Colourful and chaotic, the country of Colombia will revive even the most world-weary traveller. From its lush rainforests and rich coffee plantations to its colonial architecture and high-octane nightlife, it’s not hard to see why it’s such a special place to visit. After years of suffering under numerous conflicts, Colombia is now ready to welcome visitors with open arms.
Start your tour of South America’s best kept secret in its capital, Bogota. With its stately homes and Spanish colonial buildings, it provides endless Instagram backdrops. Take your designer luggage to the new Four Seasons Bogota in the thriving area of Zona T. This area is filled with bustling restaurants and hip bars serving craft beers and it’s where Bogota’s beautiful people hang out. You should start your day, though not every day, with a traditional Bogotano breakfast – hot chocolate served with cheese. Pasteleria Florida on Carrera 7 has been serving up this calorific combination since 1936.
Still trying to find your legs in this high-altitude city? Take a relaxing tour around the Museo Botero. The colonial house is filled with works created and owned by one of Colombia’s most famous exports, Fernando Botero. Among his own masterpieces, you’ll find works by Picasso, Renoir, Dali and Matisse. Or if want to see what made the Spanish want to sail thousands of miles across the ocean to this country, visit the Museo del Oro, which features 32,000 gold artefacts and 20,000 precious stones.
If you’re hankering for another of Colombia’s richest exports, take a trip to Café Cultor for some fine Colombian coffee. This quirky little coffee bar has set up shop in a former shipping container. You can take a seat within the café’s rooftop garden where you can enjoy a flavourful fair trade java jolt. Now you have your coffee buzz, you could venture out of the city and take a 90-minute drive through the flower farms of Bogota Savannah to Zipaquira. Here you’ll find the famed underground Salt Cathedral that was built in 1932. This giant feat of architecture comprises three naves, a huge dome and depicts the 14 Stations of the Cross. Lit by cerulean-coloured lights, it’s as serene as it is beautiful.
If you want to get back to sea level, catch a quick flight to the coast and the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Cartagena. Here you can tour the underground galleries and tunnels of San Felipe Fortress, which was built on San Lazaro hill to help keep the pirates at bay. To leave Cartagena with a little glittering booty yourself, you could visit Lucy Jewelry. The jeweller is renowned for high quality stones. And as Colombia is famed for its emeralds, well, it would seem rude not to try on one or two. Or you could flex your credit card at Casa Chiqui that has, among its decorative shelves, handwoven rugs created by the Colombian design gurus Hechizoo. Once you have shopped until you are ready to drop, you should head to the recently renovated Casa San Agustin hotel. Here you relax in the palm-tree filled courtyard or chill out in the Jacuzzi on your own private terrace.
If you are ready to sample the famed nightlife, you can join the beautiful people of Colombia under the whirling fans of La Vitrola on Calle Baloco. Here you can indulge in delicious Cuban food and mouthwatering mojitos as a live Cuban band fills the air with its infectious beats. And if you still want to party post-dinner, you can visit Café Havana, where none other than Hillary Clinton was spotted hitting the dance floor and letting her hair down one night when she was Secretary of State. Before you fly back to Bogota, you could catch a quick flight to the seahorse-shaped island of San Andres. You can book a scuba diving trip and explore the reefs, or just kick back on a lounger, relax with a cocktail and toast to a great holiday.
This post was written by Lightfoot Travel for LUXE City Guides. For more great travel experiences visit Travel by Lightfoot.
