Colombia

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Colombia's

Maybe you started thinking about Colombia when it was proclaimed the Western Hemisphere’s most beautiful country in a widely reported 2022 study. Or when you began noticing how often Colombian cities seemed to land on the big annual “where to go” lists, from Medellin’s inclusion in The New York Times 52 Places to go in 2023 to Cartagena’s appearance on Travel + Leisure’s 50 Best Places to Travel in 2024. Or when last year’s best female chef in the world — Leonor Espinoza — saw her restaurant score a spot among the just-released top 10 restaurants in Latin America (along with another restaurant in Bogotá, for good measure).

In 2023, The New York Times included Medellín on not only the famed annual 52 Places to Go list, but also a special look at five cities across the globe that are “reinventing themselves to make life better for all residents.” In Medellín, that’s thanks to “visionary public architecture and transportation infrastructure, where residents in rural areas can access the city center, along with the jobs and services available there, by cable car.” Known as MetroCables, these commuter pods double as one of the most inexpensive (like, a buck) sightseeing tours you’ll ever do, so — just as in Bogotá — you’ll probably want to begin your Medellín explorations with a literal overview. For your first time out, you’ll also probably want to join a cable car tour or simply hire a guide, then soar over the mountainous neighborhoods of this so-called City of Eternal Spring.

Something else that made this headlines year: the death of Fernando Botero, one of the world’s most legendary artists — and Medellin’s favorite sons. Though the aforementioned Botero Museum in Bogotá is a great start for anyone trying to grasp his legacy, Plaza Botero in Medellín’s old quarter — home to dozens of the artist’s way-larger-than-life sculptures — is a must for fans, as is the Sala de Fernando Botero at the Museo de Antioquia.

As you might gather from a nickname like “the City of Eternal Spring,” Medellín is lush and florid — as the epic Flower Festival highlights each August, when not only humans, but also horses and dogs get in on the parades and festivities. But if you can’t get to Medellín then, you can still experience nature’s abundance both in town (at the beautiful Arvi Park, among other municipal parks) or in the outskirts. Options include the flower farms of La Ceja and Santa Elena (the latter is also home to particularly famed traditional flower vendors, or silleteros); the floral displays in the aptly named town of Jardín (translation: garden) and the reservoir and signature rock of Guatapé. If you love a good artisanal quest, the historic towns in the region make for great day trips. Consider heading to Carmen de Viboral for ceramics, Santa Fe de Antioquia for silver filigree and Jericó for leatherworks — or to any of the above for the beautiful drives and centuries-old architecture.

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From the greater Cartagena metro area, you’ll find a wealth of beauty whether you head north, south — or out to sea. If, for example, you seek more of a castaway vibe than you’d get on the islands above, consider San Andres in the so-called Sea of Seven Colors and a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Back on land, making your way up the coast about two hours from Cartagena, you’ll hit Barranquilla, as in, “en Barranquilla se baila asi,” in the words of hometown heroine Shakira — famously immortalized with a 21-foot-tall seaside statue at the end of 2023. Though you’ll never be hard-pressed to find the dancing she made world-famous, it’s on particularly vivid display during the epic Carnaval de Barranquilla (February 10-13, 2024). Continuing for another two or so hours up the coast, you’ll hit Santa Marta, the unreal-seeming spot where — from the turquoise waters and palm-fringed shores of the Caribbean and Tayrona National Park — you can see the snow-capped Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta.

If you want a closer look at some of the fresh local ingredients that likely went into your meal, visit the famed Bazurto Market by day. You’ll also want to spend time wandering though the historic center’s churches, plazas and museums — the Palace of the Inquisition, for one, is incongruously beautiful — as well as the streets of the artsy, colorful San Diego and Getsemani neighborhoods. Rivaling the old city center’s colorful facades is the veritable rainbow of residents at the National Aviary of Colombia — home to more than 150 species that include flamingos, toucans and macaws. The facility, which is about an hour south of the historic center, is one of the area’s countless draws. Others include the old fishing village turned beach town of La Boquilla, and two laid-back local islands singled out in Travel + Leisure’s Best Places to Travel in 2024 list: Isla Baru and Tierra Bomba.

