City Overview:

Pereira

Medellin

Cartagena

Santa Marta

Tayrona National Park

General tips:

• No vaccinations or visas needed
• Drinking water- we bought water bottles throughout, but also did not shy away from street food, brushing our teeth, etc. and had no problems
• Definitely bring mosquito spray
• It is hot and weather can be unpredictable, dress for warm weather but bring a rain jacket
• Would say that a low level of Spanish is needed 

Itinerary:

Left Thursday May 24th @ 10:53 pm 

Friday land at 11:03 am in Bogota

Day 1- Friday (25th)- 76 and raining 

• Land in Bogota and fly to Pereira (PEI) from 2:30-3:30 pm
• Rent car in Peirera with Localiza
• Drive to Salento hotel- Hotel Salento Real Eje Cafetero, Salento- surprisingly nice place, very cute, good shower and service
• Dinner at Brunch Salento- a restaurant in front of a hostel (we think) with every kind of food, their burritos and peanut butter are out of this world. unique and popular spot for backpackers, writing all over the walls and just a huge menu

Day 2- Saturday (26th)- 78 and raining

• Booked an all day tour through Viator.com- searched for Cocora Valley tours and had a few to choose from
• Ocaso Coffee Farm and Cafe Tour- had a tour guide Sebastian who was incredible, learned all about the process of planting coffee and about the special yellow ("amarillo") beans which are sweeter and delicious
• Lunch- Camino Real- amazing views of the valley if you go up to the back top of the restaurant, had Salento's famous dish of trout that had been farmed nearby, seemed like a place that would be fun at night and become a party destination 
• Valle de Cocora- unline anywhere we have ever been, pay for entry to the farm/horse area on the right side of the trail as you are making your way in and venture into the grass area that leads you to a looped hiking trail, having a guide definitely helps
• Cafe- Jesus Martin- our tour guide's favorite coffee place in Salento, barista here is known for competing in coffee competitions, really cute and homey spot
• Activity- walked through the main square and then down the street and up the stairs to look down and get a view of the city 
• Dinner at Cafe Bernabe Gourment- such a gem, amazing steaks and pasta, great environment and views of the mountains when sitting outside, great staff

Day 3- Sunday (27th)- 80 and scattered thunderstorms

• Road trip day (Salento to Medellin)
  • Absolutely nutty- not for the faint of heart, this seven hour drive spanned all types of terrains including the windy roads in the tops of the Andes Mountains, and went through many road closures and one-lane roads, as well as many developing areas
• Airbnb booked in El Poblado neighborhood
• Dinner- Cafe Zorba- super cool spot with great pizza and great hummus (we didn't order the hummus but heard), looks like the place turns up at night, it was the day of the election when we went and there is no purchasing of alcohol in the entire country the night before and day of elections in Colombia! 

Day 4- Monday (28th)- 80 and scattered thunderstorms

• Spend a full day in Medellin
• Breakfast at Pergamino Cafe
  • This is on Calle 37 which was a cute little shopping street 
• Exploring in Medellin
  • Comuna 13 street art- a little farther away from the rest of the things in the middle of the city but really cool street art and place to grab a beer overlooking the Medellin valley
  • Parque Botero
  • Mercado del Rio for lunch- like a Colombian Chelsea Market with food and drink vendors 
• Dinner at Carmen- did the tasting menu, so beautiful inside, we had a blast and the wine pairings are heavy pours 
• Going out- went to Parque Ileras, there are strung lights in a huge park square area and there are all kinds of clubs and bars in this area 
  • Locals will be trying to sell you drugs in this area, a lot of it is said to be fake stuff, this is really common for tourist targets
• Considered for the day but did not have time:
  • Day Trip: Go to Guatape this day and hike the Piedra del Penol (the rock), see Pablo Esocbar's house
  • Activities: Modern Art Museum, Cable car to see view of Medellin
  • Dinner: Del Aire- restaurant on the top floor of a buildling in El Poblado with views of the city 
  • Going out: Charlee Hotel Rooftop (Envy bar), Salon Amador, Gustos in Parque Ileras

