This post is intended for those who want to prepare their travel itinerary in Colombia.
Many of you contact us with questions about your travel itinerary to Colombia. We know it’s not an easy task, so we decided to create this post to answer your questions and help you create an itinerary that suits you!
Let’s face it, the vast majority of you often make the same itinerary, which consists of seeing Colombia’s best-known destinations.
In itself, there’s really nothing wrong with wanting to see what everyone presents as must-sees on a trip to Colombia.
But on this travel blog, we want to show you that it’s worth taking a step aside. And if through our travel blog we manage to entice you to visit evenone destination outside this itinerary, then we won’t have worked in vain!
Disclaimer: we apologize in advance for any grammatical errors, as our native language is not English (we're a Colombian-French couple), so we hope you'll forgive us and still enjoy the information we share with you! (all based on our own experience)
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Duration of a trip to Colombia
ITINERARY FOR A TRIP TO COLOMBIA
One of the questions that often comes up is how much time to devote to a trip to Colombia.
What is the minimum duration of a trip to Colombia?
From our point of view, the minimum to plan for a trip to Colombia is 3 weeks. This is really the minimum duration for :
- Disconnect from everyday life
- Feel the country, understand the culture
- Really enjoy the trip, appreciate the little details that make memories
- Discover 3 different regions at your leisure
What if I only have 2 weeks to travel?
As we discussed in our post on responsible tourism, leaving for such a short time in a remote country is not ideal for several reasons:
- Travelling so far and taking an international flight for such a short time has a huge ecological impact
- In such a short space of time, you’re going to want to take as many domestic flights as possible to see as much as possible, which again isn’t great from an ecological point of view
- Colombia is a big country and you’re not going to have time to enjoy it
- Running is not traveling..
So if you only have 2 weeks to travel:
- See if you can’t wait a bit and take at least 3 weeks’ vacation a little later.
- Why not take the time to discover your own country or the countries bordering it?
- If you really want to spend 2 weeks in Colombia, concentrate on a maximum of two regions.
What’s the ideal duration for a trip to Colombia?
Leaving for 4 weeks or more in Colombia will give you a more immersive experience of the country. Leaving for 1 month or more allows you to settle down somewhere and immerse yourself in a place. It also allows you to discover less-visited regions, to take that famous step sideways we’ve been talking about.
Obviously, the longer you stay, the more you’ll be able to explore the country, the more you’ll integrate the Colombian way of life, and the more you’ll be able to exchange ideas and learn about Colombian culture.
How long does it take to discover the whole of Colombia?
We’d be tempted to answer that it’s impossible! Quite simply. As we can see, the deeper you dig, the more local you get, the more places you’ll find to discover, the more new things you’ll do, it’s endless… For example, for our next trip, we’re going to spend some time in the department of Santander and we’ve found things to do for at least 1 month’s travel!
But if we had to give an answer, we’d take at least 1 year of intense travel, to get a global overview of all the regions of Colombia.
Find inspiration
ITINERARY FOR A TRIP TO COLOMBIA
Take a look on the web or in guidebooks for destinations that might interest you, and that starts of course with our travel blog! Here you’ll find posts on many of the destinations we’ve visited.
Our travel itinerary ideas for Colombia
- Classic 3-week itinerary: Bogota, Salento, Medellin, Cartagena, Santa Marta
- 3-week itinerary in the south: Bogota, Tatacoa, San Agustin Popayan, Cali
- 10-day road trip: Bogotá to Santa Marta by car
- 1-month itinerary: Medellin to La Guajira
Find inspiration for a trip to Colombia
- Classic destinations
- Off-the-beaten-track destinations
- Colombia’s beaches
- Major cities
- Beautiful villages
- Nature and adventure destinations
- Treks in Colombia
- Colombian culture and heritage
Colombia’s regions to visit
Andes region
- What to do in and around Bogota
- What to do in and around Medellin
- What to do in and around Cali
- What to do in the Cafetera region
- What to do in Boyaca
- What to do in Santander
- What to do in and around San Agustin
Caribbean region
- What to do in and around Cartagena
- What to do in the Santa Marta region
- What to do in Guajira
- What to do in and around Capurgana
Pacific Region
Amazonia region
Orinoquia region
How to choose the regions to visit
ITINERARY FOR A TRIP TO COLOMBIA
What are the must-sees on a trip to Colombia? What to see first? What shouldn’t you miss? These are just some of the questions we’re regularly asked, and to which we always try to give a measured answer!
