Bogota Reports

[Maha Siddha]

Hi Dear All.

Is it easy to buy a portable heater in Bogota?

I ask my Airbnb host and he says there is no central heating but there is some sort of heater provided.

I do not like cold and I am easy to get cold.

Should I just bring one with me?

Thanks for the info.

[Flawless Zeal]

Maybe it is your T-mobile plan. I never have a problem getting LTE in Colombia with my T-mobile. I sure hope you mean $35,000 pesos. As you can see the most expensive Claro plan is 31,000 pesos which is $7. 35 and gets you 15 GB for 30 days. Or do you mean you bought the higher speed data from T-mobile?

Yes, direct from T-mobile. I was trying to avoid any hiccups when I arrived, so messaged their support chat on the way over and they said it was unlimited 2 G data, higher speed data available for $5 1-day 512 MB, or $35 10-day 5 GB. Maybe the support agent was wrong and LTE would have been there regardless. Not a huge deal, but I'll probably get local phone and SIM next time.

When people say this I always wonder what they were looking to eat. I have never had a problem with the chicken, ribs, fish, Italian food, tacos, pizza. Staple foods in Latin America are rice, beans, and potatoes and they do not really eat spicy foods. If you are looking for a bunch of different vegetables or a USDA quality steak then you will be hard pressed.

Didn't say it was "bad", just "okay" -- was more of an afterthought, not a scathing critique.

[Mr Enternational]

1) Get a local phone and SIM. I was relying on my Tmobile international roaming, but found out when I got there that it was 2-G only, bought some higher speed data for $35,

Maybe it is your T-mobile plan. I never have a problem getting LTE in Colombia with my T-mobile. I sure hope you mean $35,000 pesos. As you can see the most expensive Claro plan is 31,000 pesos which is $7. 35 and gets you 15 GB for 30 days. Or do you mean you bought the higher speed data from T-mobile?

Food there was just okay IMO, even at the more expensive restaurants.

When people say this I always wonder what they were looking to eat. I have never had a problem with the chicken, ribs, fish, Italian food, tacos, pizza. Staple foods in Latin America are rice, beans, and potatoes and they do not really eat spicy foods. If you are looking for a bunch of different vegetables or a USDA quality steak then you will be hard pressed.

[Elvis 2008]

Of course. Thought I made that pretty transparent in my post. Having said that, Santa Fe is often recommended here as best conglomeration of clubs, so it is not as if I went to a random sketchy part of Bogota.

I think you were fair in your description. Honestly, outside of the women, two days in Bogota would have been more than fine for me.

I agree with you on the food in Bogota. I knew someone who went into the country though and kept bragging about the food. My gal was bugging me to go to her father's and uncle's farm and the North in the country and we did. It is like 70 miles but the roads are such shit it takes 3 hours. The simplest dishes (arepas, cheese, meats, roasted chicken, OJ) were absolutely amazing, as good as anyone I have had in the world, so I do not get it. Maybe Colombia's shit transportation system is the reason the food in the cities is not better. I do not know.

Medellin has a tad better looking women but IMO they are more stuck up and materialistic. I have always been disappointed by that city. Strip clubs have hotter women but way higher prices. Weather is a little nicer so everyone goes ga ga over it.

Some cities in Mexico IMO are more modern than rust belt cities in the USA (Cancun, Monterrey, Guadalajara, CDMX, Cabo come to mind). Yeah, food is way better, but price of women on low end is about double what it is in Colombia. High end is 4 or 5 X more. I tried seeking out the best women and going long term with them, and I found as many prospects in Mexico as Colombia. Thing is the Colombian women were much happier with less. The hotties in Mexico particularly Mexico City wanted a lot.

[Woodman09]

Hi,

Could you please. What generic do you buy? Name?

I attached a photo -- I have a special pharmacy I can show you where it's 5 mil for 2.

