Los Llanos
The Llanos is a vast tropical grassland plain situated to the east of the Andes in Colombia and Venezuela, in north-western South America. It is an ecoregion of the tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome.
It's the home of Venezuela’s cowboys and the twangy harp music of joropo (traditional music of Los Llanos). With Venezuela’s greatest repository of wildlife found here, you’ll be dazzled by caimans, capybaras, piranhas, anacondas and anteaters, plus an enormous variety of birds. In the rainy season, the land is half-flooded and animals are dispersed but still visible everywhere. The dry months (mid-November to April) are the high season, with a greater concentration of animals clustered near water sources.
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Mérida’s tour companies provide fascinating excursions for US$200 to US$300, usually as four-day all-inclusive packages; add extra for rafting.
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Amazonas
Get up close to birds, monkeys and caiman on a jungle safari in the far south Amazonas region. Based in the largest town of Puerto Ayacucho, specialist tour operators take river trips to lodges deep in the jungle, where you can go wildlife watching. Treks to see spectacular
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Mérida
The adventure-sports capital of Venezuela, progressive Mérida is an affluent Andean city with a youthful energy and a spectacular mountain position. It has an unhurried, friendly and cultured atmosphere derived from the massive university, its outdoor-sports presence and its wonderful climate, which attracts lowlanders for its bright but breezy days and cool nights. Active visitors will be spoiled for choice, with myriad options for hiking, canyoning, rafting, mountain biking and Mérida's specialty: paragliding. The city is also the major jumping-off point for wildlife-viewing trips to Los Llanos and lightning-viewing trips in Catatumbo.
Affordable and relatively safe, Mérida has a high standard of accommodations and numerous good places to eat. While not a place to indulge in colonial architecture, it has some of Venezuela's best nightlife, and is a major stop for backpackers.
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Parque Nacional Sierra Nevada
The most popular high-mountain trekking area is the Sierra Nevada national park, which has all of Venezuela's highest peaks, including Pico Bolívar (5007m), Pico Humboldt (4942m) and Pico Bonpland (4883m). Climbing these peaks shouldn't be attempted without a guide, unless you have climbing experience. Guided trips are offered by most of Mérida's tour operators.
Pico Bolívar, Venezuela's highest point, is one of the most popular peaks to climb.
An easier destination is Los Nevados, a charming mountain village nestled at 2440m. The hike is normally done as a two-day loop that includes rides by cable car, mule and jeep.
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Coro
Linger in the beautifully preserved centre of Coro, an early colonial settlement near the Caribbean coast. The town is on UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites and is also the gateway to the Paraguaná Peninusula, a prime windsurfing destination. Surrounding Coro are the Médanos de Coro, a national park composed of huge sand dunes, the country's only desert landscape.
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Lake Maracaibo
Marvel at the magical natural phenomenon of lightning minus the accompanying thunderclap at the Parque Nacional Ciénagas del Catatumbo, along the southwest shore of Lake Maracaibo. The spectacular displays of forked lightning storms over the water can be witnessed daily throughout the year. The park is also rich with birdlife and animals, including capybara and manatees.
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Santa Fe
This fishing town is popular with international backpackers for its proximity to the islands of Parque Nacional Mochima. Travelers spend their days island-hopping and their nights drinking beer or merengadas (fruity milkshakes) on the beach - all without breaking the budget.
Although most seaside posadas are ensconced by high fences topped with barbed wire - making them look a bit like security compounds - there's still a laid-back atmosphere to the village. Santa Fe's tourism developed thanks to the grassroots initiative of some of its residents, inspired by journalist and writer, José Vivas.
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Parque Nacional Mochima
Snorkel, swim, dive or fish at Parque Nacional Mochima on the northeast coast, with hundreds of offshore islands and islets. Some – like the popular Isla de Plata – are surrounded by coral reefs; and there are countless beautiful beaches for just lazing around. The archipelago Los Roques is another underwater wonderland, fantastic for birdwatching, diving and snorkelling off its gorgeous white-sand beaches.