Day 5- Tuesday (Birthday- 29th)- 87 and rain

• Breakfast again at Pergamino Cafe
• Fly from Medellin middle of day to Cartagena via Avianca Airlines
• Hotel Ananda Boutique in Old Town Cartagena
• Dinner at Alma- beautiful and romantic restaurant with great food and fancy presentation of dishes 

Day 6- Wednesday (30th)- 87 and rain

• Full day in Cartagena
• Spent the day by the pool at our hotel 
• Lunch at La Cevicheria (an Anthony Bourdain recommendation)- so great, a bit overpriced and sit inside to avoid people trying to sell you things on the street, we ordered lobster ceviche (our fave), tiger prawns and a fish/shrimp ceviche
• Dinner at La Bruschetta- whole in the wall place near La Cevicheria because we were craving simple pasta, it delivered

• Considered for the day but did not have time:

  • Blue Apple Beach Club- a small boat ride to this beach club, have heard it is a great place to spend the day
  • Other day activities- there are a ton of beautiful islands to visit that have some of the best beaches, these would all make great day trips, I've heard a lot about Playa Blanca
  • Restaurants: Don Juan, Montesacro, La Paleteria (ice cream), La Vitrola, Demente (tapas)
  • Going out- Alquimico (great drinks), Babar, Bazurto Social Club
• See more Cartagena on Day 9

Day 7- Thursday (31st)- 88 and partly cloudy

• Travel from Cartagena to Santa Marta via Marsol shuttle
• Booked through Airbnb but stayed at Cactus Hotel Boutique- very nice and hugely spacious rooms, very nice staff
• Dinner at Ouzo Restaurante- ordered three pizzas and mojitos, fun vibes, restaurant in Parque de los Novios where there are a lot of restaurants and bars, and you can sit out in the square  

Day 8- Friday (1st)- 88 and scattered thunderstorms 

• Private car booked to pick us up at Cactus and drive us to the Ecohabs in Tayrona
• Hotel- Ecohabs Tayrona
• For entering the national park we needed printed out verification of our hotel stay and some cash, but did not need Yellow Fever Vaccination to enter
• Rode horses for our 40 minutes each way to reach El Cabo San Juan beach- you do not receive instruction and will go as fast as galloping, would only recommend if you are somewhat comfortable on horses or are very adventurous, can also walk to the beach (takes close to 2 hours in each direction)
  • This beach was incredibly beautiful and is considered one of the best in South America
  • Indigenous people still live in this jungle and may look a bit intimidating but were friendly
• Dinner at hotel's restaurants- bugs everywhere and food was not great, but one thing I ate in many place was Arroz con Coco (coconut rice) which was always safe and so delicious

Day 9- Saturday (2nd)- 82 and partly cloudy 

• Private car back from Tayrona to Cartagena
• Airbnb in Getsemani for final night
• Cafe Del Mar to watch the sunset, ordered mojitos, great music, go early because a line will form 
• Dinner at Di Silvio Tattoria- pasta and pizza and live music, this whole area and square nearby is very lively and more hipster-y than old town Cartagena 
• Going out- Cafe Havana for live music and more mojitos

Day 10- Sunday (3rd)

Leave from Cartagena at 9:40 am

We did not go to Bogota but got the following recommendations:

BOGOTA

• Needed 1-2 days. We did 2 days. 
• Stay at CLICK CLACK HOTEL!!! It's the freaking best. Upstairs rooftop has the BEST watermelon jalapeno drink lol.
• Monseratte Mountain - beautiful view go early in the morning to beat the line
• Walk around Usequen area (colonial square)
• Zona Rosa for shopping
• La Candeleria - super touristy but the heart of the city - check out plaza bolivar and the gold museum. 
• Restaurants: Llorente, Bandito (MUST) has a speak-easy cocktail bar. Andreas Carne de Rez (this place is amazing but it's an hour and a half away...it's a 4 story restaurant that turns into a club with the best fooood - you go at like 7PM and stay until 3AM)

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