Colombia Independence day

Colombia celebrated its Independence Day on July 20th, 1810, independence was declared in Santa Fe de Bogotá. The process was by no means easy; the Wars of Independence continued long after this date, and Colombia became part of Gran Colombia (including modern-day Venezuela, Panama, and Ecuador) in 1819, but, following its break-up in 1831, Colombia […]

Camino Real Bolivar Colombia

The anniversary of the death of Simon Bolivar was on December 17th, 1830. Although the man commonly known as ‘The Liberator’ was born in Venezuela (Caracas in 1783), many of Bolivar’s greatest triumphs and disasters took place in what is now Colombia, during and after the Wars of Independence which have made him famous throughout […]

trek el cocuy national park colombia

  –> Colombia Dolar (TRM) <– After El Cocuy National Park reopened to visitors earlier this month (complete information here) I started reminiscing about the incredible week I spent in the wild Andean park in December 2011, when it was still entirely open to tourists and the full 5 day trekking circuit was still a […]

el cocuy national park colombia

  –> Colombia Dolar (TRM) <– The stunning El Cocuy National Park, which has been completely closed to visitors since February 2016, is set to reopen, albeit only partially, this Thursday, April 6. After extensive negotiations between the U’Wa indigenous community, who consider the park sacred, and the National Parks office of Colombia it has […]

  –> Colombia Dolar (TRM) <– Boyacá department (the department just north of Bogotá) isn’t exactly undervisited by tourists and travellers, mainly because it’s home to the iconic pueblo patrimonio of Villa de Leyva, a must-visit spot on many people’s Colombian travel lists (and rightly so, it’s gorgeous). But Boyacá has a huge amount to offer beyond Villa […]

Mongui Colombia

When you plan travels around Colombia, you often think of getting away from it all…to palm-tree lined beaches, to sultry salsa cities or maybe the Amazon rainforest. I however recently decided to escape to a region actually quite close to Bogotá called Boyacá. What does it have going for it? Well, it is home to […]