Cafés in La Macarena & Centro Internacional

Getting to La Macarena

Take TransMilenio to Museo Nacional station, then walk about seven minutes uphill toward the eastern hills.² The museum that gives the station its name, at Carrera 7 #28-66, occupies the Panóptico, a prison designed by the Danish architect Thomas Reed and built in 1872; it opened to the public as the Museo Nacional on 2 May 1948.⁴

The Torre Colpatria stands at Calle 26 and Carrera Séptima. It was built from 1973 to 1978, held the title of Colombia's tallest building until BD Bacatá passed it in the mid-2010s, and opens its 49th-floor observation deck to visitors on weekends and holidays.³

The bullring, the towers and the park

The Plaza de Toros La Santamaría, built in 1931, was declared a national monument in 1984. Salmona designed the brick Torres del Parque beside it between 1965 and 1970.¹ The Parque de la Independencia, one of the oldest parks in Bogotá, lies between the towers and the Séptima, with the Biblioteca Nacional and the Museo de Arte Moderno nearby.¹

The Planetario Distrital, built at Virgilio Barco's initiative in 1967, also houses the Museo de Bogotá, the Galería Santa Fe and the Oriol Rangel hall.¹

Cafés on Carrera 4A and Carrera 13

In La Macarena, Groso and Lachoco Latera are neighbors on Carrera 4A at Calle 26C. Groso opens at 11:00 daily and stays open until 22:00 on Fridays and Saturdays and 20:00 on other days; Lachoco Latera has Wi-Fi.

Down the hill, Carrera 13 carries the everyday trade: Pal Break at Carrera 13 #32-40, Café Studio around the corner on Calle 32 Bis A, and Cefeteria San Gabriel, Como & Gozo and Donde Fercho further along. bbc is on Calle 37 by Carrera 13A, and Davinici Cafe and Santa Elena face the Séptima.

For an early cup, Soca, at Calle 37 #8-51, opens at 07:00 every day, with seats inside and out and coffee to go, and closes at 16:00. La Casa de los Postres keeps shop hours, 08:30–17:30 Monday to Saturday.

Sundays at San Alejo

On Sundays and public holidays the Mercado de las Pulgas San Alejo sets up at Carrera 7 #24-70, from 09:00 to 17:30. Its stalls sell antiques, porcelain, trunks, clothes, old phonographs and used electronics, often for parts. The Concejo recognized it as a cultural and heritage activity in 2005, and by 2022 it had been running for more than 30 years.⁵

Soca closes at 16:00 and La Casa de los Postres doesn't open on Sundays, so for a coffee after the market, walk up to La Macarena, where Groso opens at 11:00 on Sundays too.