Lulumi

Quito, Pichincha · 0.9 mi / 1.5 km

Maneki Gato Café is a cat cafe, cat shop and rescue centre on Calle Inglaterra at Avenida de la República, near Parque La Carolina in northern Quito. It was founded by cat rescuer Sofía Jaramillo, who opened the current cafe in November 2021 to fund her rescue work. Rescued cats go through quarantine before moving into the gatera, a separate cat room beside the dining area, where visitors can go in and interact with them under a set of rules or watch them through the glass while they eat. More than 30 cats can live there at a time, and all are available for adoption after a careful screening process; the cafe has rehomed several hundred cats, including cats with disabilities. The menu covers coffee, smoothies, breakfasts, pancakes, sandwiches and desserts with cat motifs. There is also a shop with cat products, and the team runs workshops and themed events.

• Adoptable cats

Quito, Pichincha · 1.0 mi / 1.5 km

Gatorium is a cat cafe, pizzeria and cultural space on Calle Lugo at Barcelona in La Floresta, Quito. Opened in February 2020, it presents itself as Quito's first cat cafe and began as a volunteer project to help street cats; a small team now runs it, and its income pays for the cats' food, sterilisation, veterinary care and rescue. Around ten rescued cats, all available for adoption, live in a separate cat area that guests enter without shoes after ringing the bell at the door. Visitors can add cat time to an order from the cafe or pay a fee to visit the cats only. The short menu centres on pizza, coffee, cocktails and beer, and there is a terrace. Gatorium also hosts film nights, drawing and origami sessions, cat yoga, acoustic concerts and fairs. It is closed on Sundays and Mondays.

• Adoptable cats

Cali, Valle Del Cauca · 285 mi / 459 km

Cookie Cat Café is a cat cafe and pet shop in a house on Calle 3 in San Antonio, Cali's historic hillside neighbourhood, close to the San Antonio church and park. It was founded by Mayra Pájaro in memory of Galleta, a kitten she rescued in Barranquilla, and works with the rescue foundation Huellitas Callejeras, which receives the proceeds of the shop. The cafe serves coffee, milkshakes, desserts and themed food on the ground floor and terrace, while the rescued cats live upstairs in a separate cat area and a third-floor cat garden. Several of the cats have FIV or feline leukaemia, conditions that often bar them from other shelters, and many are available for adoption. Ceramic painting and cat yoga sessions are held, and a cat-themed coworking space, Catworking, operates in the same building.

• Adoptable cats

Piura · 376 mi / 605 km

JUVAMA Café Cat is a small cafe on Calle Corpac, near Piura's airport, where the owner looks after a group of rescued street cats that live in the dining room and mingle with customers. Visitors have counted around a dozen cats, and they greet guests, sit on the cushioned seats and let themselves be stroked. The menu is simple and inexpensive: fresh fruit juices, coffee, sandwiches and chifles, the fried plantain chips typical of northern Peru. There is no separate cat room or entry fee, and cat hair is part of the experience, so visitors with allergies should take note. The owner has added skylights to keep the room ventilated. The cafe opens early in the morning, which makes it a possible stop before a flight.

Armenia, Quindio · 381 mi / 612 km

Don Gato is the first cat cafe in Armenia, the capital of Quindío in Colombia's coffee region, and sits on Calle 8 in the city. Its 'casita gatuna' is a place to switch off, eat and spend time with rescued cats, which live there as a foster home while the team looks for adoptive families. The cats wander freely and often climb onto the tables. The menu is varied, with coffee, drinks such as mint lemonade, savoury dishes and desserts like almojábana pudding, and every visit helps fund the rescues. The cafe has board games and a film room with screenings on Thursdays, and house rules for interacting with the cats are posted for visitors. It opens every afternoon except Sunday.

• Adoptable cats

Pereira, Risaralda · 395 mi / 636 km

Café Bigotes is a cat cafe and hobby centre in Providencia, Pereira, on Calle 21 west of the city centre. It began as the first cat cafe in Pereira and works as a cage-free foster home for cats waiting for adoption: about 14 cats live in the cafe, and sales also support many more cats in foster care elsewhere. Visitors order coffee, sodas, empanadas, cakes and light meals and spend time with the cats, which are all adoptable; donations for their upkeep are welcome. The cafe is also a meeting point for board-game players, and on Wednesday evenings a local tabletop group meets there, with no charge beyond what guests choose to order. It opens in the afternoons from Wednesday to Sunday and on public holidays.

• Adoptable cats