Welcome to Bogotá! A driver will meet you at the airport and transfer to your hotel.

HD BOGOTA CITY TOUR + MONSERRATE HILL
Time to hit the streets and explore! A local guide will collect you for a half-day walking tour of the city. You’ll begin in colorful La Candelaria—the heart of Bogotá’s historic center. Amble along its narrow streets, visiting cultural landmarks and local shops selling artisanal goods. You’ll reach Plaza Bolívar, the city’s main square dating back to 1539. There’s a grand cathedral here as well as many important government buildings, such as the Capitolio Nacional (Colombia’s congress building). There are about 500 institutions or artistic groups, museums, research centers, theatres, libraries and universities in this area of the historic center of Bogota.
It is a short walk from the district of La Candelaria to the bottom station of the cableway to the Montserrat Hill, which is one of the major landmarks of Bogota. Its peak is at an altitude of 3,152m above sea level. Montserrat is a popular tourist place for the residents of Bogota and of course the tourists. The top of the hill can be reached either by a cable car or a train. The more experienced hikers can go up on foot. You can find a Catholic church from 1925 right at the top and of course the stalls with souvenirs, textiles, food stalls and restaurants with the typical Colombian cuisine

Early morning departure after breakfast in private transfer to Zipaquira. This is an old salt mine that the local Colombian engineers transformed into a Cathedral. Carved into a warren of salt mines 600 feet (183 mt) below the ground. Venture into the Salt Cathedral to see chapels and altars carved directly into solid rock, learn about the mine’s history and see intricate statues in chapels representing the Stations of the Cross. It represents a perfect symbolism between the work of man and the beautiful forms created by God and nature.
After walking along the sacred axis (Via Crucis), visitors will get to know the different stations of the Salt Cathedral, then descend into the depths of the Cathedral and reach the large central dome where it is possible to see the largest underground cross, the largest ceremonial hall and a beautiful boulevard.

After breakfast transfer to the airport as scheduled for a flight to Medellin. In Medellín, check in at your hotel in a downtown district. 

OPTIONAL HD PANORAMIC CITY TOUR with the following program: the Pueblito Paisa, San Antonio Park, Plazuela de San Ignacio, La Playa Avenue, the metropolitan church and a stop at the Plaza Botero. Then we will visit the “zona Norte” with, among other things, the House of Music, the University of Antioquia and the Botanical Garden. On our way back to the Poblado district, we will spot other famous landmarks of Medellín. Overnight stay

After breakfast, you’ll transfer from your hotel for a full-day excursion to one of the crown jewels of Colombia’s Antioquia region: the lakeside town of Guatapé.  Founded in 1811 this town now sits on the reservoir of a hydroelectric dam that was built in the late 1960s, where more than 7.5 square miles (2,000 hectares) were flooded to create the dam. The incredible beauty of the reservoir and the views of the lake’s lush vegetation are unforgettable. Ferries will take visitors to recreational areas on neighbouring islands and to see the former Pablo Escobar Mansion. The boardwalk on the water is lined with vendors selling food and regional handicrafts. The city is famous for the “zócalos”, decorative tiles on the underside of the façades of buildings in the Centro Historico. These tiles in bright colours and patterns are connected to life in the community, telling the story of the town and the beliefs of the people. From the lake we will see the Piedra del Peñol (over 600 feet high (183 metres). A staircase built into the side of the rock, where visitors can climb over 600 steps to the top, where they will find restaurants, souvenir shops and an incredible panorama. The lake is the perfect place for water sports such as kayaking while the adventurous can try the “Zipline over the lake”. Cycling and hiking activities are also available.

Breakfast at Hotel. Today you will fly from Medellín, in Colombia’s interior Antioquia Department, to your new destination of Cartagena, located on the Caribbean coast. Transfers to and from both airports will be organized for you.

HD CITY TOUR CARTAGENA

We will start with a visit to the Fort of San Felipe, built by the Spanish to protect the rich city of Cartagena from attacks coming from the mainland. Cartagena was the place where the treasures looted from the Incas by the Spaniards and the gold and silver treasures from the mines of Peru and Bolivia were stored to be sent to Spain. For this reason, the city was often the object of desire of many pirates. We will continue to the Historic Colonial Centre and stop for a fruit juice drink or an Arepa (typical Colombian snack). During the tour through the Historical Centre, we will visit the historical buildings and important churches. If you do not wish to return to the hotel, you can continue the tour discovering the City of the Sun, go shopping and admire the sunset at the Café del Mar on the city walls. Overnight stay.

