Tag: jungle

Visiting San Cipriano

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This little town in the jungle outside Cali is a super unique experience. To get into the town you take a makeshift train made from a motorbike that goes along train tracks called ‘La Brujita’. The little village is situated along a calm river that is great for tubing down on a warm day. It’s a bit of a trip from Cali but worth doing for the experience!

If you want some tips on visiting Cali and things to do there see my post here.

Top Tip for San Cipriano:

If you are just doing a day trip I suggest hiring a tube from a place that has lockers for you to put your stuff – you don’t want to lug all your stuff on the long walk to the head of the river and then try to keep it from getting wet while you are tubing. Best to leave it in town! Take a lock though as the rental place isn’t likely to provide one.

Where to stay:

We only did a day trip to Cali and in our opinion it only needs a day trip but if you have kids or want to spend a bit of extra time just relaxing by the river then there are a few basic places here to stay overnight. I suggest finding something through booking.com as its a really user friendly site and you get a good feel for what to expect from the property you are booking.

Getting there and away:

We visited San Cipriano on a day trip from Cali – you can also visit from Buenaventura in the other direction. You will need to bus to the entrance to San Cipriano then take ‘La Brujita’ into the jungle.

From the terminal, take a bus to Buenaventura (tell them at the bus station you are going to San Cipriano) and get dropped at the Zaragoza entrance to San Cipriano. Buses in Cali are never on time (give yourself plenty of time to get around) but the drivers are very helpful – ask them to tell you where to get off. You can only disembark from the back doors. 

Once you have been dropped off on the side of the highway, cross the road and take the suspension bridge into the village to buy a return ticket for the La Brujita (there’s an office before the suspension bridge but its closed on weekdays).

Transport out of San Cipriano ends at 5pm so if you are doing a day trip make sure to get to the edge of town for 4pm to make sure you can get ‘La Brujita’ out of town before they stop. To bus back to Cali just flag down a bus heading back in the direction of Cali and pay the fare on the bus.

Getting around:

You have to take ‘La Brujita’ into town. There is no other way in. Make sure to allow plenty of time as they break down sometimes. Also, there isn’t a lot of organisation to the experience and sometimes one of the contraptions comes the other way while you are on the tracks. One of the vehicles then needs to be lifted off the tracks while the other gets past. It takes a while…

Also make sure to be ready for the walk along the river from town to start the tubing. The walk is 30-45 mins upstream to La Platina to tube down: should result in 1-2 hours of tubing down the river. It’s a bit of a hike in the heat and difficult if you have little ones who get tired quickly. Also think about wearing trainers even though you will be in the river later. Ones that you don’t mind getting wet or can put in a dry bag.

Food:

The speciality in San Cipriano is large river prawns in coconut sauce. There are lots of basic restaurants in town serving local fare. 

What to bring with you for the day:

  1. Money (There are no ATMs or eftpos facilities)
  2. Water and snacks – most of the day you won’t be near the shops and restaurants.
  3. Togs – you will definitely be getting wet tubing down the river
  4. A rain jacket or jumper in case the weather turns
  5. A dry bag if you don’t want to use the lockers or for any extra items you do want to take with you down the river like food and water.
  6. Bug repellant
  7. Sunscreen
  8. A lock to keep your things safe.
  9. A go pro if you have one or a phone with a waterproof case.
  10. Trainers as it’s a lot of walking.

What to expect:

You will have a great time! Don’t expect a smooth trip though. We went in dry season so the river wasn’t very high and we kept getting stuck! It was fun but hard work. There’s also a rest stop halfway down the river at Charro Oscuro. During weekends/holidays there are snacks and cold beverages for sale here.

Erika xx

Visiting Parque Tayrona

Parque Tayrona is a jungle that has just jumped out of a movie set. It’s pristine, perfect, wild and gorgeous. I didn’t visit this wonderful spot on my first visit to Colombia – I wasn’t so into hiking at that point and I had to prioritise due to time constraints but I wish I had. WOW. This spot was one of my trip highlights (although there are so very many).

Top Tips for Parque Tayrona:

  1. If you can – stay more than one night! We only stayed overnight which meant two long days of hiking and a short but sweet overnight stop at the most beautiful spot in the park. I would have liked to spend a day at Cabo San Juan relaxing and swimming AND/OR visited one of the other locations/campsites in the park.
  2. Bring plenty of your own food, even if you are staying at Cabo San Juan (which has a restaurant and a shop). The choices are pretty limited and its very expensive for Colombia. You will also want snacks/lunch while you are hiking. You want to be able to treat yourself with an ice-block or a cooked meal rather than feel like you have to pay outrageous prices every time you need to eat something.

