Maracay, Venezuela

Maracay, Venezuela
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Maracay_Panoramica.jpg
Author: Steevenj


Maracay is a coastal city in north-central Venezuela. Facing the Caribbean Sea, it is the state capital of Aragua. It covers 911 sq km (352 sq mi) and has a population of 850,000 people (2011 estimate) within a metropolitan area with 1.8 million people.

Maracay was founded in 1701 by Bishop Diego de Baños y Sotomayor. It is said to have been named after a native chief, whose in turn was named after the Maracayo (Felis mitis) a small tiger.

Maracay experienced tremendous growth at the turn of the 20th century, when Venezuela was under the dictatorship of Juan Vicente Gómez, who made the city his home. Today the Gómez Mausoleum holds his remains. The modern city of Maracay is an industrial hub. It produces a wide range of products incuding chemicals, textiles, paper, cement and more.

Catedral de Maracay
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Catedral_de_Maracay2.jpg
Author: xolkanf

Visiting Maracay

Maracay does not have its own airport. You can fly in through the Arturo Michelena International Airport (VLN) in Valencia. The safest (but most expensive) option is to take a taxi from the airport to Maracay. The airport receives regular flights from Barcelona (Venezuela), Caracas, Curaçao, Maracaibo, Puerto Ordax and Santo Domingo, among others.

Places of Interest in Maracay

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Dear visitor, thank you so much for reading this page. My name is Timothy Tye and my hobby is to find out about places, write about them and share the information with you on this website. I have been writing this site since 5 January 2003. Originally (from 2003 until 2009, the site was called AsiaExplorers. I changed the name to Penang Travel Tips in 2009, even though I describe more than just Penang but everywhere I go (I often need to tell people that "Penang Travel Tips" is not just information about Penang, but information written in Penang), especially places in Malaysia and Singapore, and in all the years since 2003, I have described over 20,000 places.

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