There’s never a bad time to visit the Greater Colombian Caribbean, but with the presumed 2024 premiere of the long-awaited Netflix adaptation of One Hundred Years of Solitude, the region that inspired Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s best-known novel is going to look extra appealing. Landing in Cartagena, the gateway to the greater Caribbean coast, you can’t help but fall for the historic city center’s cobbled, colorful streets. Though you can’t reach quite the same heights as you would in Bogotá or Medellín, you can get a great initial overview from La Popa, a gorgeous 17th-century convent.

You’ll want to go back and explore both when you’re not in cycling gear. Indeed, loose-fitting (but chic) going-out clothes are particularly useful in Chapinero, where you’ll find two internationally renowned foodie pilgrimage sites within five minutes of each other. The first is Leo, home to the 2022 World’s Best Female Chef Leonor Espinosa, whose artistic takes on Colombia’s homegrown bounty have landed her on the 2023 editions of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants and Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants. Also on both lists: El Chato, where chef Álvaro Clavijo blends local ingredients with global techniques to endless acclaim.

At more than 600 square miles, Colombia’s mountainous capital is nothing if not sprawling. So one of the first things you’ll want to do is get an overview. For the literal version, take the vista-maximizing cable car up to the imposing Monserrate Hill, home to a historic church and some of the city’s prettiest panoramas (be sure to wander among vendor stalls, restaurants and viewpoints). For an overview of a different kind, rent a bike and aim to be in the city on any given Sunday, when — from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. — an 80-mile circuit of prime roadway is turned over to cyclists, pedestrians, runners and skaters for Ciclovía, the world’s biggest and arguably oldest open streets event that will celebrate the big 5-0 in 2024.

Medellín, Western Colombian Andes | credit: ProColombia

San Felipe Fortress, Cartagena, Greater Colombian Caribbean | credit: ProColombia

Medellín & the Western Colombian Andes

Cartagena & the Greater Colombian Caribbean

Bogotá & the Eastern Colombian Andes

Plan your trip

Mavecure Hills, Colombian Amazon-Orinoco | credit: ProColombia

Monkey, Colombian Amazon-Orinoco| credit: ProColombia

La Guajira desert, Greater Colombian Caribbean | credit: ProColombia

Hotel Las Islas Baru | credit: ProColombia

Flower farm, Medellín, Western Colombian Andes | credit: ProColombia

Hotel Las Islas Baru, Greater Colombian Caribbean | credit: ProColombia

Sea of Seven Colors, San Andrés Island, Greater Colombian Caribbean | credit: ProColombia

María Inmaculada Church, Bogotá, Eastern Colombian Andes | credit: ProColombia

La Candelaria neighborhood, Bogotá, Eastern Colombian Andes | credit: ProColombia

Zipaquira Salt Cathedral, Eastern Colombian Andes | credit: ProColombia

Why

Point is: If you’ve been wanting to see why Colombia makes so many of the world’s best and most-beautiful lists, you have every reason to — not least, direct flights on JetBlue, a crowd favorite carrier with low fares and easy connections across the US, plus recent accolades that include The Point Guy’s Editors’ Choice Award for Best Economy Class among US airlines.

Fly to Colombia on JetBlue. Their award-winning service includes fast, free Wi-Fi, brand-name snacks and drinks as well as the most legroom in coach (based on the average fleet-wide seat pitch of U.S. airlines)—especially handy when you’re flying internationally. An extra perk is you’ll skip the jet lag on a flight to Colombia as it’s on the same time zone as the U.S. East Coast. Read on for our quick guides to the three cities that JetBlue serves, as well as their stunning surroundings: Bogotá and the Eastern Colombian Andes; Medellín and the Western Colombian Andes; and Cartagena and the Greater Colombian Caribbean. And if you’d like to explore beyond those regions, keep reading for highlights elsewhere in Colombia. In a country so full of beauty, the options are endless.

