Colombia – Know Before You Go

It’s always helpful to have some quick tips and suggestions about your travel destination before leaving. In this Know Before You Go article, some of the best tips, tricks, suggestions, and knowledge about Colombia have been collected. This information will improve the quality of a trip to Colombia and reduce the pre-trip anxiety that many feel when planning their vacation.

Connectivity Abroad

Staying connected to the rest of your life back home can be important. While I encourage you to unplug at least a little while on vacation, completely unplugging isn’t always an option. If you are unfamiliar with the general options for international connectivity, I recommend that you read our post on “How to Stay Connected on Vacation“. Colombia’s specific details are described below.

US Cell Phone Providers

The big three US cell phone providers all have coverage in Colombia for the most populated areas and cities. However, once you are outside the main population areas, the coverage tends to drop off. There are only a couple of times when visitors following the 10 Day Colombia Itinerary will be outside of the main population centers. This makes using an international plan on any of the three big US cell providers a viable solution. The coverage maps for each of the main carriers are shown above (red is Verizon, pink is T-Mobile, and orange is AT&T). Because of the drop in coverage (and sometimes the decrease in safety associated with it), we recommend guided tours when going into these more rural areas.

Getting coverage through your home US cell service provider is by far the easiest coverage option, but it sometimes isn’t the cheapest. In addition, speeds in Colombia are generally what US residents are used to as 4G or less.

Colombian Cell Providers

The main providers of cellular service in Colombia are Claro, Movistar, and Tigo. If you have an unlocked phone that takes a SIM card (which is becoming more common in the US), you can pick up a local SIM card to use. This local SIM card won’t have the same phone number that you use at home, but it will allow calling local numbers in Colombia for fairly cheap. However, data service is even more important than the cell service these days. Throughout Colombia, WhatsApp is used widely. More often than not, a WhatsApp number will be advertised rather than a standard telephone number.

As can be seen above, Claro has the best coverage of all the Colombian cellular companies. Movistar and Tigo fall behind Claro in coverage, but Movistar gets a little edge over Tigo. However, all of these should have good service in the main city centers of Bogotá, Cartagena, and Medellín.

When buying a SIM card in Colombia, the stores are required to collect identification and an address. There are many clerks who will interpret this rule to mean that travelers aren’t able to buy a SIM card. However, this is incorrect. Your passport and the address of your hotel or accommodations will fulfill the requirement. Each major cell phone company has several official stores and kiosks in the malls and major airports. Try to go to one in a touristy area as they will be more familiar with activating a foreign phone. Also if the language barrier concerns you, they should be able to help more.

When buying from an official store, the SIM card is generally fairly cheap. They will often be bundled with an amount of data and unlimited voice and text. These packages are valid for a limited period of time as well. It’s common to see plans with just a few MBs of service up to 9 GBs of service. You can shop around and check for deals, but any of the options are likely to be very economical for someone coming from the United States. As an example, at the time of writing, Claro was offering a 10 day SIM card deal with 4 GB of data for $8,000 COP. This is approximately $2 US dollars. Even if you would use more than 4 GBs of data during the trip, you could buy several of these cards and still come out ahead of the US carrier’s international prices.

Typical Weather and Climate

Colombia is quite a large country with very different geography. It has both Caribbean beaches and the mountains of the Andes. The elevation ranges from sea level at the coast to over 18,000 feet in some parts of the Andes mountains. While travelers are unlikely to go that high, Bogotá is located at over 8,000 feet elevation. This means there is vastly different weather and climate between the hot beaches and the cool mountains of Bogotá.

Temperatures

As mentioned previously, the temperatures will change dramatically based on where in the country travelers are touring. However, given Colombia’s location (the southern part of the country is actually on the Equator), the temperature variation year-round is fairly mild.

Travelers starting in Bogotá will see the coolest temperatures of the trip in this city. Average high temperatures in Bogotá range between 65°F and 67°F. That’s right, there is only a 2°F difference in the average high all year round. Low temperatures in Bogotá will range from 44°F in January to 49°F in April through June. If this isn’t consistent weather, I don’t know what is.

As travelers move lower in elevation and towards the coast, the temperatures get warmer. Average high temperatures in Medellín range between 71°F and 72°F. Average lows are between 54°F and 56°F. Again, this is a very tight temperature window year-round due to Colombia’s location.

Finally, as travelers approach the coast at Cartagena, the temperatures get closer to what visitors would expect of the Caribbean. Cartagena sees average highs between 87°F and 89°F. Lows in Cartagena rarely dip below the upper 70s (ranging from 75°F to 79°F).

Daylight Hours

Colombia covers a region just south of the equator to just north of 10°N latitude. The three major cities covered in most Colombian itineraries (Bogotá, Medellín, and Cartagena) are all situated around 5°N to 10°N latitude. All this means that daylight hours are fairly consistent throughout the year in Colombia (much like the weather). Most areas in the country will see a daylight duration of 11.5 hours to 12.5 hours. Bogotá is the closest major city to the Equator and therefore sees only a 20-minute difference between their longest day and shortest day. Cartagena is the northernmost city at a little more than 10°N latitude. Its daylight hours vary by almost an hour throughout the year. However, even at one hour of difference, this isn’t enough to impact travel to the country. Any time of year is appropriate for traveling to Colombia based on the length of the day.

Precipitation

Given that the weather and daylight hours are so consistent throughout Colombia that they are almost boring, you would expect the same for precipitation. That is where you would be wrong. This is the one area where Colombia’s weather provides a little variation throughout the year. The country experiences dry and rainy seasons like many tropical climates.

