Colombia
COLOMBIA
LOCATION
MUST DO
Bogota:
- Visit Gold museum & Botero museum
- Take the cable car up to the top of Monserrate for hot chocolate and city views
- Dinner and live music at Andres Carne de Res
- Zipaquira Salt Cathedral
- Explore La Candelaria, the historic district
- Hang out in Bolivar Square
Trip Details
When: November 2015
Where: Bogota, Pereira
How: Independent travel with friends
TRAVEL TIPS
- Foods to try:
- Ajiaco, arepas, churros and hot chocolate, chicharron, empanadas, arequipe in wafers, almojabana and queso fresco. Try dipping chunks of chesse in your hot chocolate. It’s surprisingly delicious! Oh and fresh squeezed guanabana juice. yummm
- Stay:
- Bogota: The safest place to stay in the city is a little outside the city center in a neighborhood called Parque de la 93, near all the embassies. We stayed at Best Western Plus 93 Park Hotel for one night. It was relatively inexpensive, in a good location close to cafes and restaurants, clean, and comfortable.
- Pereira: Hacienda Hotel San Jose. I loved this Hacienda! It’s a typical Spanish-style hacienda with beautiful antique furniture and decorations, wrap-around balconies, courtyards, and gardens. It was tranquil, had an on-site restaurant with delicious food, amazing service, and it felt like home.
- Bogota Tips:
- A good place to stop in for a snack is La Puerta Falsa near Bolivar Square, or any other restaurant on Calle 11 between Carrera 7 and Carrera 5b.
- If you have limited time in the city and would like to maximize your stay, I highly recommend hiring the services of Edgar, a guide from Explora Bogota Day tours. My friend and I traveled to Bogota and only had about 8 hours to see the city. I sent an e-mail with specific requests for hotel pickup, Full day city tour, and drop off at the airport. Communication was great via e-mail. Edgar was our guide for the day. He was very friendly, professional, knowledgeable, and had a great sense of humor. Our guide had a great day planned for us, including driving in a private car through various neighborhoods with commentary, a visit to Monserrate on the funicular, Gold Museum, walking tour of La Candelaria, Museo de Botero, Plaza de Bolivar, etc. The tours are very flexible and customizable, so if you have specific interests, let them know. We are foodies, so we ended up visiting a few of the best cafes and restaurants to try local delicacies.
NOTES
I have a close friend who is from Colombia and she invited us out to visit her country for a party to celebrate the birth of her new baby. I flew out with another friend of mine and we spent a day exploring the sights in Bogota, then we spent the rest of the time out in the countryside near Pereira. It’s such a beautiful country!