Colombia Travel Map

Bogotá
The capital, a cosmopolitan city two miles high, with some eight million people sprawling outwards from Andean mountains, where you'll find excellent museums, world-class dining, and almost everything one wants from a big city.
The city’s cultural epicentre is La Candelaria, the cobbled historic downtown to which most travellers gravitate. Here, a potpourri of carefully preserved colonial buildings is home to museums, restaurants, hotels and bars, peppered amid 300-year-old houses, churches and convents. The city’s grittier sides sit south and southwest, where working-class barrios continue to battle their reputations for drugs and crime. In the ritzier north you’ll find boutique hotels, and well-heeled locals piling into chic entertainment districts such as the Zona Rosa and Zona G. Here, rust-tinted sunsets dramatically bounce off the bricks of upper-class Bogotá’s Andes-hugging residential buildings – a cinematic ceremony that begins the city’s uproarious evenings.
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Catedral de Sal
Far and away the most popular day trip from Bogotá is to head 50km north of the city to the Salt Cathedral - a colossal church built underground in a former salt mine, with passages lined with exquisite sculptures, and a radiant cross rising over the altar of the cavernous nave.
This underground cathedral carved out of salt is one of only three such structures in the world (the other two are in Poland).
In the mountains about 500m southwest of Zipaquirá there are two salt cathedrals: the first opened in 1954 and was closed in 1992 for safety reasons, but you can visit its stunning replacement. Between 1991 and 1995, around 250,000 tons of salt were cleared away to carve out the moody, ethereal underground sanctuary, hailed as one of Colombia’s greatest architectural achievements. You’ll descend to 180m below ground through 14 small chapels representing the Stations of the Cross (Jesus’ last journey), each an evocatively lit triumph of both symbolism and mining. But nothing prepares you for the trail’s culmination in the main nave, where a mammoth cross (the world’s largest in an underground church) is illuminated from the base up. The tradition of mixing religion with salt has logical roots: work in the mines was dangerous, so altars were made.
All visitors must join regularly departing groups on hour-long tours – you can leave the tour once you’re inside if you want.
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Villa de Leyva
One of the most beautiful colonial villages in Colombia, Villa de Leyva is a city frozen in time. Declared a national monument in 1954, the photogenic village has been preserved in its entirety, with cobblestone roads and whitewashed buildings. Villa’s physical beauty and mild, dry climate have long attracted outsiders. The town was founded in 1572 by Hernán Suárez de Villalobos, and early on it was mainly a retreat for military officers, clergy and the nobility.
In recent years an influx of wealthy visitors and expats has slowly transformed this once-hidden gem. Boutique hotels, gourmet restaurants and tacky tourist shops are replacing many of the old family hosterías (inns) and cafes, and the authenticity. On weekends the narrow alleys can get downright crammed with day-trippers from Bogotá. But, thankfully, on weekdays it reverts to a peaceful, bucolic village.
Villa de Leyva is a leisurely place made for wandering – roam the charming cobblestone streets, listen to the church bells and enjoy the lazy rhythm of days gone by. It’s also famous for its abundance of fossils from the Cretaceous and Mesozoic periods, when this area was underwater. Look closely and you’ll notice that fossils have been used as construction materials in floors, walls and pavements.
Archaeological relics, colonial monuments, petroglyphs, caves, lakes and waterfalls are among the attractions surrounding the picturesque colonial village of Villa de Leyva. Endowed with gentle pastoral fields and crisscrossed by quiet country lanes, the area is ideal for walking and cycling.
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Tunja
The capital of Boyacá and a bustling student center, Tunja was founded by Gonzalo Suárez Rendón in 1539 on the site of Hunza, the pre-Hispanic Muisca settlement. Almost nothing is left of the indigenous settlement, but much colonial architecture remains. Tunja is particularly noted for its colonial churches; several imposing examples dating from the 16th century stand almost untouched by time. The town also has an imposing central square, the Plaza de Bolívar, and elegant mansions adorned with some of South America’s most unique artwork.
Several colonial mansions in Tunja, including the Casa del Fundador Suárez Rendón and the Casa de Don Juan de Vargas, have ceilings adorned with paintings featuring a strange mishmash of motifs taken from very different traditions. They include mythological scenes, human figures, animals and plants, coats of arms and architectural details.
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Santuario de Flora y Fauna de Iguaque
Covering 67.5 sq km, this unique páramo (high-mountain plains) neotropical ecosystem contains hundreds of species of flora and fauna but is most noted for the frailejón, a shrub typical of the highlands. There are eight small mountain lakes in the reserve, sitting at an altitude of between 3550m and 3700m, although the only one accessible to visitors is Laguna de Iguaque.
Only 50 people are allowed to enter the sanctuary per day. Note that entry to the park is only permitted until 10am – even if you have a reservation for accommodations – after which point you’ll be turned around at the gate.
The well-signposted hike from the visitors center to Laguna de Iguaque is 4.7km long and climbs 800m. It’s easily done solo and takes about three hours. A leisurely round trip takes five to six hours. A rather fastidious 10-minute briefing is given to all hikers before they set out.
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Parque Nacional Natural El Cocuy
Covering an enormous 306,000 hectares, Parque Nacional Natural El Cocuyis home to some of Colombia’s most impressive landscapes and is the main attraction of the Sierra Nevada del Cocuy region. It has 15 peaks that are at least 5000m, the highest of which is Ritacuba Blanco at 5330m.
Once off-limits because of the security situation, the park is now safe to visit, but access can still be complicated. After some areas were closed off to visitors indefinitely and negotiations with local indigenous communities, the park re-opened in 2017 with major restrictions. It’s no longer possible to touch any of the glaciers, making climbing the peaks impossible, and overnight stays are no longer permitted. Check ahead to see if the situation has changed by the time you visit.
The mountains of PNN El Cocuy are relatively compact and easy to reach. The complete Güicán–El Cocuy Circuit Trek, which traverses passes that top out at Boquerón de la Sierra (4650m) and takes in the park’s most transcendent attraction, Laguna de la Plaza, was indefinitely closed at research time. However, there are three shorter day hikes in operation that take visitors to the edge of the glaciers. The hike to the snow line is only about three hours from the northern park boundary.
No special experience is required. However, due to the elevation and the terrain, park officials now require that all visitors hire the services of a local guide. It’s recommend that hikers have at least some previous trekking experience and be in good health. Park entry is prohibited to children under 10 years, and is not recommended for pregnant women and people with heart or lung ailments.
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Monguí
Once voted the most beautiful village in Boyacá, Monguí is just 14km east of Sogamoso but feels far removed from the latter’s industrial landscapes. The first missionaries appeared in the region around 1555, but the town wasn’t founded until 1601. It later became a catechetic center of the Franciscan monks – as evidenced by one of Monguí’s most striking buildings, the Convento de los Franciscano - which dominates the plaza.
Today this idyllic Christmas-colored village boasts uniform green-and-white colonial architecture only interrupted by the occasional newer brick construction that evokes the English countryside. Either way, the beautiful facades drip with colorful red-rose-scented geraniums and ivy. It’s a truly lovely pueblo adhering to a fiercely authentic ethos.
Monguí is the base for some satisfying but little-trodden high-altitude hikes. It’s the main starting point for the 18km journey on foot through the unique alpine tundra of Páramo de Ocetá. Due to disputes with local landowners, for this hike it is important to hire a local guide who knows which lands are open.
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San Gil
