3 weeks Colombia, January/ questions

It all looks good, but the first 8-9 days involve too much backtracking. Your backtracking will involve passing through Bogota 3 times, at start, middle and end of your trip.

You could avoid that by going Bogota - Villa de Levya - San/Gil/Barichara, and then flying to Pereira from Bucaramanga (2 hours north of San Gil). Pereira is about an hour by bus from Salento. You'd still need to change flights in Bogota, but that's better than 15 hours on buses, changing buses at the Bogota bus terminal.

Yes, Villa de Leyva first and then San Gil and Barichara. Then you could take an overnight bus from San Gil to Santa Marta or fly from Bucaramanga to Barranquilla and take a bus (2 hours) from there to Santa Marta. Then Cartagena, Medellin, Salento and fly from Armenia to Bogota or take the overnight bus.

If you leave Bogota early you can still explore Villa de Leyva on the first day and the next day maybe you could hike to Laguna de Iguaque and see the paramo.

I have not been to Palomino but I think 5 days in Palomino would be too much for me. You could check out Tayrona as well (the park closes January 28 for a month). We hiked all over and if you enter at Calabazo (not the main entrance El Zaino) you will be in a part of the park that does not get many tourists. Or go to Minca for one or two days (waterfalls, swimming holes, coffee, chocolate, birds). Or between Medellin and Salento add Jardin for 2 days.

That makes sence, thanks a lot, I will change it!

Thanks for your anwer, really useful. In all options I totally forgot to add Jardin. Do you think one night would be enough?

We had two full days in Jardin. One night would be good. That way you can enjoy the town, go for a hike and go to the Andean cock-of-the-rock preserve.

Hi!

You can be bored with 5 days in Palomino. The place is nice but very quiet/dead at night except some nightlife during the weekend. And you can't swim far as there are dangerous currents. But there are many places around that you can explore like

Detailed guide Palomino; https://www.tomplanmytrip.com/palomino-in-colombia-a-practical-guide-for-a-new-popular-destination/
Detailed guide Minca: https://www.tomplanmytrip.com/casa-elemento-casa-loma-detailed-guide-know-everything-need-minca/
Detailed guide Tayrona: https://www.tomplanmytrip.com/tayrona-colombia-a-massive-and-unforgettable-park-all-secrets-revealed/
Detailed guide Cartagena: https://www.tomplanmytrip.com/step-by-step-guide-visit-cartagena-de-indias-48-hours/

Or you can decide to make an excursion in La Guajira desert (But you won't chill on the beach too much)or the best option to chill few days at the beach, it's Isla Mucura! Not touristy, No Party, nice beach, beautiful water...

Or you can fly to Isla Providencia

Detailed guide Isla Mucura: https://www.tomplanmytrip.com/isla-mucura-casa-en-el-agua-paradise-san-bernardo/

Also, you could maybe start your trip with Bogota then Salento

It would be:

• Bogota
  => then fly to Armenia/Pereira then direction Salento
• Salento [ If you don't like crowds, you should maybe consider staying in Filandia (small town near Salento)
  => Maybe Jardin on the way - You have to take many buses (3) but it's doable then Medellin
• Medellin
  => Flight to Cartagena
• Cartagena | If you decide to stay less time in Palomino and go directly from Salento to Medellin, you can take few days to explore Isla Mucura / San Bernardo Archipelago
  => Private shuttle Marsol or public buses to get to Palomino (Around 6 hours with a Shuttle door to door Marsol)
• Palomino
  => Return on Santa Marta to take a night bus to San Gil
• San Gil / Barichara
  => Then depends on your timing and number of days, you can take a flight from Bucaramanga to Bogota or take a 4 hours bus drive to get to Villa de Leyva [In V. de Leyva, you should check [Renarcer hostel] - It's quiet, plenty of private rooms, hammock - I swear you will fall in love
• Bogota or Villa de Leyva then Bogota

Thanks a lot for your information :)

About the currents in Palomino: how 'strong' is strong? Is it absolutely impossible to get in? We are planning to be here around 20th January... Maybe the weather will be okay, so the currents is do-able?

Isla Mucura sounds awesome as well. But since my friend get's very sea sick this might become a problem, don't you think? Thank you so much!

Yes, you can get in and even play with the waves but it's not a peaceful swim - You can forget to drink a cocktail with you seating in an inflatable buoy ^^

Hm regarding the boat drive, I don't know. The sea can be rough in January/February as it's the windy season. I think it will be bumpy. And it's between 2 and 3 hours to get to Isla Mucura

Another option would be to get to Rincon del Mar (from Cartagena) - It's a quiet place with a nice beach. Then you can try to get a boat to Isla Mucura - It's a shorter boat drive

I love the waves, so I guess it'll all be okay in Palomino ;-)! Thanks again!