Cristina Martinez is our main Tour Leader and Local Host. She will be accompanied by other local tour guides in some destinations, and will remain with the group at all times. Being on a tour with Cristina is a once in a lifetime experience and she is one of the main reasons why Aracanto Tours are unique to any other tour you might find. She started taking tours around the world when she was 17 years old, she is a travel expert and consultant, and she now wants to welcome people to Colombia to make them fall in love with the magic and people of her home country!

Welcome to Colombia! For Arrival Day we will organise private airport transfer for everyone in the group. A local host will be waiting for you at the airport and will take you to the Hotel with private transportation. On your drive from the airport, you will get an introduction to Bogota and a short tour of the city. You will then meet your Tour Leader at the Hotel and will receive the complete printed itinerary, all necessary documentation, and a welcome gift! Dinner today is open and we will provide recommendations based on arrival time. Remember to send us your international flight details. 

Wake up to a Colombian Welcome breakfast. At each breakfast we will be introducing new Colombian exotic fruits, and other Colombian flavours. Today we will do a Day tour of Bogota, starting with the northern part of the city, and heading to the centre. In the centre, we will learn the most important moments of Colombian history, whilst visiting the government buildings. We will explore the colourful cities of La Candelaria neighborhood, and visit the well-known Museo del Oro (Gold Museum) which has won multiple international awards. We will do a short visit to Botero’s Museum, Colombia’s most famous artist, and we will enjoy lunch at one of the country’s best restaurants, where their unique and creative four-course menu is never repeated. We will head to one of the city’s highest points, and take a cable car to Monserrate Hill, to watch the sunset and enjoy drinks and an exquisite dinner at the top.

Today we will start the day by experiencing the “Sunday Ciclovia” when many of the main streets in Bogota are closed and only open to cyclists, and people walking and running. Enjoy breakfast, and join the group as we head together to the Sunday open market of Usaquen, where you will get to shop for local art and crafts and taste local flavours. You are then invited by a Colombian family to an exclusive “Meet the Locals” lunch at their home, located in one of the best neighborhoods in the city. This is an off the beaten path experience exclusive to Aracanto clients and this group. After a free late afternoon, you will be picked up by a Colombian Chiva party bus, we will do short city night tour, and we will head to the famous and crazy Colombian restaurant Andres Carne de Res, where we will have dinner, have some drinks, and practice our Colombian dance moves!

At Breakfast today we will show you alternatives to coffee, and introduce you to local drinks like aguapanela (sugar cane drink) and local Chocolate. We will drive to Zipaquira in the morning to visit the stunning Salt Cathedral, one of Latin America's marvels of architecture. This is a magnificent underground cathedral built inside a salt mine, and regarded as a cultural and religious patrimony for the Colombian people.   At the Salt Cathedral, we will have an organised tour with a specialised guide, and you are also free to explore on your own.  After this, we will visit beautiful small towns typical of Bogota’s surroundings and we will stop for a delicious local countryside lunch. In the late afternoon, we fly to the coffee region, and upon arrival, we have a special dinner organised for you with Colombian music. We will be staying in a very nice hotel, with a stylish pool for you to relax in, and with typical architecture of the coffee region.

Wake up in the beautiful coffee region of Colombia and enjoy a delicious breakfast, with local fresh ingredients. Head to Salento, and before starting our walk through Cocora Valley and seeing the tallest palm trees in the world, we will stop for coffee at one of the most renowned national coffee shops. This is a great spot to buy premium Colombian coffee to take back home. Drive in the traditional Jeep Willys, still used by Colombian coffee farmers, and explore the magnificence of the Cocora Valley. We will have lunch at a local restaurant with outstanding views of the region. After lunch, continue to one of the best Coffee Tours and coffee tastings in the region inside a traditional coffee farm, where you will witness the peeling, washing, drying, roasting and marketing processes needed before a cup reaches coffee drinkers around the world. You will learn about the history of this Colombian family and their trajectory with the coffee industry, and you will be able to get involved in the process of selectively picking coffee. In the evening, we will go to the town of Filandia where we will have dinner at an exquisite restaurant with incredibly creative and tasty food recipes and drinks.

Today we will start at the Botanical Garden of the region of Quindio visiting a very cool butterfly sanctuary, and learning about the flora and fauna of Colombia. We will then continue our journey to the airport and enjoy the last stunning views of this region, as we say bye to the coffee region of Colombia. Welcome to the city of Medellin, and visit a Colombian traditional flower farm with the most beautiful and exquisite flowers. This is definitely an off the beaten path experience prepared for this group! We will visit a flower farm and meet the local people working here, learning more about their day to day lives and the industry’s trajectory in our country. We will also learn to do flower art, and learn about the traditions and anecdotes of the families in this region. As you might know, Colombia is one of the biggest global exporters of flowers, so it will be a very interesting experience to see how these are produced and sent abroad. We will finish the day by having dinner at a traditional “Fonda Paisa” which is where local people in Medellin called “paisas” drink, dance, eat and meet!

