拉斯拉哈斯教堂

In spide of the dirty river going down the bridge , it is well worth it visiting Las Lajas. Very crowded in week ends and holidays !Guinea pig available at local restaurants

I visited this place on my way from the ecuadorian border crossing Iphiales. The church is nice to look at and the location of it is Very beautiful in a Valley. But i would not consider it worth to travel to the south of Colombia just to See this church. If You pass by take a look. But in my opinion it is not a Highlight of Colombia. Not worth the hours of bus just to go to this remote place.

Yes, the cathedral is gorgeous. Yes, the fact that it is built inside a gorge and directly on the side of a mountain is amazing. Yes, there is no admission charge. BUT, my thoughts are that unless you are routing yourself through Ipiales, CO to get to either Colombia or Ecuador then I am not sure it is worth the effort. My one complaint about the place is that, it being such a sacred and natural location you would think they might do a better job of maintaining the landscape and keeping the grounds free of litter and such. Again, there is no admission charge so I am sure they are limited on what they can do. Aside from that, it is pretty cool to see.WITH THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION, IT IS ACTUALLY QUITE EASY TO GET INTO IPIALES, SEE THE CATHEDRAL AND GET OUT OF IPIALES.There are 2 possible scenarios when seeing this place.Scenario #1: You arrive to Ipiales and are able to see the Lajas on the very same day.Scenario #2: You arrive to Ipiales at night, must spend the night, then visit Lajas the next day.More than likely, you will be arriving by bus under either scenario.If it is Scenario #1, then here is all you have to do: Arrive to the Ipiales bus terminal, walk downstairs to the "Guarda Equipaje" and leave your baggage (cost is 2k COP$ per bag). Then, walk back upstairs and go to the far right to where all the white taxis (colectivos) are located. Take one of these to Lajas. The cost will be 2k COP$ per person provided you share the colectivo with 3 other people. (Don't worry, the driver will wait for the car to fill up - doesn't take long). Arrive at Lajas, spend 1-2 hours, walk back up the hill and catch a colectivo back to the bus terminal (same process and cost), reclaim your baggage and then leave Ipiales.*If it is Scenario #2, then arrive at the bus terminal, walk upstairs and grab a cab to a hotel (my recommendation is the Gran Hotel, Ipiales, Address: Carrera 5, Ipiales, Nariño, ColombiaPhone:+57 7732131) We stayed here, it was clean, had good WIFI in the common area and hot showers. About 4k COP$ taxi fare to get there. Don't pay more than that. The rate was 60k for 2 separate beds. He wanted 70k, but I talked him down - you can too. Next morning, wake up early and go see the cathedral - I recommend getting up no later than 7 if your plan is to catch a bus afterward for onward travel. Now take a cab from the hotel to the bus terminal (3k COP$) and then follow the instructions for Scenario #1.*Leaving Ipiales. If you are heading to Ecuador as we were, it is very simple. Take another colectivo from the bus terminal to "Migracion" or "La Frontera" (same thing), the cost will be 2k COP$ per person (again, share the colectivo). The colectivo will drop you right outside Colombian Immigration, walk up the stairs and get your stamp (there is no fee to leave the country). Next, walk down the stairs and you will see the big blue "Bienvenidos a Ecuador" sign. Simply walk across the bridge in that direction. Just keep going straight and it will lead you directly into the Ecuador Immigration building. Immediately to your left upon entering there will be an Information counter. Grab a form, fill it out and then get in line with your passport. Get your stamp (there is no fee to enter) and then walk out the same door you entered from and go to your right, cross the street and hop on one of the white mini-buses going to Tulcan (assuming you need a bus terminal). The cost for this is like 60 cents per person, Arrive at the Tulcan bus terminal from the border (after a 20-30 minute ride) and you can easily catch a bus to Quito for just $5.00 US per person. This will be a 5 hour ride. There is no bathroom on the bus so act accordingly. The buses run frequently so getting one at any time should not be a problem. TIP: When you arrive in Quito (we went to the North Terminal), you will be confronted by several aggressive taxi drivers with crazy prices. If you are going into downtown (takes only about 15 minutes) don't agree to pay more than $10.00 - 12.00. ($8.00 is what a local would probably pay). They will try to get you at $15 - don't do it. Stand your ground and walk away, Start walking to the street and if they don't call you back to give you your price then you will easily find another cab out on the street. TRUST ME.So, all in all, going to the cathedral was not a bad idea, but, had someone laid it all out for me as I have for you then it would have been less of a hassle to go and more of a quick and fun side trip. Try to do Scenario #1 if you can, but staying overnight in Ipiales is not a bad way to break up an otherwise very long bus trip. You just don't really need to spend a lot of time in Ipiales - there is really nothing there to see except the cathedral.P.S. There are hotels just outside the bus terminal - we checked out 3 of them, but were not impressed. 1 looked like something out of a horror movie and one was real nice, but was expensive and had ZERO internet service.IF YOU FOUND THIS REVIEW HELPFUL then please click on "Was this review helpful?" I just want to be sure I am helping people since I try to provide as much detailed information as possible.

