cartagena to bogota

Hi all, we're arriving in Cartegena early July and going overland to Bogota, we have around three weeks. Suggestions for itineraries? Would like to see wildlife and countryside in particular

Cartagena, Santa Marta for Tayrona and maybe Minca, back to Cartagena and fly to Medellin, Jardin, maybe Manizales or Pereira (if you like hiking), Salento, Bogota. Tayrona has wildlife but you will see more monkeys/birds if you get up early and if you go to lesser traveled areas of the park. Minca has birds but we saw most birds at our hotel's bird feeder early in the morning. Minca is also good for hiking, waterfalls, swimming holes, coffee, chocolate... 2 days Cartagena was enough for us. Same for Medellin but you can do day trips for example to Guatape. Jardin is a pretty village and has hiking, birds... and cowboys and horses (especially on Saturday evening). Manizales has hiking and nature parks (most closed on Monday) and from Pereira we hiked to Laguna del Otun in Los Nevados (you need 3 days to do that). Salento has coffee tours and the Cocora valley (and longer treks). A day or maybe two in Bogota at the end.

Or: Cartagena, Santa Marta for Tayrona and Minca, fly to Bucaramanga (Giron), San Gil, Barichara, Villa de Leyva, Mongui, Bogota. Barichara is very beautiful and good for hiking as well. San Gil has waterfalls, swimming holes and adventure activities. Villa de Leyva is a nice town too and has fossils and hiking (Iguaque). Mongui is a beautiful village and has hiking (Paramo de Oceta... but part of the trail was closed in March).

Sonia has suggested 2 good routes. If you choose to go through Bucaramanga, you can get there with an overnight bus in about 10 hours time from Santa Marta. The area around San Gil and Barichara is quite beautiful.

I once spent 18 hours on an overnight bus going from Cartagena to Medellin, at a time when there was significant flooding on the roads due to La Nina rain. So I'd never recommend a bus between the coast and Medellin. If you go that way fly. There are little towns you can visit from Medellin, plus the high altitude Parque Arvi is accessible by cable car from Medellin. The countryside around Jardin, and also around Salento is lovely to see.

I think Playa Brava is the best place to see monkeys in Tayrona.
Yopal is good for wildlife but better in the dry season (not when you are going to be there sadly).

We saw monkeys (even titi monkeys briefly) on the way to Playa Brava but no monkeys at Playa Brava which surprised us. We saw lots of monkeys (capuchin and howler monkeys) on the horse trail in Arrecifes near Don Pedro. The howler monkeys were so loud at dawn and I watched a family for hours.

If you want to see wildlife, then Tayrona is a good option on the Caribbean. I've been to Tayrona several times, and I have seen to following:

Howler Monkeys
White Faced Capuchin
Cotton Top Tamarins
Green Iguanas
Caymans
Toucans
Dolphins
Many different species of lizards

In addition to these animals, I have also seen Titi monkeys (common squirrel monkeys), Chiguiros (Capybaras), Colombian Red-Footed Tortoises, Colombian Tegu Lizards, Deer, and Sloths. If you have the time, you can head to the less traveled western part of the Colombian Caribbean (the Uraba region). Places like Sapzurro and Capurgana, border the Darien Gap, and have endless possibilities in terms of wildlife viewing, I live in the Western Caribbean region, a couple of hours from the coast, and I see Chiguiros, Iguanas, Red Footed Tortoises on a daily basis. I also infrequently see Holwer Monkeys, Deer, and Tegu Lizards across the street from my apartment as well.

If you get to Tayrona in the morning around 8am, you are almost guaranteed to see many Howler and Capuchin Monkeys. The Cotton Top Tamarins don't like people, so you'll have to work harder to see them. However, when I was near the park in March, I stayed at a hostel that has a troupe of them living across the highway. It's not everyday you get to see a critically endangered species.

Make sure to make time for Villa de Leyva and the Coffee Region

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