How to Visit Los Llanos, Venezuela: Safari at Hato El Cedral
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Safari at Hato El Cedral made Venezuela one of my favourite countries in the world. This unforgettable experience was truly special. Unlike other bucket list experiences, very few tourists come down here, which added to the magic.
Hato El Cedral is located in Los Llanos (the plains) which are a vast wildlife-rich area that provide ample opportunity to spot giant anacondas slithering through the marshes, anteaters roaming across the savannah, crocodiles dominating the waters and so much more.
This wasn’t an easy trip to plan. Very few tourists go to Venezuela these days, and helpful information was scarce.
That’s why I’m writing this guide on how to visit Los Llanos in Venezuela. It includes information on how to get there, costs, safety, when to visit, what animals you can see, and what you can expect during your safari at the incredible Hato El Cedral.
How to Get to Los Llanos (Hato El Cedral)
Hato El Cedral is widely known as THE place to go for a Venezuelan safari experience, so that’s where we went and where I will focus on with this guide.
Other hatos are available, but none have the reputation that El Cedral does for its incredible wildlife experiences.
From Caracas
By Air
You will need to go to Simon Bolivar International Airport in nearby Maiquetia to fly to either Barinas Airport (Barinas) or Las Flecheras Airport (San Fernando de Apure).
From there, you need to take a bus down to get to Hato El Cedral. You cannot fly directly there.
I’ll provide more details on bus transport in the next section.
By Bus
We took the bus from Caracas at Terminal La Bandera, which you can reach by taking the metro to La Bandera station. And this is the only good option to get to Hato El Cedral from the capital.
You have three options to reach the hato:
- A direct bus to Elorza (more expensive and much safer) – with this one you can get off right outside the hato
- A bus to San Fernando de Apure followed by a second to Mantecal (cheaper but not so safe)
- A bus to Barinas followed by a second to Mantecal (cheaper and even less safe)
Now we strongly recommend the direct bus. The driver may not know where Hato El Cedral is, so you will need to inform him both before the journey begins, and as you pass Mantecal and get close.
We took a direct bus with Expresos San Fernando which left Terminal La Bandera at 5:30pm and arrived at 6am the following day outside Hato El Cedral, costing US$30 for a one-way ride.
You should contact Expresos San Fernando in advance on WhatsApp to reserve a spot on the bus. Their number is +58 424-2674709.
You need to buy a ticket to Elorza (the final stop on the bus route) as Hato El Cedral isn’t recognised as an official stop.
We almost took the local bus to San Fernando de Apure for US$12 (plus a US$1 exit tax, not applicable with long-distance buses). Fortunately we changed our mind whilst on the bus and decided to splash out for the more expensive one.
The local bus was uncomfortable with tight seats and unsafe. I was sat right next to a shredded metal sheet which was no different to a razor-sharp knife really. Sitting next to that for several hours on a bumpy bus would have been enough of a bad idea as it was.
However, the local buses also make regular stops. This means that many people get on and off and they are more easily targeted by criminals.
Not only that, but they are far more likely to be stopped by police. Venezuelan police are corrupt, and may extort bribes from you. They will ask to see your passport, so there’s no hiding the fact you’re a foreigner, even if you blend in amongst locals.
Our Airbnb host in Caracas told us he had a Slovenian guest shortly before us who took the local bus to Hato El Cedral. He was held by police for an hour who attempted to bribe him and interrogated him intensely.
By taking the Expreso San Fernando bus which is far more professionalised, most police checkpoints will only involve the police interacting with the driver. Officers generally won’t get on the bus.
Only one police officer boarded our bus (on the return journey to Caracas). He had no interest in checking passports, only walking through with a sniffer dog. Slightly intimidating, but he caused us no problems.
Another downside of travelling by local bus is that you will need to take a second bus from either Barinas or San Fernando de Apure to Mantecal.
Then you need to travel a further 23km to the entrance to the hato. There are three ways to do this, and none of them are good options.
You can take a taxi, which will wipe out any cost advantage of taking the “cheap” buses, you can walk for 5 hours (a bad idea for many reasons… safety, unwalkable roads, carrying your bags for hours in the searing Venezuelan heat…), or you can get picked up by the hato staff.
