Reading Time: 6 minutes Norcasia is a quiet, relaxing town emersed between the rivers of La Miel, Rio Manso and the Amani dam (Embalse Amani). Located in the department
Reading Time: 4 minutes The town, mind-blowingly impressive, has to be considered one of Colombia’s best kept secrets. Raquira, a village of 3,400 people, sits at an altitude of
Reading Time: 5 minutes The sombrero Vueltiao of Tuchin The sombrero Vueltiao is more than just a hat, it is the traditional straw hat of Colombia and one of
Reading Time: 6 minutes San Jacinto is a little town in the Bolivar province in the north of Colombia, just a few hours inland from Cartagena. The town is
Reading Time: 13 minutes Colombia is rich in traditional arts and crafts. Extremely colorful and creative, these handmade crafts are great souvenirs of your Colombian excursions. Visiting the villages
Reading Time: 4 minutes Chiva buses are those brightly colored open air buses you see parked outside of the markets in Colombia. These sturdy buses have been crawling over
Reading Time: 3 minutes Highway 37 – the road stretches from the Andean city of Pasto over the mountains and down to the jungle town of Mocoa a gateway
Reading Time: 10 minutes Seasoned South American travelers say Colombia is the continent’s best kept secret – beautiful, affordable and relatively undiscovered by tourism. Though large, Colombia is easy
Reading Time: 18 minutes There are dozens of lists on the web of tourist destinations in Colombia. Most of these lists are redundant outlining the most popular destinations nearly
Reading Time: 14 minutes Whether your travel focus is visiting Colombia’s beaches, jungles or big cities, it’s hard to tour Colombia and not want to visit small towns like
Reading Time: 5 minutes Traveling along the Magdalena river, through the green coffee plantations and rice fields of Huila, it’s hard to imagine the Tatacoa desert just up ahead.
Reading Time: 8 minutes Colombia One of the strangest and most spectacular spots I’ve ever seen in South American is located at the northern most point of South American
Reading Time: 8 minutes Los Llanos of Colombia sometimes look and feel similar to the plains of North America and the fields of the Midwest. Lush, green, flat grasslands
Reading Time: 10 minutes Couldn’t be a better time to see Colombia Reading the travel guides on Ecuador – they talk about it how tourism has changed the country.
Reading Time: 9 minutes Why am I not surprised to find the most widely downloaded sites on Colombia travel raise the question: Is Colombia Safe? It’s a question I’m
Reading Time: 17 minutes The highlight of Colombian cuisine is the ‘jugo‘ or fruit juice. Jugos are served with every meal. They are served in jugo bars, in ice
Reading Time: 7 minutes Colombia is renown for producing high end, refined, luxury coffee thanks to its near perfect growing conditions of the arabica bean. The culture of coffee
Reading Time: 10 minutes Colombia is not one of the South American countries known for its wine. It has a tropical climate and is more famous for producing coffee,
Reading Time: 6 minutes Traveling in Colombia works up a thirst. And for those of us who like to kick back at the end of the day and enjoy
Reading Time: 10 minutes Colombia is not exactly known as a food destination. While I love Colombia, the people, landscapes and climate it’s just not a country I go
Reading Time: 3 minutes “Arepa, arepa, arepa” the street vendor sings on the street. Welcome to Colombia, the home of the arepa. Served with every meal, the arepa is
Reading Time: 7 minutes The production of Colombia avocados has grown by 600% in the last 5 years as the country begins cashing in on an international avocado boom.
Reading Time: 6 minutes Quindio Wax Palms grow high in the Colombian Andes, in humid cloud forests, surrounded by native pine trees, between the altitudes of 2,300 meters and
Reading Time: 15 minutes The town of Honda on the Magdalena River The Magdalena River is the 5th largest river in South America and the longest in Colombia stretching
Reading Time: 4 minutes About five hours inland from the Caribbean coast is the intriguing town of Mompox – a perfectly preserved colonial town. Founded in 1537 Mompox (also spelled
Reading Time: 5 minutes Santa Cruz de Lorica is a hidden gem. Situated on the Sinu river in northern Colombia, it is a fluvial port surrounded by the rich, endless
Reading Time: 6 minutes Honda is a diamond in the rough. A quaint, beautiful colonial town everyone dreams of stumbling upon. Honda and Mompox are the most visited villages on the Magdalena.
Reading Time: 6 minutes Cienaga was named a Pueblo Patrimonio (a historical village) in 2012, one of 17 of the most beautiful, historical villages in Colombia. They are all
Reading Time: 15 minutes Off the beaten path Santander, a Colombian department, is rarely visited. Santander is on the east side of Colombia between two mountain ranges one of
Reading Time: 13 minutes Lake Tota in the department of Boyaca
Reading Time: 6 minutes Boyacá is a cultural and historical heart of Colombia. It was once the center of the Muisca empire who the Spanish fiercely fought to appropriate
Reading Time: 5 minutes Playa Belen is considered one of the most beautiful villages in Colombia. But it is so far off the beaten path few people ever visit.
