WHAT PLACES SHOULD I VISIT IN COLOMBIA?

September 27, 2024

WHAT PLACES SHOULD I VISIT IN COLOMBIA? By: Jaime Rincon

When thinking about a trip to Colombia, one of the first challenges we face is choosing the places to visit and, in the case of this country, the decision becomes even harder due to its diversity of destinations. We would like to see the entire country, but our itinerary is not long enough to cover the entire territory, so we have to choose the places that really suit us and provide us with the trip we expect.

Colombia is one of the most diverse countries in the world, due to its geographical location. It has a coast on the Caribbean Sea, but also on the Pacific Ocean. It has part of its territory mounted on the Andes mountain range and also the Amazon jungle. It has deserts, snow-capped peaks, rivers and big cities. This great diversity means that it is full of interesting destinations to visit, but also makes it a headache to decide where to go.

Many people get carried away by advertising or the concept of travelers who have visited Colombia and end up going to the same places, such as the cities of Bogotá, Medellín and Cartagena. Those places are great and surely they will not disappoint you, but there is a huge list of other places to visit that can be chosen according to our taste and needs. Below, we find a division by geographical sectors, which will give us insight into which place is best for us:

CARIBBEAN COAST

Beach, hot weather, seafood and resorts. Beautiful and varied place, but with a very high temperature and humidity.

The Colombian Caribbean offers the most beautiful beaches in the country and other places of interest. Places to keep in mind are:

*Cartagena: Very beautiful historical city, with an excellent offer of hotels and gastronomy. You have to keep in mind that it is a very touristy and congested place and that its beaches are not the best. To enjoy the good beaches you have to travel by boat to the Rosario Islands.

*Santa Marta: It is a small city that acts as the center of an area with several interesting attractions. It has acceptable beaches in the bay sectors (city center), El Rodadero, near the airport and Taganga (neighboring town). Close to the city we find:

-Tayrona Natural Park: One of the most spectacular places in Colombia that combines the Caribbean Sea with the jungle. Its nature is impressive and it has excellent beaches such as El Cabo San Juan and La Piscina, as well as other places of interest. To get to these beaches it is necessary to walk several hours, which requires a certain physical capacity. Accommodation options are basic, such as rustic cabins, camping or hammocks. A common mistake is believing that you can see everything in a single day, so many people stay outside the park and try to do the entire hike in less than 8 hours, which is not recommended.

-Lost City: Archaeological site older than Machu Pichu. To get there it is necessary to walk several days through the mountainous area.

-Tayronaka: Park that includes archaeological finds, a museum and natural beauty. This site is close to the main road.

-Don Diego and Palomino Rivers: Where you can practice Tubbing and spot wildlife.

-Palomino: Small hippie town with a large beach where surfing is practiced.

-Minca: Small town surrounded by nature, ideal for bird watching and hikes that include waterfalls and forest. It also has farms that offer coffee and chocolate tours.

*San Andrés and Providencia Islands: Located far from Colombia (closer to Nicaragua) in the middle of the Caribbean, they offer spectacular beaches and an interesting culture, since their population, despite being Colombian, are descendants of African slaves, they are of racial black, wear dreadlocks and speak Creole. San Andrés Island is larger, has a city and a wide variety of hotels, while Providencia is smaller and more natural, it has almost no motorized vehicles and its accommodations are more basic, although of good quality.

*Guajira: It is the northernmost area of ??Colombia. It is a desert inhabited by the Wayúu indigenous culture, which offers a unique landscape and different pleasant beaches with calm water. Infrastructure is scarce, so the roads are dirt and hotels and restaurants are basic. It is a destination for adventurers.

MEDELLIN AND THE DEPARTMENT (STATE) OF ANTIOQUIA

Innovation, art and resilience in a beautiful green valley.

Advanced and very pleasant city, surrounded by interesting towns and natural sites. It maintains a pleasant temperature all year round, which has given it the title of the city of eternal spring.

