Contrasts of Colombia

Contrasts of Colombia was a great tour and we had a wonderful time. Bogota - at least around the centre - was vibrant with street art and beautiful old buildings and churches, and the drive from there to Villa de Leyva went through some wonderful scenery. The salt cathedral on the way was impressive in places but if you've been to the one outside Krakow in Poland this one will be a bit disappointing I would say, though still worth a visit. We loved Villa de Leyva, which was really pretty and had a lovely atmosphere about it. The Terracota House is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesday though, meaning unless the start day of this tour changes it's not somewhere you'd be able to visit, which seems a shame, but the town is so lovely to walk around it's a small disappointment. Our undisputed highlight I think was Barichara, which we hadn't expected. It is such charming, beautiful little town surrounded by stunning scenery, and the Camino Real walk to Guane was fantastic and not too difficult although the initial climb down and heat could be a challenge to some. Our guide was good at checking who might struggle, and suggested Tuk Tuk rides for those who could do the walk to meet us in Guane so we could all get the chiva bus back to Barichara together. The rammed earth workshop was interesting but perhaps a little long and in hindsight I would have rather just had the free afternoon to wander around the streets of Barichara. We stayed on a little bit after to do some painting with coloured soil which was fun and made a nice souvenir, but obviously it's good to learn about the local town and its history too. Chicamocha National Park was a tad disappointing - I didn't think it was as pretty as any of the areas we'd seen previously and unfortunately the cable car was undergoing maintenance - perhaps that would have changed our impression of it a bit. It's still a nice place to visit and breaks up the journey to the airport. The Cocora Valley and coffee region generally were equally as impressive. The Hacienda Combia on the coffee plantation was lovely, with a great view and lots of bird life around including humming birds at little feeders in the breakfast area. The ride in the Willys Jeep was great fun and the walk through the valley was beautiful, although I found the last leg a bit of a struggle in the heat and altitude. It was more than worth it though. We really could have done with more time in Medellin, as the 6+ hour trip from Armenia to Medellin - even having skipped Jerico from the itinerary - meant we got there late in the afternoon with a bit of a rush to get the metro and cable car. The next day was spent in Guatape and climbing El Penol rock, which was a great day trip, and a few of us made our own way out into Medellin's more upmarket area on the evening for a meal which was quite easy to sort ourselves and nice to see another part of the city. The next day was very short again though, with only limited time at Comuna 13 before we had to catch a lunchtime flight to Cartagena. Comuna 13 was only just beginning to open up as we were leaving and it was a real shame not to be able to spend more time there. In addition, it meant we saw very little of anything else of Medellin, and we felt that probably another full day there would have been justified. That said, we don't know it like locals and maybe there's not much else to see or do there, but the general feeling was that we were leaving too soon. At the least, a later flight to Cartagena would have given us more time to enjoy Comuna 13 a bit more or squeeze in something else. Cartagena was actually our least favourite part of the trip. It's a pretty place in the old town, and Getsemani was artsy with a cool vibe. The central park had sloths in it too which, if you can find them, are cool to see. However, the old town through the day was generally overrun with tourists off the cruise ships which overwhelmed the narrow streets, and with traffic and the temperatures it felt a bit claustrophobic at times. It was much nicer in the early morning and late afternoon / evening. It was also the only place we felt a little bit, not quite unsafe, but hassled perhaps, and we felt a little more on-guard than we had anywhere else. We opted to stay an extra day and I think 2 full days was enough but if I could have swapped one day out for an extra day in Medellin I think we would have done. The tour leader, Gustavo, was brilliant we thought, a good sense of humour and worked hard to make sure everyone was having a good time. He was good at identifying those in the group who might need a bit more support or who might not be able to do certain activities, and those who were fine to be a bit more independent and not need tethering to the group (within reason and without compromising anyone's safety or enjoyment of course - he got the balance right I thought). He was an enthusiastic photographer and bird watcher too, and always pointing out beautiful birds or great shots for others to take. All of the local guides were excellent too and couldn't fault any of them. Overall, Colombia was beautiful and the people were so friendly and welcoming. Like anywhere you have to be sensible and keep your wits about you, but even when we went wandering around Bogota on our first day before joining the tour proper, we never felt unsafe. There's not a lot of English spoken but they seemed genuinely happy to see tourists and we enjoyed all of our interactions with the locals. We'd certainly encourage anyone thinking of seeing Colombia to do so as soon as possible!

Very varied trip, with a packed itinerary, good hotels and friendly people.

A beautiful country with so much to see. Catalina was an excellent guide who was always on call to help us explore this country and her local recommendations were always excellent . The local guides were also excellent at bringing their areas to life. There are a few tweaks I would make to the itinerary. In Bogotá the itinerary should flex depending upon the weather. On our trip we should have gone to Monserrate on Sunday when the sky was clear and the market on Monday in the rain. In the coffee region I agree that the botanical gardens would have been more interesting than the basket weaving and mug painting. Finally in Medellin I think there should be more opportunities to explore with a guide on the understanding some areas maybe challenging ( part of exploring is to see the real country)

Columbia is beautiful, full of treasures both in the people & the landscape. The history is incredible and the resilience of the people is amazing, considering what they have been through. Catalina, the local tour guides, drivers and hotel staff could not have been more knowledgeable, friendly, professional and helpful. They were an absolute pleasure to be around. My rooms at two hotels were good, one excellent & 3 average, the easy access for mosquitoes in these 3 wasn’t ideal and when you have such busy days, you need to be comfortable & relaxed overnight.

Colombia is a beautiful and colourful country, which is keen to overcome its historic negative connotations. The geo-political situation seems to have placed some restrictions on the areas covered on the trip so the degree of “contrasts” was more limited when compared to other Latin American trips I’ve experienced. We had excellent local guides throughout the trip who were keen to share their knowledge, passion and experience with us. Highlights included the excellent Gold Museum in Bogotá, beautiful Barichara and the Camino Real hike, the Jeep ride to the Corcora Valley, the visit to Comuna 13 in Medellin and the vivid architecture of Guatape and Cartagena. The ubiquitous natural juices were fantastic, made with a wide variety of previously unknown and more familiar fruits. Accommodation was good, with comfortable beds, clean if compact bathrooms, and characterful properties e.g. in Villa de Leyva, Barichara and Cartagena. In Medellin we had a bit of luxury as well as air conditioning rather than a fan! Despite a dreadful forecast, the weather was largely kind to us except for part of the time in Bogotá and Ville de Leyva where we faced some torrential downpours. From a packing perspective we went from fleeces, rain jackets and umbrellas in Bogotá and Villa de Leyva to cotton tops, hats and shorts elsewhere, with Cartagena very hot and humid. Areas for improvement: There was a mix up with the airport transfer for those arriving on the group flight, leaving several people initially stranded but that issue was addressed. The itinerary could benefit from some modifications. On day one in Bogotá we were left to our own devices until 6.00pm. At the hacienda where we spent 3 nights it felt like Explore was struggling to fill the time - with the basket weaving and cup painting and three hour tour of the coffee plantation - when we could have gone to the nearby botanical gardens which some in the group decided to do independently. There was little time spent seeing Medellin itself (and we were warned against doing anything outside the scheduled activities) although the trip to Comuna 13 and excursion to Guatape were great. There has been some over-development and over-commercialisation of some sights, such as the Corcora Valley. The trip notes referred to various local museums but they tended to be shut on the days we visited the towns. That was especially a disappointment in Villa de Leyva where several of us had wanted to see the Terracotta House.