Traveler Lisa Samuel and her family on horseback in Colombia’s Coffee Region.

My husband, 10-year old son and I traveled to Colombia over the Christmas holiday (19 December 2025 to 5 January 2026). It is such an interesting country, and I feel like we really got to experience some of the diversity in the landscape, biodiversity and culture.

We worked with Boris and his team to plan our trip. Logistically, they were flawless in communicating and handling all of the planning, travel and transfers. Everything went so smoothly and the staff were very responsive to any requests.

We made five stops across the country—Cartagena, Tayrona, Bogota, the Coffee Region, and Medellin. At each location, we had a dedicated guide who met us at the airport and escorted us to all of our activities. All of our guides were truly outstanding, and we learned so much from each of them. Meeting each of them was a highlight of the trip.

Here are some thoughts on each of our stops.

Three nights in Cartagena. The company had planned a pirate-themed tour to appeal to our son, and it was a good way to learn some of the history of the city, experience some of the food, and make it fun. We spent a day in the mangroves fishing and crabbing with members of the Afro-Colombian community and attended a drumming workshop hosted by a community school. A highlight for sure. We stayed at Hotel Quadrifolio, which was a lovely, historic boutique hotel. We could have used one more day at leisure to wander and explore on our own.

Four nights in Tayrona. We’re a little mixed on whether or not Tayrona ended up being a good stop for us. Pros: We loved our guide! We floated down the river in rubber donuts, which was fun, and we saw lots of animals (alligator, caiman, howler monkeys). I loved visiting the indigenous Kogui Village, but it was a long and hot day for my husband and son. Cons: The five-hour drive from Cartagena is long. Casa Tayrona, while clean and comfortable, is a very rustic hotel. If you are used to luxury hotels, it might not meet your expectations. Luckily, the food at Casa Tayrona is great. Also, you cannot swim at the beach. The water is too rough. We might have preferred visiting the island of Baru over Tayrona (another option offered by the team).

Two nights in Bogota. So glad we stopped here. We did a restaurant-based food tour that was really fun. We loved the tour of the fruit market, the visit to Monserrate, La Candelaria and Usaquén. If you go to Monserrate, don’t miss the hummingbird sanctuary. It was a highlight for our son. We could have used a couple of more days to explore. We stayed at the Sofitel, which was comfortable and had an excellent breakfast buffet.

Four nights in the Coffee Region. We loved our time here—it’s so beautiful. Horseback riding was a highlight and one of my favorite horseback riding experiences. The horses were some of the best-trained/calm/responsive I’ve ever experienced. We loved a rafting trip and riding there in the Jeep Willys. We enjoyed visits to the Cocora Valley, Solento and Finlandia, but it might have been nice to split them into 2 days so we could have had more time to hike and explore. We stayed at the Sazagua, a traditional boutique hotel that used to be a finca. The setting is lovely, and it was nice to be so close to the airport.

Four nights in Medellin. Our tour of Comuna 13 was so fascinating (and humbling) for us. We loved riding the cable car. It was a little difficult for our son to enjoy, because much of the subject matter was hard for him to grasp. We spent two free days in the city, wandering around on our own. We loved the hotel, the El Cielo. Don’t miss dining in the El Cielo restaurant for the tasting menu.

A few thoughts about Colombia overall.

I really didn’t know much about Colombia, other than its history of violence and role in drug trafficking. But that’s why travel is transformative. Because Colombia is so much more than that reputation. It is a beautiful and diverse country with a vibrant culture and incredibly resilient people. It is rich in cultural diversity, with distinct landscapes, music, and food. The landscape is gorgeous, with incredible biodiversity. My son, especially, loved the abundance of birds and wildlife. Despite its violent past, there is so much joy—art, music and dancing. everywhere. There is a tangible resiliency.

We wouldn’t hesitate to visit, and we felt completely safe the entire time we were there (which coincided with the crisis in Venezuela). We definitely recommend Boris and Colombia. We had an excellent experience.

Traveler Paula Kramer was impressed by Colombia’s natural beauty and “transformational” history.

To be clear, I was NOT happy when my husband Jeff announced that he wanted our family holiday vacation (December 2025) to be in Colombia. Although I had heard about the wonderful beaches of Cartagena over the years, whenever I thought of Colombia the three “Cs” came to mind: coffee, cocaine and crime, and not necessarily in that order. I was NOT enthused about this trip, and my concerns only grew when the US started bombing boats from neighboring Venezuela.

But thanks to the deep knowledge, experience and expert advice of Boris and his team, we had a transformational journey and acquired a more accurate and realistic understanding of contemporary Colombia. Only a five-hour flight from NY, the country is incredibly beautiful and colorful, offering a variety of climates, geographies, and cultures that will make you fall in love with the place. The people are warm and friendly and the food is terrific. Ironically, the coffee was only fair (because the best stuff is saved for export), and while drugs and crime still exist in some places—as they do in many countries—they are no longer the defining elements they once were. We felt very comfortable, and were deeply moved by a country that has transformed itself in recent years. Indeed, it’s only in the last decade that a robust tourist industry has flourished, once internal strife was no longer a factor.

We spent our first few days exploring Cartagena from Casa Don Luis, our perfectly situated hotel in the charming walled town. Christmas is a particularly magical time to visit; the decorative lights transform the town at night.

Visit Palenque, a town founded by escaped slaves in the 17th century with a rich history. By no means a fancy place, but its unique language and rich customs make it worth the trip. Highlights in Palenque included dance performances by local youth, a visit to the local medicine man, and a delicious traditional meal served on a banana leaf and eaten by hand.

Other WOW experiences in Cartagena revolved around food—an incredible chocolate and rum tasting, and a bespoke cooking class with Chef Jonathan and his family in their apartment just off the beach. We’ve done a lot of cooking classes in our travels, many in some incredible places, but these two experiences were among the best we’ve ever had. Not just because of the great food we learned to make, but we had rich and informative conversations with our hosts.

We then spent a couple of days of R & R at a Sofitel beach resort in Baru, a 40-minute boat ride from Cartagena. This break got us ready for our journey to the mountainous coffee region of Pereira, a place of incredible beauty and one of the bountiful bread baskets of Colombia. We LOVED our private tours of a local small batch coffee plantation and a cacao farm, each guided by descendants of families that have been in the region for years. We were fascinated by the incredible landscape, and all that they taught us about coffee and cacao production, then and now, and how each is changing due to climate, increasing competition, and demographics.

High on our list of WOW experiences in this region included our hike through the stunningly beautiful Cocora Valley, home of the majestic wax palm. Our guide expertly advised us to make some adjustments to avoid the crowds, and we were rewarded with an array of amazing vistas, practically to ourselves. The mountains, palms and flowers took our breath away. We also had amazing experiences seeing the mountains on horseback and also from the river, on a bamboo raft. Unforgettable experiences with lovely people.

Last, but by no means least, we flew to Medellin, infamous home of the ruthless drug czar, Pablo Escobar, and the complicated set of players in the drug wars. This was the largest city we visited and we were fascinated to learn about its recent transformation from the war-torn cartel years to a now-thriving metropolis where technology reigns, and transportation enhancements have turned once-dangerous barrios into safe communities with budding businesses and opportunity. Highlights: Botero Plaza and nearby museum established by the artist, and tour of Comuna 13, a barrio once renowned for its danger. Led by a former gang member, now a musician and community activist, she shared her own incredible journey and that of her neighborhood. Both are a miracle of resilience and survival. Seeing our reaction and curiosity, our local guide added a visit to the site of Escobar’s former home, now turned into an incredible memorial to the 40,000 innocent people who tragically lost their lives due to the drug wars of Medellin.

Throughout our journey, it was comforting to know that every activity we did had been personally experienced by Boris and his team. Their deep knowledge of Colombia—the well-known, and the less-well-known—as well as the expertise of our local guides, made all the difference. We had a curated trip that maximized our 11 days in Colombia and made it a rich, transformative, deeply educational, and very fun experience. We asked a lot of questions and got candid responses in return, and our guides tweaked things based on our interests that further enhanced our trip. This is what you get when you work closely with a great trip planner. Boris and his team brought their A game, and we could not have been happier. Travel to Colombia, and do so with their guidance.