This place is really magnificent!!We always saw the pictures of Las Lajas but being there is completely different!Las Lajas sanctuary is a beautiful gothic church in the middle of the mountains, as soon as you're getting closer you'll feel the magic of such building.We were visiting Pasto for the very first time and Las Lajas sanctuary was at the top of our list. Thanks to our hotel we arrange the transportation with a local and he took us to Las Lajas and then to Tulcan in Ecuador. After going around in Ipiales we headed to Las Lajas, before arriving to the actual place there is a place where you can stop and watch over the mountains and then you'll see the tiny sanctuary in the middle of them. The view is amazing so don't forget to stop here and take lots of pictures.Then we arrived in Las Lajas, set a proper time with the driver for visiting this place, we thought that a hour was enough but this place is so beautiful that you'll spend more time taking pictures and admiring everything. At first the place is full of stores and restaurants, but this is only the beginning. You'll have to walk down to find the church, while doing so you'll see several little souvenir stores so you can check them out if you want. After a while you'll find yourself in front of the magnificent church and a waterfall near to it.The whole view is incredible and the church just looks like out of a fairytale. We took our time to take pictures of all angles, being between mountains feels amazing and there is a river going below the church. There are photographers there so they can take great pics for a good price if you want. Inside of the church you'll find these beautiful windows with stained glass which add more beauty to the whole place. To be honest words cannot express what you'll feel there, so if you're planning on visiting Las Lajas, what are you waiting for? Totally worth it!!There are stores as well in front of the church and the bathrooms are clean. There is a museum going downstairs where you can learn the history behind this place.Las Lajas sanctuary filled our expectations and we hope to visit it once again in the future.For those who can't walk for so long or if you have problems with your legs you must know that down in the church while going back (to the entrance) there are motorcycles which will take you there for some money. If you go with a personal driver you can tell him to go and pick you up but please keep in mind that you need a special permission or the driver can pay a little amount to the man in the entrance so he can let the car go for you.My mother went down without problems but she has a little issue with her knees, so when we tried to go back her legs were a little bit numb. We called our driver and he talked to the guy in the entrance explaining the situation, the driver had to pay a little bit so he could pick us up.

I've seen more than my share of churches but this one because of it's location nears the top of the list. Really nothing outstanding about the church structure itself BUT where its build makes this a near "don't miss. BTW....you don't want to visit this site from Pasto. It's 10 minutes outside of Ipiales (2000 COP collectivo). Seems to be alot of confusion about this. Believe me go from Ipiales NOT Pasto.

I visited when I was pregnant with my first son, 11 years ago. There is something very peaceful and serene about this place. I am adventurous, so I loved the trip to simply get there. Colombia is a beautiful country but most importantly the people there ware so great and hospitable. I could only say thank you to them for all of their kindness. I want to take my son back. A must see!!

Why go?A gorgeous, fairytale like church built in gothic style between 1916 and 1949. In Spanish Laja means like rock. The Church was built due to a miraculous event in 1754 where a woman and her deaf and mute daughter were caught in a strong storm. They sought refuge in the mountains, when the daughter pointed to a illuminated silhouette over the rock over the Virgin Mary. The image on the stone is still visible today inside the Church. How do you get here? Catch a communal taxi at bus station for $2000 each which seats 4 people. It's like a small cab and on your arrival you walk down hill to the Sanctuary (20 minute walk). Upon your return, walk back up the hill What can you do?Here you can enjoy the local food (heaps of cafes all along the way) and/or buy souvenirs. The Church is breathtaking, ensure you walk along the bridge and over the other side for different views and photo opportunities. There is also a Museum underneath the Church and it costs $2000 each but everything is only in Spanish. Allow 2/2.5 hours round trip. To get home, go back and catch a collectivo back. (20 minutes back) and they will drop you back at the bus stop. Definitely worth the trip!

I was visited this church after I crossed the border from Ecuador. You can take taxi from the border to Ipiares. And then I got collectivo to Las Lahas. It takes 15mins. The collectivo costs 10000peso(5 USD). If you have 4 people it costs only about 1.25 USD. When I get there you can walk to the church. There are lots of souvenir shops on the way. When I got there it started raining. Instead of the bad weather the church looked beautiful. You should climb up the hill in front of church so you can see the better view with bridge, river, and mountain,エクアドルからコロンビアに陸路では行った時にこの教会に寄りました。国境からイピアレスのバスターミナルまで行き、そこに荷物を預けてコレクティーボで教会に行きました。コレクティーボは一台10000ペソ（500円くらい）、4人いれば一人125円ということになります。教会の近くで降ろしてもらって、10分ほど歩くと教会が見えてきます。生憎の雨だったのですが、とてもきれいでした。教会の前の丘を登れば、川、橋、バックの山も入った景色を見ることができます。

The sanctuary is nestled deep within a valley with breathtaking views. It's a lovely place, but a little tricky to get to, as the parking lot and paths are all perched on the side of a mountain. We skipped the hike and took pictures from the lookout.

If you are crossing the Colombian/Ecuadorian border, be sure to check out Las Lajas. We had heard about it from a few people ahead of time and were very interested to see it. It did not disappoint. From Ipiales, it's about 8000 COP to get there, walk down, check it out, drink some coffee and take pictures. You don't need too long but it's worth the drive out there. Just catch a cab back and head across the border afterwards. It was easy and didn't take too much time, but it's a really neat structure and makes crossing the border that much more interesting. Don't miss it!