Medellín is the second largest and most advanced city in Colombia. It has become the most important tourist destination in the country, as it has a very varied offer, which includes a surprising history of transformation (it went from being the most dangerous city in the world to the most innovative), art, rich gastronomy, culture, party and nightlife, etc. It acts as a base from which to visit the nearby towns which are also quite pretty and interesting. Among them are:

*Guatapé: Located 2 hours away from Medellín, it is one of the most colorful towns in the world. It is on the banks of a reservoir made for hydroelectric production and near a 220m rock. high (720ft.), which puts it in the middle of a spectacular landscape. A tour there may include a boat ride, climbing to the top of the rock and visiting other sites along the way, such as the town of El Peñol, animal farms, etc.

*Jardín: Coffee town located almost 3 hours away from Medellín that offers incredible nature, coffee farms that produce coffee of the highest quality, colonial architecture, extreme sports, etc. It is a destination that deserves several days of your trip; It is Colombia in a town. Super recommended!

*Jericó: 3 hours away from Medellín we find this very beautiful colonial town with high quality coffee and surrounded by nature. They have similarities with Jardín, although their range of activities is much more limited.

*Rioclaro Canyon Natural Reserve: It is a natural park located 3 hours away from Medellín, on the road to Bogotá, which offers a unique nature preserved since the times of dinosaurs, with a crystal-clear river where you can swim, practice rafting and tubbing and that also has a cavern where you can hike in the dark. Besides you can do rock climbing and zipline. It has hotels that allow permanent contact with nature, but they lack technology or luxury. This is a destination for nature and adventure lovers.

*Water circuit: It is an area made up of several towns such as San Rafael, San Carlos, Cocorná, Alejandría, San Luis, etc. It is full of forests and streams, which makes it ideal for nature lovers who want to hike, see waterfalls and rivers and spot fauna and flora.

*Santa Fe de Antioquia: Historic town less than 2 hours away from Medellín that seems frozen in time since the time of Spanish colonization. It has cobblestone streets and old white buildings. Its hotel offer is very good and of quality. Its climate is quite hot.

BOGOTA AND SURROUNDINGS

Cosmopolitan, hectic and historical.

The Colombian capital is a metropolis of 8 million inhabitants, one of the largest in Latin America, which brings it pros and cons. Among the pros we find a very varied offer of hotels, gastronomy and nightlife; By bringing together people from all over the country, it contains characteristics of all of them. Among the cons there is very heavy traffic, long journeys and congestion in many places. Its climate is a bit cold and changeable.

From Bogotá there are very interesting places to visit:

*Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral: Considered one of the wonders of Colombia, it is a Catholic cathedral built inside an underground salt mine. It is located in the town of Zipaquirá, a little more than an hour away from Bogotá, and to get to it, you must take a tour inside the mine, passing through sites carved in stone with plays of lights, which make up the stations of the Jesus path to the Cross; also commercial places with emeralds, crafts, food and drinks.

*Guatavita and Sesquilé: 2 towns located less than 2 hours away from Bogota, pretty beautiful and pleasant. Its main attraction is a lagoon located between both, on the top of a mountain, which in addition to being a spectacular landscape, is a sacred site for the Muisca indigenous culture, from which the legend of El Dorado came. It is a highly recommended place, but it requires certain physical capacity as it involves a hike up to more than 3,000 meters above sea level. (almost 10,000ft.).

*Suesca: Town near Bogotá that is a rock climbing paradise.

*Chingaza: Natural area of ??high moor where you can hike, spot birds, deer and spectacled bears (the only species of bear in Colombia).

THE COFFEE TRIANGLE

Beauty, coffee and fun.

It is an area in central Colombia on the Andes, between the cities of Pereira, Manizales and Armenia. It is composed by gorgeous towns and a landscape that combines forest with coffee plantations. UNESCO declared it a world heritage site and named it Coffee Cultural Landscape.

The 3 cities have airports that connect the area with the main cities of Colombia, but what is truly interesting is found in places like:

*Thermal pools: Being close to the Nevado del Ruiz Volcano, hot water springs from the earth and can be enjoyed in pools located in hotels such as Termales de Santa Rosa, Termales San Vicente or Termales del Ruiz.