My wife Caroline and I had a terrific time in Colombia on a trip organized by Boris and his team. We had eight days, divided between Tayrona in the north, then the coffee region, then two days in Bogota. When we planned the trip with Boris, we explained that our priority was to experience tropical nature (we’re never happier than when we’re in a cloud forest, and we’re especially interested in plants and gardening), and he focused on that. We got in some amazing birding, explored farms and gardens, hiked a bit, and, best of all, had many stimulating conversations—about plant-obsessed grandmothers, the price of a mule (going up), the best variety of passion fruit—and more serious subjects: What do you need for a good life, how to live with your country’s history, stuff like that.

Our guides were terrific—really, the backbone of the trip. One got us gently through a climb that was at the edge of our physical capacity, leaving us with a great sense of accomplishment. All were immensely knowledgeable and generous with information. Hard to single out high points—the visit to a Kogui village, birding in the Sierra Nevada Santa Marta, the Cocora Valley, Salento on the festive last holiday of the Christmas season, and the art tour in Bogota (and a couple of moving public art projects there as well). Logistics and communication were faultless. And if you do go to Bogota, try to have a dinner at El Chato.

My niece and I had a wonderful 12-night trip to Colombia over the holidays. Our travel fixers planned a great itinerary and everything went smoothly. Their attention to details and follow-up was noteworthy. Colombia is a wonderful country with so much to experience. We visited Cartagena, the coffee region, Medellin, and Bogota. We loved the hotels, guides (particularly Nicanor and Claudia), and variety of nature activities. There were many highlights, including the orchid farm, rafting, contemporary art tour w/Antonio, Doris Salcedo’s installation, Communa 13 tour, stories of resilience & hope, street art, Medellin Christmas lights, eating ceviche, and more. I highly recommend the planners for your travel partner!

Traveler Linda Shorey throws a piece of pottery in Raquira. Photo: Traveler John Decker

My husband and I just returned from 2 weeks in Colombia, planned by Boris and his team. Colombia was a new country for us (together we have visited over 60 countries). We always use a planner for South America trips (Central America we do on our own). Boris, who specializes in Colombia, was recommended by the planner we used for Chile, Argentina, and Uruguay. Because it is “not recommended” for us to receive the yellow fever vaccine, many places in the countryside we would have loved to visit were not smart choices. Boris suggested an itinerary that included Bogota, Villa de la Leyva, the Coffee Region, Medellin, and Cartagena, and we agreed. Boris and his team were easy to work with. We only travel with carryon (40L backpack duffels) and they made sure we had tickets for our internal flights that allowed us to carryon and not check our backpacks. They were responsive to all my requests for details and passed on to the guides our desire to walk as much as possible.

We asked to do as much on foot as possible and to use public transportation in Bogota and Medellin rather than vehicles, and the guides in those cities did a great job with that. We got to experience the bus systems and cable car in Bogata, and the metro, bus, and cable car systems in Medellin on holidays, at rush hour, and during off hours. We experienced how the locals get around those sprawling cities. The Medellin metro is amazingly clean! It was also a good way to cover and see the streets of many more areas than we could have otherwise accomplished. And traffic was heavy in both cities, so it would have been tortuous in a vehicle!

We did have to drive from Bogota to Villa de la Leyva, but our guide (for Bogota and Villa de la Leyva) and driver made it a great day. We stopped at several towns and villages along the way that were not in the itinerary—Zipaquira (home of a Tour de France winner!), Sutatausa (where the Spanish conquerors forced the nomadic indigenous peoples to live, and “converted” them to Christianity), and Ubate (great panoramic view of the countryside)—and we are so glad we did. Our guide (a historian) provided fascinating stories along with history everywhere we went. Villa de la Leyva was less interesting—the plaza mayor was interesting to see and we visited a wonderful museum in the home of an artist we were not familiar with, Luis Alberta Acuna, that is not to be missed. We also went out into the countryside and visited, among other things, the Parque Arqueológico with its Monoliths falies and Tumba Dolmenica and perhaps the only Colombia winery. Both were worth the drive. Also must mention the pottery factory in Raquira, where I got to “throw” a dish on the pottery wheel. It was a fascinating place.

In the Coffee Region the highlights were the mini-hike in the Cocora Valley with its tall (very, very tall) palms and the tour of the coffee farm. We had a free day there and used it to get a few miles of walking in on the country roads that included a stop at a nursery with gorgeous flowers.

In Medellin, we had a delightful young guide who imparted a lot of historical information, including about the invasion communities. We do not recommend a visit to Comuna 13. Its history is essential to know, but it was full of tourists and street vendors, making viewing of the historic murals almost impossible, and was super loud. On the other hand, the visit to another invasion community—Santo Domingo—was a must. We met with what I would call a community organizer. His non-profit is doing great work in the community. We wandered the narrow streets with him and heard the history of the community. We left with a much better understanding of Medellin and the gangs that once terrorized its residents. Our final activity in Medellin was soul restoring—we visited a hydrangea farm whose owner is passionate about orchids and has created an orchid garden where he displays somewhere around 4,000 orchids. The farm is about an hour from Medellin and the countryside is beautiful. This is not to be missed if you like flowers and quiet.

Our final stop was Cartegena. The private rum and chocolate tasting was a treat as the young man conducting it was knowledgeable and personable. Gabrial Garcia Marquez is from this area and we learned a lot about him while in Cartegena. It was hot and humid here, quite different from the higher altitudes of the rest of the trip. The hotel was great, but the city was a bit too touristy for our tastes. The history was fascinating and our architecture tour with an architect was perfect and a definite must-do.

Traveler Laurie Richter in Cartagena, where “every step is a riot of color.” Photo: Traveler Jim Richter

We spent the first sixteen days of December visiting Colombia, South America—a place most Americans only associate with the drug cartels of the 80’s and 90’s and little else. I cannot say enough about what a wonderful place this was to explore and what a terrific job Boris and the staff did. Since we knew so little about Colombia, we put our trust in Boris to create an agenda that would give us a broad perspective on the country while keeping us safe and secure. We’d never even heard of some of the colonial villages we visited, but when he described each location, we couldn’t decide between them and just went for it all.

There were a few dynamics of this trip that really stood out. Our guides were absolutely the best. They were well-informed, very personable, and willing to talk with us about anything and everything. Since we typically spent two to three days together, they were such an important part of our trip. We learned so much about what life during those difficult years was like and how the country has rebounded. Guides can make or break your trip and we had the best.

Colombia is gorgeous. Mountains are never very far away and the countryside is so lush, green, and stunning. So even though we drove many hours to get from place to place, the drives themselves were beautiful and in very comfortable vehicles.

Perhaps one of the highlights of the trip were the private experiences that the team set up for us. The people we came into contact with through these experiences were brimming with pride in their country and so happy to share it with us. It was an intangible that made everything seem like a wow moment. We had a terrific rum and chocolate tasting with a first-rate sommelier in wild and crazy Cartagena, where every step is a riot of color and music. And a terrific cooking class in a top-notch restaurant, where the head chef, sous chef, and head server spent hours showing us how to prepare complex Colombian dishes and then served them to us. A master orchid collector outside of Medellin spent three hours showing us a spectacular private collection. And our WOW Moment was at a private 2,000-acre hacienda with the fourth-generation owner who spent 25 years in Atlanta when the drug cartels forced his family off of their land, and was equally conversant in American politics and Colombian politics (which made for a long and inspiring lunch).

Our lodgings were spectacular, whether we were in the cities or the rural areas of the coffee region. One of our lodgings was the inspiration for the house in the Disney movie Encanto, which we watched when we got home and sure enough…we recognized it. And the cities were surprisingly modern and full of energy.

The only hesitation I can think of is that you do spend a lot of time in the car, because roads aren’t always great and you’re often driving through the mountains, which triples the time it takes to get from point A to point B. But what views you’ll see along the way.

Overall, the quality of the guides, restaurants and hotels were fantastic. Boris and his team did a fantastic job, from the pre-planning with Boris, to the fine tuning with his staff and the near-daily emails while on the trip. He had to work around the fact that we were attending a wedding in Cartagena, with its own activities, but kept us quite active on the other days.

Boris and his team made us feel very comfortable. Going in, we were somewhat apprehensive regarding the potential dangers of Colombia, but his team made us feel safe and secure at all points. In retrospect, our concerns were clearly overblown, but his team eliminated any stress from safety concerns. In fact I’d rate Colombia as a pretty safe place, at least in the major cities. I found most of our friends had similar concerns, but those in my kids’ age bracket (under 40) knew otherwise and they were correct.

