Colombia Ecuador Border Crossing: A Step-by-Step Guide

In this guide, I’ll explain how to navigate the Colombia Ecuador border crossing by land. This route is extremely popular among both locals and backpackers. To cross from Colombia into Ecuador, I took an overnight bus from Cali and arrived in the border town of Ipiales in the morning. Before completing the border formalities, I highly recommend visiting the stunning Santuario de Las Lajas—the landmark church of Ipiales that impresses every traveler with its dramatic architecture.

Santuario de Las Lajas is a stunning gray-and-white church located in a valley about 15 minutes outside of Ipiales. To get to the church, you just need to take a taxi from Ipiales, which costs around 15,000 Pesos. You’ll get out of the taxi at the top of the valley and walk down for about 10 minutes. After the walk, you’ll be greeted by the magnificent view of the Santuario de Las Lajas. After spending some time at the church and its surroundings, you can head to the border crossing.

The Santuario de Las Lajas is a stunning neo-Gothic basilica built inside the canyon of the Guáitara River, standing approximately 100 meters high from the bottom of the gorge. Its history began with a reported miraculous sighting of the Virgin Mary on a stone slab in 1754, which led to the construction of a series of shrines on the cliffside. The current magnificent stone structure was built between 1916 and 1949, designed so that the gorge’s natural rock wall serves as the altar’s backdrop.

Today, it is connected by a bridge to the opposite side of the canyon, surrounded by lush vegetation and administrative stone buildings that house pilgrims and visitors.After spending some time at the church and its surroundings, you can head to the border crossing.

The Colombia-Ecuador border crossing is about a 20-minute taxi ride from the church, costing around 18,000 Pesos. Once you reach the border, you need to get an exit stamp on your passport, which takes about an hour. After receiving the exit stamp from Colombia, you walk across the bridge to Ecuador. The stamp process on the Ecuador side takes around 30 minutes. You’ll need to fill out a form given to you and then get your passport stamped. It’s a smooth and easy crossing.

Travelers usually make their first stop in Ibarra after crossing the border. To get to Ibarra, take a minibus from right near the border crossing to the town of Tulcan ($0.75). These minibuses end at the Tulcan bus terminal. From there, you can easily find a bus to Ibarra. The ticket price is about $3, and the journey takes approximately 3 hours.

Along the way, you might encounter several police checks. There’s no need to panic; they are only checking passports and bags. If your bus is not a direct Ibarra bus, it won’t enter the Ibarra bus terminal but will drop you off at a point closer to the city center. You can then take a taxi for about $1.5 to get to the city center.

If you’re continuing your journey through Ecuador, you can also read about one of my most unforgettable experiences in the country: my adventure in the Galápagos Islands, from planning the trip to discovering its incredible wildlife and landscapes.