The third option sounds good, until you realise just how bad they are at communication. The staff are amazing at almost everything, but they’re awful at communication, take hours (if you’re lucky) or days to reply, and can’t be relied on to pick you up as planned.
I’ve heard from other travellers who had to walk for hours after being let down by the hato.
Expresos San Fernando isn’t the only company that goes to the hato. However it’s the one we used and highly recommend. Both past travellers and the hato themselves recommended them, and they even had free Wi-Fi on the way back (but not the way there).
The other bus company that came with good recommendations was Ejecutivos Boga. If you can’t take an Expresos San Fernando bus for whatever reason, consider them as an alternative.
When we took the return journey back to Caracas, the bus was supposed to be at Hato El Cedral at 3:30pm. In reality, it arrived at 4:10pm, and whilst your bus will probably also be late, don’t rely on that. Ask the hato to give you a lift to the entrance at 3pm to get there in time.
From Elsewhere
If you fly, you will have to head to either Barinas or San Fernando de Apure, and take the bus from there.
From other places, ask if buses go to Mantecal or Elorza. These are the two nearest towns to the hato.
If the bus goes between the two towns, great. You can ask if you can get off directly at the hato.
If not, you will have to splash out on a taxi.
Do not attempt reach Hato El Cedral by travelling overland from Colombia. The areas surrounding the Colombia/Venezuela border are absolute carnage with problems ranging from drug gang activity and guerilla warfare to highly paranoid police who have been known to detain tourists in the not-too-distant past.
How Much Does a Safari Experience Cost at Hato El Cedral?
We paid US$100 per person per night. This included breakfast, lunch, dinner, a simple room to stay in and at least two activities per day with free water and fruit provided during excursions.
We were there for two nights, meaning it cost us US$200 each, however we had three days worth of activities which made it great value for money.
Hato El Cedral delivered a lot more than they promised. We were supposed to check in at 3pm on the first day, but they let us in at 7am when we arrived, gave us breakfast, and also took us on an additional tour.
They say you need to pay 50% of the cost in advance to confirm your booking. However, unless you use Zelle, you may not be able to do this as foreigners, and should tell them that you can’t do this (specifically mentioning it’s because you are foreigners) and will have to pay cash when you arrive. Venezuela uses US dollars for almost everything, so don’t worry about bolivars.
The bus to and from Caracas costs US$30 each way, therefore US$60 total.
Since everything is included, these are the only expenses, meaning you will pay US$160 for one night, US$260 for two nights, US$360 for three nights and so on.
You can buy beers (for US$1 each), snacks from their small snack shop, or even souvenirs such as a giant fluffy capybara which you may have difficulty fitting in your luggage. But these are all optional extras you can easily do without.
Of course, you will also have to factor in the costs of getting to Venezuela in the first place, and flights are not cheap. We paid £372 (US$465) each for return flights from Bogota in neighbouring Colombia.
You can maybe save US$100 on flights by being more flexible with dates. But expect to pay much more if coming from elsewhere.
Travelling overland from Colombia or Brazil is the cheapest option, but it’s very unsafe to do this, and I don’t recommend it at all. Travelling overland from Guyana isn’t possible due to the fact the border is covered by jungle with no roads.
Venezuelan travellers will get a cheaper rate than foreigners. Our Airbnb host from Caracas came with us and paid just US$80 per day.
However, the prices we were given by the hato were different to the actual prices. They told us it would cost US$120 per day as a foreigner, and US$80-100 for locals (US$50 for Venezuelan children, albeit with no discount for foreign children).
They also said a full day of excursions excluding accommodation and meals would cost US$40 for adults and US$30 for children. You could perhaps cut costs a little by staying in Mantecal, but is it really worth sacrificing experiences for a few dollars?
Walking outside our room to find capybaras and iguanas was worth the extra cost alone.
How Long in Advance Should You Book a Safari Experience at Hato El Cedral?
As I said, these guys are incredibly slow to respond to any form of communication. They can be contacted on Instagram: @hatoelcedral0ficial but really the “best” way to contact them is via WhatsApp: +58 416-6484811.
