This colossal edifice has seen a few lives, notably as the presidential HQ of Simón Bolívar, who narrowly escaped an assassination attempt here in 1828 when his friend-with-privileges Manuelita Sáenz tipped him off and became known in Bogotá circles as 'the liberator of the Liberator.' A (dramatically worded) sign in Latin under his window (to the right) retells the story.
Palacio de San Carlos
Bogotá
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
0.41 MILES
Bogotá's most famous museum and one of the most fascinating in South America, the Gold Museum contains more than 55,000 pieces of gold and other materials…
0.1 MILES
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0.39 MILES
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29.35 MILES
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0.15 MILES
The usual place to start discovering Bogotá is the giant concrete Plaza de Bolívar, the heart of the original town. What it lacks in green foliage it…
0.08 MILES
Most of Banco de la República's permanent art collection, which features 800 pieces by 250 different artists spread over 16 exhibition halls at two…
0.22 MILES
On the south side of Plaza de Bolívar, beyond the Capitolio Nacional and reached via Carreras 8 or 7, this is Colombia's neoclassical presidential…
1.38 MILES
Housed in the expansive, Greek-cross-shaped building called El Panóptico (designed as a prison by English architect Thomas Reed in 1874), the Museo…
Nearby Bogotá attractions
0.03 MILES
The Teatro Colón, with its adorable Italian-style facade, has had various names since its birth in 1792; this latest version opened as Teatro Nacional in…
0.05 MILES
This two-floor museum is run by military guys in fatigues, and features playful models sporting the history of military uniforms (note the 'antiterrorist'…
0.05 MILES
This museum occupies a one-time Jesuit college and traces the evolution of how religious and portrait art pieces are made, particularly by Colombia's…
0.07 MILES
The Jesuits began this iconic church in 1610 and, although opened for worship in 1635, it was not completed until their expulsion in 1767. It was the…
0.08 MILES
Most of Banco de la República's permanent art collection, which features 800 pieces by 250 different artists spread over 16 exhibition halls at two…
0.08 MILES
This historic museum inside the Banco de la República complex houses the Colección Numismática as well as the Colección de Arte. The former exhibit starts…
7. Centro Cultural Gabriel García Márquez
0.09 MILES
Slotting seamlessly into historic Candelaria, this cleverly constructed arts center anchored by a graceful amphitheater was designed by Franco-Colombian…
0.1 MILES
Even if you've never heard of Fernando Botero, you'll probably recognize some of his highly distinctive paintings of oversized (read: chubby) characters,…