Why Colombia
It is the only South American country that touches both the Pacific and the Caribbean, and it is crossed by three parallel Andean ranges. That geography produces a rare variety: in a day's drive you go from a Caribbean beach to a mountain city at two thousand metres.
The country's reputation has changed in twenty years. Medellín, long the most dangerous city in the world, was remade by its transport — metro, cable cars, public escalators in the hillside neighbourhoods — and it has become an urban case study.
Getting around
Flying is cheap and saves days: the Andean relief makes the roads slow, and Bogotá–Cartagena takes twenty hours by bus against an hour and a half by air.
Intercity buses are comfortable and frequent for medium journeys. In the city, Medellín has the country's only metro, complemented by cable cars that are public transport and not an attraction. Ride-hailing apps are safer than taxis hailed in the street.
Money
Cash remains necessary for small businesses, the markets and local transport. Cards work in the cities. ATMs charge a fixed commission: withdraw large sums rather than often.
Colombian coffee sold within the country is often the second choice — the best goes for export. The specialist roasters in the large cities sell the quality lots, and the difference is real.
Before you go
The local expression "no dar papaya" sums up the conduct to adopt: do not offer the opportunity. Phone put away, no visible jewellery, bag in front of you, and you avoid empty streets at night. It is not fear, it is the practice Colombians follow themselves.
Bogotá's altitude is felt on arrival: two thousand six hundred metres, short of breath the first day, and alcohol takes effect faster.
The regions are not equivalent in terms of safety, and the national average means nothing. Get information department by department, and avoid driving at night away from the main routes.