I say “best” semi-sarcastically because they are frustratingly slow to reply.
We booked our stay around 6 weeks in advance. And this was enough time because it ensured they had availability (shouldn’t be a problem, we were the only guests on day one) and allowed us to get some useful information about buses and other logistics.
Fortunately, you don’t need to waste time asking them about buses, as you can just scroll up and read the rest of this guide!
Is it Safe to Visit Los Llanos for Safari?
Venezuela has a reputation for being a very dangerous country. In reality, it hasn’t been so bad since 2021, and we were surprised to find Venezuela is actually reasonably safe these days overall.
Part of the reason why it’s one of South America’s better countries.
Hato El Cedral is very safe. As long as you stick to the rules and don’t try to pet a crocodile or anything equally silly, you shouldn’t have any safety issues here. Crime isn’t something to worry about, and the only real threat is dehydration in the searing Venezuelan llanos.
You will receive regular free water on tours, and there’s a filtered tap in the restaurant, so you shouldn’t have any issues here.
Taking the bus from Caracas to Hato El Cedral is safe, provided you take the long-distance bus for US$30. Once again, we recommend Expresos San Fernando. The local buses are a lot riskier, and we were told to avoid travelling through Barinas as it isn’t so safe there. Going through San Fernando de Apure is the better option.
The only real danger is coming to Hato El Cedral from the south, as this means passing through the one part of Venezuela that is still genuinely very dangerous. That’s the border regions with Colombia.
I would advise coming from anywhere north of the hato for the safest journey.
When is the Best Time to Visit Los Llanos?
The best time for visiting Los Llanos is the dry season from December to April.
This is because it is by far the best time to spot birds, anacondas, and land mammals such as anteaters, which we saw on our final day, much to our delight.
Supposedly, you can find lots of anacondas at this time. Although we didn’t have such luck and only one made an appearance during our 3-day stay.
In the wet season (May-November) you are much less likely to spot the creatures mentioned above. Also the birds tend to migrate so you won’t see many, if any, which is a stark contrast to our March trip where it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say we saw thousands.
Everything you can do in the wet season, can also be done in the dry season. However not everything possible in the dry season is also possible in the wet season.
We were there at the beginning of March, and I would say that is the perfect time to visit Los Llanos.
How Long do You Need to Spend at Hato El Cedral for the Best Experience?
We spent 3 days and 2 nights here, and we would say that is pretty much the perfect time.
We arrived at 6am, went straight onto safari after checking into our room, then did further activities before leaving to catch the 3:30pm bus back on day three.
We saw just about every animal we wanted, with the elusive anteater finally making an appearance on our last morning. Only pumas and jaguars eluded us from the hato’s most notable inhabitants, but these creatures are so rare that the chances of seeing them are incredibly slim.
What Wildlife Can be Found at Hato El Cedral?
Crocodiles and caimans dominate the rivers, and they’re pretty much the most common creatures you can find here. No animal sighting is possible to guarantee on a safari, but these are the closest to a certain sighting as you will get, alongside…
Capybaras are everywhere, gathered in small packs of up to 20. I would say they are the most common land-based creature we saw, with at least a few hundred, if not a thousand visible during our trip.
Birds complete the “big three” in terms of common creatures. I won’t go into detail on all 347 species found here, but some of the most notable include the giant garza soldado, the biggest bird found in Los Llanos, and the chenchena, which is toxic to eat due to its diet which consists predominantly of toxic fruits.
Anacondas are one of the main reasons why wanted to come here. They are found generally near lakes, rivers and marshes. They are said to be fairly common in the dry season, although we only spotted one in three days.
Howler monkeys live on the hato too. The only ones we saw were chilling in the trees near our accommodation. And unlike the howler monkeys I encountered in Nicaragua’s Charco Verde, these ones were unusually quiet.
Iguanas tend to chill outside the accommodation. We spotted a couple out on the plains, but they mostly hang around outside the bedrooms. They’re cool creatures, and you will see a fair few of them out and about.
Anteaters are a rare spot. Our guide Angel saw one which had fallen prey to the crocodiles, and a lengthy search to find one on our final morning proved unsuccessful. However, whilst doing a spot of piranha fishing, I spotted something in the distance which looked like a rock. On closer inspection… it was an anteater!