For a small city, San Gil packs a lot of punch. This is the outdoors capital of Colombia and a mecca for extreme-sports enthusiasts. The area is best known for white-water rafting, but other popular pastimes include paragliding, caving, rappelling and trekking. San Gil has a handsome 300-year-old town square and Parque El Gallineral, a beautiful nature reserve on the banks of the Río Fonce.
San Gil may not be the prettiest town in Colombia, but dig beneath the exterior and you’ll discover a wonderful city of natural beauty and friendly, welcoming residents. San Gil definitely lives up to its motto, ‘La Tierra de Aventura’ (The Land of Adventure).
- San Gil’s showpiece is the salubrious Parque El Gallineral, a 4-hectare park set on a triangular island between two arms of the Quebrada Curití and Río Fonce. Many of the 1900 trees are covered with long, silvery tendrils of moss called barbas de viejo (old man’s beard), hanging from branches to form translucent curtains of foliage and filtered sunlight. It’s like a scene set in JRR Tolkien’s Middle Earth.
- Take a day trip to the spectacular Cascadas de Juan Curi - a 180m-high waterfall where you can swim in the natural pool at its base or relax on the rocks. Adventure junkies can rappel the sheer face of the falls; book this activity with one of the tour companies. Juan Curi is 22km from San Gil on the road to Charalá. Charalá buses (COP$6300, one hour) depart twice hourly from the local bus terminal.
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Barichara
Barichara is the kind of town that Hollywood filmmakers dream about. A Spanish colonial town saturated with atmosphere, it boasts cobblestone streets and whitewashed buildings with red-tiled roofs that look almost as new as the day they were constructed some 300 years ago. It’s no wonder that many Spanish-language films and telenovelas are shot here. Granted, the movie-set appearance owes a debt to considerable reconstruction efforts made since the town was declared a national monument in 1978.
The town is located 20km northwest of San Gil, high above the Río Suárez. Founded in 1705, its natural beauty, temperate climate and bohemian lifestyle have long attracted visitors. In recent years Barichara has become a magnet for affluent Colombians. Compared to Villa de Leyva, Barichara is more upscale but less touristy. It is, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful small colonial towns in Colombia.
Don’t miss the spectacular hike to the hamlet of Guane on the historic El Camino Real. This ancient stone-paved road was built by the indigenous Guane people and rebuilt continuously over the centuries. It was declared a national monument in 1988. From Barichara the easy 9km hike takes about two hours to complete. The trail is mostly downhill, occasionally crossing over the modern highway to Guane. You’ll begin the hike by climbing down the rim of a canyon and then traversing a valley filled with cacti and trees, occasionally encountering grazing goats or cows but rarely other humans. Notice the many fossils embedded in the stone road. While most visitors just hike the short leg between Barichara and Guane, it’s possible to extend the trek into a multiday adventure by continuing to Villanueva and down into the Cañon de Chicamocha to the tiny town of Jordán at the bottom of the canyon, before climbing up to Mesa de los Santos.
In Barichara, El Camino Real begins at the northern end of Calle 4, where a sign marks the beginning of the trail. If you plan to hike the full trail, leave your luggage in storage in San Gil or Barichara – you don’t want extra weight in the canyon. Bring a hat, sunscreen and plenty of water.
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Parque Nacional del Chicamocha
Parque Nacional del Chicamocha, or ‘Panachi’ as it’s known by locals, isn’t a national park in the conventional sense. It’s really a slightly tacky amusement park built atop some spectacular mountains. There are no hiking trails here, but there is a mirador (lookout) offering magnificent 360-degree views. The highlight of the park is the 6.3km-long, 30-minute teleférico, which descends to the base of the canyon, then ascends to the top of the opposite rim.
Other activities include an extreme swing and a zipline. The park also houses the mildly diverting Museum of Guane Culture (full of pre-Colombian Guane ceramics), several restaurants, a 4D cinema, a children’s playground, a forgettable ostrich farm and the strange but striking Monumento a la Santandereanidad, a huge multistatue sculpture (with running commentaries in Spanish and English) commemorating the revolutionary spirit of santanderians (inhabitants of Santander province).
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Bucaramanga
Dubbed ‘The City of Parks,’ Santander’s capital has some fine green spaces and is a suitable spot to recharge your batteries. It comes to life at night, when dozens of clubs, hundreds of bars and the students of 10 universities don their party hats.
Buca, as it’s known to locals, is one of Colombia’s major cities. It has a greater metropolitan population of about a million; it’s packed with skyscrapers and surrounded by mountains. While it may not be the most interesting city in the country, it’s not overrun with visitors and is a pleasant place to get a taste of the region’s culture.
The city was founded in 1622 and developed around what is today the Parque García Rovira, but most of its colonial architecture is long gone. Over the centuries the city center moved east, and today Parque Santander is Bucaramanga’s heart. Further east are newer, posh neighbourhoods with hotels and nightspots.
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Cartagena
The Heroic City, Capital of the Bolívar department is a Colombia's tourist city par excellence. Colonial architecture and skyscrapers can be seen together in this city which offers a unique combination of festivals, historic attractions, restaurants, and hotels.
Cartagena’s Old Town is a Unesco World Heritage Site – a maze of cobbled alleys, balconies covered in bougainvillea, and massive churches that cast their shadows across leafy plazas. This is a place to drop all sightseeing routines. Instead of trying to tick off all the sights, just stroll through the Old Town day and night. Soak up the sensual atmosphere, pausing to ward off the brutal heat and humidity in one of the city’s many excellent bars and restaurants. Holding its own against Brazil’s Ouro Preto and Peru’s Cuzco for the continent’s most enthralling and impressively preserved historic city, Cartagena is hard to walk away from – it seizes you in its aged clutches and refuses to let go.
Cartagena has a huge choice of places to sleep, though you’ll pay a pretty penny for anything above a hostel or a very simple midrange hotel. Catering to wealthy Colombian and US weekenders, the town’s top-end accommodations have truly stratospheric rates, and there’s an enormous number of beautifully restored boutique colonial options to choose from. Getsemaní, especially Calle de la Media Luna, is the main place to find budget accommodations.
- Without a doubt, Cartagena’s old city is its principal attraction, particularly the inner walled town consisting of the historical districts of El Centro and San Diego. El Centro in the west was traditionally home to the upper classes, and San Diego in the northeast was previously occupied by the middle classes. Both sections of the Old Town are packed with perfectly preserved colonial churches, monasteries, plazas, palaces and mansions, with balconies and shady patios that overflow with bright flowers.
- With its modest architecture, the outer walled town of Getsemaní is less obviously impressive, but as it’s far more residential and less sanitized, it offers plenty of atmosphere and is well worth exploring. In recent years it has become a backpacker hub, and gentrification has come astonishingly quickly – the area is full of trendy restaurants, packed cocktail bars and salsa clubs, and almost as many boutique hotels as the inner walled town. A beautiful walkway alongside the Muelle Turístico de los Pegasos, links Getsemaní with the Old Town.
- The Old Town is surrounded by Las Murallas, the thick walls built as protection against enemies. Construction began toward the end of the 16th century, after a siege by Francis Drake; until that time Cartagena was almost completely unprotected. The project took two centuries to complete due to repeated damage from storms and pirate attacks. It was finally finished in 1796, just 25 years before the Spaniards were eventually expelled.
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Barranquilla
The Gold Port and fourth-largest city in the nation isn't necessarily that exciting a place to be most of the year, but its Carnival is the second biggest in the world after Rio's.
While Barranquilla attracts big crowds for Mardi Gras, at any other time of the year there are very few visitors, and most travellers skip the town altogether (there’s very little to see compared with elsewhere on the coast). If you do come, you’ll find a city proud to be the home of costeño (people from the coast) culture, and one with plenty of excellent restaurants, lively bars and a smattering of decent museums.