Where to stay:

Cabo San Juan has the best and most popular accomodation. It has TONs of hammocks and tent spaces and its cheap to stay. It has a toilet/shower block plus a restaurant and a shop so its well set up for visitors. There are other places you can stay within the park such as other quieter campsites, luxury lodges you book in advance, and lodges just inside the borders of the park that you don’t need to hike to.

Also, Cabo San Juan is a can’t miss spot due to its beautiful double bay so you may as well stay overnight there! When I stayed the hammocks were 20,000 COP each. If you arrive early enough you can choose the hammocks on a rock outcrop in the middle of the double bays (pictured above). It gets a bit windy up there though and forget trying to get to and from the toilet in the middle of the night!

Getting there and away:

We travelled to Parque Tayrona from Palomino (This is Colombia’s version of Bali). we stayed at a little guesthouse called La Case en el Arbol. Palomino is really close to Parque Tayrona and was a great place to organise ourselves before starting our hike. It was an un-scheduled stop on our part but we managed to get back from the far north of Colombia a night early but definitely one we are glad we made.

From Palomino, all you need to do isa flag down a bus headed to Santa Marta and let them know which entrance of Parque Tayrona you would like to get off the bus at.

After our Parque Tayrona hike, we headed back to collect the rest of our things from our Hotel in Santa Marta (we stored them there for 4 days). Again, all we did was flag down a bus heading to Santa Marta from the Parque Tayrona entrance. Santa Marta is a cute little beach town and you can get a connection to many parts of Colombia from here. There’s an airport to fly to Bogota and Cartagena is 6 hours by bus.

Getting around:

There are lots of ways to make your way into and out of Parque Tayrona depending on your fitness levels and where you are staying once in the park.

We chose to take the Calabazo entrance into the park. From here it is approximately 4-5 hours hiking via a little jungle settlement called ‘Pueblito’ to get to Cabo San Juan where we were staying. If you are taking this route make sure to start early in the day and give yourself enough time. We absolutely loved this walk as we saw almost nobody else and there were beautiful jungle views. A dog met us in the middle and walked us all the way to Cabo San Juan (turns out he belonged to one of the staff and just liked to wander through the jungle on his own). This hike was LONG though and very sweaty and exhausting in 30 degrees at 100% humidity, Take lots of breaks.

We left via the El Zaino gate. This is a much easier walk (approx. 2 hours) and is the more popular trail. It’s a nice walk via a few beaches and a bit of jungle. Its definitely worth allowing time to stop along the way and swim. La Piscina is a good beach on route. However, do note that there is a long boring road that it part of this route. There are shuttles waiting that allow you to skip this section but we didn’t know this having not entered the park via this route and it gets exhausting walking along what seems like a never ending road. Once you have started the shuttles won’t stop for you as they fill up at the entrance/exit. The road adds about another hour to this walk.

If you aren’t into hiking – you can actually also take a boat into Parque Tayrona. The boat leaves from Taganga. Its really choppy and most people get seasick but if you don’t like hiking this may be the way to go. I do like hiking and also had no desire to go back to Taganga (a party village filled with backpackers and rubbish) so we didn’t choose this option.

Food:

See my top tip above – I suggest bringing as much as you can carry yourself including TONS of water. However, there are facilities to buy food in the park. Also, the El Zaino entrance has some shops and restaurants. We definitely deserved our stop for Lulo juice and a beer on our way out of the park!

What to bring:

  • Lots of food and water
  • Light, breathable sports clothing (including leggings or long pants)
  • Hiking shoes and socks
  • Togs and Jandals (Swimming costume and sandals for those not familiar with the kiwi language)
  • Sunhat and sunglasses
  • Sarong for use as a beach towel or coverup
  • Sunblock and Bug repellant
  • Book or kindle
  • Bodywash and travel towel
  • Silk sleeping bag or sheet for the hammock
  • Lock for valuables (they have lockers)
  • Headlamp or flashlight
  • Passport (you will need this to enter the park)
  • Cash (with enough to pay the park fee if you haven’t pre-booked your tickets)
  • Photo equipment (Phone, Camera, Go Pro) and a battery pack to charge

Bring as few items as you can possibly manage as everything you bring has to be carried on your hike in the jungle heat.

What to expect:

Expect pretty basic camping facilities as you are pretty deep in the Colombian jungle and don’t expect to be completely off the beaten track – there are tons of people here like in any holiday location.

Enjoy Parque Tayrona!

Erika xx

Must See Spots in Colombia

I apologise in advance…this is a loooong list.

Colombia is a big country, but its also filled to the brim with amazing places. I couldn’t possibly reduce this list down at all from here.

This list is a result of 2 trips to Colombia (one in 2011 and 2019). Most of the places in this list I visited in both these trips and the ones I didn’t I regret not going to twice. I would visit all of these areas again in a heartbeat.

