Colombia Things to Do

  Metrocable
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  • Metrocable
      Metrocable
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  • taking a volcano mud bath
      taking a volcano mud bath
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  • indigenous tapir
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  • Plaza de Caycedo
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Most Viewed Things to Do in Colombia

76.

La Candelaria and Downtown   Bogotá

La Candelaria and Downtown, Bogotá

 60 Reviews  For anyone interested in art, Museo Botero has to be very top of the list of things to do in Bogotá. The magnificent 208-piece collection was donated by the famous Colombian artist Fernando Botero... 

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77.

Old City   Cartagena

Old City, Cartagena

 1 Review  The old city is encircled by walls that are 12 foot in height. Inside you willl find restaurants, a plaza with a statue of Simon Bolivar the liberator. You will also see beautiful flowers hanging over... 

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78.

Monserrate   Bogotá

Monserrate, Bogotá

 25 Reviews  Cerro de Monserrate is the main symbol of Bogotá. This peak of 3.160m is a famous religious site though many come for its spectacular view. On the top of the mountain is a church with a statue of the... 

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79.

Plaza de Bolivar   Cartagena

Plaza de Bolivar, Cartagena

 1 Review  Parque Simon Bolivar. This park is homage to Simon Bolivar who liberated Cartagena. During the day the park is full of people drinking coffee and watching the world go by. Plenty of people selling... 

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80.

Plaza Bolivar   Bogotá

Plaza Bolivar, Bogotá

 31 Reviews  The obvious highlight of Plaza de Bolivar is Catedral Primada. The largest of Bogota's churches has a storied past of destruction be it by poor construction or earthquake but what stands today dates... 

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81.

Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas   Cartagena

Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas, Cartagena

 2 Reviews  The Fort San Felipe is an amazing fort, build around 1639 and completed in 1789. The fort guarded the people of Cartagena from pirates. Great views of the city from the top of the fort. You can take a... 

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82.

Gold Museum   Bogotá

Gold Museum, Bogotá

 20 Reviews  Bogota's Museo del Oro (Gold Museum) houses the finest collection of pre-Columbian gold in the world, boasting 33.000 individual pieces, from simple earrings, bracelets, necklaces, rings and figurines... 

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83.

Convent of San Pedro Claver   Cartagena

Convent of San Pedro Claver, Cartagena

 1 Review  San Pedro Claver church was founded by the Jesuits in the early part of the 17th century. The church was originally named San Ignacio de Loyola (founder of the Jesuits) and was later renamed San Pedro... 

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84.

National Museum   Bogotá

National Museum, Bogotá

 10 Reviews  This is the museum for all Colombians, and when I went there, there were several schoolchildren enjoying the exhibits. The museum has a collection of more than 20,000 objects that are symbols of... 

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85.

Plaza de la Inquisicion   Cartagena

Plaza de la Inquisicion, Cartagena

 2 Reviews  Inquisition Palace was built around 1770 for the Inquisition Tribunal. You can take a tour with a guide or you can walk around on your own. The tour guides wait inside and when you pay your entrance... 

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86.

Daytrips   Bogotá

Daytrips, Bogotá

 5 Reviews  It is relatively easy to visit the Salt Cathedral by public transportation. Ask at your hotel for exact directions but in general one takes the very efficient Trans-Millenio bus system to Portal... 

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87.

Monumento a las India Catalina.   Cartagena

Monumento a las India Catalina., Cartagena

 1 Review  You will find this monument at the bus station just outside the wall. However the people of Cartagena want it moved as they say it is not fully appreciated by the locals. The monument is a beautiful... 

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88.

Presidential Palace   Bogotá

Presidential Palace, Bogotá

 4 Reviews  I read that it might be a little tricky having pictures taken by the gate of the Presidential Palace, but I tried anyway. The guards were okay with it and just told me to do it quickly...they are... 

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Reviews from VirtualTourist Members

Medellin - San Antonio metro cable

by tampa_shawn

When in Medellin make sure you go up both Metro Cables. These are like giant ski lifts that take you into the barrios. The view is amazing and its all included in your subway ticket. today I took the second Metro Cable (teleferico). I changed subway at San Antonio and then took that to the last station and got on that teleferico. This one was so long. It actually went over a mountain and up another one. It was a bit windy so the car rocked a bit which was a bit disconcerting. This teleferico was built on hills that went up at a very steep angle and none of the stops were at ground level. So people have to walk up I'd say the equivalent of 4 or 5 flights of stairs (elevators are reserved for for the infirm only) so I did not get off despite my intentions to get off, walk around and go to lunch like I did in Santo Domingo. Anyway met all sorts of people. The people are so proud. This area...