The Lost City, Camino a Ciudad Perdida
Ciudad Perdida (Lost City) disappeared into the jungle around the time of the Spanish Conquest and was only ‘discovered’ again in the 1970s. Deep in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains, it remains accessible only on foot in what is easily one of Colombia’s most exciting and breath-taking hikes. Known locally by its indigenous name Teyuna, the city was built by the Tayrona people on the northern slopes of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. Today it’s one of the largest known pre-Columbian towns in the Americas, and the focus of Colombia’s most popular multiday hike. Doing the hike is a fantastic experience, and you don’t need to be particularly strong or experienced to do it. The landscapes and the sense of remoteness will stay with you long after you return.
The round trip is just shy of 45km, but it feels like a lot more as you scramble uphill, slide through mud downhill and generally exhaust every leg muscle you have. In the dry season the schedule can vary. Ask your tour company for a detailed itinerary. You walk in and out along the same route; travel agencies are continuing to negotiate with the indigenous Wiwa people to grant access to a different route out, but the Wiwa understandably remain extremely protective of their lands.
The normal hike is challenging but not mercilessly so; although each day covers only 5km to 8km, it’s nearly all very steep ascent or descent. If you’ve never hiked before in your life, you’ll find it tough, but even unfit first-timers complete the journey. At times you’ll be scrambling alongside vertiginous river banks, clutching onto vines, and most people find that carrying a stick helps with balance. The rainy season brings its own challenges, such as surging rivers; heavy, boot-caking mud; and collapsed walkways.
The driest period is from late December to February or early March. Depending on the season, on day three you might have to cross the Río Buritaca multiple times, at times going in up to your waist, and finally you’ll have to slog up Ciudad Perdida’s mystical but slippery, moss-strewn rock steps – all 1260 of them – that lead to the site.
Along the way, the food is surprisingly good and the accommodations are comfortable, often located by rivers, where you can cool off in natural swimming pools. The scenery is (obviously) nothing short of astonishing: this is a walk that is done at least as much for the journey as for the destination.
The site itself, a high plateau surrounded by blindingly brilliant jungle, is fascinating, and you’ll likely only be sharing it with your group and the few Colombian soldiers stationed there when you arrive.
It’s important to be aware that the mountains are sacred to all the indigenous people who live there, so it’s essential to leave absolutely no litter (and by all means pick up any you find on the route), and behave with respect within the Ciudad Perdida site.
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Parque Nacional Natural Tayrona
Tayrona National Park, in northern Colombia, is a large protected area covering the foothills of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta as they meet the Caribbean coast. It’s known for its palm-shaded coves, coastal lagoons, rainforest and rich biodiversity. At its heart, the Pueblito ruins are an archaeological site accessed via forest trails, with terraces and structures built by the Tayrona civilization.
The park stretches along the coast from the Bahía de Taganga near Santa Marta to the mouth of the Río Piedras, 35km east, and covers some 12,000 hectares of land and 3000 hectares of coral-rich sea. The park gets extremely crowded in high season (December and January), and vicious currents mean that most of the gorgeous beaches aren’t suitable for swimming, though you can take a dip and snorkel (with great care) at a select, safer few. Despite these issues, Tayrona is an immensely attractive place and one that’s rewarding and exciting to explore. There are multiple options for spending a night or two in the park, though they are either exceptionally expensive or very basic.
- From El Zaíno, a 4km paved side road goes northwest to Castilletes, the longest beach in the park and the first place you can turn in for the night. A van plies the route constantly if you need a ride.
- A few more kilometres down the road is Cañaveral, also on the beach. Here you’ll find a campground, upscale cabañas and a restaurant. You can then continue to walk along to all the beaches and even up to Pueblito, a small indigenous village in the middle of the jungle.
- Cabo San Juan del Guía is a beautiful cape with a knockout beach. It’s also by far the most crowded area of the park, although lack of road access deters casual day-trippers. The area has a restaurant and a campsite.

