Before You Go
- Confirm passport validity and entry requirements.
- Check whether a tourist visa is required.
- Keep digital copies of important documents.
- Consider purchasing travel insurance.
Caracas
Venezuelan Bolívar (VES)
Spanish
Dec–Apr
VET (UTC−4)
Welcome to Venezuela, a South American country home to dramatic tabletop mountains, the world's tallest waterfall, and a stunning Caribbean coastline. Angel Falls plunges dramatically from a towering tepui deep within Canaima National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Caracas, the capital, sits framed by mountains, blending vibrant culture with a dramatic natural backdrop. Venezuela's Los Roques archipelago offers pristine white-sand islands and turquoise waters largely undiscovered by mass tourism. The Gran Sabana's otherworldly tepuis create a landscape unlike anywhere else on Earth. Venezuela's Andean highlands offer cooler mountain scenery and traditional villages far from the tropical coast. Traditional joropo music and dance reflect the country's vibrant cultural heritage. Venezuela invites the most adventurous travelers to discover extraordinary natural wonders across dramatically varied terrain.
Helpful information to consider before and during your visit.
Discover some of Venezuela's most popular flavors, traditional dishes and memorable local treats during your visit.
Arepas is a well-known part of Venezuela's cuisine and offers visitors a flavorful introduction to the country's food traditions.
Pabellón Criollo is a well-known part of Venezuela's cuisine and offers visitors a flavorful introduction to the country's food traditions.
Hallacas is a well-known part of Venezuela's cuisine and offers visitors a flavorful introduction to the country's food traditions.
Cachapas is a well-known part of Venezuela's cuisine and offers visitors a flavorful introduction to the country's food traditions.
Asado Negro is a well-known part of Venezuela's cuisine and offers visitors a flavorful introduction to the country's food traditions.
Empanadas Venezolanas is a well-known part of Venezuela's cuisine and offers visitors a flavorful introduction to the country's food traditions.
Tequeños is a well-known part of Venezuela's cuisine and offers visitors a flavorful introduction to the country's food traditions.
Patacón Maracucho is a well-known part of Venezuela's cuisine and offers visitors a flavorful introduction to the country's food traditions.
Quesillo is a well-known part of Venezuela's cuisine and offers visitors a flavorful introduction to the country's food traditions.
Venezuela is home to Angel Falls, the tallest uninterrupted waterfall in the world, plunging over 3,200 feet from the top of a flat-topped mountain called a tepui in the country's remote Canaima National Park, a height so great that much of the water evaporates into mist before reaching the ground below. The country also holds the largest proven oil reserves of any nation on Earth, a resource that has shaped much of its modern political and economic history, for better and worse, over the past century.
Venezuela is home to Lake Maracaibo, which experiences one of the most unusual and frequent lightning phenomena on the planet, known as the Catatumbo lightning, where thunderstorms produce near-continuous lightning strikes on many nights of the year, so consistent that sailors historically used the flashes as a natural lighthouse for navigation. The country's tepuis, ancient flat-topped mountains rising dramatically out of the jungle, are considered some of the oldest geological formations on Earth and are believed to have partly inspired the fictional setting of Arthur Conan Doyle's novel "The Lost World."
Venezuela has experienced a severe economic and political crisis in recent years that has driven one of the largest mass migrations in modern Latin American history, with millions of Venezuelans relocating to neighboring countries.