Santander, Eastern Colombian Andes | credit: ProColombia

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The worlds largest river by volume — as well as the surrounding jungle — serves as the natural playground on Leticia’s doorstep. Without leaving city limits, you'll be surrounded by close to 1,000 bird species, almost 7,000 plant species and one A-list marine mammal: the pink river dolphin. Also known as the boto, this species is sly, so you have to act fast when you see one if you want to capture the moment. No sooner does a pink fin surface than it’s back underwater, leaving you to wonder if you imagined the whole thing. And though this is the land of magic realism, you didn’t. Pastel river creatures are very much a reality in this improbably beautiful land.

Colombian Amazon-Orinoco

Colombian Massif

Among the standout features of the Colombian massif are páramos — those misty, high-elevation ecosystems you may have gotten a sampling of around Bogotá. Dubbed the nation's “water factory,” the páramos here are abundant, feeding various rivers. Other natural displays you’ll want to see in the region include the elfin forests of the San Juan hot springs, the tiny islands of La Cocha Lagoon to the active volcanic landscapes of the Purace National Park, where, for good measure, you may have a close encounter with a condor. If you don't see one there, you're guaranteed an Andean raptor sighting at the San Agustin Archaeological Park, "the largest group of religious monuments and megalithic sculptures in South America," according to UNESCO, which accorded the site World Heritage status in 1995. Here, "gods and mythical animals [among them, one interpreted alternately as a condor or eagle with a snake in its mouth] are skilfully represented in styles ranging from abstract to realist."

Huila department, Colombian Massif | credit: ProColombia

Colombian Pacific

Ideal for off-the-beaten-path adventurers, this stretch of the coast offers otherworldly nature, as you’ll discover in Utria National Park. At this protected juncture of misty, tropically-forested foothills and warm, calm waters, you’re as likely to run into monkeys and parrots as you are your fellow humans. If you make the town of El Valle your base, you'll also have the option to go chasing waterfalls such as El Tigre on guided treks into the surrounding jungle. Other highlights: sampling locally caught piangua, chilling on a gorgeous beach, and catching a performance by the area’s Afro-Colombian singing groups. To experience one of the most famous modern offshoots of these musical roots, you’ll want to head farther south—to Cali, the so-called world capital of salsa, with club after club pulsating with seemingly turbo-charged dancers. A very different but no less dramatic dance takes place offshore, typically from July-November, when humpback whales migrate to these waters. One option for whale-watching is an ambitious day trip from Cali to Buenaventura, but serious fans should also consider multi-day trips to the eco-lodges of Chocó.

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Bogotá, Eastern Colombian Andes | Credit: ProColombia

Cartagena de Indias, Greater Colombian Andes | credit: ProColombia

Medellín, Western Colombian Andes | credit: ProColombia

Colombian Amazon-Orinoco | credit: ProColombia

Further afield — largely thanks to Encanto — lie some of the most iconic landscapes in all of Colombia: the Valle de Cocora’s emerald-colored hills dotted with impossibly tall and spindly wax palms (no less hallucinatory IRL than in the movie). There’s also the nearby kaleidoscopic town of Salento, another of the animators’ major inspirations. And along the approximately 150-mile drive south from Medellin, there are seemingly endless — and endlessly beautiful — stops to make for hacienda-grown coffee.

For the intrepid road-tripper, a final four or so hours up the coast will take you to the desertic, dune-rippled La Guajira region, indigenous Wayuu territory where there’s nascent cultural tourism. The wilderness up here is notable, too, including flamingo-spotting ops if you missed the aviary outside Cartagena. If, instead, you head south from Cartagena, make your way a couple of hours down to the spectacularly mellow Rincon del Mar, a fishing village turned beach town, where a confluence of mangroves and sea makes for beautiful stand-up paddling, kayaking and bioluminescent swimming — and easy access to the San Bernardo Islands.

A different kind of spiritual experience awaits a bit farther afield (a 60- to 90-minute drive, give or take) at Chingaza National Park. There you’ll find one of Colombia’s famed páramos: misty, watery, high-altitude ecosystems filled with otherworldly flora and fauna. The short list includes frailejones (which look like shrunken distant relatives of Joshua Trees), swamp mosses and spectacled bears, though you’d need to be supremely lucky to spot that last one. Another dreamy day trip well worth making from Bogotá? The three-hour drive to Villa de Leyva, home to well preserved 16th-century architecture, cobbled lanes and the largest stone-paved square in Colombia: the more than 150,000-square-foot plaza mayor. Explore the city’s churches, convents, blue wells, archeological park and fossil museum.

