Travel Tuesday | Bogota, Colombia

For this week’s Travel Tuesday we’re going to Bogota, Colombia.

Bogota will take your breath away — perhaps literally, given its perch as one of the highest-altitude world capitals, at 8,600 feet above sea level.

A busy metropolis that’s one part bustling city, one part natural wonderland, Bogota offers an interesting mix of historic and modern attractions… Towering skyscrapers sit next to sprawling barrios, hipster shops and restaurants are slowly moving into the city’s grittier neighborhoods and the once-soaring crime rate has dwindled. The sophisticated center, La Candelaria, welcomes tourists with its cobblestone alleyways, colonial buildings, 300-year-old houses and a collection of Baroque and neo-classic churches and cathedrals.

With more than 50 world class museums, Bogotá’s most famous museum and one of the most fascinating in South America, the Gold Museum, contains more than 55,000 pieces of gold and other materials from all of Colombia’s major pre-Hispanic cultures.

Few capital cities are as fundamentally beautiful as Bogota. The Andes soar around the city and Rising from the edge of downtown, at 10,000 feet lies Monserrate. This mountain overlooks the city with grandeur. There are three ways to reach the peak – by cable car, via railway, or on foot. Whether you are looking for the satisfaction gained from a hike or the views from a ride, the reward at the peak is equally awe-inspiring. Visit the 17th-century Sanctuary of Monserrate, wander around the mountaintop taking in the city below, and indulge in some good eats at the incomparably located restaurants.

Bogota is a party town, and a town with an appetite too. Flagged by those in the know as one of the world’s rising foodie destinations, Bogota is the epicenter for the Nuevo Colombiano movement, which makes fabulous use of local fruit, coffee, and chocolate. After satisfying your taste buds, the nightlife is just as enticing, with salsa, reggaeton, cumbia, and many more genres represented every night of the week.

That’s it for now, I’m Katelyn O’Shaughnessy, join me next week for another Travel Tuesday.