Ancient Cities, Coffee and New Beginnings
Colombia, known to many by its infamous past has a wide range to offer any backpacker travelling through South America. A diverse place with tropical climate on the Caribbean coast, cooler cities in the mountains, rainforest and regions perfect for coffee. This vibrant place makes people stay for a looong time!
This backpacking Colombia travel guide gives you tips on activities to do, route suggestions, budget and safety tips to help you plan your trip to this tropical country!
Routes
Usually there are two main routes when backpacking Colombia, depending on whether you start in the North or in the South.
For those arriving from the Gringo Trail of Central America, either by air or by boat, you might find your first stop in Cartagena. A place that feels very much like the Caribbean is a perfect introduction to Colombia.
From there most people continue on to the smaller town of Santa Marta, maybe stopping in Barranquilla on the way. Santa Marta is a charming little place with a stunning sunset, and a jumping off point for Tayrona Park, Minca or the Lost City Trek.
From Santa Marta head down towards Medellín for a deep dive into its fascinating history before heading towards Salento to experience the delicious Colombian coffee! To finish off you can explore Cali and learn salsa, or visit the capital of Bogotá before heading back home or continuing onwards to Ecuador.
If you arrive directly in Bogotá you can easily reverse this route, and for those planning to go to Ecuador, a flight to Quito is easy to find from anywhere and shouldn’t set you back too much.
How much time do I need?
Colombia is a massive country and a lot bigger than people realise. Therefore, to fully experience it I would suggest planning closer to a month here. There’s a reason many backpackers end up staying for months.
If you are short on time, the absolute minimum would be two weeks, which also means not visiting all the places mentioned in the routes above. In two weeks you might be able to explore the Caribbean coast and a few days in Medellín.
Top Activities in Colombia
Colombia is full of activities like hiking, scuba diving, beach time and salsa. You will find something for everyone here, and here are some of my personal favourites.
Lost City Trek
One of the big highlights in Colombia. A 4-day trek into the jungle to see the Lost City, built 600 years before Machu Picchu by the indigenous people of the region. The price is set by the government and as of 2024 is $550. This includes entrance fee, food and drinks, accommodation and guides. It’s not possible to do by yourself.
Along the way there are smaller camps built for you to sleep in and enjoy a nice meal after a long day of hiking. Make sure you cool off in the rivers to freshen up and prepare you for more hiking the next day. On day three climb 1200 stairs to finally witness the plateaus that ones were filled with houses of the people living here. After taking it all in begin the long walk back to civilisation!
Tayrona Park
If you are not a fan of hiking the jungle, at least make sure you get a visit to Tayrona National Park. A stunning place with beautiful beaches and some hikes if you do get restless.
Scuba Diving
If you’re interested in getting your license, Santa Marta is the home to one of the cheapest places to do so. Dive into the Caribbean Sea to master the art of scuba diving!
Cartagena
Explore the Caribbean style of Cartagena, a city that feels like a more modern Havana, is great for street art, Caribbean food and salsa nights. Head over to Callejón Angosto for a drink on the Instagram friendly street with umbrellas.
Comuna 13
Comuna 13, the neighbourhood made famous by Pablo Escobar, is now ditching the past to create a new vibrant neighbourhood. Once the murder capital of the world, it is now open for the public with locals willing to tell their history of the neighbourhoods dark past.
Take a guided tour to learn more of the history and see how the youth are trying to change its reputation through street art, music and dance.
Explore Bogotá
Explore the capital of Colombia, and make sure you head to the top of Montserrate for an incredible view of the city. Hike to the top or opt for the more comfortable Cable car to take you there. Buy a snack and some souvenirs at the top to bring home!
Bogotá also has a famous nightlife and many students so head to town, but bring someone with you!
Coffee in Salento
Salento is famous for its coffee, and that alone is a good reason for a visit. For the non coffee drinkers, there’s still plenty of see with beautiful surroundings in the Colombian highlands.
Dance salsa in Cali
Head to Cali to practice your salsa. This place lives and breathes salsa and many backpackers stay here longer to immerse themselves and become better dancers. A vibrant place with salsa on the street everywhere!
