Viva Colombia – this country really did meet all of my (high) expectations I had before, everything about this country that I read or heard just sounded amazing. An really, Colombia did not disappoint. From Valle de Cocora to the vibrant city of Medellin and sunny beaches on the Caribbean sea – it’s been an absolut blast. So I decided to write down a couple of Must Dos that I found to be great activities and experiences while traveling through the country. Feel free to add some of our favorite Must Dos in the comments as this country has just so much to offer and we probably did not even cover half of it.

1. Valle de Cocora in Salento

When you walk around Salento, it’s just the cutest tiny place, with lots of restaurants (omg you have to go to brunch. I know it’s not Colombian food but you just have to!) and cafes, a paradise for all the tourists that swarm in here all the time. But the actual reasons why this is a travelers heaven right here are the coffee plantation and, of course, Valle de Cocora. The Valley is located in the central Cordillera of the Andean mountains and is famous for its beautiful landscape and a huge variety of wax palms. You can reach The Valley by taking a Jeep from the central square of Salento. We went on a 6 hour hike (apparently there is a shorter way but we obviously missed this one haha) around the Valley with a short detour to a humming bird farm. The view is breathtaking and at times a little steeper and harder but definitely worth to see. One of my highlights – to making it up the hill, sitting there surrounded by wax palms as far as the eye can see, just enjoying the view and life.

2. Bogotá Graffiti Tour

I love graffiti and street art tours in general and could spend hours looking at the different types of pieces. With Bogotá’s graffiti tour, I felt I learned more about the history of the city and different local stories than I did during the actual free walking tour. The guide did so well with his story telling and made the tour interesting and insightful. Graffiti is a huge thing in the city and it’s vibrant scene makes it to one of the top graffiti places in the world. After the tragic incident in 2011 when police men killed a 17 year old boy for spraying a wall in Bogota, graffiti nowadays is in some sort of grey zone. It is officially not allowed but tolerated by the officials and highly appreciated by the huge sprayer community. Artists from all over the world come to Bogota to spray here and collaborate. Therefore, this tour is highly recommended if you are interested in street art and the stories behind it. Just ask your hostel for the tour and they will give you the details on where the meeting points and times are.

3. Comuna 13, Medellin

We almost missed going there because we were running out of time, but I am so glad we drove out there before we left Medellin. If you are familiar with the Narcos history of Medellin you will probably know that Comuna 13 was one of the most notorious neighborhoods during Pablo Escobar’s time and it wasn’t possible to visit this part of the city (even its residents were too scared to go on the streets) due to the constant drug and gang wars that took place on these streets. Today, the city of Medellin has invested a great amount to make this area safer again and has reinvented it by building escalators to make life easier for the residents climbing up the hills to and from their houses and the neighborhood is open to the public. So, if you want to have a breathtaking view, see some impressive Graffitis and drink fresh pressed juice from the locals who sell food and drinks from their living rooms, then for sure go there. There are also weekly graffiti tours offered in Comuna 13, which were highly recommended to us (street art there is amazing, so I recon you guys should do it, see it and learn more about the meanings behind it).

4. Visit El Poblado and Party at Happy Buddha

Happy Buddha is located in the heart of El Poblado and known as a famous party hostel amongst backpackers that visit Medellin. I am not suggesting you need to stay there (we stayed there for 6 days and it can get pretty intense), but at least check out some of their parties that they offer or have a drink at their own bar. Ladies night on Thursdays, pub crawls on Wednesday’s and other parties throughout the week. It’s not always super crazy, some days are slower than others but eventually backpackers end up at Happy Buddha to see what the madness is all about. Also, there a bunch of Clubs and bars around, if you want to move on afterwards. And if you don’t like to party there, definitely check out the area. El Poblado is a hip and very popular neighborhood in Medellin with lots of bars, cafes and restaurants and gave a pretty cool hipster vibe when we were there. Definitely worth a visit (or worth a stay, there are tons of hostels around this area).