Each of our three guides were quite good—Oscar in particular with his anthropological background and the perspective that provided. But Isaac and Govinda were also strong, compared to other guides we have used. Each did a great job in tailoring the guiding to the right level of detail—my wife in particular can glaze over if there’s too much history, but each guide delivered the right amount for us.

All the tours were excellent, but a couple stood out for us: the private art tour with Antonio in Bogota, where we went to the galleries and met with artists, saw the photojournalism exhibition and met Colombia’s “most famous” photojournalist and ending in the apartment of one of the curators. Our food tour in Bogota, where instead of sampling the basic dishes (more empanadas and arepas), we went to 3 of the better restaurants in town and sampled a few dishes in each. On a separate note, I like that at the included meals, there was a lot of flexibility in what we could order, no nickel and diming or only getting the least expensive items. Finally the tour to Guatape/Penol with a boat trip on the dam also was a highlight.

As the trip greatly exceeded our expectations, and there were no hiccups along the way (a feat in itself!), there’s not much in the room-for-improvement category. The key was in the upfront discussions, making sure Boris knew the things we were interested in, so he could tailor the trip accordingly.

We highly recommend Boris and Colombia to our friends and family.

Members of the Whisenant family during a trip highlight: A cooking class at the home of a chef.

Boris and his team planned a fantastic journey and really stepped up when we had issues! Our group of 6 worked with Boris’ team to plan our trip to Colombia. We visited Medellin, the coffee region and Cartagena. Our group consisted of me, my husband, and two of our sons on spring break from college, another couple and one of our other sons who was working in Medellin unexpectedly. Despite planning the trip in advance, our group had two issues. Two weeks before our trip, one of my older sons found out he would be working in Medellin at the same time we were in Colombia. I contacted Boris, who was able to book my son on a flight from Medellin to Cartagena at the end of his work week. He was also able to secure a room for my son to stay at our hotel in Cartagena. My son was able to join us for the last portion of the vacation and activities thanks to Boris and his team! The second issue we ran into was the couple traveling with us had a family member pass away during our trip. The husband had to fly home early. Boris and his team worked to make arrangements to accommodate this change.

We covered a wide variety of activities in Colombia. In Medellin, we visited District 13 and a historical monument dedicated to the loss of life during the Escobar years (our guide Lillian was very informative regarding the history of Colombia…she was also a reporter). We visited the second largest collection of orchids in the world at the home garden of the collector. Over 5,000 different types of orchids were being grown on site!!!! We also had a private cooking class at the chef’s private home. Very yummy food and a wonderful setting.

In the coffee region, we stayed at a wonderful hacienda out in the country….so tranquil and lots of birds. We visited a coffee plantation and went bamboo rafting. In Cartagena, we did a rum tasting, a private cooking class (one of the trip highlights!!!!), street food tour (I am NOT a fan of street food in foreign countries, but our guide took us to some fabulous places and the food was divine and no one got sick!) The final day was spent island hopping in the Rosario Islands with a stop for a late lunch at a beach club…a perfect end to our trip.

We traveled to Colombia for 12 days in early March. Boris was highly recommended and we could not have been happier with the results. We understand some people are reluctant to travel there—but there should be no hesitation—it’s a beautiful country filled with lots to do, wonderful people, fabulous food and completely safe!

We started in Bogota, then went to the Coffee Region, Cartagena and Medellin. Hotels were luxurious with excellent service. In each location we had a guide and driver. The quality of the guides was superb—and to us that’s what really made the trip extra special. We had many fun excursions—food tours, cooking class, coffee and cacao plantations, art gallery tour, bamboo rafting, just to name a few. And, a WOW Moment luncheon at the home of a local farmer/landowner was a special highlight.

I should also mention that the back office support was excellent. When our morning bike ride was canceled due to inclement weather, our activities were moved around and we switched internal flights to fly earlier to our next destination—the changes completed quickly and efficiently. Each night we received an email detailing the next day’s plans and timing, a very helpful touch.

We can’t recommend Colombia and Boris enough—you will not be disappointed!

Boris et. al. planned and guided us through our 12-day trip in Colombia in January. We had only one full day in Bogota, but packed in a cable-car trip up to the monastery on Monserrate mountain, a tour of the food market, a walk through colorful, busy La Candelaria, and still had time for a thorough visit to the Botero museum.

The next day we were off to the impressive salt mine, with underground cathedral big enough for 8,000 people. Then the drive through the countryside past dozens of tomato nurseries and dairy cows (one in every yard in some towns) to Villa de Leyva. We stopped at the historic colonial town of Raquira, the “Cradle of Columbian Handicrafts.” Its vividly-colored houses contrasted with Villa de Leyva’s white-washed buildings. Both have cobblestone streets, which seems to have the pleasant effect of slowing down the traffic. We enjoyed hanging out with many others in the square (the largest in Columbia). The fossil museum, built and run by the farmers who found the fossils in their fields, has the largest most complete marine reptile fossil existing today.

The short flight to Pereira put us in Columbia’s coffee region, which brought bird-watching, bamboo rafting and a tour of a coffee plantation (with the most tasty, fresh food served for lunch). We were also lucky to have a rain-free hike in the Cocora Valley, where it was a pleasure to see the Colombian national tree—the wax palms that only grow at a certain altitude on the steep slopes of the Andes and take 50 years to reach full maturity.

We were captivated by the city of Medellin, in spite of, or maybe partly because of, the history of violence it had. The transformation from a dangerous city to one celebrated for its innovation is impressive. The city is nestled in the mountains and connected with an impressive cable car metro system. Another highlight for us was a visit to an orchid farm that is located in a lush forest and has 25,000 species. A real treat!

Last stop: Cartagena. Murals and artists in the Getsemani district. Sloths and monkeys in the central plaza. A street food tour. The places important in the fight for independence. Restaurants for good dinners in the evenings. Mango, both ripe, and green with salt, pepper and lime. Trip to Palenque, a village founded by escaped slaves that is keeping the African culture alive in language and art.

All of our guides (Tomas, Guillermo, Juan Carlos, Carolina) were excellent, and we really appreciated knowing the name and phone number of the person who was going to meet us the next day. Boris’ team’s communication was very good. We also appreciated the suggestions of books and music to familiarize ourselves with Colombian culture. If we’d started planning the trip earlier, we could have made even better use of those suggestions

We traveled to Colombia with Boris’ team in Feb 2025. The trip was a fascinating 17 days that provided a variety of perspectives and landscapes as we traveled to very distinct regions: Bogota, Villa De Leyva, Barichara, Medellin, Cocora Valley and Cartagena. The pre-trip planning was excellent, especially the role Angie played in making arrangements. We had 4 sets of guides and drivers given the geography we covered: 2 of the guides were among the best we’ve ever had on a private trip (3 other times with Wendy Perrin experts and twice with other companies).

The weather caused Avianca to bump us from an internal flight, but our planners were very responsive as they tracked our new arrangements to ensure that we reached our destination. All of the company’s recommended hotels and restaurants were excellent and they provided several surprise gifts for my birthday.

Special memories from our trip include: visiting the El Paraiso neighborhood in Bogota and Comuna 13 in Medellin; a cocoa farm; a third-generation coffee farm; and Palenque. In each of these locations, we had unique opportunities to interact with local residents and learn firsthand about the impact of violence and displacement in Colombia’s not-so-distant past. We left with the mission to educate other travelers about the beauty and safety of visiting a very special country.

Lauren Schor and family with the iconic Palenqueras of Cartagena.

Boris and his team put together a fabulous five-night getaway over Presidents’ weekend for our family of three (our daughter is 14). From our first conversation, I knew that Boris understood exactly what we were hoping to get out of this trip—culture, food, activities, and some time to unwind. Since we had a limited amount of time, we took an easy five-hour direct flight from New York to Cartagena. We spent three nights relaxing at the Sofitel Baru beach resort, which is brand new and a 90-minute drive from the airport and the city. Boris had suggested we do the bioluminescent plankton night activity, which we all loved! Swimming in the warm water at night with glowing microorganisms around us was an incredible experience!

