General Info

[Mr Enternational]

I got both vaccinations and I have a desire to reach Colombia. Can you tell me what I need to enter the country beyond the Visa in this time of covid-19? In other words, is it easy or difficult to enter Colombia?

112 posts and you do not realize there are people on this site from all over the world. Nobody knows you or what country you are from in order to tell you what is needed. Best thing to do would be to see if your country has an embassy in Colombia and look on their website. Second best thing would be to look at the State Department from your country website.

[JonesLover]

Hello friends,

I got both vaccinations and I have a desire to reach Colombia.

Can you tell me what I need to enter the country beyond the Visa in this time of covid-19?

In other words, is it easy or difficult to enter Colombia?

Thank you.

[SkyBuilder]

This should not have cost you more than 50 k in COP:

I know that I should have been more forceful but they had me in handcuffs and had called for transport since they were motorcycle cops. They were really putting on the hard ass part about taking me to jail until they found out what pills I had. My girlfriend was flipping out so I just gave it up.

I was in a similar situation many years ago and they took about the equivalent of what you said. I was a passenger at the time and there was a lot of screaming and yelling on both sides.

The take away for me is travel with a lot less money because it seems they want to take what you have. I also think I will get several Prepaid Visa of MC cards and just put $100 on each. I can hide the ones I'm not using and just carry the one and a bit of pocket change in the future.

Be safe and have a blast.

SKY.

[LoveItHere69]

Total bullshit. I just went there several weeks ago. It's fine. Those hurricans were almost a year ago.
I'd absolutely recommend San Andres over anywhere on the coast.

Agreed. Hurricane season is just starting up. That area is a rare pathway for hurricanes to take. I live in Florida so I pay attention somewhat to hurricanes. I love guys taking advice from girls because it is almost always wrong. Oh, kinda like the crap so many here give bad information or preach about.

[LuvChicas]

There hasn't been a curfew in Bogota for a long time now.

Just left CTG, curfew is 12 midnight.

[Bango Cheito]

Appreciate if anyone can confirm the curfew restriction on cities below.

Cartagena- curfew at 9 pm.

Medellin- No curfew.

Bogota- curfew at 9 pm.

There hasn't been a curfew in Bogota for a long time now.

[Bango Cheito]

Ah OK, thanks. Might cut off Cartagena and do 3 weeks in Medellin and 6 nights in Bogota.

I feel the same about MDE and CTG. 3-4 days and I'm peacin out. They're both boring.

Why not check out Pereira, Manizales, Armenia, Bucaramanga?

[Bango Cheito]

Chick I was with 2 days ago in Bogota said this is the worst time to be in San Andres due to the hurricanes that hit recently.

Total bullshit. I just went there several weeks ago. It's fine. Those hurricans were almost a year ago.

I'd absolutely recommend San Andres over anywhere on the coast.

[Bango Cheito]

Well, while I had a completely different experience with having my own vehicle and being able to move around how I wanted to, I would agree with a few of your points. The potholes seem like they could swallow a bus sometimes. And the Speed Bumps will sneak up on you. Worse is that they trick you by painting them yellow and then sometimes just putting a yellow stripe on the road. You will hit the brakes and find it is just paint then the next time you will fly on through and be launched into the air by the bump. LOL. Another thing I found outside the cities was the use of multiple speed bumps when approaching a stop sign and they will use the same trick of just painting the lines sometimes. They are white and will rock your molars out if you do not slow down for them.

I Loved having the ability to come and go when and where I wanted. I had reserved a car with National before the trip but got a weird message as I landed stating that my reservation had been cancelled due to not having any cars. I am an Executive Level user with them and was all the more annoyed at this. They got an ear full when I got back to the states. Anyway, I found a guy on OLX and rented a car directly from him. It was a nice, older RAV4 at got us around well. Only issue there was that he had the car on GPS and knew everywhere we went. We told him we were going to Santa Marta for a couple of days but when we got there we could not find a decent hotel room or even an AirBNB to rent so we returned to our apartment in Barranquilla. Along the road back he texted us asking why we were returning OMFG! That's when we knew we were being tracked. We told him what happened and didn't hear from him again for a couple of days when we decided to take a trip up into the Mountains to visit my girls family near Sincelejo. He was a bit pissed that we were taking his car way out of the city without letting him know in advance. When we went to give him his vehicle back I took all the blame and said that I was not accustomed to reporting when and where I was going in a rental. He said he had had several stolen and was just protecting himself, which I totally understand.

Anyway, This was the first time in many years that I got pulled over in a roadblock and it was because I was a gringo way out in the middle of nowhere and they probably had never met one. Anyway they separated me from my girlfriend and starting questioning me about when and where I picked up this puta and what I was doing way out here with her. They went through all our stuff int he car and came across a bag of my medications. That's when the real shit started. They asked me where my declaration form was for the meds, handcuffed me and really started pouring on the rough act. I was 99% sure that I didn't need one but they had me on that 1% chance and said they were going to take me to their jail until this got straightened out. Well it was an obvious shake down but they had my girl jumping up and down and cussing everyone and me bent over a motorcycle playing rough. The end result was they took ALL our cash and let us go. Problem was I had too much cash for what I needed and they get it all. Moral of that story is to travel with multiple re loadable VISA or MC with like $100 on each one and hide the bulk of them and only have the one you are using handy and a little cash cause they will take what you have period.

