San Salvador attractions

La Laguna Botanical Garden is in a volcanic crater that erupted more than 2,200 years ago. After years of development for other commercial purposes, the land was turned into a botanical garden in 1976. It hosts more than 3,500 species of plants, including those used for medicinal and industrial purposes.

Opened back in 1883, the National Museum of Anthropology (Museo Nacional de Antropología Dr. David J. Guzmán) is a fascinating stop for understanding the history of El Salvador and its people. Spread out over five different halls, the museum—also known as MUNA—holds the treasures and ancient artifacts of pre-Columbian settlers, from the Maya and Olemec to Pipil tribes who inhabited the jungles and coasts. The halls are separated into five different categories, from agriculture and human settlements to religion, arts, and trade. See how native Salvadoran people once farmed and worshipped their gods, including an ancient altar of stone and petroglyphs carved into rocks. If you plan on purchasing local crafts when venturing outside the capital, this is a good spot to learn the facts behind traditional Salvadoran crafts, and gain an idea of what to look for when shopping in local villages. Arguably El Salvador’s most popular museum, the National Museum of Anthropology is a must for travelers in the city.

Just west of San Salvador, Santa Tecla was established as the “new San Salvador” in 1854 when it acted briefly as the nation’s capital after an earthquake. Some government offices still sit in the city, such as the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock. The Plaza Merliot malls, museums, and greenspaces make Santa Tecla a draw today.

For the better part of two decades, El Salvador was crippled by a brutal Civil War that left the country in tears. Entire villages were sent to slaughter, helicopters fell from the sky, and the sound of mortars striking their target was a constant reminder of the violence. Though the fighting ended in the early 1990s, Civil War stories and military relics live on inside this museum, including former military uniforms that date to the 18th century. Aside from the tanks, weaponry, and medals, the museum houses a number of items that have nothing to do with the military, like a massive, 3D, topographical map that shows all of El Salvador’s volcanoes, to the “Pope Mobile” that transported the Pope when he visited in 1981. Highlighting military in more modern times, there’s an interesting exhibit on the Salvadoran forces who recently served in Iraq, fighting alongside coalition soldiers from all different corners of the world. While the slant of the museum is decidedly pro military, it’s still an insightful, informative stop for learning El Salvador’s past.

Even though the Civil War in El Salvador ended in 1992, it still feels current, ongoing, and real, at Perquín’s Museum of the Revolution (Museo de la Revolución Salvadorena). For one thing the guides who work the museum were onetime guerilla fighters—risking their lives in tunnels and jungles to fight for the rights of the poor. When visiting this moving, informative museum, see remains of the downed helicopter that killed Colonel Monterossa—the leader of the Atlacatl Battalion responsible for the El Mozote massacre. You’ll also find craters created by bombs supplied by the US military, as well as weapons used by guerrillas to battle the government army. As this section of country was pro-FMLN, it also housed the influential Radio Venceremos, which helped to spread the leftist message throughout the rural communities. Nearby, another site has hand-dug tunnels where guerrillas would hide in the hills, and visitors are welcome to climb in the tunnels to feel the cramped, dark sense of space guerrillas endured every day. While the drive from San Salvador to Perquín is lengthy—over three bumpy hours in total—it’s a journey that’s more than worth the reward for learning these tales from the war.

December 11, 1981, is a day El Salvador will never forget. That was the day when American trained soldiers marched into the town of Mozote, and massacred over 800 civilians—half of which were children. As part of El Salvador’s brutal Civil War, the massacre was simply written off as a tragic byproduct of conflict, where leftist guerrillas must be suppressed, regardless of what it might cost. Today, the world has come to realize the slaughter was only of innocent civilians, and had no bearing, and nothing to do with, the rebels the government was fighting. When touring El Mozote Monument today, hear the stories of the lone survivor who escaped the village alive, and see the church where dozens fled just be to shot while inside. Outside the church is a powerful memorial with the names of those who were killed, and a silhouette statue of a family holding hands that rests in the “Garden of the Innocents.” A second memorial sits atop a hill just half a mile from town, where the same silhouette of the family holding hands is which looks out over the forests and valleys that housed such senseless slaughter.

Easily reached from both Santa Ana and San Salvador, the Guajoyo River is a major tributary of the Lempa River, which flows into the Pacific south of San Salvador. The tributary itself only runs for 8.5 miles (14 kilometers), and is best known to tourists as the country’s top destination for white-water rafting.

The Museo de la Palabra y la Imagen, translated to the Museum of the Word and Image, was created in 1993 via a traveling exhibition. This campaign sought to capture the documents, stories, and photographs that told the history of violence and the civil rights violations suffered during years of conflict. MUPI became a full museum in 2003.

El Salvador is a nation that’s experienced its share of tragedy in the last couple of decades. Violence, poverty, corruption, and conflict have taken their toll on local people all struggling to simply get by, and when Oscar Romero, a Catholic Archbishop, was murdered in 1980, one of their staunchest, most steadfast voices was instantly made a martyr. At the Monseñor Romero Center (Centro Monseñor Romero) on the campus of UCA, graphic displays recount the tale of his death in the middle of Mass, as well as the brutal assassination of 6 Jesuit priests. It was here where the priests were dragged from their beds and executed in the night, and photos today display how their bodies were found the following morning. Visiting the Monseñor Romero Center is a moving and sobering journey, where a dose of perspective is interspersed with displays that hang on the wall. It’s a must stop spot for anyone interested in El Salvador’s modern history, and way to learn about one of the nation’s most influential figures.