We then spent another two nights at Casa Pestagua, a beautiful boutique hotel in the walled city. Cartagena is a colorful, picturesque, walkable small city with beautiful spots around every corner. After a couple of conversations about our interests and travel style, Boris arranged some amazing activities for us: a private salsa dancing lesson in a nightclub; a chocolate, rum, and exotic fruit tasting; a street food tasting and street art walk; a historical tour of the city, and a cooking class on our last morning. We also had plenty of time for wandering around and shopping for some fun treasures. Boris planned out our schedule perfectly. One thing to be prepared for is the weather. I knew it was going to be hot, but the humidity made it feel even warmer. We took plenty of breaks in cool stores and restaurants, but it’s something to be aware of.

People back home were surprised to hear that we were going to Colombia because of the country’s history and reputation, but Colombia is not what it was 25 years ago—we never felt one bit unsafe. If you’re thinking about going to Colombia, go now, before it gets too popular and crowded, and definitely let Boris plan your trip! Cartagena is a gem and I hope to work with Boris again on another trip to see more of this beautiful country!

A cooking class in Cartagena was a Colombia highlight for Sandra Lawrence and her husband.

Wendy Perrin has recommended several trips for my husband and myself and they have been outstanding. Colombia was no exception. We traveled from January 28 to February 14. We had never been to Colombia and totally relied on Boris and his team to make suggestions and organize everything. We travelled from Bogota, to the coffee area, to Medellin and Cartagena. We experienced cities, museums, plantations and FOOD! The hotels were absolutely lovely. The guides spoke perfect English, were locals from each area, and really educated us on everything past and present about the country.

A few highlights:
Food: Cooking class at Carmen’s in Cartagena. Helena Adentro restaurant in Finlandia, food tour Cartagena.
Farms: The private bird sanctuary, the orchid farm, Wax Farm forest, the coffee plantation
The history: Everything!

Thank you for making our time so special. Colombia is a special place to visit, safe, clean and very welcoming. Plus the food is great!

We really enjoyed our trip to Columbia. Boris and his team did a fantastic job planning a multi-purpose trip for us. Their suggestions were spot on. My husband and I started in Bogota with a city tour, then a market tour where we sampled local specialties and admired the enormous variety of local flowers. The following day we had a private art tour. It was our favorite event of this part of the trip. We visited a private apartment to view an art collection, then went to a gallery where we met an artist. It was very powerful to view the country’s struggles through an artist’s eyes.

The second part of the trip was to the Coffee Region where our family met us. We stayed in two lovely haciendas. The second one, Bambusa, was the place that inspired the movie Encanto. My 2 year old granddaughter was enchanted! We enjoyed tour of a coffee shop farm, a chocolate farm, and a beautiful peaceful rafting trip down the river.

Next we went to Cali for a family wedding. The planners arranged a market tour with tastings of many different local fruits and an explanation of the medical benefits of each fruit. Then we enjoyed a fantastic lunch at a local restaurant.

Last stop was Cartagena, where our guide shared personal stories of her family’s struggles with guerillas and narcos. We did a street food tour with her as well that was a lot of fun.

All of the details that the company arranged were fabulous. Restaurants, transportation, guides, tours were all excellent.

Traveler Julie Stonberg and her family hiking in the Cocora Valle.

Our trip to Columbia was fabulous—we did and saw so much. I had contacted our travel planner Boris with the idea to spend some time in Cartagena and then maybe at a beach, and he really convinced me to see more of the country, which I’m so thankful for. We had about 11 days so we chose three destinations and then two days at a beach resort. We were traveling as a family of five—three young adult kids and then my son’s girlfriend who joined for Cartagena.

After speaking with Boris a few times about us and how we travel and what we like to see and do (incorporating everyone’s interests—a challenge sometimes!) he came up with a tentative itinerary which we then finalized together over the next few weeks. He had amazing suggestions and also really listened to any concerns I had. His team basically planned/took care of everything from that point on—two internal domestic flights, my son leaving on an earlier flight from Medellin to meet his girlfriend, all airport pick-ups and transfers, and amazing professional guides in each place we visited—the coffee region, Medellin, and Cartagena (and then Baru). We felt totally supported and taken care of at all times—members of Boris’ team are in touch easily throughout the stay in-country and very responsive if I had any questions. The four properties we stayed at I thought were exceptional. We had so many amazing and varied experiences I would totally recommend working with Boris to visit Colombia.

Specifically: Trip was amazing. Spending time in Medellin over Christmas was a little tricky because not a lot was open, but we were able to have a full day of touring in the city and then took a day trip outside the city on Christmas Day. The hotel we stayed in was helpful in finding a restaurant that was open that night that was fabulous. We unfortunately didn’t get to really see the Christmas lights which I wanted to because it was POURING and we were tired and no one was up for walking the length of them in the rain. (We saw from the car.) Honestly we had so many great experiences in each place. The hike and bike ride in the coffee triangle were both great. We saw things by bike that we couldn’t have seen any other way, including families preparing to roast pigs for Christmas Eve. We loved touring Medellin, riding the cable cars, touring District 13 and learning about the history of the city, especially the recent history. We had two really fun cooking classes—one in Medellin, one in Cartagena, and both very different. The chocolate and rum tasting in Cartagena that Boris arranged was fabulous as was the boat day snorkeling around the Rosario islands, and the street art / food tour the final day. We had two fabulous lunches in the coffee region, one at the coffee farm and one in Finlandia.

We did so much that when we got to the Sofitel Baru we just basically relaxed on the beach for the last few days. I couldn’t have done this trip without Boris and his company—there is no way.

Our trip to Colombia was incredible, and I highly recommend our travel company—Boris and his team were amazing. First, the country is beautiful, with its coastline and mountain regions, and secondly, the history is fascinating. Our guides in all three locations were some of the best we have ever encountered—incredibly knowledgeable and flexible, and we learned so much. The vegetation in the country is amazing, and we tried so many new fruits—the food was delicious. Our accommodations were beautiful, the people friendly, and our outings ranged from a coffee tour, horseback riding, a beautiful hike, a private boat trip, fruit and chocolate tasting, bike riding, and more. The on-the-ground support from the team was first-class. Truly, I can’t say enough about our amazing trip to Colombia!

My husband and I just returned from our trip to Colombia. This our 2nd WOW trip and each experience has been outstanding. I can’t recommend Boris and his company enough. I tried to book a trip to Colombia pre-covid with them and unfortunately as the world shut down so did our plans.

When I reached out for a 2nd time to Boris he remembered me and was such a delight to work with. The initial conversation sorted out our specific needs and once the plans were finalized the hand-off was seamless to his excellent support staff. Boris did let us know that he was always available for us should anything be required. Their communication is fast and consistent. I can’t express strongly enough how the entire team made us feel as though we were their only clients. The hotels and tours were exactly what we asked for. They accommodated all of our personal needs and restrictions. The tour guides spoke excellent English. They were always on time and very well educated on the specific regions we were visiting. Each guide provided their personal phone number and were available to us 24/7. They made us feel like welcomed family. From the moment we arrived until the moment we boarded our plane home we didn’t have to think about 1 single detail. Everything was looked after including reminder emails about times and dates for specific tours. The little hints on local customs regarding tipping, immigration forms for coming and going etc. was so helpful. There was not a single detail that was missed.

I strongly recommend a trip to beautiful Colombia and definitely book it through Boris and his team. An absolute must is dinner at El Cielo if you find yourself in Medellín. It is an experience you will never forget. Our favorite tour was Cocora—it was so breathtaking and still untouched and not touristy. Although we enjoyed every tour we took and every mountain top, the genuine purity of Cocora was something very special.

The cacao farm tour, with farmer Norberto, left, and our guide Pablo, right. Photo: Traveler Ken Gerstein

What a trip! We recently returned from a 10-day family trip to Colombia (with our adult children). Boris’ team provided excellent insight and guidance in planning our trip—helping us to decide which cities to visit, where to stay and what to do—and planned an itinerary based on our interests and requirements. I have to say that we were extremely satisfied with the results.

We visited Bogota, the Coffee Region, Medellin, and Cartagena. Our guides in each city were very knowledgeable, helpful, and informative, and were effective in providing us with an understanding of Colombia, its people, and its history. The hotels Boris recommended, and at which we stayed (generally, smaller boutique hotels), were excellent. Particularly noteworthy was our stay at Hacienda Bambusa in the Coffee Region. It’s off the beaten path (i.e., a 20-minute drive down a bumpy dirt road) and situated on a large farm with scenic views of the surrounding mountains. The hacienda itself is a beautiful building of traditional Colombian design, and our rooms each had spacious terraces with pools. The staff were all friendly and accommodating, and dinners were served each evening at a different outdoor location, with two guitar players providing musical entertainment one of those evenings.

