According to travel guides, the only safe place to cross the overland border between Colombia and Ecuador is Rumichaca. The closest Colombian town is Ipiales (but we recommend staying in Pasto) and the closest Ecuadorian town is Tulcan (but we’d go straight across to Otavalo).

Pasto is a small city near the Colombia/Ecuador border and a frequent stopover for those making the long overland journey from Colombia to Ecuador. It’s an unappealing city and we wouldn’t recommend more than an overnight stop here, but it’s a better option than stopping in Ipiales.

Popayán is known by two names: the white city (la ciudad blanca) and the fertile city (la ciudad fecund). It’s known as the white city because the old town is whitewashed and the fertile city because no other town has contributed as many Colombian presidents.

Wax palm trees and coffee farms — those are the two things that Salento is famous for. The little Colombian town of Salento is nestled in the verdant green Andes mountains and is just a short ride from the Valle de Cocora hiking trail.

Adventurous souls can see can see glaciers, the mighty condor and the other-worldly fraijones in El Cocuy National Park. Snow-capped peaks and wide valleys make the hiking in this Andes mountain range spectacular.

Is Bogota just “a big city with big city problems” as one Colombian told us, or is there more to Bogota than first meets the eye?

Villa de Leyva is paradise in Boyaca, according to one Colombian that we spoke to and we’d agree.

After our incredible weekend hiking in Tayrona National Park, like many tourists we hopped out into Santa Marta and based ourselves in the town for a few nights.

Nestled in a green valley, Medellin is a city of three million people that is blessed with a consistently pleasant climate all year round.