Ultimate guide to backpacking Colombia - Colombia Travel Guide

Colombia

23 Jul

Intro

At the start of 2020, I spent 5 weeks backpacking Colombia as a solo female traveller! In this post I will share information and tips from my experience and research for anyone who is looking to travel to Colombia or otherwise hopefully inspire you to visit this beautiful country!

To start…Colombia is an incredible, vibrant country! Before travelling there, everyone who I had spoken to who had already travelled there were confident it was one of the favourite places they had travelled and I have to say it now is definitely one of my favourite destinations too! Colombia is made up of beautiful, breathtaking and diverse nature, bustling cities, rich culture and history and friendly, welcoming people who are always ready to party! Don’t miss it off your list!

How long should you spend travelling Colombia?

Colombia is a huge country and there is so much to see! I spent 5 weeks backpacking Colombia and felt like I only really scratched the surface of the country. Having said this, I believe that a minimum of 2 weeks would give you enough time to explore a certain area and allow you to really experience the country and immerse yourself in the culture. Obviously if you live relatively close to Colombia and just fancy visiting one of the cities then I am sure less time would be fine. I think around 3 months in the country would allow you to explore all of the destinations I will mention in this guide without also being in too much of a rush!

Where to visit

Below is a map of Colombia showing some of the main tourist destinations:

Below is an idea of a few things to do in each destination shown on the map above:

Bogotá - take a graffiti tour (I recommend https://www.capitalgraffititours.com/ ), visit the Fernando Botero Museum, hike the Monserrate mountain and try out hot chocolate with sweet bread and cheese!
Cali - take Salsa lessons!
Medellín - take a city tour with Real City Tours (https://www.realcitytours.com/), take a commune 13 tour, and party in el poblado! Medellín is also a great place to do day trips from to places such as Jardín and Guatape.
Jardín - a small colorful town easily accessible from Medellin. Its quite rural and similar to Salento (some even say better as it is a bit less touristy) but a good area to get out in nature and do some hiking or visit waterfalls etc!
Guatape - go on a boat ride on the lake, rent a scooter and climb the famous rock!
Cartagena - Explore the colorful neighbourhood of Getsemani (you can find many tours on https://www.guruwalk.com/ ), go for drinks at a rooftop bar and use Cartagena as a base to visit the the Islas de Rosario and Islas de San Bernardo.
Baranquilla - visit if you are there in February for the Carnival - it is meant to be second best to Rio Carnival! Also the hometown of Shakira!
Salento - visit a coffee farm, hike in the Cócora Valley, take a day trip to Filandia and play tejo! Use Willys Jeeps to get around everywhere and make sure to stand on the back for a fun ride!
Santa Marta - a good base to visit the Sierra Nevada mountains and the Caribbean coast. Popular things to do in the area include: visiting Tayrona National Park, hiking the Lost City Trek and visiting the nearby Costeño beach.
Minca - visit some waterfalls (Cascadas de Marinka are the biggest), watch the sunset at Casa Loma and visit a Cacao farm.
Buritaca - if you like to party then definitely stop here to stay at one of Colombias best party hostels - Rio Hostel Buritaca. Not only can you party here but you can do tubing down the river and volunteer at a local school through!
Palomino - take a surf lesson, party at one of the bars along the beach!
La Guajira - this is the desert region in the North. Popular places to visit here are: Riohacha, Cabo de la Vela and Punta Gallinas. Cabo de la Vela is a popular destination for kite surfers and you can do sand boarding in Punta Gallinas. You can take multi-day tours from Riohacha, or even Palomino, to explore the region.
San Gil - this place is known for extreme sports such as white water rafting which is a popular activity to do there!
Nuqui - go whale watching!
Buenaventura - a popular destination to reach national parks and beaches on Colombia’s Pacific coast.
Leticia - a small town in the Amazon. You can fly into here and then take a tour further into the Amazon Rainforest.
Pasto - a popular city to travel to if wanting to cross the boarder into Ecuador.
Cano Cristales - take a guided tour to see this famous river! The river is located in a national park - La Macarena National Park so definitely check out the surrounding area as well!
Tatacoa Desert - hike through the desert and spend the night there to watch the stars! You can also stay in the nearby town of Villavieja and visit the desert from there.
Sapzurro - A nice chilled beach town. Speed boats also depart from here to go to Panama (via the San Blas Islands - check out https://sanblasadventures.com/ for more info)
San Andres and Providencia - these are small Islands actually closer to Nicaragua than Colombia but Colombian land. Head here for crystal clear seas, pristine beaches and fantastic snorkeling!
Rincon del Mar - a chilled beach vibe where you can enjoy Colombia’s Caribbean beaches a few hours away from Cartagena!
Islas de San Bernardo and Islas de Rosario - groups of Islands close to the Caribbean coast and not far from Cartagena where you can relax and enjoy the Caribbean beaches and sea. It is possible to do day trips to these islands from Cartagena however I would highly recommend spending a few days on them if you have the time.

Best time of year to go

This is a bit of a tricky one because the regions in Colombia all have slightly different climates.

For the most part, December - March is considered the best time to go to Colombia as it is dry season towards the north regions. However, this is wet season in the Amazon region so it really depends on where you are planning to visit!

Rainy season is from April - May and September - October. Although it is rainy season, there are still usually plenty of hours of sunshine and you will most likely find that everything is cheaper as you are not visiting in high season.

June - August are also considered summer months in Colombia as the rain eases off during these months. This is also a perfect time to visit caño cristales (the colorful river which you’ve probably seen in Encanto!)

So overall pretty much any time of year is good to visit Colombia, however you migh sway more towards certain months depending on the specific regions you are planning on visiting!