Classic itinerary for a first trip to Colombia
If we go back over the messages you send us, we often find the same stages for a first trip to Colombia. If we were to summarize the usual itinerary of most tourists, it would look something like this:
Bogota
Salento/CocoraValley
Medellin/Guatape
Cartagena
Tayrona/Minca/Palomino
Options: San Andres and Providencia or Isla Mucura and Tintinpan
A beautiful trip!
But we’re sure you’d like to discover the lesser-explored Colombia, wouldn’t you?
Colombia has so much more to offer!
Must-sees, really?
From our point of view, there are no must-sees on a trip to Colombia. In other words, everything can be bypassed, and we’re passing on this slightly provocative message to you, simply to get your mind off the itinerary!
The purpose of a trip is not to tick off a list of must-see places. The purpose of a trip is to discover and enjoy, and there’s nothing in here to say that you’ll achieve that goal by chasing after the most visited places in Colombia.
Of course, every region of Colombia is going to have points of interest that are more famous than others, but once again, don’t be overwhelmed by the injunctions to “must visit” this or that place. Take a step back and let your desires speak forthemselves! And if, in the end, your desires always lead you to the must-sees, so be it!
Make a list in bulk
The first thing to do is to pick up information left and right, and start by jotting down your desires somewhere, unfiltered, without thinking about feasibility or budget. Just write down what makes you want to do it! Try to get started early, because the more you look, the more you’ll discover destinations that are out of the ordinary and out of the classic route of a trip to Colombia.
By reading our travel blog, guidebooks or other posts on the web, you’ll start to see things that make you want to go. So, start a list, create a Pinterest board, create a favorites folder, use Pocket or any other way to gather in one place the ideas and desires that come to you as you research your trip to Colombia.
Making choices
What’s going to happen is that you’re going to have too many things to see on your list, and that’s normal! Colombia is a huge country with a lot to see. Imagine visiting France in 3 weeks… You’re bound to have to make some choices and… come back for another trip to Colombia!
Once you’ve finished your wish list, you’ll have to make a choice, and to do that you’ll have to take several factors into account:
- Budget: some destinations are more expensive to visit than others
- The logic of your itinerary: some destinations are totally outside a logical circuit (see below)
- Visitor numbers : some destinations are very popular with tourists, posing problems of mass tourism in high season
- The way you travel: some destinations are more adventurous than others.
- Your tastes as a traveler: city, museums, heritage, nature, sports, mountains, beach, relaxation, encounters, etc.
With all these filters, you’ll already be able to eliminate options and move on to the next step: building your itinerary!
How to build your itinerary
ITINERARY FOR A TRIP TO COLOMBIA
You’ve booked your plane tickets, you know how long you’ll be traveling in Colombia, you’ve made a list of your desires – now it’s time to build your itinerary.
How to build a realistic itinerary
Colombia isn’t France or Canada, and you’re going to have to forget your comfortable travel habits on the vacation highway! There are some important things to bear in mind when building a realistic itinerary.
- Transport times are counted in hours, not km
- Use Google Map to estimate travel times and add 25 u result
- Use Google Map to visualize your itinerary and make a logical loop
- Count 1 day off each time for long-distance journeys
- Stay at least 3 full days at each destination, as there’s always plenty to see and do in the vicinity
- Leave room for the unexpected and improvisation
- Look at the seasons: some regions are not worth visiting in the rainy season.