Make sure you allow time to visit all of these locations when you go to Colombia – or like me you will have to go back!

Bogota

I have to start with the capital: Bogota is a super cool city – high altitude and chill vibes. Check out its bars and restaurants, find your inner artist in Candelaria or do what the fit locals do and get a workout in by climbing a mountain.

If you want to find out more about Bogota – see my post on my latest trip here.

The colourful streets of Candelaria are a vibe

San Gil and Barichara

Paragliding above San Gil

Go to San Gil for the adventure! Once you have had your fill of white water rafting and paragliding, and you need to give your heart a rest; then do a hike (or catch a taxi) to Barichara – the sweetest little mountain town. The best place to spend some time doing nothing and soaking in the views.

Views from the steep streets of Barichara

Medellin

Medellin has come a long way since its past as the centre of the Colombian drug wars. Its a young, modern, happening university town with a giant market, interesting architecture, some amazing social programs for previously dangerous neighbourhoods and some fun Botero scupltures in the central city. You can even take a really interesting tour about Pablo Escobar.

Botero fun

Cartagena

Ahhh Cartagena – the jewel of Colombia. Don’t come for the beaches – there are much better beaches elsewhere along the Caribbean coast. The colonial city really has that romantic feel and the whole walled area is utterly spectacular.

For a unique experience you can catch a boat from Cartagena and stay at a hostel on a rock in the middle of the ocean (well not quite – the land is pretty close) but its still a wild time! As a bonus – its right next to the most densely populated island in the world Santa Cruz del Islote.

La Casa en el Agua

Guajira Peninsula

La Guajira

La Guajira is so off the beaten track that there is no track. When I first visited in 2011 you could walk for hours and not see another soul. Tourism has hit now – Cabo de la Vela is an epic place to windsurf and there are ‘truckloads’ of tourists a day (not tour buses – literally tours organised on the back of trucks). It still remains very isolated and secluded. There are no roads through most of the desert and no public transport to any of it. In terms of what there is to do. It’s a desert by the beach – the scenery is spectacular everywhere you look.

See here for my post with details on how to travel this tricky region or here for some more inspiration in photos!

Tayrona National Park

Jungle meets beach at Tayrona National Park

You need to hike for a few hours to reach the coast of Tayrona National Park (or take a very terrifying boat) which is what has stopped this park from being overrun with tourists. It’s still pretty busy. There are also minimal facilities when you arrive. You can sleep in a tent or a hammock and just enjoy the tranquility and swimming in the warm Caribbean water.

See my post here for more info on how to visit this amazing national park!

Palomino

Palomino is Colombia’s version of Bali. It has such a cool hippie vibe but is also very touristy despite its tiny size. There are a few beach resort style accomodations if you like that sort of thing. Its a great beach, very family friendly and super close to Cartagena if you only have a short time in Colombia.

Guatape

Views for days! You have to climb up 700 steps to see them though. Are you up for the challenge? The town of Guatape is also brightly coloured and adorable – to see it all you have to do even more walking. Make sure to pack your walking shoes!

Check out my blog post here on visitng Guatape on a day trip from Medellin.

Salento

Cowboys – tick. Coffee – tick. Hiking – tick. Mountains – tick. Palm trees – tick. Hummingbirds – tick. What more could you ask for?

Relax, learn about making really good coffee and see the worlds biggest palm trees on a really nice hike through the forest (even if you don’t like to hike).

Cali and San Cipriano

Come to Cali for Salsa, street hamburgers, and Giant cat sculptures. While you are here, take a trip to San Cipriano – a little village in the middle of the forest with a calm lazy river to raft along and a motorcycle train. If you want some tips on visiting Cali and things to do see my post here.

Ipiales

Ipiales is a horrible town – and I don’t say this lightly. I am someone who takes pride in finding the wonderful about places that others think are dangerous, ugly or boring. But Ipiales literally has nothing going for it. It is an unsafe border town which is dangerous to be out and about in after dark (and by that I mean after 5pm…). There is nothing to eat except for a couple of dirty, horrible takeout joints that serve inedible food (and I love junk food..). Even getting to Ipiales is dangerous (although it is much safer than it used to be).

BUT, it is all worth it to see the most beautiful church I have ever seen in my life. Plus you have to pass through Ipiales if you want to go overland into Ecuador so that is a pretty good reason to visit too. See my post on Las Lajas Sanctuary here for more info.



I have to admit there are still a couple of great places I am yet to visit but desperate to go to. If you have the time I recommend checking out Minca and the San Andreas Islands and letting me know what you think – Im planning to hit these spots up next time I am in the area!

Erika xx