The intensity of the rainy season varies by location within the country. The more mountainous areas where Bogotá and Medellín are located have a pronounced rainy season. The months of March-May and October-November are the rainy months in both of these cities. However, the extent of the rain varies between the two cities. Bogotá gets less rain overall. With the exception of the rainy months mentioned previously, Bogotá rarely gets over 1 inch of rain in any other month of the year. The month of January and February are particularly dry.

Medellín gets much more rain. It gets approximately 2 inches or more of rain every month except January and February. In these rainy months, 3.5 to 4.5 inches isn’t uncommon. Most of the rain in these regions arrive in the afternoon or during the night. Even during the rainy season, both of these cities are still great to explore. Bring a rain jacket or an umbrella to weather the short (generally daily) rain shower during the wet months.

Cartagena has a slightly different climate when it comes to the average precipitation. Rain is almost unheard of between the months of December and April in Cartagena. The other months of the year still see relatively low levels of precipitation with the exception of the Caribbean rainy season. The months of August through November see a much larger chance of rain. While the small amount of rain doesn’t compare to the rainfall of a city like Medellín, I would recommend avoiding Cartagena during these months. While most travelers could still have a successful trip to Cartagena during the rainy season, it is a big risk. So much of Cartagena centers around outside exploration. Rain could put a major damper on exploring the streets, old forts, and beaches. If you want to almost guarantee good weather, travel to Cartagena during the dry months of December to April.

Tipping

Tipping in Colombia varies based on the venue. There are quite different expectations based on restaurants versus hotels versus taxis. Below is the tipping culture and recommended tip for each situation:

• Restaurants – The vast majority of restaurants will include a tip on the bill. This tip will either be labeled “propina” or “incluido el servico”. The standard amount is 10% of the total bill. Restaurants are supposed to ask if you want the tip included. However, sometimes the restaurants will print it on the bill and leave it up to you to request its removal. The exception to this rule is that very small restaurants may not include a tip on the bill. In these cases, it is customary to leave a cash tip of close to 10% of the bill.
• Bars/Pubs – Tipping bartenders at bars or clubs is not common nor expected.
• Taxis – It is not customary to tip a taxi driver. Most riders will round up the fare to the closest thousand COP. This is as much a tip as it is for ease of exchange. Also at the end of the day, this generally results in a tip of $0.50 or less.
• Tours – Tours and sightseeing are areas where tipping is common in Colombia. The amount of an appropriate tip for this type of activity is variable. It should be proportional to the amount that was originally paid for the experience. Somewhere around 10% is generally customary but use your best judgment. There are a number of tip supported tours and activities in Colombia as well. These generally provide a recommended tip per person for participation. However, as with all tips, adjust this up or down depending on the quality of the tour and the level of service provided.

Time Zone

Colombia is located in the aptly-named Colombia Time Zone (UTC-5). Colombia observes UTC-5 year-round. In other words, there is no Daylight Savings Time. Therefore, while Daylight Savings Time is in effect in the summer months in the US, Colombia’s time is identical to the Central Time Zone. Alternately, while Daylight Savings Time is not in effect, Colombia matches the Eastern Time Zone.

The little to no change in the time zone for most Americans making this is a very easy travel destination. There will be no jetlag for travelers heading south from the US. The short flight and same time zone also mean that upon return there is little re-acclamation required. Therefore, travelers can use their vacation days to the maximum for exploring Colombia.

Electrical Plugs

Colombia utilizes the A-type or B-type plug. The standard voltage is 110V, and the standard frequency is 60 Hz. For those from the United States, this is the exact same plug type, voltage, and frequency used at home. Therefore, no converters or plug adapters will be necessary for travelers from the US.

If you are coming from another country, the vast majority of electric devices operate between 100V and 240 Volts. Therefore, laptops, tablets, phones, and similar devices should be fine. However, it is wise to check electric devices that use more electricity for compatibility. Items like hair dryers, curling irons, straighteners, heaters, etc… aren’t as forgiving when it comes to the voltages that they will accept. If they aren’t able to handle Colombia’s voltage or frequency, damage to the device may occur. Look at the electrical tag for the range of Volts (V) and frequency (Hz) that the device can handle.

While many devices will be able to handle the voltage and frequency, an adapter for the plug type will still be necessary. Plug adapters are generally inexpensive. I suggest a universal adapter if you travel to a number of different international destinations, but a single adapter will work well if you aren’t sure you need the added flexibility. Pick up several adapters to ensure that you can charge/use all your devices at the same time. Otherwise, you might be left choosing between charging your phone, tablet, or computer overnight.

Words to Know

Colombia speaks Spanish. For those who don’t speak Spanish, this can present a little bit of a language barrier. Many who have traveled to countries that speak a foreign language know that a large number of countries speak English as a second language. This is especially true in Europe and other touristy areas. Colombia generally doesn’t follow this trend. Because tourism isn’t as large of an industry in Colombia, there tend to be less people who are able to speak and understand English. While many hotel staff will likely speak English, it is rare for waiters and taxi drivers to speak English. Therefore, it is helpful to know enough Spanish to get by. In addition, having a translation app, like Google Translate, is highly recommended to help in a pinch.

While this guide can’t provide a base level of rudimentary Spanish, the following would be helpful to know prior to traveling to Colombia:

1. Hola – Hello or hi
2. Buenos días/Buenas tardes/Buenas noches – Good morning/good afternoon/good night
3. Gracias – Thank you
4. De nada – You’re welcome
5. Perdón/Disculpe – Excuse me
6. Por favor – Please
7. Sí – Yes
8. No – No
9. Uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, seis, siete, ocho, nueve, diez – One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten
10. Habla inglés? – Do you speak English?
11. Dónde está el baño? – Where is the bathroom?