Main square
El Carmen de Viboral main square
The square is the center of everything: buses stop here, festivals happen here and Ceramics Street is a short walk away.
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What the square is like
The town grew where the old roads from La Ceja to El Santuario and from La Unión to Rionegro crossed, on the left bank of the Cimarronas River. Carreras 30 and 31 frame the main square, with palms, benches and the church on one side. It is a working town square: Mass, market stalls, people sitting around and, on big dates, a stage.
The church of Nuestra Señora del Carmen
The earlier church was badly damaged by the 1961 and 1962 earthquakes, and in 1964 the parish priest Mario Ángel began a new, modern, earthquake-resistant building meant for about six thousand people. Work was slow: they demolished the back of the old church while Mass went on at the front, and the main structure was only finished in the 1990s.
Inside are large stained-glass windows and ceramic mosaics, columns faced with Alicante marble and a dome built from hyperbolic paraboloids. The tower is 33 m tall and its four-faced clock chimes every 15 minutes.
What to do nearby
- Walk to Ceramics Street and the workshops (ceramics).
- Visit the Ceramics Museum in the afternoon (Carrera 30 # 27-66).
- Grab a coffee on the square and try an arepa de chócolo, a sweet corn arepa (where to eat).
- See the Simón Bolívar statue and, a few blocks away, La Alhambra park.
During the Fiestas de la Loza and the Fiestas del Campesino the square fills up; see the calendar in festivals. To sleep close to the square, see hotels in El Carmen de Viboral.
Frequently asked questions
When was the current church built?
How tall is the tower?
Sources
Checked on October 18, 2026. Prices and opening hours change: always confirm with the official source before you travel.