By Soren Rivero
Filled to the brim with inspiring messages of loving family, the power of friendship, and plenty of catchy music (who hasn’t listened to We Don’t Talk About Bruno on repeat?), Encanto is a magnificent film that is very well-deserving of its awards and high ratings. If you’ve been wondering where in Colombia was Encanto set, you’ve come to the right place.
The Mythical City of Encanto
The Madrigal family live in the fantasy-town of Colombia called Encanto, which is located in a real part of Colombia called Cocora Valley. The house in which Mirabel (the protagonist) and her family live is referred to as la casita, which translates to "little house" from Spanish.
Unfortunately, the town of Encanto isn’t actually real – it’s a fictional town made specifically for the plot of the film! Interestingly, the characters in the movie don’t refer to Encanto as a town, but more so refer to the entirety of the valley and even the casita as being a part of Encanto.
Encanto translates to charm or enchantment, which is indicative of the town itself. The lands practically erupt with magic, and every member of the Madrigal family is blessed with magical powers themselves — except for Mirabel, that is. Throughout the movie, you’ll see the characters refer to both their magical powers and the valley’s inherent magical prowess both as ‘Encanto.’
What Is the City of Encanto Based On?
While the city of Encanto itself isn’t actually real, it is referred to as being a small part of Cocora Valley on the Northwestern side of Colombia. The casita takes inspiration from the charming architecture that can be found on many shops and other buildings in the Old City of Cartagena — one of Colombia’s most famous cities.
What’s even more interesting is that the filmmaking team, including Lin Manuel Miranda, actually set foot on the lands of Colombia to look for inspiration on how to make Encanto. Some of the places that they visited included the aforementioned Valle de Cocora (Cocora Valley), Cartagena, Bogota, San Basilio de Palenque, and Barichara.
Encanto’s Magical River is… Real?
Aside from the places listed above, some of the plot in Encanto takes place in real-life parts of Colombia. One of those is Caño Cristales, which is a river located between the Andes Mountains and the Amazon. The river is famous for its rainbow of colors that can be seen reflected in the waters during the offseasons. It’s one of the more enticing places in Colombia that many people visit to not only view it’s magnificence, but to feel the magic of the river.
Caño Cristales is located in Serranía de la Macarena National Park and can be visited year-round. It’s recommended to visit in between the rainy and dry seasons, as that's when the river erupts in a cascade of vibrant colors due to it being the habitat of a rare aquatic plant called the clavigera macarenia. The changing colors gave this river the name of “liquid rainbow.”
Caño Cristales can be seen very early on in the film when the plot is unveiling the family’s backstory. It plays an important role in how the family gets their magical abilities, and is a perfect way to tie in reality with fiction.
A Real-Life Alternative to the town of Encanto
Another location that isn’t necessarily in the movie, but very important to its setting, is the tiny village of Barichara in Santander. The village is quite old and very much resembles how homes and shops were built and decorated a couple hundred years ago. Some even refer to it as a “village lost in time.”
This made it the perfect place to base the small village of Encanto on. The old architecture and tight-knit community of the village is exactly what the filmmakers wanted, so they took inspiration from Barichara and used it for Encanto.
The village of Barichara is actually quite well-known both by outsiders and the locals. Because of how well the village has been preserved, the government has recognized Barichara as a rich, cultural hotspot worthy of its fame. You can visit Barichara and walk the cobblestone streets by taking a trip to Northeastern Colombia, a few miles away from Medellin.
So, Can You Visit Encanto?
Since the village that the Madrigals live in is fictional, you technically can't visit it. However, the area which inspired Encanto, the Valle de Cocora, is very much real and is beautiful regardless of its reference in the movie.
Feel free to visit any of these locations on your trip to Colombia as you inhale the natural magic and beauty that is inherent to these lands!
