Villa de Leyva is a colonial gem, while San Gil is the adventure capital of Colombia. Both of these cities tend to pop up on many Colombian itineraries. Because of the geography of the country, it often makes sense to go to San Gil from Villa de Leyva (or vice versa). While this seems straightforward, the route involves a transfer and might not be easy for first time travelers (but I promise it’s not that bad).
In this guide, I’m going to walk you through, step by step, how to travel from Villa de Levya to San Gil.
Villa de Leyva to San Gil
For the purposes of this article, I’m going to walk you through traveling from Villa de Leyva to San Gil. Of course you can still travel in the reverse direction, but since I started in Villa de Leyva, that’s how this article is laid out.
You’ll need to transfer somewhere along the route. For the purposes of this article, we’ll be transferring in Tunja since that’s the most popular route. But I’ll cover other routes at the end of this post.
Go to the Villa de Leyva Bus Station
Unsurprisingly your first step is to get to the bus station in Villa de Leyva. Since you’ve likely taken the bus here from Bogotá, this should be the easiest step of the day.
Find the Next Bus to Tunja.
There are no direct buses to San Gil from Villa de Leyva, so you’ll need to transfer along the way. The easiest, and most popular, place to transfer is in the city of Tunja.
Once at the station, find the next bus to Tunja. Unlike so many other bus stations in Colombia, the bus companies in Villa de Leyva actually post their schedules at the station. While the schedules were accurate for my particular bus, I’d take each schedule with a grain of salt. Time just works differently in Colombia, so don’t be surprised if buses don’t leave on time.
As a note, I recommend trying to get an earlier bus from Villa de Leyva. It’s a four to five hour bus ride from Tunja to San Gil, so unless you want to arrive in San Gil in the dark, leave earlier in the morning. I caught a bus from Villa de Leyva at 9:00 am or earlier.
Pay the Driver for Your Ticket.
I took the bus with Libertadores. I was told to buy the ticket on the bus, so I that’s what I did. Once the bus showed up, everyone just piled on until every seat was full. A woman came on and collected money from each of us. Then, we were off.
In November 2024, this cost 12,000 COP.
Don’t Be Surprised If Your Bus Leaves Early.
My bus was full, so we left a bit before the scheduled time. As I mentioned earlier, my big recommendation is to give yourself extra time. Buses may leave early and they may leave late. Hopefully they’ll follow the posted schedule, but you just never know. I recommend confirming the schedule with one of the employees once you arrive at the bus station since they should have the most up to date information.
Ride All the Way to the Last Stop.
The bus station in Tunja will be the last stop, so once you get on the bus in Villa de Leyva, just stay on until the very end.
On the Libertadores route, we looped through the city of Tunja and dropped people off, so our route was kind of weird and I was the only passenger remaining when we finally arrived in Tunja.
My bus took just over an hour. We left just before 9:00 am and pulled into the Tunja bus station at about 10:02 am.
In Tunja, Go to the Ticket Hall and Purchase a Ticket.
You’ve arrived in Tunja. Follow the signs to the ticket hall. Shockingly, you’ll find English on the signs throughout the Tunja bus station (Tunja was the only bus station where I found English signs). It’s pretty easy to figure out where you are going with just Spanish signs, but the English was a pleasant surprise.
Find the next bus to San Gil and purchase a ticket.
The ticket hall in Tunja is much larger than in Villa de Leyva. Each bus company has a ticket desk with a digital sign listing all of the destinations they serve. You need to find a bus serving San Gil. You’ll have a few options. Berlinas, Concorde, Omega, Copetrans, and Coomotor should have routes to San Gil.
This was where planning was difficult as I found these schedules difficult to find online. In general, most of these buses are en transit from Bogotá to Bucaramanga. Tunja and San Gil are just two of the stops. From what I was able to track down online, I had found a few options and saw that there was supposed to be one bus every hour.
I bought my ticket through Concorde as I felt I may be too late for the 10:00 am Berlinas bus (but time works differently in Colombia, so I probably would have been ok). My bus ticket cost 50,000 COP with Concorde in November 2024.
Scan Your Ticket and Head Downstairs to Wait.
The buses depart from downstairs, so head down the escalators to wait. Scan your ticket at the top of the stairs to open the gates.
