8-Nights Tailor Made Colombia: A Land of Wonders & Cultural Treasures - Luxury Tailor Made Travel from $10,045

Itinerary Details

Abercrombie & Kent: Tailor Made Colombia: A Land of Wonders & Cultural Treasures

Day 1 Bogotá, Colombia

Arrive in Bogotá, the capital of Colombia — a modern metropolis set more than 8,500 feet above sea level that boasts a year-round spring-like climate — where you are met and privately transferred to your hotel.

Explore Bogotá, starting at Paloquemao Market. View its vast array of Colombian fruits and culinary ingredients, food stalls serving local delicacies and displays of native flowers. Proceed to La Candelaria, the oldest part of the city, distinguished by its many colonial-era buildings. Visit the nearby main square of Bogotá and the Plaza de Bolivar, surrounded by government buildings and the cathedral. Continue to the Botero Museum, housed in a restored colonial mansion. Peruse its impressive collection, featuring numerous works by Colombian artist Fernando Botero as well as pieces by Picasso, Renoir, Monet and others. Next, discover the celebrated Gold Museum. With over 34,000 dazzling pieces, it is the world's largest collection of pre-Hispanic gold artifacts, which you observe up close alongside your guide. After a break for lunch, journey to Monserrate, located in the hills to the east of the city. Ascend this 10,000-foot peak by funicular railway or cable car to absorb inspiring vistas of the city.

Venture to the small town of Zipaquira to visit the nearby Salt Cathedral. Descend into this amazing underground church built in a salt mine some 650 feet inside a mountain. Follow curving, twisting tunnels down into the temple and smell the minerals in the halite-laden walls. Pass three naves depicting scenes from the life, death and resurrection of Jesus and 14 small chapels representing the stations of the cross, marveling at how phosphorescent light and reflections on pools of water lend an ethereal beauty to the setting. Enter the 82-foot-high main cathedral, which hosts Mass and occasional concerts, with room for more than 8,000 attendees.

After breakfast, fly to Pereira. Upon arrival, head out to explore a working coffee farm in this vital coffee-growing region, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Begin with a walk through the coffee fields, learning about the different beans before visiting the coffee germinator and drying area. Proceed to the terraces for an expert-guided cupping, the method by which coffee is evaluated, graded and eventually priced. Finish with a tasting of a wonderful cup of fresh-brewed coffee from beans grown on site. Savor each sip as you take in the breathtaking landscape surrounding you, from mountainsides planted with coffee and bananas to valleys where bamboo and sugarcane flourish.

Visit one of the most emblematic sites of the coffee region, the majestic Cocora Valley. Begin with a walk guided by an expert who provides an environmental assessment of the site and explains its ecological importance. Later, explore the municipality of Salento, walking its colorful streets, visiting the Cerro de la Cruz viewpoint and perusing local handicrafts. Continue to Filandia, a fine example of the architectural conservation underway across the region. Finish with a stroll through the town and a drink in its picturesque square.

Fly to Cartagena, perhaps the most exuberant, tropical and beautiful destination in all of Colombia. Upon arrival you are met and transferred to your hotel. Enjoy the remainder of your day at leisure, free to relax or explore this vibrant port city, which overlooks the Caribbean from fortress walls built to fend off marauding buccaneers.

Discover the best of Cartagena, starting at the imposing Castle San Felipe Barajas. A masterpiece of Spanish colonial military engineering, the fort was built and reinforced during the 16th and 17th centuries to defend the city from pirate attacks. Walk around the fortress to learn about its construction and explore the underground galleries, tunnels and passageways. Visit La Popa hill, where you take in a 360° view of the city. Continue to Cartagena's colonial walled city and walk its picturesque streets and plazas. Visit the imposing church of San Pedro Claver, with its fine collection of stained-glass windows. Next, view the city walls, which are nearly 50 feet thick in some places, as well as Bolivar Park, home to four fountains and a statue of Simon Bolívar, the Venezuelan-born soldier and statesman who spearheaded Latin America’s liberation from Spanish rule. Stop at the Inquisition Palace to see its magnificent baroque entrance hall as well as the chambers where presumed heretics were tortured, tried and executed. Conclude your day at the 16th-century Cathedral of Cartagena de Indias, admiring the architecture of its high-arched tower dome.

Today, sample the brilliant dishes — served from small stalls in every corner of the old city — that are the heritage of the Spanish, African, Arab and Chinese immigrants who shaped Cartagena’s culinary culture. Learn how these disparate peoples contributed cherished recipes that merged into an eclectic local gastronomy. Also discover street food havens that have gone unnoticed by outsiders yet enjoy veritable cult status with local foodies. With each stop, savor the melting pot of influences found in each bite and taste the original versions of the recipes that have inspired today’s Colombian cuisine. Later, toward evening, sail out into the city’s harbor on a private vessel that affords you a picturesque perspective of marvelous Cartagena.

After breakfast, private transfer to Rafael Nuñez International Airport for your departing flight.