Caracas Travel Guide
Caracas is the capital and largest city of Venezuela. It is officially known as Santiago de Leon de Caracas and is located in the northern part of the country, separated from the Caribbean Sea by the high El Avila Mountain. It was founded by the Spanish conquistador Diego de Losada in July 1567
Caracas was also the birthplace of "El Libertador" Simón Bolívar, a Venezuelan military and political leader that played a key role in South America's independence from the Spanish Empire.
Plaza Bolívar is the focus of the old town with the monument to El Libertador, Simon Bolívar, at its heart. Venezuela's most venerated building, the National Pantheon, is a few blocks north of Plaza Bolívar, on the northern edge of the old town. Formerly a church, this building was given the new purpose as the final resting place for eminent Venezuelans in 1874. Religious buildings with historical value in Caracas include the San Francisco Church, where Bolivar's funeral was held, or the Sheikh Ibrahim Al-Ibrahim Mosque, which is the second largest mosque in Latin America.
The most important tourist attractions in Caracas include the old Atheneum, the Contemporary Art Museum, the Children's museum, the Natural Science Museum, the National Library or the Federation Arch.
Tourists interested in shopping in Caracas can head for the Las Mercedes commercial district, a zone containing restaurants with varied gastronomical specialties, bars, pubs and art galleries.
Caracas, Venezuela's capital, is truly a mine of cultural heritage and certainly worth taking the time to see.