Santa Marta
A popular base for adventure tourism in the beautiful areas surrounding it, and unique in the sense that it offers you beautiful beaches one day, and the next a walk to the foothill of a snowy mountain, the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, the highest in the country.
Despite its long history and charming center, it gets a bad rap from many travellers, who cite its unlovely urban sprawl and terrible traffic as reasons not to hang about here. The secret to Santa Marta is to use it for what it does well: hotels, restaurants and bars, and then get out to the slew of superb nearby destinations during the daytime. Even so, following an impressive sprucing up of its colonial heart, Santa Marta has gained a bit more of its own charm, and you might well find yourself spending more time here than you imagined. The climate is hot, but the heat here is drier than in Cartagena, and the evening sea breeze keeps the city cool after dark.

Minca
Perched 600m high up in the Sierra Nevada above Santa Marta, Minca is a small mountain village famous for its organic coffee, incredibly varied birdlife and – perhaps more importantly – much cooler temperatures than on the scorching coast below. The town, which until a few years ago could only be reached via a dirt road, is delightful, surrounded by thick cloud forest and soaring mountain peaks. Despite being recognized by UNESCO as a biosphere reserve since 1980, it’s only in the last few years that Minca has grown as a traveller destination, with a slew of new hostels and hotels.
It’s now well and truly on the map, however, and specializes in ultra remote traveller retreats scattered amid the surrounding steep mountainsides. A great base for mountain biking, bird-watching and hiking, Minca also offers delightfully warm locals who seem genuinely happy to see visitors.
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Palomino
Palomino doesn’t look like much as you pass through on the main Santa Marta–Riohacha highway, but lurking on one side of its urban sprawl is one of Colombia’s most perfect beaches, while on the other are the dramatic Sierra Nevada mountains, a place the local indigenous people still guard carefully from outsiders. Palomino makes a wonderful base from which to explore both, with a number of great accommodations options and a backpacker vibe you’ll not find in many other places along the coast.
Along Palomino’s palm-backed beach you’ll also find fishers using traditional nets, while in its mountainous hinterland indigenous tribes live as they have done for centuries. With seven ecosystems between the beach and the glaciers of the Sierra Nevada, it’s no surprise that ecotourism has slowly come into its own here, making Palomino an almost obligatory stop for Colombia travellers.
Palomino has some of the best traveler hostels and most laid-back beach hotels in the country. Most listings are on the beach, but all can arrange trips into the mountains for activities, including hiking, tubing or white-water rafting.

Taganga
Once a tiny fishing village, Taganga seemed to have hit the jackpot when it became a big backpacker destination in the early 2000s. It drew a diverse crowd of locals and travellers, and quietly boomed. Hostels and restaurants prospered with the endless stream of visitors.
Taganga today is something of a cautionary tale about the overdevelopment of small towns, though, and in the past few years the village has gone from a near-obligatory backpacker stop to a rather depressing place where poverty is rife and much of what originally attracted visitors has disappeared. That said, some travellers still come here for cheap accommodations, partying and diving; there are also those who love being so close to Parque Nacional Natural (PNN) Tayrona, just a short boat ride away. The town’s hostel owners are a determined bunch and are doggedly fighting to restore Taganga to its former glory.

Riohacha
Riohacha, traditionally the end of the line, is the gateway to the northern, semiarid desert region of La Guajira and retains more than a little frontier-town feeling. As tourism in the peninsula has developed in recent years, Riohacha has become an unlikely traveller hub of sorts and you may find yourself spending the night here on the way to or from more isolated and beautiful parts of Colombia. The town isn’t teeming with things to do, but it’s pleasant enough; there’s a 5km-long beach strewn with palm trees, and the long pier, constructed in 1937, makes for a lovely evening stroll. Despite Riohacha’s oppressive daytime heat, there’s generally a cool breeze coming in off the Caribbean, and the town is friendly and welcoming.

Cabo de la Vela
The fishing village of Cabo de la Vela, 180km northwest of Riohacha, was until recently little more than a remote rural community, its Wayuu inhabitants living in traditional huts made from cactus right up against the sea. But in the last couple of years Cabo has become a hotbed of ecotourism and kitesurfing and now boasts a wealth of indigenous-style accommodations. Nevertheless, the village still has electricity by generator only, and there are few fixed phone lines. Internet access is sporadic at best.
The surrounding area is a highlight of the Upper Guajira and one of the most starkly beautiful spots in Colombia. The cape for which it’s named is full of rocky cliffs above and sandy beaches below, all set against a backdrop of stunning desert ochres and aquamarines. If you’re looking for peace and quiet, Cabo is best avoided around Easter, December and January.
- Playa del Pilón, far and away the most beautiful beach in Cabo, is a vivid orange-sand beach lapped by surprisingly cool waters and framed by low, rocky cliffs. Spectacular at any time of day, the colours are especially impressive at sunrise and sunset. In the wet season add lush desert flora to the mix and the whole scene is rather cinematic.
- Pilón de Azúcar looms over the eponymous beach and provides the area’s most telescopic viewpoint, with the whole of Alta Guajira displayed before you and the Serranía del Carpintero mountain range in the distance. A statue of La Virgen de Fátima, erected here in 1938 by Spanish pearl hunters, stands at the top of the viewpoint as the patron saint of Cabo.

