🇨🇴 Bogotá & Medellín Travel Tips Checklist 📝

1️⃣ Safety Despite initial concerns, both cities felt safer than São Paulo! Though homeless people are visible, they don't bother pedestrians. Uber drivers advised avoiding walking in old town areas after dark. 🚶‍♂️➡️🚖 2️⃣ Weather April brings unpredictable showers ☔️, but they pass quickly. Always carry a foldable raincoat when rain is forecasted. 3️⃣ Costs Colombia is shockingly affordable vs Chile/Brazil (even Peru!): • Lavish lunch: 30-40K COP (~$7-10) • Breakfast for 3: 20K COP (~$5) • Avocados: 5K COP/kg (~$1.2) 🥑 4️⃣ Food Portions Massive servings! Order small portions first - a 60K COP (~$15) fried chicken platter fed us for 2 meals! 😂 All local soups (Mondongo, Ajiaco) are must-tries. 🥣 5️⃣ Overrated Spots • Salt Cathedral (Bogotá): Gimmicky salt mine turned expensive church • Comuna 13 (Medellín): Over-commercialized with little authenticity 6️⃣ Guatape Rock Not for acrophobics! I wasted 30K COP (~$7.5) before retreating after 10 steps. 7️⃣ Motion Sickness Alert Medellín→Guatape buses wind through nausea-inducing mountain roads 🏔️. Sit upfront and bring meds/essential oils. 8️⃣ Cards Chip cards work everywhere (even small shops), but magnetic strips often fail. 💳 9️⃣ Museum Hours Check closures: • Botero Museum: Closed Tue • Gold Museum: Closed Mon (Easter closures caught us off guard!) 🔟 Airport Lockers Only in Terminal 1 (not T2) at Bogotá Airport. Bonus: 🐕 Colombia is pet paradise! Dogs of all sizes ride buses, enter attractions, and dine indoors. As a pet owner, I stan! #ColombiaTravel #BogotaTips #MedellinGuide #BudgetTravel