[Ibespoke]

There no vibe for an area. Its 100% specific to the owner. I was mostly booking in Chapinero in both much nicer and not as nice parts of it when I say this. All you can do is message them before booking and ask. Its very rare that a host was vague when I asked them. I've messaged 75+ airbnbs in Bogota for various bookings over the last couple of years, and almost everyone has been very clear when responding. Now. Some of them responded back with answers I didn't like. But, that was the answer I needed.

I'd say I put 1-2 hours into searching / filtering for an airbnb and messaging hosts before making a decision for each booking. Small effort to avoid a headache.

Appreciate your response. Will report back my experience.

[Igor54]

I have been using the same generic for years-- Works Great and I pay $1 for 2 x 50 MG blisterpack-- Best price I can find-- Great for gifts to bring home.

Hi,

Could you please. What generic do you buy? Name?

[Flawless Zeal]

this comment about the city and food is based on your limited experience.

Of course. Thought I made that pretty transparent in my post. Having said that, Santa Fe is often recommended here as best conglomeration of clubs, so it is not as if I went to a random sketchy part of Bogota.

As to the rest of your post, Bogota objectively has a significantly higher crime rate than NYC or Tampa. To argue they are comparable seems disingenuous. And suggesting that Bogota has as good food as NYC. I mean, come on. Maybe if you're just comparing a grilled steak vs a grilled steak, or factoring in value (no question Bogota is cheaper), but otherwise, I think your bias is fairly apparent there. NYC often makes lists as one of the best cities for food in the entire world, it's not even fair to compare Bogota to it. Not that cuisine was the reason I went to Colombia.

[JackTaggart]

Hello All,

Will be visiting Bogota and it is new for me. I have had varied experiences with varying guest policies based on city, AirBNB building, Hotels, neighborhood etc. Experience has ranged from totally casual, waive at porteria and enter to "full court press" stop and document all details to odd rules like "no vistors after a certain hour etc. ".

Any reccos or experience with the "vibe" in Chapinero? I always message AirBNB hosts but they are usually vague and send "boiler plate" vistory policy text that is perhaps purposefully unclear.

I am always quiet and respectful (don't drink or throw parties) but don't want to book a place only to discover it is visitor inaccessible.

Any experience welcomed and appreciated.

There no vibe for an area. Its 100% specific to the owner. I was mostly booking in Chapinero in both much nicer and not as nice parts of it when I say this. All you can do is message them before booking and ask. Its very rare that a host was vague when I asked them. I've messaged 75+ airbnbs in Bogota for various bookings over the last couple of years, and almost everyone has been very clear when responding. Now. Some of them responded back with answers I didn't like. But, that was the answer I needed.

I'd say I put 1-2 hours into searching / filtering for an airbnb and messaging hosts before making a decision for each booking. Small effort to avoid a headache.

[JackTaggart]

1) Get a local phone and SIM. I was relying on my Tmobile international roaming, but found out when I got there that it was 2-G only, bought some higher speed data for $35, and used that up before the end. And walking around with a new iPhone added a bit of unnecessary anxiety.

You might have had that experience, but I have t-mobile and have not been restricted to 2 g. I agree using a different phone is just easier.

Was not a fan of the city generally -- very dirty with piles of garbage on many streets and homeless people looking through them, and not a lot to do in the city other than mongering. Food there was just okay IMO, even at the more expensive restaurants. Probably will try Medellin or somewhere in Mexico for my next trip.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion. But this comment about the city and food is based on your limited experience. If you went to a sketchy area of New York City for some mongering and never left that area. Would you say the same thing about NYC? Bad food and lots of garbage and homeless people for the whole city? What about Tampa near the sketchy stuff with adult theaters and where there are prostitutes? Would you feel the same way about all of Tampa?

I love Bogota. So not hiding my bias. But I wouldn't love it the same way if I lived in Santa Fe. Or didn't explore other things in other areas. Based on going to NYC easily 150+ times over the years for 2-3 days at a time with lots of dining out, I certainly haven't had a better food experience compared to Bogota. I am inserting NYC into the conversation here. But I guess whenever people make these types of comments, I try to figure out what people are comparing it to. And NYC is one of the richest cities in the world and I think most would agree it has great food, so I am using it to compare.