Plan your itinerary chronologically
In our opinion, the best way to build your itinerary is to write it down chronologically. Don’t forget to include transport days!
Day 1: Arrival Bogota
D2: Bogota
D3: Bogota
D4: Transport Bogota – Villa de Leyva
D5: Villa de Leyva
D6 : Villa de Leyva
Etc.
You can of course make different itineraries on this model, putting different options in each of them, and this will allow you to make the final choice.
INTERESTS
- Visualize your itinerary
- Decide roughly how many days you want to spend in each location
- Set transportation days (very important)
- See the feasibility of things
By proceeding in this way, you can see whether your itinerary is realistic, or whether you still need to sort out the destinations to visit to avoid running from one destination to the next and spending your life in transport.
Using an agency
It’s understandable that all this organization is tedious… we know what we’re talking about! So calling in a professional to organize your tour and be accompanied during your trip is a perfectly acceptable option. It brings peace of mind and a sense of security. If you can afford it, we really advise you to use a local travel agency specializing in tailor-made tours in Colombia.
Reduce the impact of air travel
As you know, air travel is the most polluting form of transport. But once you’re in Colombia, you can reduce the impact of your transportation by favoring road travel as much as possible! Buses are the most practical and well-developed means of transport in Colombia. You can also opt to rent a car.
But above all, you can plan your itinerary so as to avoid having to jump between two regions by plane! Our advice: Keep your itinerary short.
By keeping your itinerary short:
- You use public transport
- Reduce travel time
- You discover the country in depth
- You meet people more easily
- You avoid taking the plane
Of course, there will be stages where flying will be a difficult option to bypass, certain regions inaccessible otherwise, and few travelers have the time to make a loop by road where you manage to get back to your starting point. But our aim here is simply to make you aware that whenever possible, it’s always better not to fly.
Before leaving for Colombia
ITINERARY FOR A TRIP TO COLOMBIA
The last thing you need to do is read all the practical information on our travel blog! All kidding aside, you’ll find plenty of tips to help you prepare your departure and your travel itinerary to Colombia.
Important information before you leave for Colombia
- When to travel to Colombia
- Entry formalities
- Packing your suitcase
- Telephone and internet
- Travel agencies
- Geography, roads, weather
Budget and money matters before leaving for Colombia
- Budget for a trip to Colombia
- Avoiding bank charges when traveling
- Withdrawals and currency exchange
- Transferring or sending money free of charge
Learn more about transportation before leaving for Colombia
- Buying your ticket to Colombia
- Information on domestic flights
- Travelling by bus
- Rent a car
- Buy your ticket for Colombia
- Information on domestic flights
- Travel by bus
- Renting a car
Thanks for all your info!
I’m also from Bordeaux and I’ll be in Colombia in a week (starting in Peru, Colombia will be the finishing touch to 4 months of travel in South America) and I’m finding out everything I can about what to do there!
I can see that my initial itinerary is exactly the same as everyone else’s, but thanks to your blog I’m looking for more unusual destinations!
I’ve got 5 weeks in Colombia, from the end of January to the end of February. Sounds pretty good! As I’m passionate about biodiversity, I’d love to see the famous Llanos you recently visited, or part of the Amazon… I’ve just arrived in Cartagena, and was thinking of staying there for a while, passing through Santa Marta to see Tayrona and the sierra, possibly going on to Guajira, then heading towards the center of the country (via the Llanos?) and visiting the Cocora region, Guatape and Medellin before ending up in Bogotá
I’ll skip the Pacific coast due to the absence of whales at the moment
Thanks in any case!
Wow! Thank you for your beautiful comment Raphael! It goes straight to our hearts! It’s so important for us to let travelers know that there are other destinations to discover in Colombia! For the record, the Pacific coast, with or without whales, remains a magical place! We’re going back there at the end of February to tell you all about it 😉