Reading Time: 9 minutes Valle de Cauca Region – The North Valley of Cali South of the traditional coffee triangle (an area surrounding the cities of Manizales, Pereira and
Reading Time: 3 minutes Las Gachas, are a series of swimming holes along a shallow river in Colombia’s mountainous province of Santander. This destination is yet another Colombian gem.
Reading Time: 4 minutes Pijao is a small town 31 kilometers (19 miles) to the south of Armenia located in Colombia’s famous coffee triangle in the Quindio province. Along
Reading Time: 4 minutes What makes us want to look up people and places from our past? People from relationships long over, old faded brick schools, homes we once
Reading Time: 9 minutes Most people traveling through Colombia have their sights set on visiting the beautiful beaches, coffee zones, archeological ruins, jungles, big cities and colonial villages. But
Reading Time: 7 minutes Colombia’s coffee triangle is currently one of the hottest tourist attractions in the country. Not just for coffee lovers, it’s popular with tourists making their
Reading Time: 4 minutes Arboletes is a small, seaside village of 22,000 people on Colombia’s southern Caribbean coast. It lies between the cities of Turbo and Tolu. The village
Reading Time: 5 minutes Banos is a small village with a population of 18,000. The locals call it a little piece of heaven and travelers who come here invariably
Reading Time: 8 minutes Manizales-Pereira-Armenia: a big tourist attraction in Colombia is an exploration of the Zona Cafetera, the ‘Triangulo del Café’ or the Coffee Triangle. Here they say
Reading Time: 9 minutes Forget the Coffee Triangle – Head for the Coffee Square Exploring ‘the’ coffee region has become one of Colombia’s hottest destinations. While most people think
Reading Time: 11 minutes Medellin (pronounced Meda-jean) Is a dynamic, contemporary, prosperous city of 2.6 million people in Antioquia, Colombia – the heart of Colombia’s famous coffee triangle. Known as
Reading Time: 7 minutes Day Tripper If you’re spending any kind of time traveling in Medellin, which is easy to do, after a couple days a get away is
Reading Time: 4 minutes Cartagena is a hot mess:On one hand it’s a vibrant beautiful port city where cruise ships also dock. It has a beautiful historic center and
Reading Time: 6 minutes Hands down the Carnival of Barranquilla is the biggest folkloric tradition and best party in Colombia with more than 2 million people participating every year.
Reading Time: 7 minutes People are divided when it comes to Colombia’s capital city of Bogota: they either love it or they hate it. A large cosmopolitan city of
Reading Time: 6 minutes Bogota I’ve been to Bogota more times than I care to count, so many times that when traveling in Colombia these days I’m doing my
Reading Time: 8 minutes Southern Colombia, while on the Pan American Highway heading to Ecuador, is often overlooked, done in a transitional hurry – a night in Cali, a
Reading Time: 7 minutes Popayan – (pronounced Popa-jan) is the capital of the department of Cauca. It is called ‘the white city’ or Ciudad Blanca due to the color
Reading Time: 5 minutes Mostly what you read and hear about the city of Cali goes something like this: Cali is hot. The people like to dance. But the
Reading Time: 6 minutes Pasto, the southernmost major city in Colombia, sits high in the Andes. It’s a six hour bus ride from Popayan on a road offering a
Reading Time: 3 minutes In southern Colombia the town of Pasto lies 250 miles north of the equator, high in the Andes at an altitude of 7,000 feet above
Reading Time: 5 minutes Valledupar is a city of a half a million people, the capital of the Cesar department and known as the birthplace and capital of vallenato
Reading Time: 5 minutes Barrancabermeja is difficult to say even after practicing it a dozen times. The locals just call it Barranca – saving some breath. It’s a hot
Reading Time: 4 minutes Monteria is a pleasant tropical city situated on the Sinu River not far from Colombia’s southern Caribbean coast. The city of 400,000 is off the
Reading Time: 9 minutes Colombia’s southern Caribbean coast, south of Cartagena, is rarely visited by foreigners. Small, uncomplicated, budding resort towns with names like Arboletes, Monitos, Puerto Escondido, San
Reading Time: 7 minutes The best Caribbean beaches on the mainland of Colombia are in the north, around the port city of Santa Marta. SM is a small, easy
Reading Time: 8 minutes Santa Marta is a 5 hour bus ride from Cartagena past Barranquilla driving up the Atlantic coast. Santa Marta is at the base of the
Reading Time: 7 minutes Many people visiting Colombia for the first time arrive in Cartagena imagining quiet, sprawling, sandy beaches on the Carribean. The city has it’s charms, but
Reading Time: 5 minutes Looking for beaches off the beaten path I came upon the town of Tolu. It’s a sleepy little tourist town 3 hours south of Cartagena on the
Reading Time: 7 minutes Village of Capurgana is a small village on the Caribbean on the Colombian – Panamanian border. There are no roads to get here; either one flies
Reading Time: 10 minutes Travelers who want to go see the Pacific in Colombia have their work cut out for them. This area is one of the most bio-diverse
Reading Time: 6 minutes Colombia is the only country in South America with access to both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. While Colombia’s Atlantic coast is taunted for all
Reading Time: 8 minutes Earthquakes Reset Ecuador’s Pacific Coast A lot of people write off Ecuador’s Pacific coast. It’s too hot, the skies are grey and then there was
Reading Time: 5 minutes Panama isn’t a big country. A 7 hour, $15 bus ride takes you from Panama City in the south to the border of Costa Rica
Reading Time: 12 minutes Travels to the Amazon rainforest are strenuous, timely and costly. It involves a lot of pre-planning, airfare and physical expenditure. There are other, more manageable,
Reading Time: 8 minutes Mocoa is called a gateway to the Amazon. Located in the department of Putumayo in southern Colombia, the town is a remote gem on the
Reading Time: 9 minutes San Jose Guaviare is small jungle town in Colombia. It’s the end of the line where the grassland plains end and the Amazon jungle begins.
