Guane’s main square with the Santa Lucía church

Part of Barichara · 5.6 miles (9 km) away

Guane, the village frozen in time

Stone streets, an 18th-century church, and a lookout over the Suárez canyon, at the end of the Camino Real.

1 / 9 · The streets

Stone and whitewashed walls

Cobblestone streets slope down between whitewashed houses and clay-tile roofs.

2 / 9 · The pace

A small village

Guane is a quiet village about 15 minutes by car from Barichara.

3 / 9 · The square

The main square

Gardens, palm trees, and the church in the background.

4 / 9 · The church

Santa Lucía

Completed in 1786, it’s protected as a National Heritage Site.

5 / 9 · The bell gable

Bells in the open air

Its stone top stands out against the mountains.

6 / 9 · The entrance

A centuries-old door

Wood and carved stone at the church entrance.

7 / 9 · Inside

The stone nave

Stone walls, a timber ceiling, and an altar at the far end.

8 / 9 · The altar

Santa Lucía at the center

The saint who arrived in 1751 with thirteen Indigenous people from Chanchón.

9 / 9 · Devotion

Religious statues

The village celebrates Santa Lucía every December 13.

Good to know

Guane: its church and lookout

Guane is about 5.6 miles (9 km) from Barichara, at the end of the Camino Real. It was a municipality until 1888 and is now a village belonging to Barichara, home to one of the oldest and most important churches in Santander, a museum, and a lookout over the Suárez River canyon.

Getting there: On foot via the Camino RealOr about 15 minutes by car from Barichara
The church: Santa Lucía, completed in 1786A protected National Heritage Site
The lookout: Two blocks from the squareViews over the Suárez River canyon
Don’t miss: The Archaeological and Paleontological MuseumNext to the square

The Santa Lucía church

Colombia’s first Indigenous mission chapel

Guane’s church was completed in 1786 and is considered the country’s first Indigenous mission chapel, run by Spanish missionaries. It holds Colombia’s highest level of heritage protection: it’s a National Heritage Site (Bien de Interés Cultural del ámbito nacional), a status very few churches in Santander share.

Thirteen survivors and a painting

On June 20, 1751, thirteen Indigenous people—the last survivors of the chief of Chanchón’s tribe—arrived in Guane carrying a painting of Santa Lucía. Ever since, the saint has been at the heart of the village’s devotion, celebrated every December 13.

The lookout

A view over the Suárez canyon

Just two blocks from the square, along cobblestone streets, is the Guane lookout. From there you can see the Suárez River valley and, in the distance, the Yariguíes mountain range. It’s free and always open.

Next to the lookout there’s a small restaurant with views of the river and the mountains.

History