Pallade Veneta - Honda Ranks Second in Colombia’s Tourism Competitiveness Index

The historic municipality of Honda in the northern reaches of Tolima has secured second place among 295 Colombian towns in the 2025 Regional Tourism Competitiveness Index. The ranking marks a significant rise for the town, which was previously placed 15th in the preceding assessment, and positions it as one of the country’s most promising heritage destinations.

With a score of 6.37, Honda finished just behind Villa de Leyva in Boyacá, which recorded a score of 6.38. The result highlights the town’s growing appeal as a destination that combines photographic beauty with deep historical narrative. Located on the banks of the Magdalena River, Honda is known as the Ciudad de los Puentes (City of Bridges) and has long served as a critical link between Colombia’s Caribbean coast and the Andean capital of Bogotá.

The town’s strategic importance dates back to the colonial period and the nineteenth century, when the Magdalena River functioned as the nation’s principal commercial artery. Goods arriving from overseas through Caribbean ports were transported upriver toward the interior. Honda occupied a vital position in this network due to its proximity to the Salto de Honda rapids, which interrupted river navigation. Cargo and passengers had to be unloaded and transferred overland via mule trains and porters along historic routes leading to the highlands.

This logistical role shaped the town’s prosperity and its place in Colombia’s commercial history. Merchants, traders, explorers, and foreign visitors passed through its streets, supported by warehouses, trading houses, and riverfront businesses. Although steam navigation and later railway and road networks transformed transportation patterns, Honda’s historic center retains much of the architectural character from the era when its fortunes were tied to river navigation.

The town’s numerous crossings span the Magdalena, the Gualí River, and smaller waterways, connecting neighborhoods and creating a distinctive urban landscape. The most celebrated is Puente Navarro, a nineteenth-century iron structure completed in 1898 and inaugurated in January 1899. Recognized as one of the oldest surviving cantilever steel bridges in Latin America, it exemplifies the engineering ambitions that accompanied Colombia’s economic development at the turn of the twentieth century.

Walking across Puente Navarro offers a perspective on Honda where the Magdalena stretches beneath the metal structure, framed by surrounding hills that have changed less than the transportation systems once dependent on them. In the historic center, Calle de las Trampas is noted for its uneven cobblestones, colorful façades, wooden balconies, and colonial doorways. The neighboring Alto del Rosario district features traditional architecture with internal courtyards that recall the town’s prosperous commercial past.

Honda is part of Colombia’s Heritage Towns network, an acknowledgment of its architectural and cultural significance. Visitors can explore the Museo del Río Magdalena, which details the cultural, economic, and environmental importance of the river. The museum places river navigation within the broader story of Colombian identity, offering insights into the boats, trades, communities, and traditions that developed along the waterway.

The Malecón del Río Magdalena provides a waterfront space to experience the river at a slower pace. Observing boats and the changing light over the water highlights why the Magdalena has occupied a central place in Colombian literature, commerce, and collective memory.

Beyond its architecture and history, Honda’s gastronomy is a key attraction. The Plaza de Mercado, affectionately known as the Partenón del Tolima, is built within a structure constructed between 1917 and 1935. Declared a National Cultural Heritage Asset in 1996, the market is renowned for its everyday life, where merchants, families, and local producers trade fresh produce and prepare traditional dishes.

Freshwater fish is central to the local diet. Traditional preparations such as viudo de pescado, made with river fish and accompanied by plantain, yuca, and other regional ingredients, connect visitors to the Magdalena’s fishing traditions. The wider culinary identity of Tolima is represented by tamales and lechona, a slow-roasted pork dish that has become one of Colombia’s most recognizable gastronomic specialties. A glass of diced salpicón, prepared with tropical fruit, offers another introduction to the region’s flavors.

The market allows visitors to experience Colombian gastronomy beyond restaurant menus, illustrating the relationship between food, family businesses, and local identity. Honda also offers opportunities to explore the natural surroundings of northern Tolima through river excursions, fishing, birdwatching, and hiking. Nearby attractions include the Ciudad Perdida de Falan, which provides access to the region’s archaeological and natural landscapes.

The town’s warm climate is a defining characteristic, with temperatures considerably higher than those in other popular Colombian destinations. Early morning walks and late-afternoon explorations are particularly appealing, especially around the riverfront and historic streets. An afternoon coffee at the pop-up gallery Café Trilladora de Gualí is highlighted as a notable experience.

Located less than four hours by road from Bogotá, Honda serves as an attractive weekend destination for residents of the capital seeking an escape to high-altitude destinations. Its growing tourism profile will receive further boost from December 4 to 6, 2026, when the town hosts the fourth International Tourism Fair of Tolima (FITTCA 2026). This marks the first time the event is held outside the departmental capital of Ibagué.

The fair will bring tourism operators, commercial exhibitions, cultural activities, business meetings, and regional gastronomy to Honda. The decision to host the event reflects the town’s growing importance in Tolima’s tourism strategy and its potential to attract visitors from beyond Colombia.

Honda’s recent recognition in the national tourism competitiveness rankings is viewed as an opportunity to rediscover a destination whose contribution to Colombia’s history has sometimes been overshadowed by better-known colonial towns. While Villa de Leyva claimed the top position in the 2025 index, Honda offers a distinct identity inseparable from the Magdalena River, which carried the country’s commerce and connected its regions.

The bridges remain, the cobbled streets still lead toward the river, and the market continues to serve the community as it has for generations. Visiting Honda provides an encounter with a Colombia that existed before urban sprawl and congested highways, when the rhythm of national life was influenced by the ebb and flow of boats along the Magdalena.

A.Tucciarone--PV