Piranhas live in some of the rivers here. Your tour will most likely involve a spot of fishing which is good fun. The caimans like to eat these guys, but they aren’t particularly rare.
Dolphins live in some of the rivers. Known locally as toninas, you may end up doing a boat tour specifically to find these guys. Hato El Cedral tracks a couple of them, which means they aren’t hard to find. Although they only very briefly show their faces above the water.
Turtles are another of Hato El Cedral’s many inhabitants. They aren’t particularly common, but there’s still a reasonable chance you will spot one.
Otters can be found in Los Llanos. We didn’t spot any, but to be honest they most likely aren’t the reason why you’re coming to a place like this in the first place.
Cattle live on the plains too. You will see at least a few of them in the dry season. The guides manage the cattle, so if you don’t spot them in the wild, you can always ask your guides to take you to them. Unlike most other creatures, they will guarantee a sighting if you want one.
Horses probably aren’t your main reason for taking a safari in Venezuela, but they’re here too. Horse riding is one of the activities on offer at the hato. For the first time since staying with Mongolian nomads in another amazing country, I rode one through the plains and it was a really cool experience.
Pumas are amongst the rarest creatures in Los Llanos. It may be possible to search for them during a feline tour, but they are so rare that you are very unlikely to see one.
Jaguars are just as rare. Even most locals living in jaguar habitats across South America have never seen one in their lives. I wouldn’t advise coming to Hato El Cedral primarily to spot jaguars, as you will be incredibly lucky to see one.
What Can You Expect to do During a Venezuelan Safari Experience?
What can you expect your schedule to look like at Hato El Cedral? Well it varies depending on how long you have and what the guides decide on. Therefore I can’t tell you exactly what you will do, however I can say exactly what we did during our 3-day stay.
Perhaps your itinerary will look similar.
They sent a 10-point list of activities that they offer, however we did not do all of them. The ten they mentioned were these:
- Boat trip including caiman feeding and watching sunrise or sunset
- A morning safari centered around searching for anacondas
- Piranha fishing
- A big cat night safari
- Horse riding
- Bike rides
- Mechanical milking tours
- Traditional milking including cheese making
- A boat trip to see dolphins
- Ecological walks
We never did the mechanical milking, bike riding or big cat safari, however we did get to do everything else, and it was an incredible experience. Let me explain in detail what we got up to here:
Day 1 Morning: General Safari Including an Anaconda Search
With a check-in time of 3pm, we expected a lot of downtime when our bus dropped us outside Hato El Cedral at 6am. However, after stopping a few times to let us see capybaras and some birds, we dropped our bags off in our room, and after removing a frog which had decided to come inside, it was breakfast time.
After a traditional Venezuelan “desayuno” consisting of eggs, cheese and arepas which are a popular local cornbread, we started with an unexpected morning safari.
One of the first stops was by a small lake, which horses trotted straight through, blissfully unaware of Rosita, the giant crocodile lurking just a few feet away from them.
We carried on through the plains in our safari vehicle, which was open without windows and with benches in the middle, from which you could view the local nature.
We saw numerous birds, and if I’m completely honest, the birds aren’t particularly exciting, although there was a bright-red one I thought was pretty cool.
There were cows stomping across the llanos, leaving a trail of dust in their wake.
Hundreds of capybaras were hanging out in the bushes, the lakes and just about anywhere else you could possibly expect to see them.
More crocodiles and many caimans could be found in the lakes. However the one creature we really wanted to see eluded us.
Our guide and driver spent a long time poking through the marshes with a long stick, attempting to find an anaconda hiding under the muddy water. They had no luck on this occasion however.
We went back to the accommodation area for lunch, and had a few hours rest before the afternoon session.
Despite missing out on the main prize, we had a really fun start to our Los Llanos adventure.
Day 1 Evening: A Sunset Boat Tour Including Caiman Feeding
After a bit of down time, we drove to a river where we got onto a boat and headed across the water for some more wildlife adventures.
We saw many birds and caimans, and the latter were the star attraction here.