After an early breakfast, transfer from your hotel to the pier where you will board a speedboat for an hour trip to the Barú Peninsula. Along the way, you will see Tierra Bomba Island and Boca Chica, ancient forts that once protected Cartagena from hostile invaders. After arriving at Rosario Islands, change into your swimwear and head to Playa Azul, a crescent beach with soft white sands hugging the turquoise Caribbean Sea. After enjoying a buffet lunch, you will have time to relax and sunbathe. An optional add-on is to rent a kayak and embark on a two or three-hour paddling excursion before returning to Cartagena in the late afternoon.
Included: Transportation by boat (round trip) – Local lunch – fish or chicken with rice and coconut salad.
Not included: Transport to the meeting point at Bodeguita harbour.

This day is at your leisure. You can relax at the hotel, explore the city on your own or join our travel partner’s optional full-day city tour to see Cartagena at its best. 

OPTIONAL TOUR 1 – FD TOUR TO THE NATIONAL AVIARY IN BARU

Interact with hundreds of birds in one of the largest open and natural aviaries in South America. Explore this park considered a conservation and captive breeding home for endangered species. Depending on the option chosen in this tour, it will also be possible to visit “Playa Blanca”.

In the aviary you will find a unique space created for each species and surrounded by birds from the different ecosystems of Colombia, the country with the highest diversity of birds in the world. You will have the opportunity to explore three unique ecosystems: jungle, coast and desert, as well as two areas adapted for migratory birds on a path that rises 6 metres, giving visitors the opportunity to observe how birds behave in the different strata of the forest floor, undergrowth and canopy. In the aviary there are approximately 2,000 birds of 160 different species living on seven hectares of land.

This location is 50 minutes from Cartagena and takes approximately two hours. Once there, you will be able to see harpy eagles, different species of macaws, flamingos, black-winged stilts, Eurasian stone curlews, parakeets, woodpeckers, condors, cardinals and purple martins. In addition, you will also see migratory species arriving at the 21 stations of the aviary.

The tour will continue to Playa Blanca, where you can enjoy a delicious lunch typical of Cartagena and any time at your disposal on the beach.

Includes: Round trip transportation – Entrance fee to the aviary – Lunch – Free time on the beach.

Does not include additional food or drinks.

Opening hours: Monday to Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

OPTIONAL TOUR 2 – SALSA CLASS 

According to our philosophy, feeling and enjoying the rhythm of the music is the most important part of learning Latin dances – if you feel and enjoy the music, “Dancing” will always be a pleasant moment and your spirit will spread its charm to other people. But, without emotion, rhythm is useless. We will focus on the development of feeling, rhythm and music, achieving confidence and security in the dance, feeling the melody in your feet and in your heart.

Included: entrance fee and 40-minute class 

Not included: transport from your hotel

OPTIONAL TOUR 3 – CHIVA BUS PARTY – 

The best of Cartagena’s nightlife! When the sun sets over Cartagena’s coastal skyline, the city’s streets become the best place to get the party started aboard one of the legendary and colourful Chivas. These typical vehicles, built with wooden carcasses, were once popular for their role in rural public transport and today have been restored as rumbero buses in the coastal city, making them the ideal means of transport for a tour in the middle of the night in Cartagena. Enjoy a three hour fun-filled tour aboard a chiva, accompanied by a live Vallenato or Gaitas band. Welcome cocktail and open bar during the whole tour.  You will tour the main streets, avenues and points of interest of Cartagena, the Getsemanil neighbourhood and the Manga neighbourhood before stopping at the San Felipe de Barajas Castle. Tour of the Historic Centre, also known as the Walled City, where you will have the opportunity to taste some of Cartagena’s traditional food with delicious Empanadas or Arepa. Finally, visit a local nightclub in Getsemani with free admission where you can party and enjoy yourself with the locals. Nightclubs are popular and common throughout the Walled City and Getsemani. Passengers can stay for an hour or if they prefer return to their hotels by Taxi.

This Chiva Rumbera Tour is an excellent combination that brings together Colombian traditions, with the attractions of Cartagena and the lively spirit of the night. 

It includes: 

– Reception and return in a Chiva bus (if you are inside the walled city or Getsemaní, the meeting point will be at the clock tower). 

– Entertainment guide 

– Open bar 

– Bottle of rum and cola on board the bus from Chiva 

– Entrance to a night club (1 hour approx.)

Not included: 

– Transfer to the Hotel in case you decide to stay longer at the nightclub. 

– Transfer from the night club to your overnight stay if you are in Cabrero, Marbella or any hotel in the north of Cartagena.

Schedule: Monday to Sunday

Duration: 4.5 hours approx.

Additional information: Only over 18 years old.

Overnight stay.

Breakfast at the hotel. It’s time to say farewell to Colombia! Enjoy your last moments of Cartagena in a relaxing café, or (if you have not done so yet) take a walk around the city with an English-speaking guide to gain a new perspective of the city from a local. A representative will meet you at your hotel and drive you to the airport for your return flight home.