Traveling the La Ruta de las Flores, slowly and purposefully, is like a meander through the story of El Salvador. It's a searingly beautiful series of villages, each with a mix of colonial architecture in indigenous tones. Those who like the good life can feast on local food, particularly at the weekend markets, browse the craft tiendas, or undertake firsthand research into why El Salvadoran coffee is renowned across the world. If the pace is too slow, you can hit the Cordillera Apaneca, a volcanic mountain range filled with waterfalls, mountain-bike trails, and pine forest hikes where white flowers bloom in May. In 1932 this region witnessed the horrible Peasant Massacre, when mostly Nahuatl coffee farmers were slaughtered by government troops for an attempted insurrection and mass protest. The actual number of deaths still varies, but 30,000 people is a close estimate.
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Beginning out of Sonsonate, La Ruta de Las Flores in El Salvador a mountainous road stretching just over twenty miles. It got its name, meaning route of the flowers, for the seasonal burst of colourful flowers that line the expanse of road between October and February. This is a great option for those looking for a day away from the surfer scene of the nearby coastal towns.
Ahuachapán is a city in western El Salvador. The municipality has a population of 110,000 people. Situated near the Guatemalan border, it is the westernmost city in the country and is the centre of an agricultural region producing primarily coffee. Ahuachapán is the site of a geothermal power plant and a hydroelectric station. The local geothermal activity produces many steam vents, visible throughout the surrounding mountains. Among other things, Ahuachapan is also the birthplace of notable Salvadoran poet Alfredo Espino and is about an hour's drive from the national wildlife park El Imposible. Near the Iglesia La Asunción, the Francisco Menéndez Park has a monument to honour General Francisco Menéndez who was president of the republic. There is a bronze plate indicating the house where he lived. One of the main attractions is the Central Plaza, which contains: the Central Park, known as Parque Concordia, surrounded by City Hall (a modern style building with a little resemblance of art deco, rebuilt after a fire in the 1950s), the town's main church, Iglesia de La Asunción, which is over 100 years old, and the Pasaje Concordia, also known as "the new place in town," that was restored in the early twenty first century and is a pedestrian-only street.
Concepción de Ataco is a town within the Ahuachapán Department, El Salvador. This is where we stayed. It has a population of 18,000 inhabitants. One of the most famous handicraft shops that has treadle looms is Diconte & Axul. Established in an old house, dating from 1910, near the centre of town, : however we never did find it. .
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Hotel Casa de Graciela
9.6 on Booking and on Tripadvisor and hotels own web site. Boutique Bed & Breakfast is located in Concepción de Ataco, 10 km from Ahuachapán. Housed in a historic building. It is a well maintained colonial house in the centre of the town. You are literally 10 meters from the town square
We were the only guests the night we stayed, and the staff just abandoned us. We enjoyed the building and the gardens, but getting a drink or food was difficult.
Our room was very small. It was a nice boutique hotel, but a boutique hotel without a soul
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Ruta de los Flores
It certainly lived up to its name, and we passed masses of flowers of different colours
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There was much more to see during this day's travel, as we skirted San Salvador, headed north, then returned to our hotel in San Salvador