Punta Gallinas
Punta Gallinas is South America’s most northerly point and offers one of the continent’s most dazzling landscapes. Its access point, Bahía Hondita, is where burnt-orange cliffs surround an emerald bay with a wide and wild beach, beyond which is a large colony of pink flamingos. Otherwise the bay is home to just eight Wayuu families, who dwell in an exceptionally harsh environment peppered with vibrant green vegetation and shared only with herds of goats and locusts.
As the continent gives way to the Caribbean, sand dunes topping 60m high push right up against the turquoise sea, like a five-story sand tsunami in reverse. This is Playa Taroa, perhaps Colombia’s most beautiful and certainly its least trampled-upon beach, accessed by sliding down a towering sand dune right into the water.
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Playa Blanca
Playa Blanca lives up to its name – it is indeed a lovely stretch of sugary white sand and one of the finest beaches around Cartagena. However, encroaching development and incessant hawkers mean that it can feel extremely overcrowded during high season and at weekends, so it’s best to visit during the week and outside of December and January.
The beach is located about 20km southwest of Cartagena, on the Isla de Barú. It’s usually a stop for boat tours heading to the Islas del Rosario. Beware: when the boats arrive, peddlers descend in their droves, offering everything from beach chairs to massages (most of them ridiculously overpriced). Keeping these folks at bay can be an irksome challenge. The only thing worth buying is cocada, a sweet coconut treat available in a variety of flavours. Playa Blanca is also good for snorkelling – if you can see past the Jet-skis.
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Islas Del Rosario
An archipelago about 35km southwest of Cartagena, the Islas del Rosario consist of 27 small coral islands, including some tiny islets. The islands are surrounded by coral reefs, where the color of the sea is an incredible combination of cerulean and turquoise. The whole area has been declared a national park, the PNN Corales del Rosario y San Bernardo. Sadly, warm-water currents have eroded the reefs, and the diving isn’t as good as it once was. But water sports are still popular, and the two largest islands, Isla Grande and Isla del Rosario, have inland lagoons and some tourist facilities, such as hotels and a resort. The islands can be visited in a day trip from Cartagena, although to really appreciate them and to avoid the crowds, consider spending a night or two here.
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Volcán de Lodo El Totumo
About 50km northeast of Cartagena, a few kilometers off the coast, is an intriguing 15m mound (mud bath COP$10,000; hdawn-dusk) that looks like a miniature volcano. However, instead of erupting with lava and ashes, it spews forth lukewarm mud that has the consistency of cream. You can climb into the crater and frolic in a refreshing mud bath; the mud contains minerals acclaimed for their therapeutic properties. Once you’ve finished you can wash off in the lagoon, just 50m away.
Bring plenty of small bills to tip (COP$5000) the various locals who will wait on you during your time here – massaging you rather inexpertly, rinsing you off, holding your camera and taking photos. All in all, it’s a lot of fun and a rightly popular day trip from Cartagena.
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Mompós
Mompós is one of Colombia’s most perfectly preserved colonial towns. Remotely located deep inland on the banks of the Río Magdalena, the town (also known by its original Spanish name of Mompox) has essentially been in decline since river transport patterns changed in the mid-19th century, leaving it – quite literally – a backwater. Its similarities to García Márquez’ fictional town of Macondo are striking, and Mompós, ironically, is a far better place to soak up the atmosphere of One Hundred Years of Solitude than García Márquez’ nearby hometown of Aracataca. The 21st century finds this forgotten gem rising again, with a steady proliferation of boutique hotels and restaurants in recent years. It’s easily the most charming town in northern Colombia, its decaying facades and multi-coloured churches reminiscent more of Havana’s old town than of polished-and-buffed Cartagena.

Necocli
With a small grid of wood and concrete buildings dusted with a quiet Afro-Caribbean sensibility, Necocli is undergoing a renaissance in the wake of its new daily boat service to Capurganá, the Darién jungle town formerly only accessible via the rough port of Turbo. Necocli is a thoroughly pleasant place to spend the night before catching the morning boat across the Golfo de Urabá.

Capurganá
Colombia ends its desert-to-jungle Caribbean coastline with a flourish: the idyllic, laid-back villages of Capurganá and Sapzurro, and their surrounding beaches, are hidden in a half-forgotten corner of Colombia’s northwest, just a stroll from the Panamanian border. Hemmed in by jungle-covered mountains and washed by fabulously azure waters, the villages are littered with the colourful quirks that characterize wild, isolated settlements. Cars are banned, electricity gets turned off almost daily and ATMs remain a distant urban rumour.
Part of the adventure is just getting here: both villages are only accessible by a choppy 1½- to 2½-hour boat ride from Turbo or Necoclí, or by a tiny plane from Medellín. Consequently, the beaches remain pleasantly unkempt and the jungle deliciously impenetrable. While in-the-know Colombians and a trickle of foreign backpackers might have discovered the area, the vibe is still decidedly casual, unhurried and locally led.

Isla de Providencia
Providencia, 90km north of San Andrés, is a wonderfully remote and traditional Caribbean island with breath-taking scenery, gorgeous golden-sand beaches, friendly locals and superb diving.
Without a direct connection to the Colombian mainland, Providencia hasn’t seen nearly the same levels of cultural invasion as San Andrés, leaving its traditions and customs more or less intact. You’ll still hear the local English Creole spoken all over the island, and road signs direct you using the old English town names rather than their Spanish counterparts. All this, combined with beautiful topography standing sentinel over swaths of turquoise-blue sea, gives Providencia no small claim to being a quirky paradise.
With the Western hemisphere's second-largest barrier reef, beautiful Providencia Island has been designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. The main activity in Providencia is enjoying the beaches. The very best are Bahía Suroeste (Southwest Bay), Bahía Aguadulce (Freshwater Bay), and Bahía Manzanillo (Manicheel Bay) at the southern end of the island, but there are several other lovely places to swim.
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San Andrés
Just 150km east of Nicaragua and some 800km northwest of mainland Colombia, the seahorse-shaped island of San Andrés is best known as Colombia’s favourite weekend getaway, where mainlanders love to come to drink, tax-free shop, sunbathe and party. San Andrés Town, the focus of the action, won’t be splashed across postcards any time soon, though it does boast an attractive beach promenade and has in recent years begun to address what might be charitably termed its beauty gap.
San Andrés is best appreciated outside the downtown hubbub. Whether you take a boat trip to one of the idyllic offshore cays, check out the excellent scuba-diving and snorkelling opportunities or head down the scenic 30km road encircling the rest of the island, this quirky place – where Anglo-Caribbean Raizal culture grinds up against the far more recently imported Colombian one – often manages to charm visitors in the end.
- Due to the beautiful coral reefs all around it, San Andrés is an important diving center, with more than 35 dive spots. Otherwise, most visitors are focused on beach-hopping, day trips to various islands, water sports and partying in San Andrés Town.
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Pereira
The capital of the Risaralda department and a major city of the coffee region. It's near to Santa Rosa hot water springs and the National Park of "Los Nevados" and also contains the famous "naked Bolívar" and Matecaña Zoo.
Almost all visitors to Pereira come for one thing – to do business. Founded in 1863, Pereira is the capital of Risaralda and the economic powerhouse of the Zona Cafetera – a hot commercial center most noted for its throbbing nightlife. Pereira doesn’t offer much in the way of attractions, but if you want to experience a fast-paced yet friendly Colombian city away from the gringo trail and with a good dining scene, it certainly fits the bill. Pereira is also the gateway to Parque Ucumarí and Santuario Otún Quimbaya, a pair of top nature reserves, and the relaxing thermal springs of Santa Rosa and San Vicente.