As a note, since I had about 50 minutes before my bus left, I had planned to just sit on one of the chairs upstairs until I got closer. However, the man who sold me my ticket, came and got me and escorted me downstairs. So I guess the moral of this story is to wait downstairs for your bus.
Downstairs you’ll also find some convenience stores selling food and bathrooms. Make sure you have coins and your own toilet paper for the bathrooms.
Board Your Bus and Settle In.
When your bus arrives, settle in. It’s a four to five hour ride from Tunja to San Gil.
Unbeknownst to me, we stopped for a break about three hours into the journey. There was no bathroom on the bus, but this stop gave us a bathroom and the opportunity to buy lunch. I stayed on the bus since the stop only lasted about 20 to 30 minutes, but since I was not expecting this stop, I wanted to mention something.
In San Gil, Walk 25 Minutes to the Main Square.
There are two bus stations in San Gil. There’s the big, main bus station and the smaller, regional bus station (Terminalito). Your bus will arrive at the main bus station. From there, you’re just outside of the city center.
Taxis will be lined up outside of the bus station, waiting to take you wherever you need to go.
Depending on your hotel location and how much luggage you have, a taxi may be a good idea.
You can also walk from the main bus station to the main square (and beyond). Expect this walk to take about 25 minutes. You’ll walk along the road (but I felt like there is a wide enough berth to feel ok about walking) and eventually cross the street to cross the river. The street crossing can suck, but be patient and wait for an opportunity. There is no cross walk here or traffic lights, so cross the street with caution.
Then get to your hotel and take a breath. You made it.
I should also add that while Villa de Leyva feels calm, relaxed, and peaceful, San Gil is the opposite. As I walked from the bus station to by hostel, the city felt busier, grittier, and noisier than Villa de Leyva. It was a bit better once I reached the city center and Parque Principal, but I didn’t love the actual city of San Gil (the destinations that I visited nearby on day trips were great though).
Alternative Routes
As mentioned, there are no direct routes between Villa de Leyva and San Gil. This route via Tunja is just one of the options, although it is the most popular. The other option is to transfer in Barbosa.
Technically, it may be shorter, but I feel like the route via Tunja is popular for a reason. There are numerous options once you get to Tunja and that’s probably for the best.
On my bus with Concorde, we did make a stop in Barbosa. Our stop was at a small stand on the side of the road, not a “proper” bus station. Given this, I feel like transferring in Tunja is your best option.
More in Villa de Leyva
Villa de Leyva is a colonial gem. The city features a massive main square, plenty of white washed colonial buildings, and plenty of picturesque streets. There’s also delicious food, several shops, and a museum dedicated to chocolate making. While you only need one day to explore Villa de Leyva, because of the city’s location, it makes the most sense to spend one night.
More in San Gil
San Gil isn’t my favorite city in Colombia, but that’s ok. Most people don’t visit San Gil to stay in the city. They visit because of all of the activities nearby. San Gil is the adventure capital of Colombia and you’ll find numerous companies offering activities like white water rafting, zip lining, bungee jumping, waterfall repelling, and so much more.
If you want to adventure on your own, Barichara is one option, but you can also easily reach the Juan Curi Waterfalls and Curiti.
When to Visit Colombia
While many countries have weather that can change drastically throughout the year, Colombia has just two season: dry season and rainy season.
Dry season is more popular because rain is less likely. Dry season typically runs from December through February or March. Then there is another dry season from June through August.
Rainy season comprises of the other months of the year. April and May and September through November. While it is rainy season, it may not rain every day, but you need to be prepared that it could rain at any time.
While dry season, particularly December through February, is the most popular time to travel, I chose to visit in November. It was rainy season and it did rain every day of my visit. However, the rain typically did not occur until the late afternoon or evening, meaning on most days my mornings were dry and I was able to explore in the dry sunshine.
Final Thoughts
While the limited information about bus schedules online can make planning your itinerary frustrating, it’s still possible to travel from Villa de Leyva to San Gil. It’s a full day of travel, but your reward for doing it is experiencing two vastly different cities in Colombia.
Continue Your Adventure
More in Colombia: Villa de Leyva is a colonial gem and it’s worth one day of your itinerary. In San Gil, take your pick from numerous adventure activities or visit the colonial town of Barichara.
Colombia Travel Guide: Start your planning with my Colombia Travel Guide. Get my 9 day Colombia itinerary, all of my top safety tips, and determine a realistic travel budget.