Full of energy, friendly people, vibrant colors, beautiful cities, and stunning natural beauty, Colombia ranks high many travelers’ desired destinations list. Having visited twice, and with plans to visit again next year, I can attest that Colombia is indeed a wonderful place worth adding to your travel list.
In fact, I have loved my visits to Colombia so much that my reflections and recommendations warrant the need for multiple articles. To begin, however, I will share a high level overview of the places in Colombia I have visited, where I stayed, and what I did while I was there.
Keep reading to get inspired to plan your trip to Colombia!
Table of Contents
How I decided to visit Colombia
I didn’t originally have Colombia on my radar as a place I wanted to travel. I just didn’t know anything about it. That all changed quickly when a friend of mine, who I met during my trip to Nepal, posted photos online of her visit to a beautiful and colorful town named Guatapé. I thought, where is that? I want to go there next.
My friend was happy to share super helpful travel tips to help me start my trip planning. Within the year, I had booked my trip. In my usual fashion, I wanted to see all that I could within a relatively short period of time. I’ll provide a similar disclaimer as the one I shared in my article about Iceland. During my first trip to Colombia, my boyfriend and I traveled to all of the following locations in 9 days. If you prefer a slower travel style, you may want to visit half of the locations we visited during this 9 day trip.
Bogotá
Bogotá is a large mountainous city with approximately 8 million residents. The capital of Colombia sits at 8612 feet (2624 meters) in the Eastern Hills, or Cerros Orientales, which are part of the Colombian Andes.
Bogotá doesn’t get the spotlight that other Colombian cities receive, however I greatly enjoyed my two visits to the city. There are numerous museums, beautiful parks, and inviting plazas filled with people, vendors, and amazing handmade crafts.
During my first trip, my boyfriend and I arrived to Bogotá the day after Christmas. It was a beautiful day and we had the afternoon and evening to walk around and explore. My first night in Bogotá was when I fell in love with Colombia. Family members from the youngest to the oldest strolled about enjoying one another, the street performers, the food and beverage vendors, the music, the lights, and the crafts. The amount of joy and light hearted fun that exuded from everyone was a theme for the entire trip.
For the first trip, we stayed in La Candelaria and during my second trip to Bogotá I stayed in the Chapinero neighborhood.
Some of the museum highlights of Bogotá include the Botero museum, Museo Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá Museum of Modern Art, and the Independence Museum (Casa del Florero). Amazingly, I have yet to make it to the Gold museum (museo del oro).
Other highlights of Bogotá include the views from Monserrate, walking around La Candelaria, Plaza de Bolívar, Parque de la Independencia, and Paloquemao, as well as the plethora of amazing coffee shops, restaurants, and cafés.
Guatapé
Guatapé was the original inspiration for my visit to Colombia and is known as one of the most colorful towns in the world. Guatapé is not only known, however, for the colorful buildings and homes but also for the symbolic tiles (zócalos) that appear on these homes. The zócalos tell a story of the homeowner and/or occupant, at least historically.
Guatapé is also known for El Peñol which is a large rock outcropping surrounded by a beautiful lake with numerous little islands. El Peñol has stairs built into the large crack on one of its sides. If you decide to climb the stairs, you will be rewarded with the stunning views of the natural landscape. At the top you can also enjoy a coffee and snack at the little cafe.
Parque Nacional Natural Tayrona and the Northern Coast
The northern coast around Parque Tayrona became one of my favorite Colombian locations. So much so, that this area of Colombia more than deserves its own article.
The coastline is beautiful and occasionally interrupted with fresh water rivers that flow from the high altitude mountains directly into the sea. As we walked along the beach we had to wade, and at times swim, across a couple of these rivers to continue our walk.
With help from the staff at our ecolodge, we signed up for a cocoa farm tour which took us into the some of the surrounding mountains. We tried the fresh cocoa fruit and other fruits from the trees as we hiked up through the property to the homestead of the farm owners.
The views of the coastline from this family’s home were absolutely beautiful. We enjoyed the process of making cocoa from scratch with multiple generations of this wonderful family.
Cartagena
From Parque Tayrona, we took a taxi to Cartagena. You can also fly from Santa Marta, but the taxi ride was only roughly 6 hours and he took us directly to our airbnb in the middle of the central historic district. I love getting to see the countryside when I travel so that was an added bonus.
Cartagena is known for its beautiful architecture and tropical climate. Tourism is a major part of the local economy for good reason. We chose to stay within the walls of central historic district, right in the middle of the action.
I loved how perfectly this lady matched the windows
The highlights of our trip to Cartagena were taking a boat tour to go swimming in the bioluminescence, eating ceviche multiple nights, trying the local fruits from the fruit stands, visiting Castillo San Felipe de Barajas, the street art, and the overall liveliness of the city.
Colombia at a glance
- Bogotá
- Visit the many museums around La Candelaria
- Stroll around Plaza de Bolivar admiring the different styles of architecture
- Take the funicular (or the cable car or hike) to Monserrate
- Peruse Paloquemao Market
- Guatapé
- Walk around town to enjoy the colorful tiles, food, and shops
- Climb El Peñol for amazing views
- Northern Coast and Parque Nacional Natural Tayrona
- Sign up for a cocoa tour
- Walk along the coast
- Visit Buritaca
- Hike within and to the beaches in Parque Tayrona
- Cartagena
- Walk around the lively streets
- Enjoy the ceviche
- Take a bioluminescence tour
- Visit Castillo San Felipe de Barajas
- Walk on top of the walls of the city
- Enjoy the street art
Conclusion
As stated in the intro, each of these areas warrant a separate article. There is so much to see and do in the listed cities, towns, and parks. I have barely scratched the surface in getting to know a country that is so full of spirit and positive energy.
Whether you like the mountains or the beach, tropical or temperate climates, quaint towns, large and lively cities, or remote wilderness, Colombia has it all.
During both of my trips, I found everyone to be so kind, helpful, and welcoming. If you have questions about my experiences in Colombia, let me know in the comments!
Have you been to Colombia?
Where did you go and what were your highlights?
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