hi im going to colombia in mid december and a little anxious about the flood situation there,
my colombian friends in different points around the country are giving me mixed reviews about the situation and of course they dont move around a whole lot, so they cant tell me what is the situation with intercity bus routes etc..
just wondering if any of you wonderful backpacker people are out there now, and if you could give me some feedback on how things are ?
are you seeing any floods at all?
are you experiencing any hold ups on the roads? or bus cancellations?
how rainy is rainy?
im from ireland so non stop rain is pretty much "my middle name"... but still, i want to be prepared
Reply to this Was in Cartagena from Nov 24-28. Rained for maybe 30 minutes on 2-3 days and 3 hours or so on only 1 day. Ate outdoors in the evenings everynight and enjoyed the mud volcanoe(about 1 hour road trip without issues) and Rosario Islands without significant rain. Did not have to alter daily plans significantly. Cannot speak for the rest of the country, but would not pass up Cartegena due to rain. However, my armpits rained nonstop due to the heat and humidity at all times when outside.(and I live in Miami) so make sure you stay in AC place..
Reply to this ...we moved West round the coast to Cartagena on the bus, it took 5 hours. The roads were flooded in part so it would normally be a quicker journey....
From
Cartagena Days 12 - 14
Judging by this photo from a blog about Columbia taken a couple of days ago, you will at least need a good pair of wellies. 😊
Reply to this Hey Matt, See you are leaving mid Dec! We are due to be going beg of Jan! So would appreciate any feedback from you whilst you are there. Many thanks!
Reply to this hi there
no problem
i am preparing to have to take flights instead of longer bus journeys. for example i have heard that the bogota to medellin road has been closed off due to landslides.
though, my friends in bogota/ cartagena are telling me colombia is still do-able and theres even some sun
the whole thing is very hard to gauge from the outside..i am also preparing for taking a flight elsewhere if its all too much hassle
will have to wait and see.
Reply to this oh , that was sent by me, but came up as anonymous because i left the page open on my pc for a long time before sending the message hehe
Reply to this I'm sure it's still do-able, and yeah we were thinking of maybe taking flights too, but, I don't know yet. I guess we'll know more when there.
We have 4 weeks to go which is still a fair while. I'm hoping at least the weather will have improved.
Hope you have a fun/safe trip 😊
Reply to this Hi
That was our photo from Cartagena that was used above. Don't be put off going round Colombia, we have just had a great 3.5 weeks there. The rain fell very heavily and quickly in Cartagena and within 3 hours everything was back to normal. The buses did take a little longer than usual in more remote areas and there are a lot of landslides evident that partially block the road. The buses just go round them though.
We flew from Santa Marta to Bucamaranga and bused down to Bogota so I cant be sure that the buses are going north / south between them but certainly the rest was open fine. The country was pretty muddy though, wellies are a great idea!
Reply to this Thanks Helen&Rick,
That was really helpful. Glad you had a fab time. We have 1/2 week more than you when we go !!
Reply to this hi there
i have been in colombia now for over a week in bogota and medellin, and so far so good , uyes it rained a little in bogota maybe for an average of an hour and a half each day, mostly in the evenning or night time.
hardly reason to panic.
i am however flying from city to city because some colombians told me about bus journey times that increased dramatically. however you would be best off clecking with the companies beforehand and weighing up weather or not its worth it, because the airport is also overwhelmed with people and flights are being delayed also.
certainly the weather appears to have improved. im not sure about the coast yet though.
Reply to this Hi Matt,
Really appreciate this info & good news. I guess we shall look at the situation when there. Hope that you have a great time. Where did you stay in Bogota?
Reply to this i stayed in cranky croc hostel in candelarias
actually as soon as i sent the last post the heavens opened up here in medellin for a good hour and a half forcing me to take a siesta 😉
however as with bogota, the rain seems to go away again long enough for you to do whatever you need to do. it never rained hard enough in bogota to flood the streets while i was there at least. however the rian here in medellin did create a flood in the hostel courtyard rendering everyone barefoot.
i would say, preparation wise, its good to have a jacket that is appropriate for both rainy and non rainy situations, but not too heavy either...
if your coming from the UK or ireland then probably any of your summer jackets would fit the bill ! you will need a light jumper/sweater underneith the jacket in bogota at night.
sandals & shorts seem to be a fairly good way to dress when it pours down in the hotter places.
i forgot my sandals and kind of regretting it because i cant find any shops who sell decent ones here.
Reply to this Thanks again for the info. Yeah we are gonna take light rain jkts, and a sweater. Yeah bummer you forgot your sandals. Def gonna be wearing my Tevas.
Where you heading to? From Bogota we were gonna start heading north towards the Caribbean coast, stopping off on the way. We only have a month though. How long you out there?
Reply to this i will be out here until mid jaunaury
heading to cartagena, baranquilla and santa marta. something along those lines!
but not before i learn to dance salsa cali style over the christmas in cali! :-)
Reply to this Hi Matt! Hows it going? Where are you now? Are you bussing it or on flights? I think we are going to try and stay on buses, its all part of the experience anyway. Did you like Medellin? Whats your fav place so far?
Reply to this hi there
its going great
im in cali now, i have been taking flights, but im not sure if it is entirely necessary any more because there is hardly any sign of rain.
yea medellin is nice.
it is quite a modern city.
all in all colombia is great!
forget the wellys bring shoes thatare comfortable to dance in! :-)
Reply to this Hi Matt,
Forgot to ask you how much was it from airport to Candelaria? Where are you now? Are you gonna visit Villa de leiva? Or Ciudad Perdido? Anywhere not to be missed?
Not long for us now, can't wait!!
Hope it's all still great 4u!
Reply to this How much was it from airport to Candelaria?
i cant remember exactly now but it was pricey, i got a official airport taxi which i think is recommendable
when you go out the door of the airport you just go round the corner on the right, and theres a load of taxis and a small booth. you need to pay in the booth and its a fixed price of about 50 thousand.
then they give you a ticket and you give that to the driver.
Are you gonna visit Villa de leiva? Or Ciudad
naah, its all salsa & parties from here on in for me! i have been to colombia before, i would love to make it up to the coast but i dont think i will make it at this rate heheh
how exciting your journey is about to begin!
Reply to this OMG matt 50,000? by taxi!! I have just read some reviews and people have paid 18,000 - 20,000 .& thats 8pm hostels are recommending 20,000....maybe its just gone up like crazy, who knows!
Glad your having a blast, you'll be on 'strictly come dancing' soon with your salsa moves. lol
Presume you have a laptop with you! wow! I don't have one small enough, & anyway hate been intouch with home when i'm away.
Thx for all your help/info
Laura.
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