Fincas in Tolima — 2026 Guide

In Tolima, most fincas for rent (country houses rented whole, usually with a pool, for a group or a family) are in Melgar and Carmen de Apicalá, 2 to 3 hours from Bogotá, with Ibagué and Honda as the second and third hubs. As of September 24, 2026, the median price per night in the department (Colombia's equivalent of a state) is COP 600,000, based on 64 rental listings published on Finkeros.

How much does a finca in Tolima cost?

Half of the 64 listings fall between COP 450,000 and COP 1,000,000 per night. Melgar has a median of COP 600,000 across 28 listings (middle range COP 480,000 to COP 800,000) and Ibagué COP 800,000 across 11. Carmen de Apicalá shows COP 380,000 across 9 listings, a small sample. These are asking prices, not booked prices, with no split by season, and they leave out listings under COP 150,000, which are almost always priced per person.

Melgar and Carmen de Apicalá

Melgar (about 320 m above sea level) is in Tolima, not Cundinamarca, even though people think of it as part of Bogotá's tierra caliente (the hot lowlands where the capital goes for the weekend). It is nicknamed the City of Pools. The Piscilago water park is nearby, on the highway, on the Cundinamarca side. Carmen de Apicalá, about twenty minutes away, has the same kind of fincas and the lowest median in the area.

Honda and Mariquita

Honda (about 230 m above sea level) was a port on the Magdalena River in colonial times and keeps a historic center. It is called the City of Bridges for the ones that cross the Gualí and Magdalena rivers. In February, when the bocachico fish swim upriver, the town celebrates the subienda (the upstream fish run). Mariquita, less than an hour away, was the seat of José Celestino Mutis's Royal Botanical Expedition and has fincas with fruit trees. Few fincas are listed on Finkeros in Honda and Mariquita, so the choice is limited.

Tolima's food is lechona (whole roast pig stuffed with rice), tamal tolimense and, by the Magdalena, viudo de pescado (a river-fish stew).

Getting there

Melgar is on the Bogotá-Girardot highway, 2 to 3 hours away without a trancón (a traffic jam). Honda is 3 to 4 hours away via the road to Villeta and Guaduas. Buses to Melgar leave from Bogotá's Terminal del Sur (south bus station). Ibagué has an airport, but for Melgar and Honda it is almost always more practical to drive from Bogotá. Ibagué to Melgar takes 1.5 to 2 hours.

What they won't tell you

Honda and Mariquita are above 30 °C (86 °F) much of the year. A finca with neither air conditioning nor a pool makes for hot nights there. Ask about both before you book. In Melgar, puentes festivos (long weekends: Colombia moves most public holidays to a Monday and everyone leaves the city at once) fill the town and the listed prices stop applying.