Try a colombian hot dog...

by tampa_shawn

Do you want a real hot dog experience? Then order one in ColombiaI got mine at a bus station...It consisted of an oversized sweet sesame seed bun, had something that resembled coleslaw, something that resembled honey mustard and something that resembled catchup, then the pineapple and raspberry sauce topped with fried potato straws. Very filling...

Medellin - Pablo Escobar tour

by tampa_shawn

Very interesting 4 hour tour that your hostel can arrange. Really helps paint a picture of the violence that Medellin was under for quite some time. For those of you who dont know...Pablo Escobar was an extremely violent and deranged head of the Medellin Cartel that controlled the cocaine trade in Colombia (still responsible for over 80% of the worlds cocaine). Who was so rich and powerful that in 1989 Forbes magazine listed him as the seventh richest man in the world.There is a book written about Pablo and his eventual death that is worthwhile...called Killing Escobar. The tour starts by by going to Pablo Escabars home. Although I don't know if I could really call it his HOME it was an entire apartment building with each floor being about the size of a large grocery store if not bigger. Only 5 people lived there Pablo, his wife, 2 kids and mother. His mom had a floor and there was a gym...

Manizales even more things to do

by tampa_shawn

I took a city block only a few blocks from the hostel up to Chipre which the highest neighborhood in Manizales. From there you have some absolutely stunning views of the city and the surrounding areas. It was a bit cloudy today so I could not see the snow on top of the mountains but the view was still stunning. I went up in the ¨torres al cielo which is a high tower that you can look out and see more (costs US $2). It was nice. While there I met a women from Medellin and despite my spanish and her english (or lack there of) we managed to form a friendship and decided to go for a little swing. What fun that was. The swing was quite the rush (7000 cop for one or 10000 cop for two at a time....US $5)then I went to los colonizadores momument which shows the struggles the people of the area had to colonize this area. Quite an impressive work of art. In fact, Colombia is chock full of...

Manizales lots of great things to do....

by tampa_shawn

All of these were on the Mountain houses list of things to do in Manizales....they will provide the transportation info and costs. From email hometoday.we started off at the ecological park ¨los Yarumos. It had a small museum of local stuffed animals and bugs and then a long trail up the mountain. We hiked the mountain and then were back at the main platform by 10 AM when the good stuff opened. They had a great zip line and a bridge. the bridge was REALLY long. By bridge I mean one cable for you to walk on and another two cables for you to hag on to as you make your was across. We did the zip line twice but the cable bridge only once. It was quite something especially with a bit of a breeze. Fun FunThen we went to Recinto el pensamient which is a park owned by the coffee farmers. Once again it was a decent hike up a ton of stairs (remember were at some altitude here to). My favorite part...

Parque nacional los Nevado

by tampa_shawn

A challenging hike but well worth it ....the park is stunning...take a day tour out of Manicales ' mountain house hostel will arrange it all. From letter home:today I went up to Parque nacional los Nevados and climbed a mountain to a glacier up to I think it was 5400 meters high. I was REALLY worried about my ability to do the hike especially since I am not used to dealing with the altitude and the climb or the cold. I was also pretty freaked out because the tour company we took and the guides did not speak english. We took the bus up to 4200 meters with lots of stops to allow us to adjust to the altitude. At most stops we had a guide to explain everything to us and give us climbing and altitude instructions...all in Spanish of course. The second to the last stop I was taken to a guide who told me he spoke some English...but all he really did was speak Spanish slowly with lots of hand...

Play Tejo....a drinking game with gunpower!

by tampa_shawn

Note from Email home: the town here does have the Colombian national sport that I have been dying to try. it is called Tejo. the guide book says its all about gunpowder, lead weights and alcohol. the object of the game is to toss the 2k lead weights into the clay pit and hit and explode triangle gunpowder-filled wax paper pouches called mechas. its more of a working class game and I guess there are indoor rings throughout the country. Right now I am thinking it is Colombians version of bowling but I´ll let you know what I think when I do it. Note from an email home #2: Tonight a group of us went to play tejo. Quite fun. The Tejo courts are free for as long as you drink. Its basically a clay pit with a metal ring on it. They put little pieces of paper filled with gunpower (looks like those paper footballs we made in grade school) and then you through metal disks at those. Big explosions....

Skip Armenia..except for the Museum del oro Quimba

by tampa_shawn

Armenia is not worth seeing. It is seriously one unattractive smoggy city in a country with more stunningly beautiful cities than you can shake a stick at. The city does have a very good gold museum that really does a wonderful job at linking the local people and their beliefs to the gold. We came to Armenia from Saliento and if you are along this route you will pass the gold museum. It is in the very nice building next to the train in the round about. Just ask the bus driver to stop. You can check your luggage in lockers for free and the museum is free too it is called the Museum del oro Quimbaya and is in english and spanish. They also have an absolutely wonderful set lunch there (one of the best I had in the country) so stop for lunch for 6500 COP ($3.25 US)Outside the city limits there is a botanical garden and a butterfly enclosure. It was nice (not a huge highlight or anything but...

