The Chilling Story of Hotel Del Salto
The Hotel Del Salto, or The Tequendama Falls Hotel, is located in Cundinamarca, Colombia, approximately 30 km from Bogotá, in the Soacha department.
The Hotel Del Salto, or The Tequendama Falls Hotel, is located in Cundinamarca, Colombia, approximately 30 km from Bogotá, in the Soacha department. The hotel sits directly across from Tequendama Falls, a 180-meter-high natural waterfall.
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Hotel Del Salto, when translated to English, means ¨hotel of the leap¨or ¨hotel of the fall¨. Originally a residential home to an architect named Carlos Arturo Tapias; it did not become a hotel until 1928. It remained in operation for the next 60 years.
In 1950, they even started constructing an 18-floor hotel. Unfortunately, construction never began, and the original hotel became too damaged to operate. Over the years, tourism decreased to the hotel. With an increase in trash, human waste, and industrial pollution in the Bogota river, the smell became unbearable. The hotel was closed in 1990.
Tequendama can be translated to ¨he who precipitated downward¨. In the Chibcha language of the Muisca people. The natives came to the land before the Spanish invasion, which started in the 1500s.
There are rumors that the indigenous tribespeople jumped into the waterfall during the Spanish Conquest. They did this to avoid being killed and believed they would become eagles and fly away. It is said that the gods would transform them mid-jump, and they would fly away. Another side of the story is that the tribe members would take prisoners and push or make them jump to death.
The Myth is that the Gods Created The Falls.
The Muiscas are indigenous Amerindian people that have inhabited the Cundiboyacense highlands and the south of the department of Santander, in the center of the current Republic of Colombia, since approximately the 6th century BC.
The God of Bochica created the falls to prevent the flooding of the Bogota Savannah. However, Bochica only showed up because of the Muiscas. It is reported that they disrespected the gods and offended Chibchacum (the previous and beloved god).
Chibchaucum flooded the Savannah, killing people and destroying crops. When the people prayed and asked for forgiveness, the God of Bochica showed up to help. The God of Bochica then created the falls to prevent the flooding of the Bogota Savannah and saved the people.
Rumors that the hotel is haunted by its past continue to this day.
The site is still the location of many suicides. It attracts those who are brokenhearted to jump to their death. However, that is not the only reason the hotel is haunted.
A story states that after 5 pm, the paranormal activity starts and stays all night. There are stories of screams from the waterfall and shadows in the area. There have also been reports of guests claiming to see apparitions inside the hotel, and sometimes guests hear voices and talking in a strange language, perhaps that of the Muisca.
Another story is also about a beautiful young socialite who was brutally murdered in one of the rooms. Another guest killed her, and the voices told him to do it. The woman´s spirit has remained in the hotel. Some say seeking vengeance. Her spirit can be seen looking out the window of where she died.
There are reports that hotel guests fell to their deaths off the outside balcony; some say they were drunk and fell, but who knows the real story.
The road to the hotel is treacherous, leading to many accidents and frequent mudslides. Some say this is paranormal activity, but I’m afraid I have to disagree. Colombia has a tropical climate and we get a lot of rain here, mudslides are standard on all roads.
The hotel was restored in 2011 by the Ecological Farm Foundation of Porvenir. In cooperation with the National University of Colombia Institute of Natural Science started to restore the hotel. As a result, they have renamed it ¨Tequendama Falls Museum of Biodiversity and Culture¨.
In 2013, it reopened as a museum, which you can now visit if you dare. I have yet to visit this historic site, but it is on my list when I go to Bogotá.