At one point, our guide stopped the boat and hooked some fresh meat onto the end of a large stick.
He held the stick over the water and waited for the caimans to gather.
They slowly arrived, and one eventually jumped in the air to snatch the meat from the stick with its jaws, and gobble up its tasty prize.
Then it was my turn. The guide hooked some meat on once again, and gave me the stick. I held it out and waited, then sure enough another caiman leaped into the air to grab its meal.
I had to hold the stick tightly. These things aren’t weak and I felt a powerful force dragging the stick down as the caiman got a hold of its dinner.
We were told that it wasn’t possible to feed crocodiles in the same way. The crocodiles are much larger and our guide Angel said they would tip the boat over if we did this.
Now I love a good adventure. Otherwise this blog may simply be called “Travel to Every Country”. However, the idea of getting dunked inside a river with fearsome crocodiles the size of a small car sounds like one step too far.
After feeding time, we carried on enjoying our boat ride whilst the bright orange sun began to set in the distance.
An incredible way to end our first day at Hato El Cedral before returning back to base for dinner and bedtime.
Day 2 Morning: Horse Riding, Holding an Anaconda and Seeing a Crocodile up Close
Day 2 started with breakfast, before we began our next activity: horse riding.
I had only been on a horse twice. Firstly in Paraguay which was a taster session whilst visiting Aregua, a cool little city on the banks of Lake Ypacarai. On that occasion I just went around a small circuit for a few minutes, so it wasn’t a real horse riding experience.
My first genuine horseback adventure came in Mongolia, where I joined local nomads trotting around the serene steppe that covers large chunks of this wonderful country.
As a result, I was a little nervous before getting on the back of Beyoncito, the second-smallest of the horses our group would ride. But it turns out there was little to worry about. This activity turned out to be seriously good fun!
We went through the plains. At one point, a crocodile ran across the path just 10 metres before my horse reached the same spot. Fortunately, crocodiles tend to target smaller animals, making it unlikely that we would have been attacked.
We left the paths to roam through the savannah, heading straight through muddy lakes at various points. Don’t wear your best trousers during this activity!
Later, we went up a very steep slope with roughly a 130-degree angle. Fortunately we all managed to grip onto our horses tightly and no one took a tumble.
Things got a little sketchy when Beyoncito decided to pick up pace. I would bounce up and down on his back which left a few bruises if I’m being honest. He was certainly harder to control when going fast.
However, the feeling of the cool breeze against my face whilst calmly travelling through the wildlife-rich heartlands of Los Llanos was a far better experience than I ever expected from a mere horse ride.
This turned out to be yet another highlight of our hato adventure.
By the time we got back to base, the guides took us to the entrance where a giant creature was waiting for us.
It was exactly what we wanted to see here. A giant anaconda!
Angel gripped it by the neck to prevent it from biting anyone. Whilst the danger from anacondas generally comes from constriction, we were told they can pack a nasty bite.
We were allowed to pick it up for pictures, before letting it slither off into the distance. Although it must have liked the accommodation area as I spotted it again two hours later whilst chilling outside reception, which was just about the only place with good Wi-Fi.
Angel then took us around the back to an area where a baby Orinoco caiman (confusingly, a crocodile rather than a caiman) was being held until it was large enough to be released into the wild.
We spent a few minutes admiring this tiny predator, before it was time to head to the restaurant for lunch.
Day 2 Evening: A Sunset Boat Tour Which Included Dolphin Watching
After lunch and a bit of downtime, it was time to get on the boat again. This time we would be searching for toninas: Amazon river dolphins.
The hato tracks a couple of them, meaning it isn’t hard to find them. It is much more difficult to spot them however.
This is because they rarely show their faces above the surface.
Our guide said they’re often attracted to unusual noises, such as the boat’s engine. But it took a while for the dolphins to come up above the water.
Even when they did make an appearance, it was a case of “blink and you will miss it”. The dolphins disappear again half a second after they appear.
If you want to take good photos, then bar some incredible luck, you will probably end up disappointed. If you just want to see the dolphins with your own eyes however, then it’s a pretty cool experience.
I would say that the caiman feeding the previous day was more fun in all honesty.
