Long neglected by world travelers because of the civil war that plagued the country for fifty years, Colombia has regained all its luster since the peace with FARC was ratified. It is now time to go on a trip to Colombia with a tour guide to discover a Latin American destination with multiple cultural and natural assets at the crossroads between South and Central America. From the snow-capped Andean peaks to the ochre sand beaches of the Pacific coast where travelers can observe whales, from the lush Amazon rainforest where some indigenous peoples still live out of time to the fabulous monolith of the Piedra del Peñol, from the colonial architecture of Cartagena de Indias or the villages of Villa de Leyva and Barichara to the pre-Columbian lost city (Ciudad perdida) built in the heart of the Sierra Nevada of Santa Marta, Colombia is a real treasure chest. Hikers will trek in the huge national parks of Tayrona, El Cocuy or Los Nevados. Adventurers will discover the exceptional fauna and flora of the Amazon or visit pre-Columbian archaeological sites. Thrill seekers will choose San Gil, the Colombian capital of extreme sports. Lovers of idleness will opt for the most beautiful beaches of the Caribbean coast of Colombia and the coral islands of the Rosario archipelago, while coffee lovers will quietly enjoy a cup of coffee under their sombrero in the numerous fincas (plantations) of the "Coffee Triangle", south of Medellin and towards Cali. Bogota, with its candelaria and its many museums, also has many assets and is an interesting stop during your trip to Colombia.

When to go Colombia ?

The best time to go to Colombia is the dry season (December-March) even if the rainy season (April-May and October-November, depending on the region) is not to be avoided absolutely because it does not rain all day except in the Amazon and on the Pacific coast. Three periods correspond to the high tourist season(temporada alta): mid-December to mid-January (school vacations), Semana santa (Holy Week, mid-April) and to a lesser extent, from mid-June to the end of July (school vacations).

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Practical information for travel Colombia

S’inventer un itinéraire en Colombie n’est pas chose aisée. Cela dépend surtout du temps dont on dispose, car les attractions sont nombreuses, et elles sont réparties dans les quatre coins du pays, avec des temps de trajets souvent rebutants par la route. Il faut donc identifier exactement ce que l’on veut faire et voir : plutôt des vacances farniente ou sportives ? Plutôt un trip aventure en pleine nature ? Plutôt des visites de villes coloniales et de sites archéologiques ? Où probablement un mélange de tout cela ! L’important est de se laisser un peu de marge entre les destinations et de ne pas vouloir en faire trop (vous pouvez revenir !). Les déplacements en avion permettent de gagner du temps pour les voyageurs pressés, et ce n’est souvent pas tellement plus cher que le bus. On peut aussi louer une voiture. L’idéal est de combiner les modes de transport et de garder de la place pour l’improvisation, disons-le, à la colombienne !

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How to go Colombia

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How to go alone

There are direct flights to Colombia, especially to the capital Bogota. Please note that the price variation depends on the airline used, but especially on the reservation delay. In order to get the best rates, it is essential to book well in advance. Think about buying your tickets a few months before your departure!

How to go on a tour

Colombia has many receptive agencies (tour operators present in the country) able to organize all or part of your stay (booking accommodation, domestic flights, guides...), or to plan and manage guided tours, activities and excursions on site. They have the best contacts throughout the country and the necessary insurance.

How to get around

If the bus is the most common way to travel around Colombia with a terminal in each city, the plane remains the safest way to move from one end to the other of the immense national territory when we look at the statistics of the mortality on the roads... The air links are numerous and frequent.

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Discover Colombia

The country of El Dorado, of coffee, of flowers, of emeralds... What do we know about Colombia, this distant country located in the middle of a continent that we already don't know well? How many people think that in Bogotá it is warm all year round, or that Pablo was a kind of "Robin Hood"? The media and TV shows often present this tropical country as dangerous, tormented and sulphurous. There is some truth to this, but it is difficult to imagine the complexity of a nation that experiences the worst and the best at the same time, a country where the stories you are told are far beyond fiction. In the following pages, we will give you a glimpse of this fascinating country located on the borders of South America. Geographical, historical, or cultural keys, and some tracks on the stakes of society, to better understand Colombia and thus have the possibility of exchanging more deeply with its inhabitants.