Wakeup early and experience a local market fruit tour where we will get to experience where many locals buy their food and where you can taste delicious, fresh and truly organic fruits and vegetables. We will head to the centre of Medellin with private transportation, and visit the famous Plaza de Botero, where you will have a great opportunity to take pictures with Botero’s impressive sculptures, whilst continuing our street food tour tasting “empanadas” - our most popular Colombian fried snack. We will then head to Comuna 13 for a graffiti tour given by locals, and then presence the interesting urban gentrification process of Medellin by going on the city’s cable car system. All of this will be done with local tour guides, that will explain the local perspectives on Colombia’s history of narcotraffic, internal conflict, and the recent peace treaty. We will have an open evening with optional activities such as dinner at an upscale culinary fusion experience.

On your last day in Medellin, we will visit Guatape and presence the magnificent view of El Peñol, which has been described as one of the best views in Latin America. We will walk around the picturesque town of Guatape, and go on a lake boat trip. We will then fly to Cartagena and have some time to enjoy the warmth and beauty of this charming, colonial town described by many as one of the most romantic destinations worldwide. In the afternoon, we will have a Salsa and dance workshop, followed by dinner in the fun and trendy neighborhood of Getsemani, and we will go bar and club hopping tonight to practice our new Colombian moves!

Today we will enjoy a City Tour of Cartagena, including the magnificent sights of San Felipe Castle and La Popa monastery, with one of the best local guides and storytellers in the country. During this tour, you will get a local understanding of the importance of Cartagena for Colombia’s history and culture. You will then have free time to explore the Old City on your own, with an option to join your Tour Guide in a walking tour, join an optional chocolate workshop, go shopping, buy Colombian emeralds or gold, join an optional bike tour, visit the mangroves and meet local fishermen and much more. We will meet again as a group at an open bar on top of the walled city, to watch a beautiful Cartagena sunset, and enjoy a few drinks. We will end our day with a special surprise Goodbye dinner that we have carefully planned and prepared exclusively for this group. 

We will have one last breakfast as a group and we will say goodbye to some of our group members as our tour finishes today. You can join our Optional activity to visit Islas del Rosario today, and enjoy some beach time at the beautiful islands of Cartagena. This will not be included in the tour as we understand some people will be leaving during the day, or might have other plans.

We will provide recommendations on what internal and international flight to book out of Cartagena, based on your plans after the tour. You can also extend your stay in Cartagena or anywhere in Colombia and we can help you plan it. Or you can join our post-tour to the Amazon rainforest

- 9 Nights of accommodation with breakfast, all in 5 or 4 Star Hotels or best accommodation in the region for groups  (single supplement applies).

- All internal flights as described in the tour itinerary.

- Airport transfers and All ground transportation as described in the tour itinerary.

- All meals as described in the tour itinerary. 

- All activities and tours as described within the planned itinerary and entrance fees to all stated stops.

- A Colombian host plus various local guides and experts throughout trip.

- A Welcome to Colombia gift.

- International airfares from the guest’s home location to Colombia.

- Any additional local airfares.

- Any meals, drinks or snacks outside of those described in the itinerary.

- Alcoholic beverages.

- Any activities you choose to do during ‘free-time’ as described in the itinerary. Excludes Optional activities like Islas del Rosario Day (10th Day), culinary fusion experience (7th Day), optional afternoon activities in Cartagena (9th Day). 

- Travel Insurance.

- Additional single supplement if you request private single accommodation.

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Important Note: This itinerary can be changed due to weather conditions or any other events or circumstances which may alter the initial itinerary of the trip.

Join our post-tour to the Amazon rainforest, which will be a once in a lifetime experience, which we definitely recommend doing if you have the time. We will be staying in a beautiful boutique hotel in the middle of the jungle, and we will explore the captivating world of the rainforest and the extraordinary Amazon river.  

Some experiences we will be doing include: Birdwatching, experience canopy and climb one of the tallest trees to see the jungle from above, go on a river canoe and see pink dolphins, go on a day and night walk to learn more about the fauna and flora of the jungle, surround yourself with monkeys and the noises of the rainforest, interact with local communities from the Amazon and immerse in their world.