We carried on with our boat tour and enjoyed the breeze whilst observing caimans, birds, and some cows which decided to hang out in the river.
Then it was time to head back to camp for dinner ahead of the final day.
We bought a couple of Polar beers, the most popular beer in Venezuela, for just US$1 each on our final evening. I won’t lie though, Venezuela does great safari experiences, but not great beer!
For dinner we had parrilla. That’s barbecue for anyone unfamiliar with South American cuisine.
The problem is that I’ve spent several months of my life in Argentina. And the parrilla down there is without doubt THE best cuisine on the planet. This means I compare parrilla anywhere else to Argentina, and it almost always disappoints, even if the food is decent in its own right.
Paraguay, Uruguay and Brazil are the only countries that come close to competing with Argentine parrilla. Unfortunately, Venezuela couldn’t quite cut it in this department.
Day 3 Morning: Milking Cows, Another General Safari and Piranha Fishing
We rose early on the final day to see the sunrise and try to spot an anteater. However, we weren’t able to leave the accommodation area, which meant we had to settle for the beautiful orange skies, without the anteater. Still a win!
At 7am, it was time to milk the cows. The ranger leading this activity made it look easy.
We had to squeeze the udder really hard to get a tiny trickle of milk to come out. It was a strange feeling, and something I think I’m happy to leave to the experts from now on.
Next up was breakfast, before we left at 7:30am for our final safari experience, and our last attempt to try spotting an anteater.
We drove for a while throughout the llanos, stopping briefly when we found a turtle on the path.
After a while, we had to concede defeat. The elusive anteater was nowhere to be seen, and it was time for one last activity.
We drove to a lake for a spot of piranha fishing. I’d never been fishing before, so it took a bit of practice to get used to the technique.
Angel would attach some meat to the end of a metal hook on the end of a fishing line, which we would throw into the river.
Then we would hold the line until we felt a nibble. Sometimes we would reel the line in and realise the fish had got away. But after a few attempts I felt a bigger bite, and pulled the line in.
There it was, a red-bellied piranha. My first ever fish caught!
After a few pictures, Angel took the fish and threw it back into the water. I was a little surprised as I’d assumed we were catching our final safari lunch before leaving.
A few minutes later I reeled in what turned out to be the biggest fish of the day. After a few moments to appreciate my incredible newfound talent beginner’s luck, Angel chucked the fish towards a hungry caiman, who gleefully ate the food I’d unknowingly sourced for him.
After a while, I took a break from fishing, and spotted an odd-looking “rock” in the distance. Or was it a rock?
We decided to walk towards it for a closer inspection.
The rock started to move… and it turned out to have a giant snout.
This was no rock, we had finally found our anteater!
After a few pictures of this awesome creature, we watched as it scuttled off into the bushes. Finally we were satisfied that we’d got just about everything we wanted out of this experience.
By this time we’d lost interest in the piranha fishing. We packed up and headed back to base for lunch.
This was the final activity at Hato El Cedral during our Venezuelan safari adventure.
At 3pm we hopped in one of the safari vehicles for the final time, to drive back to the entrance, from where we would catch the 3:30pm bus back to Caracas.
Unsurprisingly, the bus was late. At 4pm an Expresos San Fernando bus came. We waved it down, only for it to drive into the distance without even slowing down a tiny bit. Uh oh…
My girlfriend had contacted the bus company in advance on WhatsApp, and they confirmed that they would have space for us. So I wasn’t too concerned.
Sure enough, at 4:10pm a second bus arrived, and that was the correct one.
We were told to wave it down from the side of the road and not attempt to run in front of it.
I don’t think running in front of a fast-moving bus is a great idea anyway, but apparently this is what armed guerrillas do when they hijack buses. Meaning the driver either would have attempted to swerve around us, and left us stranded at the hato, or he would have hit the accelerator which would not be the best end to an otherwise amazing safari experience.
We had hoped Los Llanos would be good. It absolutely exceeded our expectations and joined Patagonia and an Uyuni to Atacama tour as one of our top three bucket list experiences in South America.
From all the countries I’ve visited, Venezuela makes my top 10 in the world. And whilst Caracas was good, it was Hato El Cedral that truly made it special.