Parque Nacional Natural Los Nevados
Colombia's high altitude volcano park sits between Manizales, Pereira and Ibagué and provides access to some of the most stunning stretches of the Colombian Andes. Its varied altitude range encompasses everything from humid cloud forests and páramo (high-mountain plains) to glaciers on the tallest peaks. Thirty-seven rivers are born here, providing water to 3.5 million people in four departments. The glaciers in the park have been receding, however, and research is underway to measure the impact on the environment.
Highlights include visits to the beautiful Laguna del Otún, and the ascents of the three snow-capped volcanoes: Nevado del Ruiz, Nevado de Santa Isabel and Nevado del Tolima.
The best months to see snow in Los Nevados are October and November and from March to May. Outside of those times you’re more likely to get the dry, windy conditions favourable to trekking and clear views

Manizales
The centre of the Zona Cafetera offers the opportunity to visit Los Nevados National Park and to engage in the coffee plantation experience. Manizales is a pleasantly cool, midsized university town with hilly streets, surrounded on all sides by green mountain scenery. The town’s early development was hindered by two earthquakes in 1875 and 1878 and a fire in 1925, which is why there’s not a lot of historical interest left – the real attractions are the surrounding nature activities and the town’s vibrant nightlife.
The lush mountainous countryside surrounding Manizales is home to some of Colombia’s most beautiful landscapes and does not lack opportunities for adventure and relaxation. Here you’ll find hot thermal baths, volcanic craters, working coffee farms and nature reserves full of birdlife all within a one-hour drive of the city.

Medellín
Situated in a narrow valley, Medellín packs the punch of a city twice its size. Its skyline reaches for the heavens, setting high-rise apartments and office buildings against a backdrop of jagged peaks in every direction. Its pleasant climate gives it its nickname – the City of Eternal Spring – and the moderate temperatures put a spring in the locals’ steps, at work and at play. It’s a bustling place of industry and commerce, especially in textile manufacturing and exported cut flowers. On weekends Medellín lets its hair down, its many discos attracting the beautiful people.
The city sprawls north and south along the valley floor; slums hug the upper reaches of the hills. True to its paisa (people of Antioquia) roots, Medellín affects an indifference to the rest of Colombia, putting on metropolitan airs and looking overseas for inspiration for its next great public-works projects.

Jardín
The self-proclaimed most beautiful town in Antioquia, Jardín lives up to its name. Festooned with greenery, its brightly painted two-story houses are surrounded by small coffee farms that cling impossibly to the slopes of majestic green mountains.
At the center of town life is the breezy cobblestone plaza dominated by the immense neo-Gothic Basilica Menor de la Inmaculada Concepción. It is chock-full of colourful wooden tables and chairs where fruit sellers hawk delicious cocktails and old-timers converse between measured sips of coffee. In the evenings it seems like the entire community comes out to socialize over a drink. While on weekends the town is flooded with visitors from Medellín, the rest of the week it’s still full of ye olde colonial charm.
Beyond the small-town Colombia of Jardín lies spectacular countryside with hidden caves, waterfalls and top-notch bird-watching, as well as a wide variety of adventure-sport opportunities.

Santa Fe de Antioquia
Santa Fe de Antioquia makes for a great day trip from Medellín. Don’t miss sampling pulpa de tamarindo, the beloved sour-sweet candy made with tamarind from the surrounding valley.
Its colonial center never fell to the wrecking ball of modernising and today it looks very much like it did in the 19th century. The narrow streets are lined with single-story, whitewashed houses, many arranged around beautiful courtyards. You’ll also see elaborately carved, typically Antioquian woodwork around windows and doorways.

Guatapé
The pleasant holiday town of Guatapé is located on the shores of the Embalse Guatapé, a sprawling artificial lake. It is known for the fresco-like adornment of its traditional houses. Brightly painted bas-relief depictions of people, animals and shapes cover the lower half of many dwellings.
Guatapé makes a great day trip from Medellín, a two-hour bus ride away, but there is enough outdoor adventure here to keep you entertained a bit longer if you fancy a peaceful break from the city. Visit on the weekend if you want to experience the festival atmosphere when the town is packed with Colombian tourists, or come during the week to explore the surrounding nature at a more relaxed pace.

Armenia
Armenia feels more like a big town than a departmental capital, and is far more slow-paced than its coffee-country rivals Manizales and Pereira.
Devastated by an earthquake in 1999 that flattened much of the city center, Armenia has never fully recovered. Most travellers will pass through Armenia only long enough to change buses; however, the city has a couple of sights, which make it interesting enough for a day or so.

Salento
Set amid gorgeous green mountains 24km northeast of Armenia, this small town survives on coffee production, trout farming and tourists, the last drawn by its quaint streets, typical paisa architecture and its proximity to the spectacular Valle de Cocora. It was founded in 1850, and is one of the oldest towns in Quindío.
The main drag is Calle Real (Carrera 6), which is full of artesanías (local craft stalls) and restaurants. At the end of the street stairs lead up to Alto de la Cruz, a hill topped with a cross. From here you’ll see the verdant Valle de Cocora and the mountains that surround it. If the skies are clear (usually only early in the morning), you can spot the snow-capped tops of the volcanoes on the horizon.

Valle de Cocora
In a country full of beautiful landscapes, Cocora is one of the most striking. It stretches east of Salento into the lower reaches of PNN Los Nevados, with a broad green valley framed by sharp peaks. Everywhere you’ll see the palma de cera (wax palm), the largest palm in the world (up to 60m tall): it’s Colombia’s national tree. Set amid the misty green hills, they are breath-taking to behold, and the valley is protected as part of UNESCO’s Coffee Cultural Landscape of Colombia Heritage Site.
The most popular walk in the area is the four- to five-hour loop hike from the hamlet of Cocora to the Reserva Natural Acaime and on to the Unesco-protected valley of the palma de cera.

Isla Gorgona, Colombia
This former prison island in the Pacific Ocean is now a nature reserve open for visitors. There is abundant wildlife like monkeys, snakes, whales and sea turtles and offers excellent diving conditions.