Among the many activities included in our itinerary were private tours of a coffee plantation, a cacao farm, and a large and unique orchid collection. Each was very special and personalized. We also had a private cooking class at a restaurant in Cartagena. The chef there and the rest of the kitchen crew made it a fun-filled experience. Plus, we got to dine on the products of our labors for lunch, which was the best meal we had on our trip. Our boat trip to the Rosario Islands (south of Cartagena) was enjoyable and a relaxing way to spend our last day in Colombia.

Everything during our trip ran smoothly. Both before and during our trip we received ongoing support from Boris’ company that was always helpful, timely and responsive. One example of the level of service was on the morning of our departure from Cartagena, when no cars were allowed into the old city due to the Iron Man race being held that day. We had two scheduled pickups from our hotel that were affected by this, and (with coordination from Boris’ team) our guide walked to our hotel for each pickup so that he could help with our luggage and walk us outside the city walls to where our van was waiting.

Colombia is a very large country and there are many places that we couldn’t get to see and things we didn’t get to do during our trip. However, when we’re ready for a return visit, we will be calling on Boris’ team again to plan our trip and handle our travel arrangements.

We had a lot of requirements for our family’s (kids 17 & 19 yrs old) winter vacation: warm weather, adventure, culture, food!, direct flight and small, if any, time change because my husband had to leave early due to work commitments. Amazingly, we found all those things on our trip to Colombia, a beautiful, colorful, and culturally and geographically diverse country!

Wendy’s team put us in touch with Boris, who put together a trip that covered all the bases with stops in Cartagena, Medellin and Bogota. Our activities and guides were top-notch, but there were several highlights including a private rum, chocolate, and Colombian fruit tasting – what’s not to like? Oscar walked us through how chocolate and rum are made and how to pair them with each other, as well as the fruit. The entire experience was a real treat (pun intended)!

Our time in Medellin was packed with varied and fascinating experiences ranging from culture to farms. Casa de la Memoria Museum in Medellin is not to be missed, as it details the conflict and history of when the drug cartels plagued the city. These events are so recent that people have first-hand memories. The same is true for Comuna 13, a maze of alleys built into the hillside (like most on Medellin), where the graffiti tells the story of the people and events of the district. Our guide explained the backstory of the graffiti and we even had a try at making our own tags! It is worth navigating the crowds to visit this area to understand the culture of this city.

But the city has undergone an amazing renaissance and is now vibrant and lively. We visited at Christmas and were lucky to see the “Alumbrados de Medellin,” an annual installation of festive lights located on the river, which only happens during the holidays. Paragliding over the hills of the city was good fun. And, of course, we visited a beautiful coffee farm where we picked coffee beans, did a coffee tasting, and had a delicious farm-to-table lunch.

One big surprise was our visit to an orchid farm, which has the largest variety of orchids in the world. The climate in Colombia is perfect for growing these beautiful flowers. We were guided through the greenhouse by one of the scientists, who himself had discovered 3 types of orchids. I thought our teens would be bored at this stop, but we all loved it!

We had asked for a mix of activity and relaxation and, amazingly, we could have used more of both! There is so much to see and do that we weren’t able to do it all, but that’s a good problem to have on vacation.

My wife and I traveled to Colombia from January 25 to February 5, 2024. Boris’ office planned and executed the trip, and we could not be more pleased. We had 4 primary destinations: Bogota, Villa de Leyva, the coffee region and Medellín. We skipped Cartagena because we had been there before. Boris and his team did a terrific job in planning the trip with us. We had several unique experiences, my favorite being lunch and a tour of a private collection containing every one of the hundreds of Colombian orchid varieties. Boris also found wonderful ways to accommodate us when we had different interests—for example, while I was touring a coffee plantation my wife was with a charming local woman cooking our Colombian lunch at her home. The four hotels chosen were all exceptionally lovely. The 3 guides we had were among the very best we have had in our travels to over 90 countries. The destination offers a virtually unlimited range of experiences to suit anyone, and Boris clearly is expert at marshalling them. In summary, a fantastically executed visit to a fascinating and diverse country.

Lynn Herrick’s sons enjoy fresh coconuts. Photo: Traveler Lynn Herrick

We have been fortunate to take many Wendy Perrin-approved trips, and worked with many excellent trip planners. However, Boris and his team are the best. From our first call with Boris, where we were just exploring the idea of visiting Colombia, to our final itinerary, the team did an incredible job. They even sent us music, reading material and other media suggestions to help us prepare for Colombia. This was a family trip with my three college-aged kids and my husband. So, we wanted a bit of history, a bit of adventure, a bit of culture and a lot of fun. Our trip started in Cartagena with the best tour guide ever, Will. Not only was Will’s dad the mayor of Cartagena, so we got to visit town hall, but he quickly got to know each of us and tailored our tours to our personalities. The kids even scheduled a secret outing with him to surprise me with emerald earrings for my birthday! In Cartagena we ate street food we would have never tried, learned salsa dancing, took a cooking class with a cantankerous French chef and made the best ceviche ever, went canoeing in the mangroves, learned to drum with a local group, and participated in a rum and cacao tasting. We also fell in love with this hot, romantic, beautiful Caribbean town.

Next on the itinerary was the coffee region. We visited the Wax Palm trees, zip lined, rafted and spent a special morning at a coffee plantation. We all loved learning about the coffee industry in Colombia, enjoyed the delicious lunch that was served, and agreed the organic coffee was special. We spent our last three nights in Medellin. While we learned about Colombia’s violent history throughout the trip, this was our opportunity to visit the countryside and hear from farmers how both the left-wing guerrillas and right-wing paramilitaries imposed themselves on the farming communities and how many fled to Medellin during this time. The next day in Medellin, we took the cable cars to visit the barrio and see how those who escaped the civil war in the countryside built homes into the hills and created new communities. On our final day, we visited the memorial museum and then the very vibrant, and exciting, Comuna 13 where urban art and music are thriving. Throughout Colombia we ate the most delicious food, fruits and drinks. We will be craving coconut lemonade for a long time!

Sunset over a field of young yucca plants in Colombia’s coffee region. Photo: Traveler William Charschan

We recently returned from our Colombia trip and had a terrific time. Wendy Perrin’s site had recommended Boris’ team, who put together our 10-day itinerary. Our original intention was to visit three cities including Cartagena, however their suggestion that we include the coffee regions was spot-on. The coffee regions actually was our favorite part of the trip.

We flew direct from Newark to Bogota, the nation’s capital, and were met by our guide, Juan Fernando Rodriguez, who stayed with us and took us through the old parts of the city, a national park that had a map of the country, the gold museum and the part we loved the most, the food market, which is enormous. Our guide had us taste many of the breads and food there including fruits we don’t have where we live. Our last full day we spent doing some shopping and walked a mile back to the hotel to get a feel for the city on our own.

We then took our short flight to the coffee regions and were taken by our second guide, Guillermo Cardona, to a family-owned coffee farm. They served us lunch and gave us a tour showing us how coffee is grown and harvested. The property also had all sorts of flowers and fruit trees. This was a wonderful way to start our visit to this area. We then arrived in Bambusa, a bed and breakfast on a large farm with magnificent views of the mountains. The next day the guide took us to Corcora which we hiked up the path with our guide. Afterward, we drove to this town in Finlandia and eventually had lunch in Helena Adentro, a local restaurant with great views of the valley. We topped this off with some ice cream at a local place and then headed back to Bambusa. The last day included a rafting trip which we liked but upon returning to Bambusa, was met by a local biologist for a hike and tour on the plantation to see the process of picking cacao plants and how chocolate is made. We tasted the fruit which was very nice and then he led us to a person’s home where we had some fruit and juice and then made hot cocoa back at Bambusa; the farm tour was awesome.

The next day we were off to Cartagena and were met by Oscar Romero, our third guide. He led us through the history of the town and dropped us off at our hotel. An hour later, we had walked to another hotel for a rum and chocolate tasting. This was fun and a great experience. The following day we did some touring of the city and its monasteries and forts after a morning cooking class at the restaurant Carmen, which we loved. The last full day we visited Palenque, an African village, and then spent the evening back in town. We flew out the next day.

Thanks for an awesome trip and some great experiences.

Tracy Reller and her family hiking among wax palm trees in the Cocora Valley.

