Exploring Colombia: from Caribbean fortresses to Andean peaks

Cartagena’s Walled City feels cinematic. Bright colonial buildings, churches, plazas and cafés fill streets that once formed one of the Spanish Empire’s most important strongholds in the Americas.

Because Cartagena controlled great wealth and trade routes during the colonial era, it became a target for pirates and rival European powers. To defend it, the Spanish built one of the most sophisticated military defense systems in the New World, surrounding the city with enormous walls and fortresses that still stand today.

Every walk through the old city reveals another hidden courtyard, rooftop terrace or small café tucked between centuries-old buildings.

Few places combine landscapes as dramatically as Tayrona National Park. Located near Santa Marta on Colombia’s Caribbean coast, it blends tropical beaches, rainforest and the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains – the highest coastal mountain range globally.

The region is deeply connected to Colombia’s indigenous heritage. Adventurous travelers can trek to Ciudad Perdida (The Lost City), an ancient settlement older than Machu Picchu that once served as a spiritual and political center for the Tayrona civilization.

Even without the trek, Tayrona is extraordinary: jungle trails opening onto untouched beaches, crystal-clear water and a real sense of connection to nature.

Many people imagine Colombia as tropical and humid, which is why El Cocuy National Park feels so unexpected. Located in the Eastern Andes, it is home to Colombia’s largest glacier system, with snow-capped peaks, alpine lakes and high-altitude wilderness stretching across the horizon.

Reaching places like Ritacuba Blanco requires preparation and acclimatization, but the reward is extraordinary. The park’s páramo ecosystem, filled with towering frailejones plants, feels almost otherworldly.

What makes El Cocuy meaningful for many Colombians is its connection to family and heritage. Exploring the region while listening to stories from people who grew up there can transform the landscape into something deeply personal; not just beautiful, but alive.

Caño Cristales, often called “the river of seven colors,” is one of Colombia’s most surreal natural wonders. Located in Serranía de la Macarena National Park, it becomes vibrant shades of red, pink, yellow, green and blue thanks to an aquatic plant called Macarenia clavigera.

Visitors can hike through the surrounding landscape, swim in natural pools and see rock formations shaped over thousands of years by the current. It’s the kind of place that feels unreal – and a reminder of how wild Colombia still feels.