Privacy Policy

Colombia

Classic Colombia / Land of Coffee & Tayrona / Archeology & History / By the Sea / Nature Tour
Bogota / Cartagena / Amazon / Coffee Region / Pacific Region / Guajira / Rosario Islands
Tayrona Park / San Agustin / Ciudad Perdida Trek / Los Nevados Trek / Guajira Adventure

Bogota

Bogotá is the capital city of Colombia and the country’s most populous city. With almost eight million inhabitants it is the most important political city in the country. The city is situated in the geographical centre of Colombia at an altitude of 2640masl on a plateau known as the Sabana de Bogotá to the west of the Andes. Bogotá’s privileged location means that it is blessed with a year round spring-like climate where the flowers are always in bloom. The average temperature is 14ºC and fluctuates between lows of 4ºC and highs of 28ºC. December, January, February and March are the driest months; June and July the rainiest and August is hot and sunny with a strong breeze. Bogotá has a great variety of barrios or neighbourhoods: the tall modern buildings are located in the Centro Internacional and just beside is the bohemian Macarena district which takes in the Plaza de Toros. The historic centre is called the Candelaria and is where the city was created and the seat of government and congress. Just north of here are the barrios of La Merced and Teusaquillo which are defined by having British architecture. Chapinero, Avenida Chile, Calle 2 and Calle 100 make up the commercial and financial districts. Further to the north is the colonial area of Usaquén formerly a town in its own right but now
absorbed into Bogotá. To the West are the industrial barrios of Restrepo and las Americas.

This city was founded on August 6 1538 with the name of Santa Fe by the conquistador Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada who arrived in these lands in pursuit of gold and defeated the Chibcha indigenous people in Bacatá. Bacatá is the indigenous Chibcha word for capital of the Zipa confederation. This town made up part of the Muisca territory, an indigenous group of the Chibcha linguistic strain. In 1717 the kingdom of New Granada was established here and in 1819 Simon Bolivar chose this city as the capital of Gran Colombia, a territory that included Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Peru and Venezuela. Bogotá today is a modern city with a bubbling cultural scene and vibrant social aspect. Picturesque, with an important architectural heritage, the most impressive collection of Pre-Columbian art in the world and fantastic museums it is also a city of futuristic architecture with enormous and modern buildings. The poverty that lives alongside such wealth forms contrasts that make this both a fascinating and aggressive city.

Day 1 | Bogotá
Arrive at Eldorado Airport in Bogotá via international carrier. Reception and transferred to hotel, check in and overnight stay. Meals: - / - / -

Day 2 | Bogotá - 1/2 day city Tour
Half day visit to the historic centre known as La Candelaria. This antiquated barrio is of great architectural and cultural heritage and is made up of old “stately homes” or large Spanish colonial buildings with iron windows, thick and sturdy wooden doors, balconies and internal patios with beautiful yet hidden gardens. Visit the Plaza de Bolivar, where a statue of the great liberator Simon Bolivar is located. This Plaza, originally called the Plaza Mayor, was used for civil and military purposes, as a marketplace, a bullring and a gallows. The Cathedral, on the eastern side of the plaza, is constructed on the remains of the first church built in Bogotá in 1539 and houses an important collection of religious artefacts such as textiles and artwork that has built over four centuries. The Capilla del Sagrario is located just beside the Cathedral and is a gem of religious architecture and
which houses valuable pieces of colonial religious art by Gregorio Vasquez de Arce y Ceballos. The Capitol, built between 1847 and 1926, shows its renaissance and neoclassical influences with its carved stonework and tall columns and, it is the first republican piece of civil architecture. The central area of the Capitol, known as the Salon Eliptico, is where congress meets and is the actual chamber for politicians and the Senate. In the internal plazas are busts of former presidents such as General Tomás Cipriano Mosquera, president on four occasions, and Rafael Núñez, the composer of the Colombian national anthem. Around the Plaza de Bolivar are the Palacio de Justicia, the Mayor of Bogotá’s offices called the Edificio Liévano, the oldest school in the county called San Bartolome and the Casa de los Comuneros who participated towards the end of the XVII Century in some of the first movements towards independence from Spain and the formation of the Republic.
The visit continues with the Museo Botero, a colonial house filled with works of art done by and donated by Fernando Botero in addition to artwork from his own personal collection that includes pieces by Picasso, Renoir, Dalí Matisse, Monet and Giacometti. Next is the Museo del Oro which has a permanent exhibition of some 32,000 pieces of gold, 20,000 stones, ceramics and textiles all precious to the Quimbaya, Calima, Tayrona, Sinu, Muisca, Tolima, Tumaco and Magdalena cultures. The Museo del Oro is considered as one of the most important museums of its type internationally and it has been functioning since 1939. In 2007 it underwent a complete overhaul to make this an interactive museum that would awake senses to the objects on display and it belongs to the International Network of Museums (ICOM). Meals: B / -
Duration: Approximately four hours.
COMBINE THIS TOUR WITH: Half day Zipaquira and Salt Cathedral or Half Day Guatavita Lake or Half Day Nemocon.
Note: The Museo del Oro is closed on Mondays; the Museo Botero is closed on Tuesday and the Museo de la Esmeralda on Sundays (except
from the last Sunday of the month).