Popayánia
This beautiful, white-washed city is Colombia's religious centre. Home to the second largest Easter festival in the world (after Seville, Spain), this town has contributed more Colombian presidents than any other. Perched beneath towering mountains in the Valle de Pubenza, it was the capital of southern Colombia for centuries, before Cali overtook it. Popayán is now home to numerous universities, and the streets of its old center are filled with students in the daytime.
On the last Friday of the month Popayán hosts the Noche de Museos (Night of Museums), when food and handicrafts stands line the streets, and the historic center is closed to traffic. Many of the city’s museums stay open late and are free to visit.
Bordered by the Puracé National Park and gateway to the archaeological sites of San Agustín and Tierra Dentro in nearby Huilla.

Cali
Colombia's third-largest city, renowned as the salsa capital of Latin America. Cali is a hot, gritty city with a real zest for life that draws you in and stays with you long after you leave town. Beyond a handful of churches and museums, Cali is light on sights – but the city’s main attraction is its beguiling, electrifying atmosphere. If you make the effort you will find great nightlife, good restaurants and plenty to do, especially in the evening, when a cool mountain breeze dissipates the heat of the day.
Cali is rich in Afro-Colombian heritage; nowhere is the nation’s racial diversity and harmony more apparent. From the impoverished barrios to the big, slick clubs, everyone is moving to one beat, and that beat is salsa. Music in the world’s salsa capital is more than entertainment: it is a unifying factor that ties the city together.

San Agustín
This small, attractive colonial town basks in refreshing, spring like weather year-round and is the gateway to one of the most important pre-Columbian archaeological sites on the continent.
Five thousand years ago, two indigenous cultures lived in the adjacent river valleys of the Magdalena and the Cauca. Divided by uncrossable peaks, the rivers were their highways, and here, near San Agustín, those two civilizations met to trade, to worship and to bury their dead.
The volcanic rocks thrown great distances by the now-extinct nearby volcanoes proved irresistible to the local sculptors, who transformed them into more than 500 fantastic statues, scattered over the surrounding green hills. Little else is known about the peoples of San Agustín. They didn’t have a written language and had disappeared many centuries before the Europeans arrived. But their legacy is a mystical place in a spectacular landscape that is well worth making a detour for.

Parque Arqueológico de San Agustín
This 78-hectare archaeological park is 2.5km west of the town of San Agustín. There are over 130 statues in the park in total, either found in situ or collected from other areas, including some of the best examples of San Agustín statuary, with human or animal features, or a mixture of the two. Don’t miss the carved tombs either. Reputable guides congregate around the museum.
At the entrance to the park is the Museo Arqueológico, which features smaller statues, pottery, utensils, jewellery and other objects, along with interesting background information about the San Agustín culture.
Beyond the entrance, you’ll stroll along the statue-lined Bosque de las Estatuas before ascending the four funeral hills – mesitas A, B, C1 and C2 with their respective tombs and clusters of statues. Many of them are anthropomorphic figures, some realistic, others resembling masked monsters. There are also sculptures depicting sacred animals such as the eagle, jaguar and frog. Archaeologists have also uncovered a great deal of pottery. Mesita B’s statues are the best known.
Besides the mesitas is the Fuente de Lavapatas. Carved in the rocky bed of the stream, it is a complex labyrinth of ducts and small, terraced pools decorated with images of serpents, lizards and human figures. Archaeologists believe the baths were used for ritual ablutions and the worship of aquatic deities.
From here, the path winds uphill to the Alto de Lavapatas, the oldest archaeological site in San Agustín. You’ll find a few tombs guarded by statues, and get a panoramic view over the surrounding countryside.

Parque Arqueológico Nacional de Tierradentro
Tierradentro is the second-most-important archaeological site in Colombia (after San Agustín) but gets surprisingly few visitors. Located well off the beaten track down some rough dirt roads, it is a peaceful place with friendly locals and awe-inspiring archaeological wonders. While San Agustín is noted for its statuary, the Unesco World Heritage Site of Tierradentro is remarkable for its elaborate underground tombs, created by those who lived here from AD 500 to AD 900. So far, archaeologists have discovered about 100 of these unusual funeral temples, the only examples of their kind in the Americas. There is a fabulous walk you can follow that takes in all the major tomb sites amid gorgeous mountain scenery.
Scattered across the hills around the little town of San Andrés de Pisimbalá, Tierradentro’s Parque Arqueológico includes four tomb sites, an above-ground statuary and two museums. Tickets for the Parque Arqueológico are inside the museum complex, a 25-minute walk from the town. You’re given a ‘passport,’ valid for two consecutive days, enabling entrance to all sites, accessible via a 14km walk. Visit the museums before the tombs, as there’s not much in the way of explanation at the sites themselves.
Measuring from 2m to 7m in diameter, the tombs are scooped out of the soft volcanic rock that forms the region’s undulating hillsides. They vary widely in depth; some are just below ground level, others are as deep as 9m, reachable via knee-killing stone steps. The domed ceilings of the largest tombs are supported by pillars. Many are painted with riotous red and black geometric motifs on white backgrounds, others with inquisitive human faces and animal forms.
Little is known about the people who built the tombs and the statues – the Páez (or Nasa) indigenous group that lives in the area today is not thought to be connected to the ruins. Most likely they were of different cultures, and the people who scooped out the tombs preceded those who carved the statues. Some researchers place the ‘tomb’ civilization somewhere between the 7th and 9th centuries AD, with the tombs reserved for the elite, and shallow pits holding the bodies of their servants, while the ‘statue’ culture appears to be related to the later phase of San Agustín development, estimated to have taken place some 500 years later.