Pictures and images Colombia

La famille est importante en Colombie. Hispanolistic - iStockphoto.com
Vue sur Bogota. DC_Colombia - iStockphoto
Vue sur la mer des Caraïbes depuis l'île Providencia. diegocardini
Rencontre colorée. Nicolas LHULLIER

The 12 keywords Colombia

1. Biodiversity

Colombia is home to the greatest biodiversity in the world after Brazil, eight times larger. More than 10% of the world's fauna and flora in only 0.77% of the planet's surface. It is by far the first country in the world in number of species of birds, butterflies and orchids. A paradise for naturalists and biologists!

2. Coffee

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Colombia is famous for its coffee, an Arabica with a characteristic sweetness, grown in the green mountains between 1,200 and 1,800 meters above sea level. The best beans are exported, but in recent years, it has become possible to drink good coffee in Colombia, thanks to the appearance of specialized establishments with talented baristas

3. Chiva

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A typical old bus, built from a bus chassis with a wooden frame, painted in bright colors (often in the colors of the national flag). A rural means of transportation, where men, chickens, pigs or coffee bags are piled up. In the city, the chivas that we see are usually real mobile discotheques!

4. Cocaine

Sadly, cocaine is a word that comes up all too often when we talk about Colombia. Indeed, it is difficult to ignore that the country is the first producer in the world and that the white powder is at the heart of the Colombian conflict by financing criminal gangs, paramilitaries and guerrillas, without forgetting the campaigns of some political parties

5. Cumbia

Cumbia is the most representative musical genre and dance of Colombia. Born in the Caribbean region, it symbolizes crossbreeding and is the result of a tasty mix of drum rhythms that arrived with the African slaves, the sounds of indigenous flutes and the instruments and melodies brought by the Spanish colonists. Let's go!

6. Echao pa' lante

The title of an album by the great salsero Joe Arroyo, but above all what characterizes the vast majority of Colombians: an entrepreneurial and combative state of mind, which goes forward in any circumstance, which hangs on in spite of the difficulties of daily life, in short, optimism and enthusiasm in any test

7. El Dorado

The myth ofEl Dorado, the City of Gold, is said to have originated from Spanish chronicles of Muisca ceremonies, where offerings of gold and precious stones were thrown from a raft into the waters of the Guatavita lagoon to satisfy the gods. The Bogotá Gold Museum presents the Balsa Muisca, a gold reproduction of these events

8. Esmeralda

Colombia is the world's largest producer of emeralds. The Chibchas exploited them long before the arrival of the Spaniards. Today, they are used to make beautiful jewelry. The "Colombian green" with its dark and intense tones is the reference in the matter. The value of the stone depends on its color, its clarity, its shape and its weight.

9. Frutas

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Colombia is the country of fruit juices, which are served from breakfast to dinner. The enormous variety of fruits with strange names is a surprise for the eyes as well as for the taste buds. Lulo, guanabana, uchuva, feijoa, or tomato de arból, untraceable in our country, rub shoulders with maracuya, mango, guava... To consume without moderation!

10. Páramo

This neo-tropical biotope found in the Andean highlands, at more than 3,200 meters above sea level, has the particularity of presenting a strong endemism and storing a large part of the water resources that feed the rivers of the country. Colombia has the largest and richest páramos in the world. To discover!

11. Paz

The Colombian population has been longing for peace for decades. The 2016 agreements between the FARC and the Colombian government have not (voluntarily) been implemented as they should. The battle for peace is a rocky road, involving the reduction of poverty and inequality, education and reconciliation

12. Willys

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This American war jeep, capable of withstanding the most difficult climatic and topographical conditions, arrived in Colombia in the 1950s and 60s to transport coffee bags and farmers. Unbreakable and repainted in bright colors, it has withstood the test of time and is an integral part of the landscape and the coffee culture.

You are from here, if...

You don't just say "hi, how are you?", your greetings are always multiple: ¿ Qué has hecho?, ¿ Q'hubo?, ¿ Qué más?, ¿ Cómo te ha ido?, ¿ Como andas?

You laugh yellow at jokes associating Colombia with cocaine or Pablo.

You are on time with the hora colombiana and no longer apologize when you arrive late. You can even forget to arrive...

As a man, you know how to be gallant; in restaurants, you never offer to share the bill. As a woman, you get used to being attentive to your person

You've learned all the tricks of the trade so you don't have to worry aboutdar papaya . You think that if someone has been robbed or scammed, it must be their fault!

You know the difference between a tinto and a coffee

You close the doors of cabs.

On December 31, just before midnight, you walk around the block with a suitcase to guarantee a year full of travel and adventure!

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