Street food advice

by tampa_shawn

For me a large part of the travel experience involves consuming mass quantities of street food. In most countries I devote entire days walking around a city looking for the next culinary experience. Since in many instances language is a barrier asking what you are about to consume is a mute point. In many countries this involves tasting foods that are unidentifiable which is normally a fun and rewarding experience. I affectionately call this the ¨point and eat game¨ since I point to what I want to try and eat it.Unfortunately Colombia street food culture is not conclusive to this game. The street food here is ordinary and there is not a huge variety. The other issue is quality. I have learned the hard way that unless there is a long line of locals queuing for the food the food (which is normally fried) had been sitting there for some time and is stale...and probably was not that good to...

Dining out -Eat the set meal

by tampa_shawn

Now that I have torn apart Colombia{s street food as a tasteless...and if I must say more expensive option let me tell you how to eat in Colombia.In Colombia the way to eat is ordering the set meal. Most restaurants have one...it is the Special of the day...and will be cheaper, fresher, and much larger than anything else on the menu. Often the meal will say comida corrienta (fast food) or almuerzo ejecutivo (executive lunch)...they seldom list what it will be but there isnt much variation anyway...and if you look for the one restaurant (out of the 10 on the block) that is filled with locals you cannot go wrong.I am currently in Bogota and a block away from my hostel I found Don Rafa....their was no sign-age outside but the place was totally packed with locals (and I walked by several totally empty restaurants before reaching this one). I ordered the set lunch and got1) a big bowl of soup...

Fun things to do in Colombia

Top 3 Hotels in Colombia

Embassy Suites Hotel Bogota-Rosales  Bogotá

 2 Reviews and 86 Opinions  Hotel location was perfect. 30 minutes from airport, Great location, with Great reaturant accross... 

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Casa El Carretero  Cartagena

 109 Opinions

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Cali Plaza  Cali

 8 Reviews and 66 Opinions  My husband and I stayed at Cali Plaza Hotel while visiting family in Cali. We enjoyed the hotel an... 

 Hotels in Cali

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Things to Do: Cities in Colombia
  1. Bogotá Things to Do
  2. Cartagena Things to Do
  3. Cali Things to Do
  4. Santa Marta Things to Do
  5. Barranquilla Things to Do
  6. Isla de San Andrés Things to Do
  7. Medellín Things to Do
  8. Parque Tayrona Things to Do
  9. Medellín Things to Do
  10. Popayán Things to Do
  11. Villa de Leiva Things to Do
  12. Salento Things to Do
  13. San Andrés Things to Do
  14. Manizales Things to Do
  15. Taganga Things to Do
  16. Bucaramanga Things to Do
  17. Cartagena Things to Do
  18. Isla de Providencia Things to Do
  19. Ciudad Perdida Things to Do
  20. Mompós Things to Do
  21. Zipaquirá Things to Do
  22. San Agustín Things to Do
  23. Isla Gorgona Things to Do
  24. Palmira Things to Do
  25. Guatapé Things to Do
  26. Pasto Things to Do
  27. Cartagena Things to Do
  28. Armenia Things to Do
  29. San Gil Things to Do
  30. Silvia Things to Do
  31. Cocuy Things to Do
  32. Capurganá Things to Do
  33. Leticia Things to Do
  34. Barichara Things to Do
  35. Manzanillo del Mar Things to Do
  36. Tunja Things to Do
  37. Santa Fe Things to Do
  38. Tolù Things to Do
  39. Ipiales Things to Do
  40. Naranjal Things to Do
  41. Las Lajas Things to Do
  42. Anapoima Things to Do
  43. Tabio Things to Do
  44. Pereira Things to Do
  45. Laguna La Cocha Things to Do
  46. El Cocuy Things to Do
  47. Ibagué Things to Do
  48. Columbia Things to Do
  49. Ráquira Things to Do

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Departamento de Cundinamarca Things to Do  Departamento de Bolívar Things to Do  Departamento del Magdalena Things to Do  Intendenciade San Andrés y Providencia Things to Do  Departamento del Valle del Cauca Things to Do  Departamento de Antioquia Things to Do  Departamento del Atlántico Things to Do  Departamento del Cauca Things to Do  Departamento de Boyacá Things to Do  Departamento del Quindío Things to Do  Departmento de Santander Things to Do  Departamento de Nariño Things to Do  Departamento de Caldas Things to Do  Departamento del Huila Things to Do  Departamento de La Guajira Things to Do 

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Q:  Hola Travelers - I'm planning a three week trip to Colombia. What is the cheapest way to fly from Bogota to Cali, from Cali to... 

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