Tatacoa Desert
Halfway between Bogotá and San Agustín lies the Tatacoa Desert, a striking landscape of eroded red cliffs and gullies, sculpted by the infrequent rain.
Tatacoa isn’t really a desert, although the thermometer says otherwise – it sometimes hits 50°C (122°F). It’s technically semi-arid dry tropical forest, averaging 1070mm of rain annually. Surrounded by mountains, the peaks around Nevado de Huila (5750m) grab most of the incoming precipitation, leaving 330-sq-km Tatacoa arid. The result is an ecosystem unlike anywhere else in Colombia – there are scorpions and weasels, fruit bearing cacti, and at least 72 bird species.
To get to Tatacoa, you’ll have to pass through Neiva, the capital of the Huíla department and a port on the Río Magdalena. From there take a colectivo one hour northwest to Villavieja. You can spend the night in Villavieja or in the desert.
Bring sturdy shoes (there are cactus spines on the ground) and a flashlight (torch).
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Silvia
A picturesque mountain town 53km northeast of Popayán, Silvia is the center of the Guambiano region. The Guambiano people don’t live in Silvia itself, but in the small mountain villages of Pueblito, La Campana, Guambia and Caciques. The whole community numbers about 12,000.
The Guambiano are considered one of the most traditional indigenous groups in Colombia. They speak their own language, dress traditionally and still use long-established farming techniques. On Tuesday, market day, members of the Guambiano community come down from their surrounding villages to Silvia to sell fruit, vegetables and handicrafts. This is the best time to visit the town. It is not a tourist market – fruit and vegetables, raw meat, discount clothing and household items dominate – but you may find a poncho or woven backpack that takes your fancy. The main attraction is seeing the Guambiano themselves in traditional dress.
Almost all the Guambiano dress up; men in blue skirts with a pink fringe and bowler hats, women in handwoven garments and beaded necklaces, busily spinning wool. They travel in chivas (colorful traditional buses) and congregate around the main plaza. The Guambiano don’t like cameras and may be offended if you take their picture; always ask before photographing someone and respect their wishes if they say no.

Pasto
Just two hours from Ecuador, Pasto is a pleasant city nestling in a fertile valley, and the logical jumping-off point for the border. There are several fine colonial buildings and museums, and nature lovers might consider a longer stay, as Pasto is surrounded by some spectacular countryside and makes a good base for visiting Laguna de la Cocha, Laguna Verde and the restless Volcán Galeras.
The weather here is cool – so cool, in fact, you’ll see helado de paíla being prepared fresh on the streets; it’s traditional ice cream made in a copper tub sitting on a platform of ice.

Parque Nacional Natural Sierra de La Macarena
The near-pristine PNN Sierra de La Macarena is one of Colombia’s best-protected national parks and contains the fabulous rivers, streams and waterfalls collectively known as Caño Cristales. The main waterfalls and swimming holes are Piscina del Turista, Piscina de Carol Cristal, Cascada del Aguila, Cascada de Piedra Negra and Caño la Virgen. All access to the park is from the town of La Macarena, which sits just south of the park on the other side of the Río Guayabero. You will be guided throughout the park, and to keep tourism impact low, groups are divided up into different parts of Caño Cristales.
You cannot visit Caño Cristales on your own – you are obligated to go into the national park with one of the official local guides, even if you do make it to La Macarena under your own steam. Most tours include air transportation to La Macarena, hotels, meals and guide services, and you’ll normally be in a group of up to 12 people with a couple of local guides. You’ll sleep in La Macarena and spend the days inside the national park.

Caño Cristales
Caño Cristales, a series of remote rivers, water falls and streams inside the wilderness of Parque Nacional Natural Sierra de La Macarena, has been called everything from ‘The River of Five Colors’ to ‘The Liquid Rainbow.’ This is due to a unique biological phenomenon that takes place for a couple of months between July and November when an eruption of algae forms an underwater blanket of bright red. This transforms the crystal-clear water into a river of cabernet that contrasts magically with the lunarscape of ancient, hollowed-out riverbed rock and the surrounding savannah landscape.
Coming here involves some expense, a lot of sweaty hiking and some fairly unexciting meals in the town of La Macarena, but the payoff is immense.
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Amacayacu National Park
Sprawling across almost 3000 sq km, Parque Nacional Natural Amacayacu ) is an ideal spot from which to observe the Amazonian rainforest up close, with extraordinary biodiversity and lots of wildlife. Catastrophic flooding in 2012 heavily damaged the park infrastructure and the park facilities remain closed, though it is still possible to enter the park and arrange tours with local indigenous people. Contact a tour operator in Leticia to arrange a visit.

Leticia
The capital city of the Amazonas province, Leticia is the largest settlement for hundreds of kilometers and yet still looks and feels very much like the small frontier town it is. Located on the Amazon River where Colombia, Brazil and Peru meet, Leticia is some 800km from the nearest Colombian highway. It’s a bustling town abuzz with fleets of motorcycles, with a few minor sights to entertain you for a day or two.
Notwithstanding the oppressive heat, stultifying humidity and ferocious mosquitoes, Leticia is a pleasant enough town but not a destination in itself: it’s a stepping stone for visiting the tropical rainforest that’s right on your doorstep, with remote jungle lodges and indigenous communities just a short boat ride away along the Rio Amazonas.
Leticia lies right on the Colombia–Brazil border. Just south across the frontier is Tabatinga, a Brazilian town of similar size.
The real jungle begins well off the Amazon proper, along its small tributaries. The deeper you go, the more chance you have to observe wildlife in relatively undamaged habitats and to visit indigenous settlements. This involves time and money, but can be immensely rewarding, and there are numerous tour agencies and guides waiting to take you out here.

Puerto Nariño
The Amazonian village of Puerto Nariño, 75km upriver from Leticia, is an inspiring example of human coexistence with nature. Here, cars are banned (the only two vehicles are an ambulance and a truck for collecting recyclables), rainwater is pooled in cisterns for washing and gardening, and electricity comes from the town’s fuel-efficient generator, which runs only until midnight. Every morning, citizen brigades fan out to tidy up the town’s landscaped sidewalks, and Puerto Nariño’s ambitious recycling and organic waste management programs would put most world cities to shame. As a contrast to dirty and polluted Leticia, it couldn’t be more stark.
The majority of Puerto Nariño’s residents are indigenous Ticuna, Cocoma and Yagua peoples. Their community experiment in ecological living has made ecotourism an important source of income, and this tranquil place is a great base from which to visit beautiful Lago Tarapoto and the Amazon in general.
Communing with nature is the main activity here. You can rent a kayak and go in search of river dolphins, and jungle guides can take you on day treks and night walks. Your accommodations can help organize any of these.

Lago Tarapoto
Lago Tarapoto, 10km west of Puerto Nariño, is a beautiful jungle lake fed by the Río Amazonas, and is home to pink dolphins, a tiny population of manatees and massive water lilies. A half-day trip to the lake in a pequepeque (a low-slung wooden boat) from Puerto Nariño is the main draw for visitors, who usually take a dip in the gorgeously clear water. Piranha fishing is also possible here.
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