I am not trying to change your opinion. Because your experience is your experience. I just think comments like this provide incomplete information for people looking to visit Bogota. Or any new place for that matter. Not going to reveal my home usa city. But there are way more homeless people hanging out at the local gas station that bother me compared to when I am in Bogota. And I live in a nice area in the USA. I don't have that issue in Bogota and I don't stay in a fancy area at all.

[Nomars777]

Great report! I had very near the exact same experience on 2 trips. Hard bed included.

3 and 4 of the lessons learned are spot on. Although after my next Medellin trip, I'm leaning toward a return to San Jose Costa Rica after nearly 15 years to see how it's changed.

A few lessons learned from my first trip:



3) If you see a particularly hot girl at the club, approach her immediately, or she will be soon gone.

4) Biggest lesson for myself was not to pinch pennies when everything is so damn cheap. Don't walk home at night if you feel a bit uneasy on dark empty streets with homeless people and piles of garbage, just catch the $5 uber home immediately and uber almost everywhere else too. Don't sit and watch a girl you're uninterested in dance on stage, or even worse, wait at an empty stage. Dances are about $7, decently long, and as much touching T&A as you want, even kissing T&A, for $7. If the beer kinda sucks, but you want more than water, find a club with good girls early on and buy a bottle for the upper level. If you're flying out late at night and the hotel is only $30/ night, just pay for an extra night, and similarly, don't factor in saving money on a hotel by doing red eye (s), was not worth how unrested I was, and ended up not getting sleep on the plane in either direction. I was worried about arriving at the hotel too late at night, but in retrospect, it would have been fine.

In conclusion, being able to reliably get 7. 5-8. 5 girls at clubs for $25-40 in Bogota was pretty amazing. Did not love having to deal with the horrible club music, or having to change clubs multiple times when they would go periods of time with hardly any girls there and none on stage, particularly with the annoying AF guys outside every club pestering you. Was not a fan of the city generally -- very dirty with piles of garbage on many streets and homeless people looking through them, and not a lot to do in the city other than mongering. Food there was just okay IMO, even at the more expensive restaurants. Probably will try Medellin or somewhere in Mexico for my next trip.

[Woodman09]

Quick report from Bogota, Santa Fe.

Walked around Calle 20 and Carrera 15 Bis (and wider), where there were a bunch of street walkers a few open casas around 10 pm. Surprisingly empty from what I remember the last time. I'll likely walk a little further down this week.

Found a vennie who was a 6. 5/10 but had great energy. Asked for 50 k (seems to be the average rate here) which surprises me as Medellin is 40-50 k, and previously Medellin felt more expensive. Anyways.

Any tips for where else I should be looking (mainly street)?

Head north to Calle 23 and Cra 15 that is the North stroll, More better girls there.

[JjBee62]

How much is the play for short time and or overnight, in American dollars? I see quotes on here like 600 k but I don't know the exchange.

Learn the exchange rate. Most places will not take dollars and not knowing the exchange rate guarantees you'll be ripped off.

You can simply type "USD to COP" into Google and get the current rate. Right now it's about 4200 pesos per dollar. Ballpark it and 600 k is under $150.

Short time costs vary depending on location. If someone is talking about 600 k (600,000 Colombian pesos) for short time they are way above most price ranges.

[JjBee62]

Sure you can buy them all in any pharmacy. I think tadalafil is better than viagra, as a single dose lasts for three days. Any local brand is ok like genfar, sandoz, mk. Just make sure to buy them in a pharmacy such as farmatodo or colsubsidio. There is plenty of counterfeit pharmaceuticals in Colombia.

Depends on the person. For me, tadalafil works great, but leaves me with severe pain in my lower back and legs. Sildenafil usually causes no problems.

[PineTree]

Sure you can buy them all in any pharmacy. I think tadalafil is better than viagra, as a single dose lasts for three days. Any local brand is ok like genfar, sandoz, mk. Just make sure to buy them in a pharmacy such as farmatodo or colsubsidio. There is plenty of counterfeit pharmaceuticals in Colombia.

Thank you.