Bogota Columbia

We will be in Bogota on January 9 from noon to 6pm. We would like to find a private guide to give us a quick city tour, find us somewhere to eat, and to do some shopping. Any one have any companies we can use?

As I and some others suggested on your other thread, we would stay away from Bogota if at all possible.:eek: H O W E V E R, looks as if your mind is made up. The hotel I use and have stayed in six months at a time is the Hotel Tequendama. They also have a good tour office on site. You will find VERY good 4 & 5 star restaurant in and around the hotel. The hotel sits in the heart of the city just down from the bull ring. You will want also and see if you can get a trip to the top of the mountain by cable car. The floors and half way up the walls of the church are of solid gold. A most beautiful view of the city can be had from this point. You will find very good shops in and around the hotel as well. For good emeralds, look for Greenfire. DO NOT leave the childern out of your sight. Crime is on every street corner and do not let anyone come up to you or the childern. Good luck and Happy Sailings....Leslie Swiger

Leslie,

Thany you for the hotel and tour tip. Since we booked out trip at the last minute and need to get him from Chile, we really do not have control over where we stop. SInce that is where the airline stops, that is where we will be. We do not stay in airports and hide. If we are going to be in Bogota, we are going to see some sites.

I was in Bogoata once for business and I will tell you that it is not a good place to visit. It was the only time in my life that at night in my hotel room that I slept with a chair blocking the hotel room door. And we stayed at one of the finest hotels in Bogota and we traveled with local people. In fact, I was on a corporate jet as we visited various countries in South America and that was the one country where the plane was not allowed to stay there overnight whlle we were there. The local person who picked us up at the airport explained to us that one year earlier his father had been kidnapped and was being held for ransom.

It's too bad though. I thought the country was very nice and we met wonderful people. It's too bad what has happened there over the years.

What I'm trying to say is that you should take a great deal of caution. It is not like visiting some tourist place and you should be extremely careful in all that you do there. If it was me, I would not go on my own. So, if you have no choice in the matter I would be very careful but if there was a way of getting out of this portion of the trip, I would recommend not going.

Keith

I was in Bogota about 2 weeks ago. It has a reputation for being dangerous and it was well deserved, however the Colombian Government has cleaned the place up and it is nowhere near as bad as it was. Dont let old news scare you!

I went around the city myself (single female), I didnt go out at night but then that would have been stupid! Things to see include the Gold Museum, the Emerald Market (dont try and buy anything there unless you know what you are buying), the old town centre and Monserratte. All of these areas are relatively safe.

Take the usual precautions - dont carry a lot of cash, be wary of people befriending you, dont wear jewellry. You'll be okay!