*Salento and Cocora Valley: Salento is a quite beautiful colonial town, with a variety of hotels, good typical restaurants and very good coffee. 20 minutes away is a spectacular valley with wax palms, which are the tallest in the world and national trees of Colombia. This valley offers horseback riding, nature walks and visits to private areas (with an entrance fee) where you can take the best photos.

*Filandia: Colorful cute town, full of crafts, viewpoints and good food and coffee. It is a very pleasant visit in this region, but with a limited offer of accommodation. Most of them are hostels or simple hotels, so if you want something higher category, you can stay in other places and make a half-day or one-day visit to this municipality. From there, tours are offered to the forest to spot birds or howling monkeys and to coffee farms.

*Coffee Park: Theme park dedicated to the emblematic product of Colombia, where cultural and mechanical attractions are found. It is quite extensive so visiting it requires a whole day. Its cultural attractions include coffee tastings, explanations of the coffee process and preparation, an incredible show of typical Colombian dances and an archaeological museum. Its mechanical attractions include roller coasters, slingshots and attractions fro children. It has a central area that resembles a typical town of the region with restaurants and ice cream parlors. For internal transportation, they offer a train and cable cars.

*Rafting on the La Vieja River: It is a fun activity that consists of sailing on a wooden raft along the river. The activity offers swimming in the river, visiting a waterfall and typical lunch.

*Other attractions: If you want to get away from touristy spots, you can visit other towns in the region such as Marsella, at north or Pijao, Córdoba, etc., at south. As they are lesser-known towns, you will find the daily life of the locals and tranquility, but a smaller range of restaurants and hotels.

There are also other theme parks such as Los Arrieros Park, which shows the customs of this Colombian region through dance, humor and theater. It is very funny and teaches a lot about Colombia, although it may be difficult to understand for visitors of certain nationalities, since it is only in Spanish and a lot of local slang and idioms are used. Another park is Ukumarí, a zoo type park.

Talking about natural attractions, bird watchers can visit the Tatamá Reserve and trekking lovers can go to the glaciers on top of Santa Isabel or Tolima snow peaks.

BOYACA AND SANTANDER

Beautiful landscapes and towns, crafts and extreme sports.

In the central east área of the country we find these 2 departments (states) that are full of beautiful places to visit. Boyaca is a rural area by nature where various agricultural products are grown, it has gorgeous towns and large and beautiful natural areas. Santander is similar, although it generally has a warmer climate and offers a variety of adventure activities.

Among the main attractions of Boyaca we find:

*Villa de Leyva and Ráquira: These are 2 nearby towns. The first is a historical site that preserves buildings from the Spanish colonial era and of importance during the independence process. It has a wide variety of restaurants and accommodations and places of interest on the outskirts, such as a complete fossil of an animal millions of years old, vineyards and an archaeological site.

Ráquira, whose name translates “Place of Pots” in the Muisca language, is a town full of artisan tradition and sites designed for taking photos.

*Monguí: A very well preserved and quite pleasant town, which also has attractions such as traditional ball factories and the Páramo de Ocetá, which is a neighboring mountain that at its heights shows landscapes that seem from another planet.

*Tota Lake: The second largest high altitude lake in the world. It looks like a sea located between high mountains, which even has a sandy beach, called Playa Blanca. In addition to enjoying this beautiful landscape, you can visit the towns located around the water, such as Iza, Tota and Aquitania, very beautiful and featuring good typical food.

*Paipa: A town next to a nice Lake called Sochagota and thermal water pools.

Main attractions in Santander:

*San Gil: This town is called the adventure capital of Colombia, as it offers activities such as rafting (from panoramic level 1 to extreme level 5), waterfalls, rappelling, mountain biking and paragliding. It has a good gastronomic and hotel offer.

*Barichara: For many, this is the most beautiful town in Colombia, with cobblestone streets and terracotta buildings. It is a quiet place that has particular places full of crafts, such as its cemetery or the old churches and also spectacular viewpoints. It has a small brother which is the town of Guane, located a short distance away and which seems frozen in time. Guane has a small paleontological museum full of fossils found in the region. Both towns are connected by an ancestral path that turns out to be a very pleasant hike.