Budget
Colombia is a good place for backpackers and you can expect to survive on $30-35 per day. This includes staying in hostels, eating local food and using local transportation. Most cities have free walking tours which is a great way to get familiar with and learn about them. Also, plenty of hostels offer different activities each day, like coffee tasting, street art tour and similar that are often free or very cheap.
For bigger activities like visiting the Amazon or doing the Lost City Trek you should budget extra money for those activities.
Food
Colombia is diverse in food with seafood and Caribbean influence in the North, and more traditional Latin American food inlands with rice and beans. In the Andean region try the famous La Bandeja Paisa which includes Colombian style beans, rice, meat, chicharrón, fried egg, chorizo, plantain and avocado. Delicious!
Accommodation
In Colombia you can find hostel at around $10 per night for a dorm. Most hostels in Colombia are of good quality. There are also famous hostel chains like Viajero that you can find in several cities. These are often super popular and clean, but more towards the party side and also with a higher price. Finding a quieter hostel shouldn’t be a problem.
Transportation
Like mentioned before, Colombia is a BIG country which might affect your transportation choices.
Local buses are plenty between the main spots for tourists and fairly cheap as well. There are night buses from the north to Medellín that takes around 16 hours for $40 on a super comfortable bus with big reclining seats.
Flying is also an option in Colombia because prices might even be cheaper than busses. Thanks to Avianca you can get some good deals and save time and money on the longest travel days.
When to go
Situated close to the equator, the weather in Colombia is nice all year round. That being said, the dry season and best weather is found from December to March. This is also the time that guarentees the best weather for hiking and if you’ll be at higher elevation. For example Bogotá can get quite cold so avoiding the rainy season can be a good idea.
Hiking in the jungle is a much more comfortable experience during the dry season, but usually sees less wildlife if that’s what you’re into. Rain makes the jungle come alive!
Safety
Colombia has a bad reputation when it comes to safety and is a place that requires caution, especially at night. For a majority of people travelling in Colombia and visiting the touristic places you will have absolutely no problem at all, and the Colombian people are super friendly.
So how do you stay safe? Stay away from drugs. It will be offered to you and in places like Cartagena, they might sell you drugs before letting the cops know you have drugs on you. You then have to pay or fine or go to jail. Also, be careful with your drinks in bars and clubs. If you feel like Brad Pitt because all the extremely beautiful women hit on you, pay extra attention and never follow anyone to a place you don’t know.
Like in most of the world, you should always follow a few precautions like the once below, and never travel without travel insurance.
Safety Tips:
- Always have some cash at hand in case someone wants to rob you. Better to hand over a few notes than to be caught with nothing or lose your credit card.
- Always keep your valuables safely on you on night buses and never put your backpack in the overhead compartment.
- In large crowds be careful with your belongings. Things in your pocket can easily be taken, but also smaller backpacks, bum bags etc. Make sure you secure them to avoid pickpockets in these situations.
- Do not wander around alone at night in places you are not familiar with. If you have to, stick to well lit streets as much as possible. Preferable where there are more people. If you need to use your phone for maps, do it discreetly and never wave your phone or wealth around.
- Don’t wear flashy things and leave your expensive jewellery at home.
- Bring a padlock and use the lockers in hostels for all your valuables.
- Be careful with how much you drink, accepting drinks from others or the use of drugs. There are many stories out there, so try not to overdo anything unless you have people with you to take care of you.
By taking some precautions you will be fine in Colombia, and come back with wonderful memories of this beautiful little paradise.
Resources
So, are you ready for an adventure to Colombia? Here are some of the resources I personally use when I travel. Great value and support, in addition to the best deals out there!
BOOKING – The best place to book accommodation. In my experience the site with the best prices, deals and selection. Perfect for a budget traveller.
HOSTELWORLD – The best place to find hostels, and also has group chats for all your bookings and places you’re going to make it easier to meet people. Perfect for solo travellers!
SKYSCANNER – When I need to find the cheapest days and ways to fly somewhere, Skyscanner is always the first place I go.
GET YOUR GUIDE – A massive marketplace for inspiration and booking of tours and activities for each place you visit.
AIRALO – What I use to stay connected on the road. A slightly more expensive option than buying local sim cards, but nothing beats having e-sim installed and ready to go as soon as you cross the border.
Some links may be affiliate links, meaning I may earn commission from products or services I recommend. For more, see disclosure.
