Planchón in Guatapé: What It Is, What It Costs, and When to Take One

A planchón is the flat-decked barge you see crossing the Guatapé reservoir with music playing and thirty or forty people on board. It is slow, social and cheap per person, and for a lot of visitors it is the introduction to the water. Here is what a trip is actually like, what it costs, and how to decide between a planchón and a private boat.

What a planchón trip is like

You buy a seat rather than the boat, so you share the deck with whoever else turns up. The route is fixed: out past the Peñón, over the flooded old town, usually a stop near an island bar, then back. Expect around two hours, music the whole way, and drinks sold on board. It is loud, sociable and unhurried.

What it costs

Per person, and cheaply, which is the whole appeal. Prices move with the season and with how full the boat is. If you are two or three people, the planchón is almost always the cheapest way onto the reservoir.

When a private boat makes more sense

A planchón is a fixed route on a shared deck. You cannot stop where you like, you cannot swim off the back whenever you feel like it, and the music is not yours to choose. Once you are a group of six or eight, a private boat often works out similar per head, and the day becomes yours: your route, your stops, your swim breaks, and the option to add wakeboarding, waterskiing or tubing to the same trip.

The honest comparison

Planchón: cheapest per head, big crowd, fixed route, great if you want the party.

Private boat: up to 8 people for one flat hourly price, captain and fuel included, you set the route and the stops.

Neither is better. They are different days on the same water.

Book either one through us

We run our own boats from Marina Navegar, and we work with the planchón operators on the reservoir too. Tell us what kind of day you want and how many of you there are, and we will put you on the right boat. If you want the party barge, we will arrange it. If you want the reservoir to yourselves, take a look at our private boat tours.

Either way, message us and we will handle the booking.