Getting around

From what I experienced, Colombia has a really good selection of transport systems making it really easy to get around the country - and most of the time it is pretty cheap as well!

Buses

Buses are one of the most popular modes of transport from travelling between cities and towns. The buses are relatively frequent and it is the cheapest way to travel - especially for long distance journeys between cities. There are also many night buses going between the main cities.

A few websites you can use to book your buses on are:

BusBud: https://www.busbud.com/

Redbus: https://www.redbus.com/

Flying

Internal flights are a really popular option for getting between the major cities in Colombia. There are quite a few budget airlines that operate domestic flights daily and they are relatively cheap too! I got 2 domestic flights during my time in Colombia and each time I paid no more than £70 with checked in luggage included.

Uber/Taxis

I would highly recommend Uber over the normal taxis in the cities that it is available! I found ubers to be generally cheaper and safer. You also won’t get taken advantage of with the price as it is already pre confirmed when you book. If Uber isn’t available then there are normal taxis in every location and also moto taxis in the more remote locations too. My advice would be agree a price before your ride!

Rent a car

Another option could be renting a car to travel around. I would say unless you really want to get off the beaten track then this is probably not a preferable mode of transport just because of the shear size of Colombia and the distances you would need to travel between each major destination. But… if you are up for an adventure then the option is there!

Journey Planning

For planning your journey out and discovering all the ways you can travel from one location to another, Rome2Rio is a great website to see what options are available: https://www.rome2rio.com/

Where to stay

Hostels

If you are a backpacker on a budget or are wanting to meet people easily I believe hostels are the best option!

Some of the best hostels I stayed at/got recommended in Colombia were:

The Cranky Croc Hostel (Bogota)
The Viajero Hostels (multiple locations such as Cali, Salento, Medellin and Cartagena)
Los Patios Hostel (Medellin)
The Journey Hostel (close to Santa Marta and Tayrona National Park)
Costeño Beach Hostel (close to Santa Marta and Tayrona National Park)
This isn’t a hostel (although it is ‘shared’ accommodation) but I would highly recommend staying a few nights in the hammocks at Cabo San Juan in Tayrona National Park.
Rio Buritaca Hostel (Buritaca)
Dreamer Hostel (Palomino)
Rio Elemento Hostel (Minca)
Casa Loma (Minca)
Republica Hostel (Cartagena)

I booked all my hostels through https://www.hostelworld.com/ . You can usually get a better deal if you book directly through the hostels but I love booking through hostelworld for their free cancellation policy option, organised app and their new chat features!

Hotels

I wont speak much about hotels in this blog post as I didnt stay in any myself but of course there is the option to stay in hotels in every location. If you are in a group or a couple I would suspect the prices could also be as cheap as private rooms in hostels so definitely worth exploring all options!

Air bnbs

Air bnbs are really popular in Colombia - especially for digital nomads or people who are staying in a location for a longer period of time. They are very reasonably priced and you can find some amazing stays in beautiful locations! I didn’t stay in any myself as I wanted to be in hostels to socialize more but I would definitely recommend browsing the app to see whats available.

WHAT TO EAT AND DRINK?

Some popular foods that you must try in Colombia are:

Arepas - these are white corn cakes served with basically everything! The plain ones can be a bit bland in my opinion however the ones filled with cheese are delicious!
Patacones - deep fried, squashed plantain (often served with the menu del dia).
Empanadas - deep fried maize stuffed with different foods such as: potatos, meat or cheese.
Menù del dia - if you are on a budget then the menù del dia (menù of the day) will be your best friend during your time in Colombia! Usually priced between 10000-15000COP you get a drink, a soup and a main dish of usually rice, beans, salad, patacones and either vegetables, meat or fish. Such a bargain!!
Ajiaco - a soup dish which is popular in and around Bogota.
Bandeja paisa - basically the Colombian version of a dirty fry up…not really my thing but had it once just to try it!
Fresh fruits - Colombia is home to so many delicious fruits that are grown in the country itself. There are so many different fruits to try such as lulo, granadilla, guanabana, uchuva, guava and maracuya. Yes some of these are found all around the world however they honestly taste so much better in their home grown country!
Chocolate Santafereño - Hot chocolate with sweet bread and cheese! Definitely try this if you have a sweet tooth - it might sound strange but was actually delicious!

Drinks to try:

Chicha - a fermented alcoholic drink made from Maize. In bogota there is a section of Carrera 2 filled with street vendors selling Chicha - definitely head here to try some!
Aguardiente - this is the spirit of Colombia. It tastes a bit like Sambuca but a little bit ‘lighter’ in my opinion.
The local beer - club Colombia
Limonada de Coco - a coconut cold soft drink which is popular on the coast of Colombia! Usually just made of coconuts, lime juice, ice and sugar and is quite a thick consistency! So yummy!
Colombian Coffee of course! - Colombian coffee with usually be a medium roast

Budgeting for Colombia

Budgets obviously vary depending on how luxurious or how cheap you want to do things.

For my trip, I ended up spending on average £40 per day for the 5 weeks I was there.

As a rough guide I would recommend the following backpacker budgets:

£30 per day - Cheapest hostels, cooking meals or eating cheap, taking buses everywhere and not doing too many activities.
£40 per day - a mix of cheap and middle priced hostels, mostly eating out, primarily using buses but also other modes of transport such as domestic flights and taxis and doing most activities.
£50 per day - higher end hostels/ private rooms in hostels, eating out for every meal, a mix of transport modes and doing all activities.

I use the travel spend app to budget for my trips. You can find out more information on their website here: https://travel-spend.com/