Salento (left); Parque del Café (right), Western Colombian Andes | credit: ProColombia

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As much a citywide social event as anything else, Ciclovía is a good introduction to Bogotá’s liveliness, with gatherings of all kinds — dancing police, coffee-swilling cycling clubs and the odd Zumba class — along the route. You can ride through some of the city’s most iconic neighborhoods, from the historic center of la Candelaria to the upscale dining, shopping and nightlife zone of Chapinero.

You’ll also find great food in La Candelaria — Bourdain fans will want to beeline to the homestyle, hearty icon that is La Puerta Falsa — but you’ll want to spend most of your time in this well preserved, centuries-old neighborhood exploring the local lanes, plazas (not least, Bolivar Square) and museums: The Gold Museum, The Botero Museum and Museo Iglesia Santa Clara, to name a few.

For a foodie experience unlike anything you’ve experienced anywhere else on earth, head to Andrés Carne de Res in the outskirts of Bogotá. Once described by Eater as “Colombia’s wildest restaurant… like a Cheesecake Factory crossed with a nightclub on steroids, but with absolutely fantastic Colombian food,” Andrés Jaramillo’s onetime roadside grill is now an outsized nightlife compound. With multiple dancefloors, bars and kitchens, this ode to music and meat (among other local staples) can accommodate more than 3,000 people. The spectacle alone — which includes eye-popping décor illuminated largely by sacred hearts — is worth seeing. But know that this is an hours-long adventure if you’re doing it right.

For another kind of mind-bending experience in the outskirts, head to the Zipaquira Salt Cathedral — a Catholic church about an hour away and 600 feet underground. Emerging from darkened tunnels in this historic salt mining spot, you’ll find the ethereally illuminated, larger-than-life handiwork of miners and sculptors, from the Stations of the Cross to a Pietà. And yes, this is a functioning cathedral; complete with Sunday mass and even the occasional wedding.

If street art is more your thing, head to Comuna 13, formerly among the city’s most dangerous areas, but famously revitalized over the last few decades. Now better known for its murals, graffiti and outdoor escalators, the district is an epicenter of street art tours (or Graffitours, as they’re sometimes called). You'll also spot local coffee drinks that are as artfully rendered as they are delicious. Another part of town where you should go for not only great coffee, but also a stellar nightlife and dining scene is the one singled out in The New York Times 52 Places to Go in 2023 list: the vibrant, buzzing El Poblado. And while you’re there, don’t miss a meal at another of Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants: X.O., where a trio of chefs “scour Colombia for native ingredients, with a particularly close relationship with traditional fishermen,” per the World’s 50 Best team.

Macaw, Colombian Amazon-Orinoco | credit: ProColombia

Comuna 13, Medellín, Western Colombian Andes | credit: ProColombia

La Guajira, Greater Colombian Caribbean | credit: ProColombia

Salsa in Cali, Colombian Pacific | credit: ProColombia

Cali, Colombian Pacific | credit: ProColombia

La Ermita Church, Cali, Colombian Pacific | credit: ProColombia

Dish by Leonor Espinosa, Greater Colombian Caribbean | credit: ProColombia

credit: JetBlue

Rafael Uribe Uribe Palace of Culture, Medellín, Western Colombian Andes | credit: ProColombia

Chingaza National Park, Eastern Colombian Andes | credit: ProColombia

You should also take in the views from atop the city’s old fortified walls — ideally, with cocktails at sunset, when the blend of sea and cityscape looks especially beautiful. After cocktail hour, make a point of having at least one dinner at yet another Colombian restaurant to make the 2023 Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants list: Celele, where Chef Jaime Rodriguez works wonders with the culinary culture and biodiversity of the Colombian Caribbean.

bogotá | Medellin | cartagena | explore more

Bogotá & the Eastern Colombian Andes

Medellín & the Western Colombian Andes

Cartagena & the Greater Colombian Caribbean