*Chicamocha Canyon: The second largest canyon in the world, which in addition to offering a unique view, has attractions such as the Chicamocha National Park, which is a theme park full of culture and gastronomy and has a cable car that crosses the canyon. . There is also a water park and it is in this canyon that an incredible paragliding flight is offered, which is considered the best in South America.

AMAZON

Jungle, adventure and indigenous culture.

Southern Colombia is part of the great Amazon jungle of South America. It is divided into upper, middle and lower Amazon, with the lower being the best known. You can get there by plane to a small city called Leticia and enjoy the attractions that this imposing jungle presents.

You can take excursions to indigenous communities of the Muuruy and Tikuna ethnic groups, among others, to learn about their interesting customs; also wildlife watching tours, such as pink dolphins, monkeys, birds, sloths, aquatic plants, etc. These can be done in Colombian territory or even in Peru and Brazil, since the 3 countries come together in this place.

Leticia offers a variety of accommodations, but it is also interesting to travel to nearby towns located on the banks of the Amazon River, where Puerto Nariño stands out, which is a town a little more developed than most, where there are no cars or motorcycles and from where you can take tours to wonderful natural places like the Lakes of Tarapoto.

Speaking of upper or middle Amazonia, there are other places like the department of Putumayo, where you can even reach by car, since it is located closer to the interior of the country. It is a mountainous jungle with spectacular natural attractions such as “The end of the world reserve”, with several natural pools and waterfalls up to 70 meters high.

The Amazon is a region that floods for several months a year and dries out for the rest of the months, so it is a changing place to which its inhabitants must adapt. So depending on the month of the year, you may find a rainy, flooded place where the main transportation is canoe or boat, or dry land to walk on; In any case, it is very interesting for adventure lovers.

PACIFIC COAST

Wet jungle, African heritage and disconnection.

The Colombian Pacific coast is extensive, but we focus on the department of Chocó, since further south (departments of Valle del cauca, Cauca and Nariño) the presence of armed groups does not allow it to develop tourism, despite having the potential. In Chocó there are specifically 2 recommended places, which are the towns of Bahía Solano and Nuquí, in the Utría cove.

This region is jungle, rainy and very well preserved naturally, which makes it a desired destination for nature lovers. It can only be reached by plane and offers rest and wildlife watching activities, mainly whales, in the second half of the year. Its beaches are mainly dark sand and therefore its waters also show darker tones than the Caribbean, this due to volcanic soil and river mouths, not due to pollution though.

Its hotel offering is limited and rustic, but it allows contact with nature and local culture, which is a mix of African roots (its inhabitants are descendants of slaves who achieved freedom and settled there) with indigenous cultures. This is reflected in its gastronomy, religious beliefs and various customs.

The Colombian Pacific is an area little explored by international travelers and can be a pleasant surprise, as long as you do not need major luxuries and adapt to its slow and natural pace.

EASTERN PLAINS

Nature, cowboys and strong but friendly people.

This is a region that Colombia shares with Venezuela and is a transition between the Andes mountains and the Amazon. It is an immense plain, full of natural life and people who have adapted to its conditions.

In the departments of Meta and Casanare, mainly, you can visit livestock farms, which make up the main economic activity of the region, where they offer tourist accommodation services and activities such as safaris to watch the local fauna, where birds, deer, caimans, anacondas, capybaras and even jaguars are found.

It is not so easy to get to this area, so its tourist development is still in its infancy, however, this makes it a very authentic experience that few know about.

 

As you can see, Colombia is extremely varied and we did not mention all the available offer, but we hope that with this guide, you can at least have an idea of ??the places that suit you best.

Most regions cannot be pigeonholed as a destination for relaxation, or partying, or special for families with children or for couples. Each place has such a varied offer that in each one an itinerary can be organized for each type of person or trip. After choosing the places that may interest you the most, we can provide you with personalized advice to create your ideal itinerary. This can be done by communicating via WhatsApp (in the icon on our website) or via email at kachaycolombia@gmail.com.

You can also watch the videos on our blog where we show most of the places mentioned.

We hope you can enjoy Colombia to the fullest, it is such a surprising country!