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Isla de Margarita
Swim, soak up the sun and savour superb seafood on Isla de Margarita, Venezuela's largest Caribbean island. With 168km (104 miles) of beaches, it offers everything from the full-on buzz of its principal town Porlamar, to mangroves, marshes and sand dunes. There are many national and international flights and charters to Porlamar, as well as daily air-shuttles from Maiquetía airport, and ferries from Cumaná, La Guaira (Caracas) and Puerto la Cruz.
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Península de Paria
The Península de Paria – the only place in South America where Colombus actually set foot – has some of the most gorgeous and least-visited spots in the country, all backed by the thick jungle-covered mountains of the peninsula's largely untouched interior. Dozens of white- and gold-sand beaches await travellers on the 50km coastal stretch between Río Caribe and San Juan de Unare, the last seaside village accessible by road. Beyond San Juan de Unare you can only continue by boat, making a trip to further flung villages such as Santa Isabel a real adventure. Bring repellent if you stay overnight, and always check with locals before swimming, as some beaches have treacherous currents.
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Delta del Orinoco
For wildlife-viewing on the water's edge, it's hard to outshine the Orinoco Delta (Delta del Orinoco).
A deep-green labyrinth of islands, channels and mangrove swamps engulfing nearly 30,000 sq km – the size of Belgium – this is one of the world's great river deltas and a mesmerizing region to explore. Mixed forest blankets most of the land, which includes a variety of palms. Of these, the moriche palm is the most typical and important, as it is the traditional staple food for the delta's inhabitants, the Warao people, and provides material for their crafts, tools, wine and houses.
The best time to see the wildlife in the delta is in the dry season (January to May), when wide, orange, sandy beaches emerge along the shores of the channels. In the rainy months (August and September), when rivers are full, boat travel is easier, but the wildlife disperses and is more difficult to see.
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Salto Ángel
Angel Falls at 979m, is the tallest waterfall in the world, and, for many, it is also the most stunning. Its glistening waters spill from the rim of an ancient sandstone (table-topped mountain) into a freefall of nearly one kilometre (0.6 miles) before crashing into a pool. Double rainbows can often be seen in the spray-drenched air above. Located in Canaima National Park, 600km (373 miles) south of Ciudad Bolívar, the waterfall is a sacred site for the local indigenous people.
Salto Ángel is not named, as one might expect, for a divine creature, but for an American bush pilot Jimmie Angel, who landed his four-seater airplane atop Auyantepui in 1937 while in search of gold. In the local Pémon language the falls are called Parakupá Vená, or 'waterfall of the highest place'.
The waterfall is in a distant, lush wilderness with no road access. The village of Canaima, about 50km northwest, is the major gateway to the falls. Canaima doesn’t have an overland link to the rest of the country either, but is accessed by numerous small planes from Ciudad Bolívar and Puerto Ordaz.
A visit to Salto Ángel is normally undertaken in two stages, with Canaima as the stepping-stone. Most tourists fly into Canaima, from where they take a boat to the falls. Most visitors who visit by boat opt to stay overnight in hammocks at one of the camps near the base of the falls. The trip upriver, the surrounding area and the experience of staying at the camp are as memorable as the waterfall itself. An alternative is to take a six-seat Cessna flight over Auyantepui and the falls, which can be done in around 45 minutes from Canaima airport for around US$60 to US$80 per person. If you have time, do both, as the experiences are both unforgettably spectacular and offer very different perspectives on this most extraordinary chunk of nature.
Salto Ángel, Auyantepui, Canaima and the surrounding area lie within the boundaries of the 30,000-sq-km Parque Nacional Canaima. All visitors need to pay a US$1.50 national-park entrance fee at Canaima airport.
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Kamarata
Kamarata is an old Pemón village on the Río Akanán, at the south-eastern foot of Auyantepui. Since being discovered as an alternative access point for Angel Falls, it has been attracting adventurous travellers. There are a few simple places to stay and eat in town, and an airstrip. However, most of the overnight tourist traffic has shifted to Kavac, a hot two-hour walk from Kamarata, or a short drive on a dirt road.
Kamarata is the starting point for a four-day canoe trip past Angel Falls to Canaima, or an adventurous multi-day trek to Auyantepui, following part of the route taken by Jimmy Angel in 1937.
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Cueva de Kavac
Cueva de Kavac is not a cave but a deep gorge with a waterfall plunging into it. There's a safe, natural pool at the foot of the waterfall, which you can reach by swimming upstream inside the canyon. It's a pretty straightforward half-hour walk from Kavac to the gorge.
