Book Affordable Bus Tickets to Pasto

Pasto was founded by the Spanish in 1537 and grew into the administrative and cultural heart of Nariño, the department occupying Colombia's southwestern corner against the Ecuadorian border. Sitting at around 2,500 metres above sea level on the Atriz valley, the city is dominated by the brooding cone of the Galeras volcano, one of the most active in Colombia, whose periodic rumblings are part of daily life here. The colonial centre holds a clutch of historic churches and the museums that preserve the region's distinctive crafts, above all the barniz de Pasto, a pre-Hispanic lacquering technique using resin from the mopa-mopa plant that UNESCO has recognised as cultural heritage. The people of Nariño, often called pastusos, are known across Colombia for their strong regional pride and their good humour in the face of the gentle jokes other Colombians tell about them.

The city's calendar revolves around the Carnaval de Negros y Blancos, held in the first week of January and counted among the great festivals of the Andes. Over several days the streets erupt with enormous handcrafted floats, parades, music and the playful tradition of covering strangers in talc and coloured foam, all of which earned the celebration a place on UNESCO's intangible heritage list in 2009. Beyond the carnival, Pasto anchors a region of remarkable natural beauty, from the mist-shrouded Laguna de la Cocha and its island reserve to the high páramos and, of course, the world-renowned Las Lajas Sanctuary near Ipiales. As the last major Colombian city before Ecuador, Pasto is both a cultural destination in its own right and an essential waypoint for travellers moving between the two countries.