Venezuela is South America’s most colorful country, with fantastic scenery ranging from the coast to the highest peaks in the country’s mountains. Magnificent waterfalls drift down top hillsides, and coastal cities and outlying islands provide quiet moments of peace with soft sand beaches. We found the top 5 natural wonders in Venezuela and the best time to visit from our best traveling bucket list to enhance your selection.
The country of Venezuela It’s a gorgeous, tropical place with an abundance of wildlife. Caribbean beaches, Andean mountains, piranha, anaconda-filled marshes, and deserted inland dunes surround this iconic hotspot. Also, it’s a country that exports oil and has won beauty pageants.
Venezuela is one of those places where getting there is the most challenging part of the trip. Some of these locations are a long way from the usual tourist routes. About Venezuela, the climate is the rainy season in Venezuela lasts from May to December. The dry season lasts from December to April, with the coldest months being January and February and the warmest being July and August. See our list of best-visiting places in Venezuela for some fresh ideas and plan your tour.
01Angel Falls
A highlight of any journey to South America is Angel Falls, the highest waterfall. Canaima National Park’s stunning waterfalls, which drop 979 meters to the ground, are in a remote and difficult-to-reach location, but the tour can easily arrange flights over the falls. Locals called these falls Kerepakupai Vená, or “fall from the highest point,” because they are situated on the Gauja River. Angel Falls was named in honor of Jimmie Angel, a founding American aviator who was the first to fly over the falls.
The most common ways to see the falls are by aircraft or boat, starting in the nearby town of Canaima. It is possible to arrange flights to see the falls, but you will need to connect to one of the major cities first, such as Caracas or Ciudad Bolivar or Santa Elena, or Isla Margarita. As a result, this is not a luxury tour by any means; there is only basic lodging along the way. The river may be too low during the dry season for a boat trip.
The best time to see the falls is between May and early December rainy season, when water is sprayed, and the bottom of the falls disappears with the mist. During the dry season, the falls may only be a trickle, so check ahead of time to ensure enough water to make the trip meaningful. Angel Falls is extremely busy in July and August due to the high volume of precipitation during these two months. The activities available to visitors while they’re there are hikes, kayaking, and getting to know the local wildlife and plants.
02Mount Roraima
Roraima’s majestic tabletop mountain beckons nature lovers and thrill-seekers alike. While Roraima is mainly in Venezuela, it also reaches the point where Brazil but also Guyana enter that country. Travelers can only get to the plateau from the Venezuelan side, which is the only access point.
Roraima is one of Canaima National Park’s tallest peaks. It’s also a well-known and accessible hiking destination, even though it’s a difficult, multi-day hike. Roraima is known for its cloudy, misty, or rainy weather, so hikers should bring appropriate clothing and hiking equipment for the conditions they will face.
Suggested Trailoka: Best Time to Visit National Parks in the United States
Roraima, an island in the sky rising from the surrounding lowlands, has fascinated people for centuries with its bizarre rock formations, meat-eating plants, waterfalls, etc. Because of this tepui, Arthur Conan Doyle was inspired to write The Lost World.
The Roraima Plateau resembles a pyramid with its top cut-off. It is laced with rivers, waterfalls, stone labyrinths, and caves. Crystal Eye Cave, a karst cavern, was recently discovered nearby. It did turn out to be the largest of all the caves previously found.
A trek up Mount Roraima typically lasts a week. While it may take two days to reach the mountain base, it will take four days to make it to the top and back down! Furthermore, you might want to spend a day up there to get some fresh air. Between December and April, the dry season offers the best hiking conditions.
According to Indian legend, the blue-green Rock of Roraima is not a mountain at all, but the stump of a great tree of abundance, the “centre of the Earth,” where the goddess Quin – a foremother of men – still resides today.
03Cerro Sarisarinama
Tepui (tabletop) Cerro Sarisarinam is in Venezuela’s Bolivar State, near the Brazil-Venezuela border, in the Jaua-Sarisarinama National Park in Venezuela’s far south-western corner. The tepui is virtually unreachable because it’s in such a remote location, hundreds of miles from any other road. On the contrary, the top of Cerro Sarisariama is densely forested, reaching 15–25 m. There are numerous endemic species of animals and plants that can only be found in this small area of the world.
Cerro Sarisariama is known for its massive sinkholes, four in total, the largest of which, Sima Humboldt, is 352 m wide and 314 m deep. Cerro Sarisariama’s most distinctive feature. The area beneath Sima Humboldt swells to a width of 502 m. The depth of Sima Martel, another well-known sinkhole, is also impressive, measuring 248 m below the surface of the ground. Both sinkholes are circular and are only 700 m apart. This aerial view of the enormous holes is breathtaking.
The mountain’s name comes from a Ye’kuana Indian legend about an evil spirit who dwells in the mountain’s caves, so named because of the mountain’s appearance. The screaming “Sari… sari…” is heard when the evil spirit devours human flesh. It would be best if you could consider the weather when joining this journey. December and January are the months with the least amount of rain. In July, most of the time, it rains.
04Guacharo Cave
Venezuela’s Cueva del Guacharo National Park, located in Monagas, is a top natural tourist destination. It’s near the town of Caripe in Monagas. The park has two distinct areas: the mountainous Black Mountains section and the more flat lower section.
The park’s main attraction is a large limestone cavern that is far more than 10 Km long and contains numerous huge rooms. Still, only 1.2 Km of it is accessible to visitors. Visitors can explore the cavern and marvel at the incredible rock formations.
If they’re lucky, they’ll spot a Guacharo, or oilbird, which excretes guano and provides the subterranean ecology with its most essential nutrients. Large flocks of these birds fly out of the cave in the dark every evening to feed. Many visitors go to the location in anticipation of watching this unusual occurrence. A total of 367 bird species have been recorded in the area. Several of them are endangered, such as the Venezuelan flowerpiercer.
The park also has other things to see and do. As an illustration, consider the gorgeous surroundings of Salto La Paila’s waterfall. Unique and unusual species abound in the area’s flora and wildlife, making it one of the most diverse places on the planet. The journey’s plan is for 8 to 10 days of travel time. The best time to go to the National Park is between December and April.
05Bolivar Peak
Pico Bolivar, Venezuela’s tallest peak, is named for the country’s most famous independence fighter, Simon Bolvar. It is at a height of 16,332 feet above sea level. The mountain can be found in the Merida National Reserve, part of the Sierra Nevada peak chain. It has three glaciers and is completely covered with snow. Climbing to the top of the mountain provides access to the summit.
Legend has it that the glaciers on Bolivar Peak represent a princess who pursued eagles, and the snow on the summits means folded bird wings. Currently, this mountain range is a significant tourist destination. It is also a well-known tourist route. Venezuela’s eastern Cordilleras contains Venezuela’s highest peak, which is open to the public. Nearby, Espejo has a cable car that takes visitors to the summit in an instant. And if you want to go straight to Bolivar Peak, you can walk there. The best months for climbing are from November to March.
Featured image credit Mr.Angelfish, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Note: Venezuela has one of the worst murder rates globally and has a high risk of violent crime and kidnapping. Mugging, Armed robbery, carjacking, burglary, and poor health infrastructure are typical crimes frequently accompanied by excessive violence.
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- Angel Falls
- Mount Roraima
- Cerro Sarisarinama
- Guacharo Cave
- Bolivar Peak