Ruta de las Flores

Ruta de las Flores is an official tourist itinerary in El Salvador. The itinerary follows a route through the Apaneca-Ilamatepec mountain range visiting six towns that are emblematic of rural Salvadoran culture. The small towns are tranquil oases of historic traditions where the country's culture, music, and arts can be experienced first-hand. The area is rich in natural attractions with rivers, hiking trails and endless coffee plantations leading up to the volcanic peaks in two nearby national parks, El Imposible and Cerro Verde.

Understand
The Ruta de las Flores is a well-marked route with blue and white highway signs leading the way to landmark towns and attractions. Tour guides from San Salvador offer day trips from the capital that will pick you up at your hotel, drive the whole route with a few select stops, and get you back to your hotel the same evening. The route really pays dividends to the slower traveler who stops in each town to understand its unique character and who stays at least a few nights to experience local hospitality and delve deeper into the sights and events that make the region special.

The route gets its name from all the wildflowers and blossoming trees that you'll see along the way if you happen to visit at the right time of year. Most travel guides say that the "right" season for flowers is between November and early April, but conventional wisdom is that December is the best month for flowers. With global climate change becoming a reality, its increasingly hard to predict seasonal events, but if you want to see the flowers of Ruta de las Flores, summer vacation probably won't do it for you.

Indigenous roots
Travelers interested in the Indigenous cultures of North America will want to keep their eyes open for signs of the Pipil people, a Maya civilization that occupied the area before the Spanish conquest in the early 16th century. There are some indigenous people along the Ruta de las Flores, but surprisingly, almost none are the modern descendants of Maya heritage. In fact, when you hear an indigenous language spoken in this region, it is most often Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs spoken in Central Mexico. These people are the descendants of Aztecs who were forced into bondage when the Spaniards conquered the Mexico City valley. They were brought to El Salvador in 1525 and forced to build a new city (now the ruined archaeological site of Ciudad Vieja). An interesting artifact of the history of Spain's conquest of the new world.

Prepare
This is an area that will be best experienced by the adventurous backroads travelers. with a good understanding of Spanish language skills.

Get in
The best way to get to the Ruta de las Flores is to either use the Chicken buses or to rent a car and drive. Chicken buses are by far the cheaper and more common way to get around.

By bus
From San Salvador, take the ruta 205 bus to Sonsonate (usually green buses that depart about every 30 minutes). It's a 2-1/2 hour ride to Sonsonate and will cost about US$2. In Sonsonate, take the 53D bus to Nahuizalco (red buses departing every 15 minutes). Nahuizalco is the southern end of La Ruta de las Flores. It's about an hour from Sonsonate to Nahuizalco and will cost less than $1.

By car
From San Salvador, drive west on highway CA 8 for about 60 km (1 hour) to arrive at Sonsonate. From the north side of Sonsonate, drive north on CA 8 (Ruta de las Flores) for about 10 km (20 minutes) to arrive in Nahuizalco.

Get around
Once you're in the small towns along La Ruta de las Flores it is usually easiest to get around on foot as long as you're sightseeing in the towns. Taxis are available in all these towns and many of the taxis are moto-taxis. These 3-wheel enclosed motorcycle-driven vehicles are a fun, inexpensive way to get around. In some of the natural areas, horseback tours are available, particularly to remote, mountainous areas. Mountain bikes are sometimes available for rent. Tours are offered in most of the small towns, particularly Juayua and Apaneca, and these tours might have other ways to get around, such as "buggy tours" in which you drive a small off-road ATV.

Towns
Six towns form the crux of the Ruta de las Flores (which is also the name of the main highway connecting all these towns).

Ahuachapan
Ahuachapan is a small city and is the largest (and oine of the oldest) towns of the region, having been first settled by the Poqomam people (part of the Maya civilization) in the 5th century. It's a tropical city known for its natural attractions, particularly its nearby lagoons and its ausoles (fumaroles, emitting hot steam and geothermal gases).

Top sights to see include:
 * La Concordia Park - pleasant town park that has several colorful murals
 * La Parroquia de la Asuncion
 * El Espino Lagoon - site of historic battle against Guatemalan military
 * Hot springs: Termales de Santa Teresa or Termales De Alicante are places you can enjoy the geothermal waters

Concepción de Ataco
Very small town with cobblestone streets and 17th century stone and stucco buildings. This town offers the best selection of upscale bed and breakfast hotels, making it the region's top town for romantic getaways.

Top sights to see include:
 * Iglesia Inmaculada Concepcion de Maria
 * Coffee planations

Apaneca
Apaneca is a favorite stop along the route and also the town with the highest elevation, making for cool temperatures just perfect for strolling through town or growing a plantation full of organic coffee beans. Apaneca is the best town along the route for travelers seeking a shot of adrenaline-fueled excitement.

Reason to come: Apaneca has the most popular outdoor sports activities.

Top sights to see include:
 * Labyrinth of Albania - built of more than 2,000 cypress trees the maze of natural greenery is one of the region's top attractions, the park also has zip lines, canopy tours and more
 * Parroquia San Andres Apostol
 * Laguna Verde
 * Laguna las Ninfas

Juayua
Juayua is one of the most interesting stops along the route with the biggest and most beautiful waterfall (Chorros de la Calera), some cool colonial architecture in the centro, and a venerated black Christ figure in the Santa Lucia church. Come on a weekend and enjoy the town's weekly Gastronomic Festival with the region's tastiest traditional Salvadoran dishes (and some weird stuff like snake or frog).

Reason to come: Juayua is the most visited town in the route with great food and interesting sightes.

Top sights to see include:
 * Food Festival
 * Chorros de la Calera waterfall
 * Santa Lucia church

Salcoatitán
Quiet town with some interesting low-key sights.

Top sights to see include:
 * La Ceiba
 * Mosaic murals
 * San Miguel Arcangel
 * Print Museum

Nahuizalco


Nahuizalco is a highlight of the route for travelers who like to shop local markets for handmade crafts. It's also a mandatory stop for history buffs who want to know about the indigenous peoples of the area because it has the region's only museum of the Pipil and Nahuat cultures.

Reason to come: Nahuizalco is the most popular town for locally made crafts. Best reflects traditions and customs.

Top sights to see include:
 * Nahuizalco Night Market
 * San Juan Bautista Church
 * Nahuat-Pipil Museum

Eco-tourism

 * Cascadas Don Juan
 * Cascada Chorros de la Calera

Stay safe
All of the usual caveats about safety in Central America in general and El Salvador in particular apply along this route. Be especially wary of traveling after nightfall. Most of the chicken buses stop running anyway, and its a good idea to stay in populated areas. Accidents and crimes are more likely at night than in daylight and driving should be particularly avoided.

Go next

 * Los Volcanes National Park
 * El Imposible National Park
 * Montecristo National Park