 17 and 18, [http://www.grupoabadia.com] is a restaurant/cafe/cybercafe with excellent fresh fruit drinks, trout dishes and coffees/desserts. Abadia Tours Travel & Destinations: llanos, paramo, paragliding, canaima. Info: http://www.grupoabadia.com
  • '''Areperia Dona Flor''' Nearby to Cafe Calypso/Centro Commercial El Viaducto, this is the queen of all arepa (corn-flour pita or pupusa like object) restaurants, with stuffings from the mundane shredded pork to pickled eggs and more.
  • '''Calle Burgers''' At night small hamburger/hotdog stands appear near all the major nightclubs. Shady though they may look, their burgers are second to none with toppings including fried eggs, ham, shoestring potato fries and more.
  • '''Pizzeria Da Enzo''' The best pizzas of Merida, with the secret recipe of an italian family. Andres Bello Avenue Centro Comercial San Cristobal, Merida City.
  • '''Pizzeria El Sabor de los Quesos''' Best pizza in town, Avenue 2 between 13 and 14 No 13-66, in front of Plaza Milla. Telf. 252.34.98, [http://www.pizzeriaelsabordelosquesos.com/].
  • '''Cafe Atico''', Near the Plaza de las Heroinas, this small coffeehouse/bar is a popular counterculture scene
  • Drink

    Merida is a college town full of fantastic bars and discos playing salsa and international disco music well into the morning, fueled by cheap Polar beer and strong cai pirinhas. ;Cafe Calypso: (excellent cai pirinhas) in the Centro Commercial El Viaducto is a top spot to begin the night, conveniently near to the popular dance club, ;El Bodegon de Pancho: (Centro Comercial Mamayeya) You can see the lit-up sign for blocks around, El Bodegon is the place to finish the night and dance until the early morning. ;AlFREDO'S: (Av.4 Bolivar. Esquina De La Calle 21) features cheap set-ups of rum - buy a bottle and some mixers with a group of friends. Cheapest beers in town! ;El Balcon: (Av. 2 con Calle 26) Balcony views, cheap Polar beer. ;HOyo Queque: (Av. 4 Bolivar. Esquina De La Calle 21) is a tiny bar with good often live music ;Birosca: (Av. 2 Lora Con Calle 24 C.C. Los Tapiales) with famous "Bombas" drinks and a maze like interior from its colonial heritage to explore. A good place to escape from Reggaeton. ;Gradas Sports Bar: (Av. 4 Bolivar. Esquina De La Calle 21 - caddycorner from Oyo) A fancy bar with lots of screens to watch futbol on ;The Clover: (Av. 4 Bolivar entre calles 14 y 15) - best place to get a non-Polar beer in town. ;Habana Kawy: (Av. Principal De Los Chorros De Milla) dance club focusing more on disco than salsa/merengue. ;La Cucaracha: ( c.c. Las Tapias, Nivel Estacionamiento.) Inside the Las Tapias mall, this is the quintessential Merida dance club. Unfortunately, the bouncers are sometimes racist.

    Sleep

    Heaps of cheap backpacker posadas with shared bathrooms (generally) are clustered around Plaza Las Heroínas. A few blocks further northeast, in La Plaza Milla, are a few nicer posadas

    Budget

  • '''Posada Guamanchi''', Calle 24 No. 8-86, Tel:0274 252 2080 The backpacker's choice in Merida with an attached tour company. Rooms accommodate between two and four people and range in price from 15,000Bs to 25,000Bs per person.
  • '''Posada La Montana''', Calle 24 No. 6-47, Entre Av.6 y 7, Tel:0274 252 5977 a beautifully restored colonial building, tastefully decorated with hand crafted wooden furniture and plenty of leafy foliage, conveniently located right in the heart of Merida. There are 19 rooms set around the sunny terrace from 40,000Bs.
  • Posada Jama Chia. alle 24 No 8-223. 274-252-5767. s.20,000 (US$8) pp. Nine rooms with shared bathroom and a shared kitchen.
  • El Floridita. lose to Plaza de las Heroinas. s.35,000.
  • Posada Suiza. s.20,000 or Bs.35,000 with private bathroom..
  • Posada Luz Caraballo. 74-252-5441. venida 2 No. 13-80 Merida. ttp://www.andes.net/luzcaraballo/.

    Mid-range

  • Posada Yagrumo. alle 24, No 8-78, Merida (close to Plaza de las Heroinas). 274 2529539, Cell: 0416 8745247. osadayagrumo@hotmail.com. ww.posadayagrumo.com.
  • Posada Casa Sol. v. 4 between Calles 15 and 16.. 274 252-4164. nfo@posadacasasol.com. ooms from $42 for a single, $50 for a double. Breakfast an extra $8 pp.. ttp://www.andesholidays.com/posadacasasol/index.html.

    Splurge

    Keep in mind that the beds in many hotels (mostly up to the mid-range levels) are nothing more than mattresses on concrete slabs that resemble box springs. Depending on what your sleep preference is, they may not be the most comfortable for you. Something for you to consider when looking for a hotel to stay at.

    Contact

    Venezuela's cheapest internet shops can be found in Merida. There are dozens and cost around 0.50 US$ per hour or less.

    Cope

    Remember to wear your sunscreen and be careful about over-exerting yourself - you're at reasonably high altitudes, and close to the equator.

    Get out

    Los Nevados

    A trek you can do on your own is to '''Los Nevados'''. Take the teleférico to station ''Loma Redonda'', make sure you don't pay the full amount for the teleférico. Inparque might charge you a Bs. 5.000 tax. From there follow the trail. It's a beautiful 4 to 5 hour walk to Los Nevados. Mules will carry you for Bs 7.000. In Los Nevados there are several posades where you can sleep for between Bs 10.000 to 30.000 with dinner and breakfast. The next morning jeeps will leave for Mérida at 9:00am for Bs 20.000 pp. It's a four and half hour ride along a narrow road. If you do it the other way around you might save the teleférico entrance and the Inparque tax, but you have to race from Los Nevados to Loma Redonda to catch the last cablecar down. If you want go to Los Nevados call to Abadia Tours Travel & Destinations: Av 3 entre calles 17 y 18 Merida

    El Paramo

    Explore the cold high plains full of frailejones, lagoons and cold winds.

    Aguas Termales del Musui

    Take a bus towards Musui and (with a guide, or at least someone who's been before) hike up to the hot springs. Bring camping supplies, you'll want to spend at least one night soaking while you watch the stars overhead.

    Los Aleros

    Los Aleros is a theme park located in Merida, Venezuela. It depicts a typical andean town in the 1930s. It was created by Alexis Montilla in 1984. An absolutely breath-takingly beautiful place to visit but beware of creepy ghouls that will jump out of dark corners to scare you. Fun for the whole family.

    Montana De Los Suenos

    About a 45 minute drive from downtown Merida this theme park is all about the old time movies. There are a lot of classic cars, jukeboxes, movie scenes, and other general 1930-1960 movie, radio, and music memorabilia. It's a pretty interesting place if you love seeing some of the history of movies in Venezuela. The cost is around $15 per adult. The theme park does not open until later in the day and is best at night. Telephone# +58 (274) 262-1557 / +58 (274) 263-9757