Boris’ office planned a two-week trip to Colombia in July for my 19-year-old son, husband and I. They did a great job explaining the options, possible experiences and timing needed for the locations. We chose to visit 5 areas—Bogota (2 nights), the coffee region, Medellin, Tayrona and Cartagena, spending 3 nights in most of them. While we felt that was a good amount of time in each area, we probably scheduled too many activities as we definitely did not have much down time. If I had to do over, I would not schedule activities in Tayrona along the northern coast. It was a great place to relax and activities not as interesting as others we did around the country. Colombia is a beautiful country with incredibly varied landscapes, amazing agricultural bounty (mostly done by hand—saw only 1 tractor the entire time), wonderfully creative, fresh and delicious food everywhere and warm locals willing to share their stories.

Boris’ team arranged activities that we either wouldn’t have been able to do on our own or wouldn’t have been the same. They turned out to be some of our favorite experiences. For example, we toured two different poor neighborhoods in Medellin (comuna 13 and Santa Domingo) with Spanish-speaking neighborhood leaders involved in the graffiti art transforming the neighborhood (with our Medellin guide acting as translator). It was fascinating to see these communities up close and to hear their stories of the violence and hopes for the future. Another favorite experience was visiting very different markets used by locals. First Paloquemao in Bogota—very clean, well organized, items from produce to meats/fish to home goods and flowers beautifully presented. That was in contrast to the Barzuto market in Cartagena, where we seemed to be the only tourists navigating the dirt floors, tight winding walkways though makeshift stalls, fish and meat sitting in open hot temperatures with a French chef shopping for our cooking lesson (we only bought produce there). It was a sight to see! Finally, we would not have known about some amazing restaurants we visited for lunch that were not even in our itinerary. One of those restaurants, in Bogota, didn’t even have a sign out front but our guide knocked and was welcomed in. Our hotels were all wonderful and a welcome respite at the end of every day—most outstanding were Four Seasons Casa Medina in Bogota, Hacienda Buenavista in coffee region, Villa Play Tayrona and Casa San Agustin Cartagena.

Our guides were wonderful and really added to our experience—particularly Byron in Bogota, Froilan in Medellin and Juliano in Tayrona. They were intelligent, interesting and informative. It’s a gift to get to spend time with a local, get to know them and share details about our lives. We gain a better understanding of a country and its people with a guide rather than just crossing tourist sites off a list.

We we thrilled with our trip to Cartagena from Boris and his team. (1) Everything went flawlessly, and it really was great to have the same guide and driver every day. (2) The hotel (Casa San Agustin) was the most wonderful hotel we have ever stayed in with the combination of its history, the service, and the design. (3) The restaurants suggested were the perfect combination of unique and delicious. And (4) everyone we interacted with was kind, welcoming, and eager to answer our questions. I think Colombia is a very special place that has these characteristics itself, but having Boris and his team made the trip just even more special and easy.

We just spent 10 days in Colombia visiting Bogota, Medellin and Cartegena. Boris and his team put together a wonderful trip for us taking into consideration everything we were interested in.

Our guides in all the cities were interesting, knowledgeable, flexible and seemed to be enjoying themselves with us.

We asked for the trip to provide a contemporary art experience and it did. We visited galleries, museums and an artist’s studio.

The hotels we stayed in were beautiful and exceptionally accommodating. The restaurant recommendations were excellent. Who knew that Colombia had such sophisticated and delicious food?

We spent most of our time in cities and hope to return to see the countryside.

Plan a trip to Colombia with Boris. You won’t be disappointed.

Boris and his team put together a fantastic trip to Colombia for my wife and me, a country we had not yet visited. Contrary to what people may think based on past history, Colombia was very safe, but very busy, and we were well looked after by excellent guides. Our trip started in Bogota with an easy direct day flight from New York. Three nights there allowed us to explore the city, its food and the amazing gold museum. Boris’ office arranged a private art tour which included access to a private opening of the works of the famous Colombian artist Jim Almaral, where we met him and his more famous wife Olga de Amaral. For a change in pace we then spent a night in Villa de Leyva, a national heritage site with a stop in Zipaquira to see the spectacular underground salt cathedral. Next stop was Medellin with visits to Communa 13, with an understanding of conflict and cacao, and a visit to a large orchid collection. Four nights in the coffee country, staying in a wonderful hacienda, allowed us to explore that area, including a rafting trip, a visit to a coffee plantation and a day out with an excellent birding guide. The final stop was Cartagena, where we stayed in the Casa San Augustin in the middle of the old city; great for walking around the old areas with activities such as a rum and chocolate tasting, a private cooking class in one of the best restaurants and a salsa dancing lesson. An easy 5 hr direct day flight took us back to New York. Colombia is a country well worth a visit, even though it does not seem to be on the radar screens of many of our acquaintances, and Boris and his team are a great asset for organizing a diverse and interesting trip.

Our trip to Colombia in January 2023 was so well-planned by Boris Seckovic and his team! It was an adventurous choice for us, and we were rewarded with a vast array of experiences from deep countryside to wonderful cities. Colombia had apparently ended its rainy season—we enjoyed beautiful weather throughout. Boris and his team were so responsive, made itinerary adjustments easily, and always kept in touch. We felt safe, cared for. Our guides were excellent—knowledgeable, well-spoken, and easy-going while hosting us through many varied activities. Colombia is a diverse land, with incredible mountains, coffee plantations, small colonial towns and vibrant cities. Art, culture, and of course a notorious history abound! The Colombians are a welcoming, friendly people, and quite diverse. Our lodgings were lovely. Highlights ranged from orchid farms to art museums, from floating along a river in a bamboo raft, to a fascinating day on a small cacao farm with local farmers. The exotic fruits and juices are memorable, and many local cuisines. Our boat trip in Cartagena was first-class, and snorkeling was wonderful. Art has transformed many areas, especially with street art, and another highlight was our private art tour in Bogota! Thank you, Boris and team, for guiding us through a rich, multidimensional experience in Colombia!

I travelled to Colombia as 2 couples; we knew very little about the history and culture before my call to Boris. We are all well travelled and were anxious to learn, visit and immerse ourselves into a new destination. It was also great that it was snowing here in NY and Colombia has a beautiful climate. After 2 phone conversations and some emailing, Boris and his team planned us a wonderful trip. We started in Medellin for 3 nights, we saw great street art, learned about cacao and lots of history on the complicated past of this country. we also visited a magnificent orchid and hydrangea farm, it was really beautiful. From there we moved onto the coffee area, which is lush and peaceful. Bambusa is a small, quaint hacienda where we felt far from the world’s chaos. On to coastal Cartagena and the pace quickened with lively streets, great restaurants and more historical lessons. We ended our trip in Bogata, where we could have used another 2 days. Bogata is cosmopolitan, rich in history, art and great restaurants. Boris’ team planned this trip beautifully. We really saw a huge cross section of Colombia. Every detail was executed, every guide was smart, timely, polite and a pleasure to be with. We felt very safe and educated during our stay. I would highly recommend Boris to any traveler with a thirst to explore and learn. The hotels were all different and well chosen also.

We had wanted to visit Cartagena and Medellin for awhile and finally decided to make it our 2022 post-Christmas trip (which is usually a beach for us). We reached out to the Wendy Perrin site, which we had used before, and got connected to Boris’ office. We found the initial conversation very helpful. They appropriately steered us away from beaches in Colombia and toward the mountain region, while organizing Cartagena and Medellin very well. We found the guides (we had five!) to be well-informed and engaging, and felt very comfortable traveling around the country by auto.

Our hobby is horses, but we tend to avoid the “nose-to-tail” tourist riding that is a staple in many countries, including Colombia. In lieu of this, Boris arranged a half-day visit to a remarkable Paso Fino ranch in the Rio Negro area that was a highlight of our trip. We very much enjoyed the farm and appreciated the courtesy extended by the ranch folks who gave us a tour, provided an exhibition of horse training and then let us ride these beautiful horses ourselves! We also very much enjoyed a private visit to the orchid and hydrangea farm near there. Overall the three days in Medellin were very interesting, although we missed one of the museums after Boris’ office boggled a reservation. But we got to experience the culture, art and food of the area. It is certainly worth a visit.