5. The Pablo Escobar tour, visiting Guatape and climbing the rock of El Peñón

Probably one of my favorite organized tours I’ve ever done. The tour really offers you a full day of activities, so much information on Pablo and his life and about Colombian history. You can choose the tour in two different ways – the original tour and the paintball tour – so, if you choose to, you can play paintball on the grounds of one of Pablo Escobar’s old properties, which is now run by his old head of security (who claims, according to our tour guide, that Pablo to him was a lovable man to his staff and family and he would work for him again if he could). We drove up to his house through beautiful landscape on top of our 4 by 4s and had lunch there after our tour around the property. Afterwards, we took a boat to drive along the lake, where you can swim and get a free beer. Also, we were able to gain a first glimpse of The Rock (and no, I don’t mean the wrestler/ actor). The granitic rock, also known as the stone of El Peñón, is located near Guatape and known as a famous landmark in the area, as it served as a place of worship for the indigenous Tahamis. You can climb the rock through multiple stairs all the way to the top, where you can enjoy a drink and great view over the area, which we did before driving back to Medellin. So, after our boat ride, we were heading to Guatape, where we had free time to explore this colorful city and then went straight to climbing the rock. Our day ended with a quick stop at a viewpoint to see the night lights of Medellin and then back to the hostel. Definitely worth the money in my opinion – bring lots of energy because you don’t want to miss this.

6. Stroll through the streets of Pereira

We didn’t intend to end up in Pereira, as we wanted to drive from Pasta to Salento in a day. Turns out, Colombian busses are a bit unpredictable and we didn’t make it. Instead of staying in Cali as a lot of people do, we decided to drove to Prreira to spend the night as we arrived super late. Maybe it was the beautiful weather the next morning or the fact that we were finally able to walk around after two days on a bus, but I really enjoyed strolling around Pereiras streets, exploring the tiny alley ways and the beautiful flowers planted everywhere. If you have a day or two to spare before going to Salento – make a stop there.

7. Visit the Caribbean coast of Colombia

I mean, who doesn’t appreciate nice beaches and the ocean right. During out time in Colombia, we stayed in Cartagena and did day trips to Islas Rosario and the local beach. Cartagena beach in my opinion is not a great beach. Too crowded, too close to the street and kind of dirty. The island however are beautiful and you can spend your days and nights there. There is also the option to travel to Santa Marta and Barranquilla as well as to the National parks around there. The weather 8s super nice up there, the food is good and you can find something for your taste – no matter if outdoor adventure or beach bump.

8. Do the free walking tour through Medellin

One of the rather popular things to do in Medellin is the free walking tour. It’s so popular, that you have to sign up for different t8me slots online, because they are sometimes fully booked. The tour takes you on a trip through time, the guides spend a lot of time not only showing you the main attractions and points of interests of Medellin but also sitting down with you and explaining the entire story of the city and Colombia. What i liked about the tour is the fact that they ensure to point out that there is just so much history to Colombia besides Narcos, Pablo Escobar and drug wars. They really dig deep and give some insightful information, sometimes rein-acting situations and including the group every step of the way. Unfortunately we had bad luck with the weather which made the tour a little too long for me, it if you really want to learn more about Colombia’s and Medellin history, this tour is a must do for you. Definitely on the higher end of walking tours I’ve done so far.

9. Drink Aguardiente

It feels like the national drink of Colombia, every time you go out, people want you to drink Aguardiente. In Colombia, it’s is a super popular anise flavored liqueur collected from sugar cane. To be honest, I hate shots, I am just not a fan, no matter how it tastes or where it’s from. But it is in my top must dos list because you will be in Colombia and people will offer it to you, so you might as well try it. And maybe try it again and again. Who knows.

10. Try Colombian coffee at one of their coffee Plantation

As I said before, most people visit Salento because of the valley and of the coffee plantations. And even though I usually don’t drink coffee on a regular basis, I am eager to try it every once in a while, especially when it’s in foreign countries. It is a 45 minute walk from Salento until you reach the first coffee farms. All of them offer tours where you can visit the plantations, try coffee and get insights about the coffee production in the country. Everybody in town will tell you to go to El Ocaso coffee farm and this might be a good choice, but all of the other coffee farms therefore get less attentions and Ocaso is more expensive, so we decided to take a tour at El Acacias coffee farm. What’s interesting about their coffee is their specific flavor. The family-run farm is planting their coffee plants close to citrus fruits in order to add a specific and bitter- fruity flavor for their coffee and guarantee soil quality. So, if you are into coffee, go and support these coffee farms by taking a tour or buying some coffee form them. They are really nice and knowledgeable people and it’s a great way to spend an hour out of your day. Also, after the tour you can follow the path and explore the surroundings a little more, along rivers, local houses and green fields.

Overall, I can just tell you that Colombia is an up and coming destination that offers so much diversity throughout the country, you just gotta love it. I for sure will be back and can’t wait to see how the country will further develops.