Colombia was awesome. The food was great, people were really nice, and our kids’ online Spanish tutor was our tour guide in Bogota.
We went to Medellin first, which is split up into distinct neighborhoods without a central plaza. We liked the tour of barrio 13 that we went on- where the drug cartels used to be in charge, and now are safe for the many tourists in the streets.
It’s a really hilly city and knowing where your hotel is can j relation to the hills is crucial. If you have to walk uphill every time you leave the hotel, you’re going to want to take a taxi. They’re pretty expensive but safe. We had heard wonderful things about Medellin- the perfect weather (it’s 65-75 degrees year round), the friendly people (true of all of Colombia), and the views and cityscapes (lots of hills makes for many spots with good views).
However, we weren’t crazy about it. There aren’t many parks for kids to play in. The decentralized city doesn’t lend itself to walking. We spent a lot of time in cabs or public transit. The locals seem to spend a lot of time in malls. The city has done an incredible job of rebuilding after horrific drug-related devastation and has beautiful tree-lined streets, but it doesn’t have much of a sense of history. I’m sure there are amazing areas we didn’t visit- there always are- but we left feeling like we didn’t need to go back.
Bogota, on the other hand, we loved. It’s cool year round thanks to an altitude around 8,400ft, and the history was more apparent. It has a beautiful central plaza surrounded by government buildings, filled with pigeons. The kids had a great time with the pigeons all over them.
We also got to meet up with our kids’ online Spanish tutor, who is wonderful. The kids love using him as a tutor, and he was our guide around Bogota and introduced us to the wide variety of streetside fruits and snacks. I highly recommend using him as an online tutor and/or as a guide.
The food in Colombia is excellent: meat, avocado, beans, rice, eggs, and pastries. Plus exotic fruits. Really hard to go wrong. Easy to eat healthy, cheap, and filling.
We never felt unsafe, though we stayed in an Airbnb with strict security and didn’t stay out after dark, or hail a cab from the street.
Colombia is definitely a place we would like to explore more as a family. It’s inexpensive, flights are frequent and cheap because Bogota is a LATAM hub, people are friendly, and the food is good.
Food: 8
Budget: 9
Wildlife: 2
Vibe: 8