The promoted visit to the “coffee region” was less enjoyable. It involved another flight, a long two-hour drive, and there wasn’t much to see or do—and a couple of planned events were canceled due to weather. And not much coffee! We would not go back there. That said, Boris uses a lodge called Hacienda Bambusa that we do recommend. And kudos to the staff who made New Year’s Eve dinner an event to remember—which did a lot to mitigate the rough-and-tumble car ride to and from the lodge.

The plan was to fly from there to Cartagena to finish our 8-day visit to Colombia. It wasn’t clear to us how it happened, but Boris’ schedule for airport pickup caused us to miss the flight and we spent half a day in the small, miserable Medellin airport. They blamed it on their “partner” failing to notify us. We never figured out who the “partner” was. (The moral here is always confirm your own air arrangements, and don’t rely on the agency or its “partners.”)

But we did enjoy Cartagena very much. We especially enjoyed being in the beautiful Hotel Santa Clara, conveniently located away from the cruise ship crowds. The Chef’s dinner at the 1621 restaurant in the old convent that forms part of the hotel should be on everyone’s Colombia list, wherever you stay. It was an innovative 6-course meal with unusual wine pairings.

Overall, a memorable trip.

We really appreciated the amazing trip Boris & his team put together at incredibly short notice, & with the exception of the weather, it was excellent. What can we say…. It was the rainy season in November, & there were record rains!

That said, all the guides were excellent. In particular we really enjoyed the company of Sebastian Arbelaez in the coffee country & Aura Maria Gomez in Cartagena, & the passion & optimism of our guide Jose Murillo in Medellin was inspiring.

We loved the private art tour in Bogotá & recommend it highly.

Sandra Montenegro & her home were amazing. We loved her taste in art & she’s a great story teller.

We would have liked to have had more time in Villa de Leyva & the surrounding area, & loved the accommodation that was selected for us there (Casa Terra). Great hosts!

Overall, our only criticism, I think too much was jammed into our schedule for our tastes, & too much time was spent driving in the car. We would have preferred more down time to relax & explore on our own, & of course, this would have been easier if it didn’t rain so much of the time when we weren’t in motion. The 3 days we were at Las Islas it rained almost non stop, but we still loved the location & the lodging & would recommend it. We were impressed by just how good the snorkelling was, even in the rain.

We loved colonial Cartagena where we did finally see the sun, & would definitely go back. We had the good fortune to experience the Carnival while there. We however did not feel the long drive to & from Palenque was worth the experience. Very sad that this village isn’t getting more local financial support.

Colombia is a geographically beautiful & culturally diverse country with a very complicated & violent past, but its present is full of inspiring people who are committed to making it a safer & more stable country. Definitely worth visiting!!!

Boris’ team was remarkable, & we have already recommended them to several friends.

Boris planned and arranged our Colombia trip and we were there last week. What an experience. It was amazing, really amazing. We went to Bogota, Coffee region and Cartagena. The travel guides were awesome. The hotels we stayed in were so good. We attended a cooking class in Cartagena at Carmen. Really loved it. The hills of the coffee region were a treat.

We do travel but this was the first time we used a Wendy Perrin-recommended travel agent. So so glad we did that. We are already planning our next one with them.

Wow, really wow. 5 stars.

PANDEMIC TRAVEL  Boris Seckovic and his team were absolutely invaluable in helping us have an amazing family trip. Pre-planning was very easy via phone and email, and the expert guidance on activities and locales led us to have a wonderful time.

On arrival, every arrangement unfolded as planned: Each of the three tour guides were so professional, knowledgeable, flexible, and very warm/good-humored — truly lovely people who are great at their jobs and really enhanced our time. We would recommend them all without hesitation.

A special note of gratitude to coffee region tour guide Sebastian Arbelaez who, after three very full days of touring, met us at our hotel at 5am and helped us through the confusing, two-hour-long process of getting checked in and organizing our luggage and paperwork for departure from Armenia. He was incredible and patient, and I literally don’t know what we would have done without him.

The tours themselves were amazing, especially Gregorio Uribe (music) and Maria Paula (art tour) in Bogota and Palenque (so beautiful and culturally rich)! Cartagena is, of course, incredibly special and we mostly enjoyed walking around and soaking it all in. The coffee region was so different — lush, green and peaceful.

We adored Casa Medina and Hacienda Bambusa — gorgeous, high quality, unique hotels with superb staff. If we had it to do over again, we probably shouldn’t have arranged quite so much activity so that we could relax at our wonderful hotels a bit more. I wish Casa Medina and Sofitel had been able to arrange adjacent hotel rooms, but for some reason hotels (in general) rarely seem to be able to accommodate these requests.

In Cartagena, the Sofitel is stunning, we loved the historical feel of it, and the food/buffet is stellar, but the hotel was too large and crowded for our tastes. More importantly, the hotel rooms showed obvious wear and tear and need to be refreshed. It was simply not in the same category as the other two hotels on the trip. If we returned to Cartagena, we would not stay at the Sofitel again.

As far as Covid, it was a non-issue. Everyone wore a mask (moreso than in the States) unless we specifically invited them not to. Most restaurants checked vaccine cards. The Covid testing was remarkably easy to arrange and results were prompt. We felt safe every step of the way.

We hired Boris’ team for their pre-trip planning expertise, and that aspect was absolutely wonderful. What was unexpectedly amazing was being able to truly enjoy our time and not spend part of each day debating what to do, see or eat. This is a huge bonus, especially with a multi-generational family group full of opinionated people. Having a great plan in place allowed us all to actually relax and enjoy our family time pretty much from day one. In other words, the trip planner absolutely added value to our trip!

All that to say, we highly recommend Boris, and we will call again when we return to beautiful Colombia!

Thank you to Wendy Perrin for helping us find Boris Seckovic. It was an unforgettable family trip!

PANDEMIC TRAVEL Firstly, we can’t begin to express our gratitude to Boris in crafting such an amazing trip!

We had an absolutely stellar time! Everything he suggested was truly spot on.

To break it down a bit more…

Cartagena:
What a gorgeous city! We absolutely loved our time there. Our guide Gustavo was wonderful. He was so nice and funny and truly had a wealth of knowledge. He did a great job telling stories of the city and showing us around. It was great to meet lots of people he knew all over the city too. Really an amazing time with him/because of him. And all of the activities we booked were fantastic too!! We really really loved the cooking class and the day on the boat! But everything was super special. And the hotel Boris found for us was really special too. What a beautiful hotel… amazing room, amazing staff, amazing location, etc. etc.

Coffee Region:
What a great contrast to the coast. Everyone was very apologetic about how rainy it was, but honestly, coming from LA it was a nice change. Haha. So glad Boris recommended the area! Our guide Sebastian was just as wonderful too. Really truly made us feel welcome and did an amazing job showing us around. His genuine warmth and friendliness was so special and memorable. We had such a great time exploring the area and eating all the amazing food! Even when we couldn’t go on the rafting trip because of the weather, he was so great about finding another activity for us. We were especially touched when he took us to his house to meet his mom. What a great guy! As for activities… we LOVED meeting Pascal and Diego and sharing lunch with them in their little slice of paradise. That will definitely be one of our favorite memories from the trip! And staying at Bambusa was so wonderful. What a cool hotel in the middle of the mountains. Really peaceful and relaxing and comfortable and had great food!

Honestly… we’ve run out of all of the amazing words to describe our experience.

The trip was magical and we are absolutely in love with Colombia. We can’t wait to come back and see Medellin and Bogota and all of the other amazing places!!

Thank you to Boris a million times over for creating such a special trip for us. I don’t want to say it was once in a lifetime, because I know we’ll be back. But suffice to say it’s in the pantheon of absolute favorite trips we’ve been on.

PANDEMIC TRAVEL Colombia trip January 15-April 21.

WOW memory: Standing on my balcony on my suite in Cartagena in the late afternoon and watching the golden waves striking the shore below the colonial era walls. This would be true at any time, but was sensory overload after a year without travel.

There are some important features of travel in Colombia that are independent of the pandemic. Perhaps because Colombia has no obvious famous tourist destinations such as the Galapagos or Machu Picchu, and because it just emerged from a fifty year civil war, it doesn’t get many foreign tourists in most parts. As a result, very few people in the travel infrastructure speak English. That is true for check in agents at airports, and flight attendants even on Avianca, Colombia’s premium airline, and in five star, international class hotels such as the Four Seasons Casa Medina Bogota.

A person should go to Colombia because of the spectacular variety of intimate, beautiful experiences in one country.

