Colombia is the only country in South America with coastlines on both the North Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. Lying to the south of Panama, Colombia controls the land access between Central and South America. With Panama to the north, Colombia is surrounded by Venezuela to the east, Brazil to the south-east, and Ecuador and Peru to the south-west.

Although there is a certain amount of violence in remote areas, the current government has increased its presence in the countryside and in all major tourist areas, so whereas in the past travel might have been risky, this is no longer the case, except in the areas of known guerrilla presence. Travelling in Colombia is definitely worthwhile. From Bogotá, with a temperate climate 2,600 metres above sea level and at a constant temperature of 19 degrees Celsius, a drive of one or two hours north, south, east or west can take you to landscapes which are as diverse as they are beautiful. To the east are the oriental plains which stretch out far beyond the horizon with little modulation. To the north are the more rugged contours of the higher Andean region. To the south the weather is sub-tropical and has a diverse range of flora and fauna, and to the west you can find the Magdalena River valley and its hot, steamy weather. Colombia is one of the equatorial countries of the world, but unique in its extreme topography and abundance of water.

Official Tourism Body: www.turismocolombia.com.

EXCHANGE_RATE: 1 Euro = 2750 Pesos
1 USD = 1785 Pesos

Plug Shapes:
            
            

The climate is tropical along the coastal and eastern plains but cold in the highlands, with periodic droughts. Colombia is an equatorial country, so there are no seasons in the common sense of the word. Temperatures do not vary much throughout the year. What Colombians normally refer to as winter is the rainy season.
Cities such as Bogotá, Tunja and Pasto have been known to reach temperatures of below zero, so if you are sensitive to cold weather be prepared.

As with most South American countries, you can bring in personal items such as clothes, a personal stereo, a camera and the like. Do not take anything with you that may arouse suspicions. Bags and bodies are regularly searched and if drugs are found, no matter the amount, then you will likely be spending the next few years in a Colombian prison. When you leave the country you may be asked for proof of purchase of items such as jewellery or antiques, so keep hold of all receipts.

Argentina - 54-1-312-5446
Australia - 02-9955-0311
Brazil - 55-6-1-226-2547
Bolivia - 59-1- 278-6841
Canada - 613-230-3760
Chile - 56-2-228-8369
Costa Rica - 50-6-283-6871
Ecuador - 59-3-245-8012
El Salvador - 50-3-263-1936
France - 331-4265-4608
Germany - 030-2639-610
Guatemala - 50-2-335-2909
Mexico - 52-5202-7299
Nicaragua - 50-5-278-4405
Panama - 50-7-264-9266
Peru - 51-1-441-0954
UK - 44-207-589-9177
USA - 202-387-8338
Venezuela - 58-2-2361-6592

Colombia celebrates lots of public holidays, apart from Christmas, New Year and Easter, these include; Los Reyes Magos (Epiphany Day) – 6th January, San José – 19th March, Dia del Trabajo (Labour Day) – 1st May, Corpus Cristi – May/June, Dia del la Independencia – 20th July, La Asunción de Nuestra Señora – 15th August, Dia de la Raza (Discovery of America) – 12th October, Todos los Santos (All Saints Day) – 1st November and Inmaculada Concepción – 8th December.

There are pay phones in the larger cities but they tend to be few and far between and not a lot of them are in working order. Most of the public phones are coin operated but there are a number of newer ones that accept only pre-paid cards. A lot of the telephone offices also have Internet connections.

There are three call providers and before you dial a number you need to put in the number of the provider you want to use; dial 05 for Orbital, 07 for ETB and 09 for Telecom. If it’s an international call you will need to put an extra 0 at the beginning. The country code for dialing into Colombia is 57 and you don’t need to put the provider number before this.

Be sure to arrange adequate insurance cover before you head off on your travels. Check exactly what it covers and how the payments will be made. If you plan to travel along the Atlantic Coast and to the national parks then you must have a yellow fever injection at least ten days before you go. Other recommended vaccinations are hepatitis A & B, typhoid, rabies-if you are going to be in close contact with animals, chickenpox-if you’ve never had the virus, and measles-if you were born after 1956. Make sure you are up-to-date on your tetanus and diphtheria boosters too.

There are regular international flights into major cities including Barranquilla, Cartagena, Cali, Medellín and Bogotá, as well as to other smaller cities along the borders with Venezuela and Ecuador. There are daily direct flights to and from the U.S, Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, Spain, France and South America. When you arrive you will be asked to fill out a customs form which will then be stamped. Take good care of this form as you will need it when you leave Colombia. If you are travelling into the country by car then you can enter from Venezuela by the San Cristobal-Cúcuta pass or from Ecuador by the Tulcán-Ipiales(Rumichaca) pass. You can't cross from Panama to Colombia by road - the Darién Gap, which is a hostile area of jungle, marshlands and guerrilla activity, begins at Yaviza, where the Interamericana runs out. Bus connections can be made from the Caracas main terminal in Venezuela to most cities in Colombia.

From the Maracaibo terminal in Venezuela you can find buses that run to Cartagena, Barranquilla, and Santa Marta on the coast. The border at Maicao provides a relatively easy, straightforward entry into Colombia from Venezuela. It is very straightforward to enter Colombia from Ecuador, just head to Tulcán and from there you can get a taxi to the border. Get your exit stamps from the immigration offices and take another taxi to Ipiales. From there you can travel further to Cali and Bogotá. You can also travel by boat from Colón in Panama to Cartagena in Colombia.

There are several different airlines that provide internal flights throughout Colombia. This is the fastest and safest way to travel but it’s also the most expensive and the most boring. If flying between cities in Colombia there is a US$4 departure tax from each airport. As flight schedules can be somewhat erratic be prepared to wait around at the airport and don’t book any quick connections or you may end up missing your connecting flight. Driving is on the right hand side of the road. Foreign visitors may drive if they show an international driver's license. Insurance is cheap and mandatory. The speed limit in residential areas is 30 km/h, and in urban areas it is 60 km/h. There is a national speed limit of 80 km/h. The country has a well-maintained network of roads that connect all major cities in the Andean areas, as well as the ones on the Caribbean Coast. There may be significant landslides on roads and highways during the rainy season (November to February), interrupting traffic. This usually takes between 6 hours to 4 days to resolve. There are many toll crossings; the fee is about US$3.00. There are also plenty of dirt roads of variable quality. Travel by bus is widespread and has different levels of quality. The longer the distance, the newer and more comfortable the service is. In Bogotá you can find the Transmilenio and in Pereira the Megabús, highly efficient and neat bus transit systems that are spreading to other cities.

There is only one metro system in Colombia. It is in Medellín, in the Antioquia department. It connects the cities that make up what is known as "Medellín" - Line A departs from Itagüí to Niquía ,Line B from San Antonio to San Javíer and Line K(Metrocable) from Acevedo to Santo Domingo Savio. Riding the metro is a unique experience, as passengers travel up the mountains in gondolas. The MetroCable has four stations. There is a police presence in each metro station; however, they are very courteous towards tourists. The taxi networks in big cities such as in Bogotá are extensive and very cheap. Taxis from city to city are easy to arrange by phoning ahead and agreeing the price, it will still be cheap by western standards and is safe and quite agreeable.

If leaving Colombia by air you will have to pay a departure tax. Stays of up to 60 days incur a tax of US$30. Stays of more than 60 days incur a tax of US$50. This tax cannot be paid by credit card; it must be paid either in pesos or US dollars. Be sure to hand over your customs form to avoid being overcharged.