Day 3 | Bogotá
Breakfast and transfer to the airport. Meals: B / - / -

Optional Excursions:

Half Day Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral and Nemocón
Departure to the north towards Zipaquirá, traveling across the central region of the savanna, home to Colombia’s famous flower cultures as you can see from the greenhouses along the road. Arrival after an hour and 15 minute trip. Visit to the impressive Salt Cathedral, a magnificent work of engineering. The name Zipaquirá evokes Zipa, chieftain of the Muiscas community and absolute master of the area’s rich salt mines. The visit begins in a tunnel that exhibits the fourteen stations of the Way of the Cross and leads to the dome where you can observe the great cross sculpted in low relief. You finally arrive to the three naves of the cathedral joined by openings that represent the birth and death of Christ. The central nave houses the main altar, a 16 meter cross, and the Creation of Man, a marble statue by the sculptor Carlos Enrique Rodríguez. Continuation to Nemocón,
only 20 minutes from Zipaquirá, and visit to the salt mines. In the times of the “zipa” (the ancient inhabitants of the area) the salt was mined and used as exchange material with other indigenous communities. The large scale salt mine started functioning in 1801. The entrance is through a 60 meter underground tunnel that leads to the hall where you can see enormous stalactites. Start of the walk through the various halls with water mirrors, the Santa Barbara tunnel, the ballroom, the salt cascade, the wishing well and salt chapel with the image of the virgin that protects the miners, the crystal heart and the city of the stalactites.
Return to Bogotá.
Duration: Approximately five to six hours.
Schedule: To be arranged in the morning or afternoon.
Guide: Private bilingual guide.
2011 Price : US$150 for 1 person, US$75 per person for 2-3,

HALF DAY IN NEMOCON
Moving on to Nemocon, what in Chibcha dialect means “the land of the warrior”, approximately 1.30 hour drive from Bogotá or some 20 minutes from Zipaquira. Upon arrival in Nemocón visit the salt mines. In the times of the “zipa”, the ancient inhabitants of the area, the salt was extracted and used to exchange with other communities for commodities such as gold, corn and cotton. Slat mining on a large scale was ceased here in 1801. The entry is found through an underground tunnel that leads to a hallway from which is possible to observe enormous stalactites. Walking on through the various hallways with mirrors of water, on to the Santa Barbara tunnel, the dance hall, the salt waterfalls, the wishing well and the salt chapel with the image of the Virgin Mary to protect the miners, pass a city with a heart of crystal and buildings of stalactites.
DURATION: Approximately five hours.
SCHEDULE: To be arranged departure in the morning or afternoon.
GUIDE: Private bilingual guide.
2011 Price : US$150 for 1 person, US$75 per person for 2-3,
COMBINE THIS TOUR WITH: Half Day Zipaquira and the Salt Cathedral or Half Day in Bogotá.

HALF DAY IN GUATA VITA
Leaving and heading north passing the towns of Tocancipa and Gachancipa, travelling for roughly 1.30 hours until reaching the legendary Laguna de Guatavita. It is located within the forest reservation of Cacique Guatavita and Cuchilla de Penas Blancas. In this magical and mystical place, formerly inhabited by the Muisca people, it is possible to observe a great variety of flora and fauna endemic to the high altitude Andean woodlands. Notice hummingbirds, hawks, blackbirds flitting between the trees. There are also a great variety of interesting trees with exotic names such as mano de oso, uvos de monte and te de Bogotá. The legend of El Dorado came about from Muisca traditions. When the Muisca elected a new cacique he would be accompanied to the lake and bathed first in honey and then in gold dust before being launched out into the lake on a raft where they would give offerings of gold and precious stones, throwing them into the depths of the water. This ceremony and act of transformation created the legend known as El Dorado. Visit the town of Guatavita and the lake at Tomine, beautiful with its white painted houses, pretty square and tranquillity. On Sundays there is a market and so there is more movement in the town.
Duration: Approximately five hours.
Schedule: To be arranged departure in the morning or afternoon.
Guide: Private bilingual guide.
2011 Price : US$265 for 1 person, US$156 per person for 2-3,
COMBINE THIS TOUR WITH: Half Day Zipaquira and the Salt Cathedral or Half Day Bogotá.
Note: Guatavita Lake is closed on Mondays except when Monday is a public holidays, in that case it closed on Tuesday.

ALL DAY TRIP TO FUSAGASUGA , COFFEE PLANTATIONS AND ORCHIDS
Leaving Bogotá to the south and descending to a lower altitude of 1000masl into a more tropical climate of fruit trees that include oranges and bananas as well as coffee plantations and tropical flowers such as orchids, the national flower of Colombia, brings you to Fusagasuga. Visit an open garden known for its orchids and tropical plants. Then move on to the town of Fusagasuga where every year during Easter there is national orchid exhibition. From the Plaza in Fusagasuga visit a “coffee plantation” and see the process of coffee preparation and try some delicious coffee liqueur. Return to Bogotá in the afternoon.
DURATION: Approximately nine hours.
SCHEDULE: To be arranged departure in the morning.
GUIDE: Private bilingual guide.
Note: The coffee processing plant is open from Monday to Friday. On weekends visit the plantation, enjoy a tasting and see the process from outside is possible.
2011 Price: US$298 for 1, US$171 per person for 2-3, US$148 per person for 4-6