Venezuela - The Rough Guide to South America on a Budget

Travel Reference

In-Depth Information

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION

By plane The airport (Manuel Carlos Piar Guayana Airport)

is located along the road to Ciudad Bolívar. A taxi into the

centre is BsF60; bus routes are inconvenient. Avior ( W avior

airlines.com) operates the most flights to and from the city.

Destinations Daily flights to Barcelona (30min); Caracas (1hr);

Porlamar (50min); Maracaibo (2hr); and Valencia (50min).

By bus Puerto Ordáz's terminal is on Av Guayana, a 10min

BsF50 taxi ride into town; taxistas wait at the entrance.

There is nowhere to leave luggage in the terminal. Some

buses arrive in nearby San Félix (keep a close eye on your

belongings), from where it's a 15min taxi ride to Puerto

Ordáz (BsF70).

Destinations Ciudad Bolívar (every 30min; 1hr); Caracas

(hourly; 12hr); Cumaná (4 daily; 8hr); Maracay/Valencia

(several daily; 12hr); Puerto La Cruz (4 daily; 7hr); Santa

Elena de Uairén (4 daily, mostly night buses; 10hr);

Tucupita (3 daily; 4hr).

Tourist information The main tourist o ce is in the

Hotel Venetur on Av Guayana ( T 0286 713 1244, Mon-Sat

8am-5pm); the Secretaría de Turismo has an o ce at

the airport ( T 0426 695 8109).

Internet There are plenty of cybercafés (BsF5/hr) in the

Centro Comercial Trebol I, II and III on C Upata. Mon-Sat

9am-8pm, Sun till 2pm.

Phones Movistar, across the street from Hotel Rayoli on

Paseo Caroní.

Post DHL, C El Palmar at C Santa Elena (Mon-Fri

8am-5pm, Sat 8am-noon; T 0286 923 8756).

Shopping For a dose of commercialist perversity (and

some good ol' US-style fast food), check out the massive

Orinokia Mall, bordered by Av Las Américas & Av Guayana,

Mon-Sat 10am-10pm, Sun noon-10pm.

CIUDAD BOLÍVAR

Sitting on the south bank of the Orinoco

at one of its widest points, state capital

CIUDAD BOLÍVAR is the jumping-off point

for the region's numerous attractions, and

is one of Venezuela's most backpacker-

friendly places. The city is attractive,

easily walkable, and its various highlights

can be seen in a single day. To the city's

south lie the endless expanses of Parque

Nacional Canaima (see p.903) and the

Gran Sabana (see p.908).

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ACCOMMODATION

La Casa del Lobo Villa Africana, Manzana 39, Casa 2

T 0286 961 6286 W lobo-tours.de. Friendly German

owner Wolfgang, who goes by the name of Lobo, runs the

only backpacker-friendly place in town and has a travel

story or two to tell of his own. The house he built himself

has three rooms, all with en suite, in a separate part of the

house for guests. His tour company Lobo Tours organizes

trips to his excel lent campamento in the Orinoco Delta (see

p.909). BsF150

WHAT TO SEE AND DO

Ciudad Bolívar's cobbled streets,

well-preserved colonial buildings and

compact size make it a pleasant place to

explore on foot. There are a couple of

historic sites to bone up on Venezuelan

history, while nature lovers will want to

visit the botanical gardens. While you'll

see the town at its prettiest in the historic

centre, its lifeblood flows alongside

Venezuela's mightiest river on the Paseo

Orinoco . This noisy riverside boulevard

has shopping centres, food stalls and

jewellery vendors spilling out onto the

busy road.

EATING

In addition to a couple of good places around town, the

Orinokia Mall (see below) is safe after dark and has plenty

of restaurants open until late.

Chiquito's Av Las Américas, Local 8 & 9, Centro Comercial

Anto T 0286 923 4056. Local café and bakery serving a

range of sweet and savoury pastries (BsF25) as well as

coffees (BsF9). Mon-Sat 7am-7pm, Sun until 1pm.

El Rincón del Chivo Av Loefling, Sector La Esperancita

T 0414 870 3230. An excellent barbecue house with long

benches and a party atmosphere fuelled by the mouth-

watering smells of the open grill-pit area. Enormous hunks

of meat (steaks BsF80), cachapas (BsF40) and a big selection

of sides keep the ravenous and friendly crowd happy. Open

Tues-Sun 11am-3pm (until 5pm on weekends).

Casco histórico

Most of the city's colonial architecture is

in the casco histórico , a ten-block area

built on a mound on the Orinoco's

southern bank, centred on the Plaza

Bolívar . On the east side of the plaza,

the bright yellow 1840 Catedral has an

interior which, while not particularly

ornate, offers a cool escape from the

intense year-round heat that Bolívar

is known for.