Reading Time: 10 minutes The Cerros de Mavicure mountains are not a touristy place nor easy to get to. A breath-taking jungle landscape with towering granite mountains located deep
Reading Time: 10 minutes Florencia is a city in southern department of Caqueta. It is nick-named, ‘the golden gate to the Colombian Amazon’. The town is located on the
Reading Time: 3 minutes For a somewhat easy and economical exploration of the Amazon – Tena, the capital town and the oldest town of the Napo Province – is easy
Reading Time: 5 minutes Colombia has a number of ancient ruins throughout the country but the two most important archaeological sites are found in the southern departments of Huila
Reading Time: 4 minutes I’ve been to San Agustin several times before and seen most of the archaeological statues. I’d hiked around the park above town – Bosque de las
Reading Time: 6 minutes Colombia has a number of ancient ruins. But the two most important are in the south of the country where large stone statues and hundreds
Reading Time: 3 minutes Las Lajas Sanctuary, a catholic church located in southern Colombia about seven miles from the Ecuadorian border, is considered the most beautiful church in Colombia.
Reading Time: 7 minutes Renting a Hotel vs. an Apartment When staying for an extended period of time in Colombia there are many lodging options: hostels, pensions, hotels, residencias
Reading Time: 6 minutes A lot of people are retiring in Colombia and other countries in Central and South America – stretching their retirement dollars and enhancing their quality
Reading Time: 5 minutes I spend my winters in Colombia. I’m retired and live 8-9 months of the year in a northern climate. But when it gets bitter cold
Reading Time: 8 minutes A lot of Americans are retiring in Ecuador and other countries in Central and South America – stretching their retirement dollars and enhancing their quality
Reading Time: 5 minutes Many North Americans are retiring in Panama. Why? Mainly because it’s warmer and cheaper than than where they are living. Sitting on a beach in
Reading Time: 5 minutes Every country has a rich collection of sayings. Also called idomatic expressions, proverbs, maxims, adages and aphorisms, these phrases are general truths capturing practical wisdoms
Reading Time: 4 minutes The indigenous in the area of Mocoa belong to the Pastos or Inga tribes and they have an ancient relationship with Yage or Ayahusca as
Reading Time: 8 minutes Flying down a dirt path in the jungle on a motor cross bike through the mountains of southern Colombia near the town of San Jose
Reading Time: 3 minutes As a fan and student of Colombian humanities, I’m always on the hunt for websites, blogs, travel guides (websites and printed guides ), news stories
Reading Time: 5 minutes After being stuck in a cold, grey Michigan all winter for the first time in years, I finally got my second covid shot in April and
Reading Time: 5 minutes Otavalo, a village in northern Ecuador two hours from the Colombian border, hosts the largest and most famous textile market in all of South America
Reading Time: 5 minutes Every country in Latin America makes straw hats. Colombia’s coffee region has its famous straw hat. But even more famous is Panama’s straw hat. Bright white, light
Reading Time: 4 minutes The most cosmopolitan city in Central America is busy and vibrant with a skyline jammed with skyscrapers. It’s a city that has been important to
COLOMBIA
This is a blog with over 85 articles with photos on Colombian destinations. For a traveler, Colombia is the best kept secret of the continent. It’s affordable and relatively undiscovered.
It is a country with so much to offer: history, beautiful scenery, mountains, coastlines, beaches, rainforests, abundant greenery, raging rivers, caves, sleepy colonial towns, hip, hot metropolitan cities, friendly and sophisticated people, archeological sites, excellent coffee and a wide array of fruits and vegetables to discover.
Hopefully the information provided herein will help convince more travelers to visit Colombia.
– Jon McInnes