Kavac itself consists of around 20 churuatas (palm-thatched huts) built in the traditional style, resembling a manicured Pemón settlement. Quiet and almost devoid of people, it sits on the savanna just southeast of Auyantepui.
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Mount Roraima
A stately table mountain towering into churning clouds, Roraima (2810m) lures hikers and nature-lovers looking for Venezuela at its natural and rugged best. Unexplored until 1884, and studied extensively by botanists ever since, the stark landscape contains strange rock formations and graceful arches, ribbon waterfalls, glittering quartz deposits and carnivorous plants. The frequent mist only accentuates the otherworldly feel.
Although it’s one of the easier to climb and no technical skills are required, the trek is long and demanding. However, anyone who’s reasonably fit and determined can reach the top. Be prepared for wet weather, nasty puri puris (invisible biting insects) and frigid nights at the summit. In recent years with the decline in international travellers, Roraima has marketed itself more to domestic travellers. Sadly this has led to a noticeable increase in littering and disrespect for the special status of this incredible place..
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San Francisco de Yare
Every year as part of the Corpus Christi celebrations in May or June, up to 100 dancers in ghoulish devil masks perform a colourful ceremony in the small town of San Francisco de Yare, south of Caracas. Based on a Catholic tradition dating back to the Middle Ages, the "Diablos Danzantes" can also be seen in several towns along the central coast, including Cata, Chuao, Cuyagua, Naiguatá, Ocumare de la Costa, and Tinaquillo.
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Colonia Tovar
Check out Colonia Tovar, a slice of Deutschland in the forested mountains west of Caracas. Settled by German immigrants from the Black Forest in the mid-19th century, the town retains its Old World traditions, food and architecture. With its quaint rustic hostels and homemade culinary specialities, Colonia Tovar makes for a touristy but surreal excursion from the capital.
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Caracas
The capital, Caracas, is a modern metropolis set in the foothills of the Ávila range. Besides a fabulously varied culinary landscape, a vibrant cultural life and throbbing nightlife scene, the city also boasts an array of world-class museums. The city is one of South America's most dangerous, but it offers a loud and brash welcome for first-time visitors, most of whom escape to the countryside's gentler attractions after a couple of days.

Archipiélago Los Roques
Island-hopping is the primary activity on Los Roques, a group of nearly 300 shimmering, sandy islands that lie in aquamarine waters some 160km due north of Caracas. It’s far pricier than the mainland because everything is imported, but for those who love undeveloped beaches, snorkelling and diving, the trip is worth every bolívar. There is just one settlement on the main island of Gran Roque, and even that is limited to a few sandy and car-free streets, a charming contrast to the relentless traffic and overcrowding of most other towns in the country. The whole archipelago, complete with the surrounding waters (2211 sq km), was made a national park in 1972.
Almost all the islands are uninhabited and can be visited on day trips from Gran Roque. Indeed, while Gran Roque has a wonderful stretch of beach itself, it's taken up by fishing boats and other vessels along its whole length, meaning that visitors have little choice but to go on day trips to other islands in order to enjoy the alternatives. The surrounding waters are known for their sea life, which attracts divers and snorkelers, while also meaning that there's excellent fresh seafood on most menus.
For sunset views at Gran Roque, climb the hill to the remains of the Faro Holandés, an 1870s lighthouse. Do bring a flashlight to Los Roques in case of power outages. All visitors to Los Roques must pay a US$0.75 national-park entry fee upon arrival.

Gran Roque
Gran Roque is the main island and population center, and exudes a distinct Caribbean feel. The sandy streets of the fishing village are lined with single-story, brightly painted concrete houses and the waterfront is packed with fishing boats and visiting yachts - all covered by a vast army of pelicans.
Unlike the other islands, which are sandy and flat, Gran Roque has several massive rocky humps along its north-western coast cliffs that plunge vertically into the sea. Climb the hill crowned with an old lighthouse, known as the Faro Holandés, for sweeping views over the village, islands, coral reefs and the crystal-clear turquoise sea. Gran Roque is the place to pick up yacht charters or organize snorkelling or scuba diving trips.
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