The Tolls are absolutely correct and there are tons of them and they only take cash. This was a problem for us after the cops took all of ours and they didn't care that we had to pay tolls either.

As for driving in the cities, it's a lot like being in a demolition derby while trying to NOT actually hit anyone. The Motos will be all around you and now one pays any attention to lane stripes or stop signs. It's just slow and go. The first one into the opening wins every time. LOL I loved this part as it seems to play right into my style but my girlfriend was horrified that I would drive like a taxi driver. SMH!

Anyway, I loved it and will definitely be renting cars every time I return as the freedom for me is paramount.

This should not have cost you more than 50 k in COP:

[Osteoknot]

If you want something real and more exclusive it is also more expensive but 100% reliable. At gringolovemedellin https://thesapnation.wixsite.com/website.

I even like Rap, but that is not the type of high end image I would go for. Maybe the gold chain crowd would, but universally when you market for a higher end you are marketing towards an older demographic because they usually have more money, and old guys don't like Rap. But for all I know that company could be outrageously successful. I didn't the girls they were showing were that great either. Looks like style and no substance to me. Hmmmm, and only your second post. Something does not feel right here.

[LionBacker]

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[SkyBuilder]

For anyone interested in renting a car and driving in Colombia, here's my 10 day experience.

First thing, it's an additional and almost completely unnecessary expense, plus there are added risks. If driving back home stresses you out, you shouldn't even consider it.

There were 3 components to my driving experience, Medellin, Bogota and driving outside of the cities. Driving in Medellin wasn't bad at all. Traffic was a problem, crazy people on motos were a problem, but it wasn't significantly worse than dealing with the traffic in any major city. What helped was my knowledge of Medellin. I already had a good idea how to get to the places I wanted to go. One issue which popped up, paying at parking garages. I expected to be able to pay on my way out, and ended up blocking the exit for 10 minutes, while I ran back to the payment machine.

The streets in Medellin are mostly in good condition. Potholes weren't too much of a problem, although one in the south end of Itagui snuck up on me. Just make sure to keep your eyes open for the speed bumps. Some of them will destroy a car. I didn't have any issues finding parking. A good spot I found near Parque Lleras was Valet Pro, right across the street from Hooters. If you come in from Calle 7 you can avoid all the traffic.

Driving in Bogota, I didn't do too much. Mainly driving out of and back into the city. One noticeable difference, drivers in Bogota are more impatient. Expect to hear more horns and to have more close encounters with motos. Also, the roads in Bogota are terrible. I've seen potholes that are more than a foot deep. I would rate them as the worst city streets I've seen.

Driving outside of the cities is not for the timid. Although most of the roads were decent, there are many narrow, steep and twisting roads where the trucks are going 5 mph. Passing is a game of Russian Roulette. I had a few close encounters with oncoming traffic, one close enough that I'm pretty sure one guy needed a change of underwear. There are construction zones where they will stop all traffic for 30 minutes or more. All you can do is sit and wait..

Well, while I had a completely different experience with having my own vehicle and being able to move around how I wanted to, I would agree with a few of your points. The potholes seem like they could swallow a bus sometimes. And the Speed Bumps will sneak up on you. Worse is that they trick you by painting them yellow and then sometimes just putting a yellow stripe on the road. You will hit the brakes and find it is just paint then the next time you will fly on through and be launched into the air by the bump. LOL. Another thing I found outside the cities was the use of multiple speed bumps when approaching a stop sign and they will use the same trick of just painting the lines sometimes. They are white and will rock your molars out if you do not slow down for them.

I Loved having the ability to come and go when and where I wanted. I had reserved a car with National before the trip but got a weird message as I landed stating that my reservation had been cancelled due to not having any cars. I am an Executive Level user with them and was all the more annoyed at this. They got an ear full when I got back to the states. Anyway, I found a guy on OLX and rented a car directly from him. It was a nice, older RAV4 at got us around well. Only issue there was that he had the car on GPS and knew everywhere we went. We told him we were going to Santa Marta for a couple of days but when we got there we could not find a decent hotel room or even an AirBNB to rent so we returned to our apartment in Barranquilla. Along the road back he texted us asking why we were returning OMFG! That's when we knew we were being tracked. We told him what happened and didn't hear from him again for a couple of days when we decided to take a trip up into the Mountains to visit my girls family near Sincelejo. He was a bit pissed that we were taking his car way out of the city without letting him know in advance. When we went to give him his vehicle back I took all the blame and said that I was not accustomed to reporting when and where I was going in a rental. He said he had had several stolen and was just protecting himself, which I totally understand.

