The Longest and Highest Cable Car Ride... in the World.

Aside from having the highest waterfall in the world, Venezuela also holds the record for having the highest and longest cable car ride in the world, too. Riding the Teleférico de Mérida is one of the things you must do while you're in Mérida, and it is quite a fun expereience. It goes all the way to the top to Pico Espejo, a peak that is right in front of Venezuela's highest mountain, Pico Bolívar.

Don't expect it to be one long cable car ride, though. It is divided into 4 smaller rides, starting from Mérida and ending on Pico Espejo:

During the ride they play traditional music from the Venezuelan Andes with a narrator describing how the cable car was built, though the narrator sounds like a Japanese narrator (very articulate and excited) and it can get quite annoying after 8 rides, especially if you don't speak Spanish and have no idea what he's saying. However, almost everyone is so excited about the ride that they talk all the way through, completely ingnoring the narrator.

Some of the stations in between have some mild entertainment, like a tiny exhibit about Pico Bolívar, and some of the employees play traditional Venezuelan music:


Of course, they ask you to donate some money for these events.

The second to last station has a food area where you can get some okay food and some hot chocolate, though this is for when you're coming back from the top because they like to take you all the way up as fast as possible.

Pico Espejo is interesting because it's always changing depending on the weather. The last time I was there, like 17 years ago, it was clear and sunny and I thought it was the coldest weather I've ever felt in my life. You could see Pico Bolívar, which is always covered with snow and it looks really cool. The only way to get to Pico Bolivar, though, is if you're a professional climber.

This time around, it was cold indeed but nothing to die for; I guess I've experienced worse. It was also completely foggy and we couldn't even see Pico Bolívar at all! However, there were some patches of snow, and my Venezuelan friends were quite excited about it. Because of the high altitudes you may experience some dizzyness. I did, especially coming back from the Pico.

There's also a Virgin Mary statue where you can take some pictures. I'm not really sure if the statue has any significance other than spiritual protection.

Unfortunately, the next day we noticed from the city of Mérida that Pico Bolívar could be seen and it was completely covered in snow. If we could have waited one more day...

Don't forget to check out all of my pictures of the Teleférico.