In what was an often challenging travel environment, Marc and Boris performed heroically and with the complete finesse of an expert kayaker on the most challenging whitewater. After the pandemic, anyone on a trip with them will find working with them even more of a total joy. Without them, my trip would have been impossible.

To address the questions Wendy asked:
“How did this trip differ from one you might have taken before the pandemic?”
Because of the possibility of a national lockdown or travel ban in the US, I arrived three weeks earlier than in the original itinerary, namely, before January 20. I switched hotels at the end so that I could stay in a hotel with a room more tolerable in a two week quarantine. Historically important churches everywhere and some museums and restaurants were closed because of the pandemic. One region was closed that I would have otherwise visited. Airline travel at every stage was always awkward. Covid procedures were different at each airport.

“Did the trip planner suggest experiences, accommodations, dining options, travel logistics, etc., that felt Covid-appropriate to you? Did he/she solve particular challenges or destination-related problems?”
The answer is yes to every part of the first question. With regard to the second, Marc and Boris’ team wrote letters that enabled the guide to enter airline terminals generally restricted to passengers in order to help me check in with airline agents who spoke only locally accented Spanish. Their team over the phone helped me fill in very confusing forms for pre-registration for arrival and departure and for extending my visa. The outfitter arranged for the hotel to have a doctor test me for Covid in my room within the required three days before departure. To deal with the closure of the region in the previous section, the outfitter rescheduled and expanded visits to other places to fill the gap. The outfitter and the local partners were able to adapt airport transfers to accommodate local lockdowns and curfews. They were always accommodating to my uniquely personal wishes and interests, requests for itinerary changes, and inherent way of doing things. They were easily reachable over the phone and responded quickly to emails

“What did the trip planner do, or not do, to minimize your health risk or financial risk?”
Because my trip was always going to be private and in luxury accommodations and private cars, the health risk was reduced substantially. There really wasn’t any financial risk.

“Did the trip planner add value to your trip? If so, how?”
Being able to negotiate the often changing or confusing or difficult procedures described earlier, being willing to make frequent changes, and knowing the fine details of which rooms in a particular hotel were suitable to my tastes added immense value.

“Did you have certain trip experiences that other travelers should either seek out or avoid?”
In Cartagena, do stay at Sofitel Leyenda Santa Clara. Don’t stay at the Four Seasons Casa Medina in Bogota because they didn’t observe the “Do Not Disturb” sign on the room and because the hotel has restaurant staff who don’t understand menus that are printed in English, and don’t stay at Gitana Del Mar on the Caribbean coast because the receptionists were rude or indifferent and because their kitchen staff did not observe basic Covid rules. Marc and Boris do not deserve a scintilla of responsibility for these bad experiences; the hotel staffs do completely. No travel company can be around a client every minute of every day.

A month in Colombia: Marc and Boris’ team are one of the 2 top travel advisors with whom we’ve worked over the last 30 or so years. We highly recommend them because (1) Marc, one of the 2 founders, planned our trip with us – we were not turned over to an associate, (2) the itinerary was as detailed as I have ever seen, (3) the guides + the drivers were superb, (4) their staff were available 24/7 (+ we had problems with 3 of the hotels) and (5) the logistics were excellent and (6) we appreciated their surprising us with room upgrades in many of the hotels.

My family of two adults and three teens, ages 12 to 18, traveled to Colombia over New Year’s, spending seven days in country. We visited Bogotá, Quindío (the coffee region), and Cartagena. As we were completely unfamiliar with South America, we planned guides, drivers, and activities for most of every day. We have not traveled with so much support in the past, and it was extremely helpful and rewarding. Emily and a few other associates from Marc and Boris’ office were a fantastic help, both during the planning and the trip. They made great choices about which regions we should visit and for how long, what activities we should do, and where we should stay. They even got us into a wonderful boutique hacienda in the coffee region at a very busy time of year. Each of our guides was friendly and attentive, and very knowledgeable about their area. We had Juliana, an artist, in Bogotá share her perspective on museums and the graffiti district. Camilo, a biologist and ornithologist, took us on a hike in the countryside and helped my husband with his birdwatching. Tavo is a musician, and gave us a great perspective on Cartagena. All the tours and activities were fabulous, and the lodging and dining reservations the team set up were perfect for us. We ran into some flight delays on one of our internal flights, and Marc and Boris’ office was very helpful and supportive. Also, the guides mentioned that the company was checking in with them regularly each day, which was so supportive in such an unobtrusive manner. We did so many wonderful activities, but a big highlight was our last day, when we took a private boat trip out to the Rosario Islands and spent some time at a beach club. The kids got so much out of every day of the trip, and continue to rave about it to everyone, a real accomplishment with teens, and the parents accomplished our goal of family time and exposing everyone to a new continent. We want to thank Wendy Perrin for suggesting Columbia as a destination in the first place, based on our parameters, and setting us up with this team. We also would like to thank Marc and Boris’ team for helping us through some initial qualms about the political situation and supporting us splendidly through the planning and the whole trip. It was definitely a trip to remember for a lifetime. In addition, we all plan to return to Columbia, and are evangelizing it as a destination for other Americans.

Marc organized a wonderful trip to Colombia for our family. Marc and his team put together an itinerary that kept my husband and I and two teenagers completely engaged. We loved visiting the very different regions of the country and learning about each area’s distinct history and culture. The guides in each city were fabulous. They all knew a lot about their respective cities and enjoyed sharing their knowledge with us and answering our questions. In addition, they were all wonderfully flexible with our needs and requests. We made some last-minute switches on some days, and Marc’s team was able to deal with them effortlessly and graciously.

I honestly can’t think of anything we would have done differently…although in Cartagena a late checkout could have been requested, as they wanted us out of the rooms before our pickup time. The rafting was probably about an hour too long but we completely understood that the infrastructure of the river didn’t allow for a shorter ride. Marc organized such a terrific adventure!

The best part about working with Wendy’s WOW team are the WOW moments. We were surprised with a cooking class at the best restaurant in Cartagena – Carmen’s. We all enjoyed learning about the local cuisine, preparing, cooking and ultimately eating what we had prepared! The restaurant was truly lovely and the time spent there was one we won’t forget.

Marc and Boris’s team provide top rate service for travel to Colombia. Marc and Ana were a pleasure to work with during the planning stages and executed the trip seamlessly. All of our guides were punctual, knowledgeable and professional. Although Cartagena is an easy city to explore on your own, we felt there was real value in having a local guide explain the history behind the sites and especially in pointing us toward the best street foods that were safe for us to try. When we did encounter a small problem during our stay in Tayrona, Ana ironed it out quickly and painlessly. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Marc and Boris in the future.

I was very pleased with Marc and Boris’s planning and performance during our trip to Colombia. I’ve worked with other specialists, and their execution was very much on par with those established resources. All the guides assigned to us throughout the trip were excellent, hotels/lodges were well appointed, and logistics were on point. There were a few hiccups on transfer pickups during our time in Cartagena, but all was managed and was not really a reflection on their planning.

The planned experiences during the trip were also excellent, with highlights being:

– Bamboo raft float down the La Vieja river in the coffee region–relaxing and very “local” experience
– Visit to the Blue Apple Beach House on Tierra Bomba–stylish island lodging, good food and very cool vibe overall
– The street food tour of Cartagena

I would definitely recommend Marc and Boris as a travel resource for Colombia.

Boris helped me plan a multigenerational family trip (travelers from ages 2 and 3 to early 20s to 40s and 60s) that spanned Medellin, Cartagena, Palenque y Armenia/coffee region). It was the best vacation we’ve ever had! The itinerary was well-planned and well-executed with great guides! We felt entirely safe at every destination as well as in transit between destinations. Accommodations and restaurants were super comfortable and first rate. A meal in Palenque, surprisingly, turned out to be one day of our favorites. Hacienda Bambusa is heavenly, with hands down the best staff ever, and we definitely recommend Casa San Agustin in Cartagena. Can’t say enough great things about this trip — we are extremely pleased and grateful for Boris and his team’s help!

Boris planned the perfect trip for us. He listened to how we travel and followed through with a spot on itinerary. We absolutely loved the entire experience and found each day was different than the day before. Boris was also very available if we had any questions while we were there. This was one of the best trips we’ve ever taken thanks to his great planning. We had friends who decided to join at the last minute and he made that work also. I would highly recommend Colombia and Boris and his team to anyone.