Anyway, This was the first time in many years that I got pulled over in a roadblock and it was because I was a gringo way out in the middle of nowhere and they probably had never met one. Anyway they separated me from my girlfriend and starting questioning me about when and where I picked up this puta and what I was doing way out here with her. They went through all our stuff int he car and came across a bag of my medications. That's when the real shit started. They asked me where my declaration form was for the meds, handcuffed me and really started pouring on the rough act. I was 99% sure that I didn't need one but they had me on that 1% chance and said they were going to take me to their jail until this got straightened out. Well it was an obvious shake down but they had my girl jumping up and down and cussing everyone and me bent over a motorcycle playing rough. The end result was they took ALL our cash and let us go. Problem was I had too much cash for what I needed and they get it all. Moral of that story is to travel with multiple re loadable VISA or MC with like $100 on each one and hide the bulk of them and only have the one you are using handy and a little cash cause they will take what you have period.

The Tolls are absolutely correct and there are tons of them and they only take cash. This was a problem for us after the cops took all of ours and they didn't care that we had to pay tolls either.

As for driving in the cities, it's a lot like being in a demolition derby while trying to NOT actually hit anyone. The Motos will be all around you and now one pays any attention to lane stripes or stop signs. It's just slow and go. The first one into the opening wins every time. LOL I loved this part as it seems to play right into my style but my girlfriend was horrified that I would drive like a taxi driver. SMH!

Anyway, I loved it and will definitely be renting cars every time I return as the freedom for me is paramount.

[AmoMedellin]

Romancelatina went down like 5 years ago. I have always assumed that such a magnet for paisa beauty would be replaced in one way or another.

Does anyone know about such event creator that good as Romancelatina has come up, since there seems to be a free spot in the market; in their events I have rarely seen so many beautiful girl in one location before, maybe only beaten by Bodytech gym before work session.

Have anyone a clue about new dating site with big parties that attracts many beautiful girls, both prepagos and serious ones?

[AmoMedellin]

You guys have a real interesting perception of Colombian culture. Some of these girls have been retiring for years and bought fincas on the money they get from foreigners. It's a multigenerational thing- the family business.

They were rolling in tall cotton in the 80's, then they moved to the Arabs from Dubai. There has been plenty of money for girls in Colombia for some time. That's the top tier who are smart enough hang with the big dogs. As long as Colombia's average annual income $41 k / year and Venezuela's is below a dollar, there will be plenty of girls looking for extra money. Colombia culture is widely stratified, and the economy is unlikely to improve dramatically any time soon in either country. Now, if they ever get their shit together in Venezuela so foreigners can visit- I"m going to Caracas, brother!!

The Colombian income per capita is US $6. 744 or corrected, so called PPP is US $16.264. If we use the nominal income $6. 744 and look at what MiamiSammy says about income inequality; "Colombia culture is widely stratified". Very many girls are among the poor, I have a friend in Miami, born "paisa" who gave we a lot of good advice, "These girls have no opportunities and no expectance of opportunities". Hand to mouth. Venezuelan nominal income is about that which makes their young and pretty flood Mexico, The caribeean, and especially Colombia and then especially Medellin, bring up what ws becoming soaring prices due to a very big influx of overpaying mostly "rich" white men and some Asians.

I could work as personal advice to many girl that have the potential to save to buy a nice finca. But they are not very educated nor smart, on average. Some are both very smart and beautiful. They have a tendency to wanting to move upward in society, becoming a "professional woman", as my friend Yeraldin stated it. Yes, she and her friends at San Juan 84 made 5 million pesos a month, while working in a store pays less than a million, sometimes nothing since if she is hired unregistered she can get fried very easily. 50% have such employment status, 85% in the countryside.

So, yes the incentive are there. There also a limit. If prices goes to high, men tend to navigate to other places even if the girls are less pretty on avergae, like DR, Peru, SE Asia. We all now how beautiful the paisas are. Another girl said" I live in Bogota, there I'm a very beautiful girl, here in Medellin, just average". I met her via Romancelatina. She had been shooting for Playboy-Colombia " I was so drunk when we shoot the photos in the street" nervous like Glenn Close shooting "Fatal Attraction".

I think just MiamiSammy; the show will go on! With 75-80% of the population being below 30 yo and the girls extraordinarily pretty, prices might go up and down in some circle, but it's hard to see a major change. US economy grow fast in terms of income for both work and assets, both short and long-term, so the demand will grow, not decline.

Or maybe I just can't stand the thought that my beloved would loose it's charm and become boring like Bogota?

I'lle be back.

[LionBacker]

You guys have a real interesting perception of Colombian culture. Some of these girls have been retiring for years and bought fincas on the money they get from foreigners. It's a multigenerational thing- the family business.

They were rolling in tall cotton in the 80's, then they moved to the Arabs from Dubai. There has been plenty of money for girls in Colombia for some time. That's the top tier who are smart enough hang with the big dogs. As long as Colombia's average annual income $41 k / year and Venezuela's is below a dollar, there will be plenty of girls looking for extra money. Colombia culture is widely stratified, and the economy is unlikely to improve dramatically any time soon in either country. Now, if they ever get their shit together in Venezuela so foreigners can visit- I"m going to Caracas, brother!!

It's good to know that there will always be girls that could use the extra money, but do you guys think that Medellin will become more and more saturated with foreigners and the cost of everything will go up?