Bogota Reports

[Surfer]

DB, Que paso ******? RIDICULOUS airfares are causing me to avoid Colombia until they drop on September 1. But the trip you MUST make is this November for a VERY special event. Call me to discuss it.

Beavis in Bogota? Is this the SAME Beavis from the private boards?



A la orden

[Dollar Bill]

Surfer -

Great Post! Very informative and nicely presented.

I agree that newbies to Colombia need to read this kind of information in order for them to safely navigate in Bogotá/Colombia.

And like you said, those that know Colombia and the ATM situation, can simply skip your post if they choose so, but that should not stop anyone from posting information that can help at least a couple of mongers.

$Bill

[Surfer]

Hawk: Maybe I've been lucky but I have NEVER had a bad experience with a taxista and have made friends with several. Use good judgment of course, but not every taxista is a ladron IMHO. Sounds like Latin Traveler has had bad experiences (though he gets good prices-15K is a good deal unless your hotel is close to airport. To Zona Norte Hotels or Tequendama is generally about 20K (including tip).

Going back inside to departures area at El Dorado Airport to use ATM is no big deal IMHO. I also have asked taxistas to stop for a moment while I run to an ATM on the road-there are TONS of them! But LT's point about paying the service fee and changing $50 or so at the currency exchange booths in arrival area is not a bad idea either.

Guys suggesting repetitive withdrawls miss the point IMHO; you get hit for $3 for EACH transaction by your US bank, plus the Colombian bank will tack on a service fee as well. These fees DO add up. Second, walking around with more money than you expect to spend that night is NOT really too wise in a country with a HIGH crime rate. Why carry excess cash? MY MO is to take out 400K per day as needed but I use my credit card wherever possible. And when you go out at night do NOT bring your wallet! Bring your cash and a photocopy of your passport; while TECHNICALLY you are supposed to carry the original, I have passed DOZENS of checkpoints and NEVER carried my original passport. The risk of loss/theft is MUCH higher than the risk of being arrested for not having the original of your passport.

Also, there are LOTS of agencies cheaper than 140K in the classifieds of El Tiempo. The ones with English speaking receptionists, websites or large advertisements will OF COURSE charge more. IMHO, taxistas often know cheaper agencies not frequented by gringos where the range is more like 60-80K (plus 10K for taxi fare to & from your hotel). Some hotels make you come downstairs to meet the girl creating some "walk of shame". Tequendama does this.

I agree with Latin Traveler that nightclubbing can be quite fun in BOG but, again, the gringo friendly places like Extasis or La Mansion are at upper end of price range. I much prefer Whiskeria La49 (details should be below in an old post of mine) but NOBODY will speak English and you will be the only gringo (and it is in a DICEY area so go STRAIGHT from taxi into club and do NOT walk around in the area).

ALL of this is predicated on you speaking at least passable Spanish. If you don't, I STRONGLY suggest going to Cartagena instead. SAn Andres is the other area where you can get by with English alone, but it is a place to BRING a chica, not a good place to FIND one.

Sure wish some of the guys who post in the Cali folder would read this helpful and civilized thread; ANY discussion of ATM/bank fee issues (or anything besides where to find chicas, what acts they perform and how much they charge) is "off topic" to them.

All of this is, of course, strictly my opinion which all are free to disregard.

[Mamey]

There are still some ATM's from Servibanca and ATH which dispense up to $400k at a time. Anyways, you can still make multiple withdrawls up to your banks limits.

It was great there for awhile, some ATM's could dispense up to $800k at a time. It made for some good profits in the currency market.

Mamey

[Beavis]

Beavis will be here tonight.

[LatinTraveller]

Hawk

Cash from ATMs is the way to go. The general limit has just been reduced from $400,000 to $300,000.

There are no ATMs in the international arrivals area in El Dorado and it´s not really a good idea for a first timer to exit and enter the departures area.

I would suggest that you acquire a small amount of Colombian pesos before you arrive. The cab fare to most hotels is less than $15,000. (Just as you exit the arrival area is an office which will issue you with a piece of paper which states where you want to go and how much it is in a taxi, the tip is included). When you arrive at your hotel they will tell you where the nearest ATM is. There are thousands, so there will be one very close to your hotel, possibly within your hotel.

Here, I am assuming that you speak spanish. The Bogota newspaper El Tiempo has hundreds of ads every day and most offer outcalls. If you look further down in this section you will find the URL. Expect to pay about $140,000 for a minimum of two hours.

Although You say you prefer incalls, club life in Bogota is a lot of fun. But do be careful. Never, I repeat never, trust a taxi driver.

PM me if I can help further.

Take care

LatinTraveller

[Surfer]

Hawk, ATM is the way to go; there are several in the airport. ATMs in shopping malls often have lower limits than 400K though.

[Hawk_28]

AddictedToWomen:

Thanks for the information, it looks like the better way to go is the ATM.

Any other recommendation about "in room" services will be appreciated.

Hawk.

[Surfer]

Addicted: Any more details on Deskubra are appreciated.

[Mamey]

LittleDickPride.

I'll be in Bogota mid june/july let me know and we can have a aguardiente.

There are some interesting places downtown which I would like to check out.

Mamey

[AddictedToWomen]

On flights...

Avianca regularly have special fares to major Colombian cities from FLL, MIA, and NYC. Details are at http://www.avianca.us/ and you can sign up for a newsletter if you wish. The booking process is a real PITA, but worth it.

If you're coming from elsewhere hold a reservation with them then book a connection -- it'll usually work out cheaper than a single ticket. Just make sure you leave yourself enough time to make the connection even if your flight is delayed.

Internally try Deskubra -- I got a flight plus top notch hotel for less than half of the price of either alone. Recommended.

[AddictedToWomen]

hawk --

i've never tried paying with a cc but i'd be very surprised if it was accepted. or maybe i just need to go more upmarket! :)

if you try exchanging cash you'll pretty quickly learn you're being raped by those guys - you can get much better rates from the atm, though you'll be limited to 400k per transaction.

it used to be the case that colombian nationals had to pay an additonal tax for money exchanges, but this may have been abolished.

but either way your dollar will go further for the girl if you do the exchange yourself: if you're just reluctant to venture out then hotel reception will usually do the exchange for you too: just keep the lube handy to lesson the pain.

[Hawk_28]

Hi guys!

I have my first trip to Bogota on July, it’ll be a business trip so I’ll be free only at night, I prefer the room service than going out, I’d read the reports about Chuscas.com and e-extasis.com, both agencies have good reports so I’ll give them a try.

My questions are about payment:

1-How do you pay them, with a credit card or cash??, how is this process??

2-I’d read that every body change dollars for Pesos, don’t they accept dollars?? Or it will be more expensive if I pay with dollars??


Any other suggestions are welcome, but remember that I prefer the in room service.

Hawk.

[LittleDickPride]

Hi fellows:

I will be working in Bogota in the 2nd half of June, but with plenty of time available for rumba. If any gringo is around at that time, he may let me know so that enjoy some good time in Bogota.

Best,
LDP

[Beko9]

Toby,

Member #1226,

Or everybody else, please if you know please PM me Jimena's phone number.

Thank you!

Siesta