Hi everybody,
From Cancún we flew to Bogotá and arrived at dawn. At the airport there was no free Wi-Fi, so we had to take a taxi since there was no way to call an Uber.
The taxi driver saw that they had paid 60,000 COP ($15) and began to say that it was “too cheap” and spent the whole way talking about money, prices and what he charged. When we arrived at the hotel, the taxi driver said, “Tipping is optional, but you have to give me 10,000 COP”. We told him we had no more cash and left.
Our apart-hotel was a few minutes from the center and well located to visit all the things of interest on foot. But the area is horrible, dirty, and full of homeless people. We felt very unsafe walking there, even if it was daytime.
During the weekends we organized ourselves to see the center, climb Monserrate, see the museums, zone T and the Salt Cathedral in Zipaquirá.
The only thing I liked was the Botero museum and the Quinta Bolívar. Zone T is the area where foreigners and people with higher purchasing power live. The difference between the center and the best area of Bogotá is very noticeable, but even so it is not a big deal because there are only restaurants and a shopping center; the area is small, and you keep finding homelessness and broken streets.
In Mexico City, for example, the good area was much better, bigger and with better qualities.
We went to the hippy park, and it took us 2 minutes to order the Uber to get out of there, the area was terrifying.
I am going to tell you by points, the things that are most important to consider about Bogotá according to my experience:
Unsafety
This is the worst of Bogotá. We felt very insecure even when there were police everywhere. Although the city is surrounded by mountains, it is unthinkable to go hiking and, in fact, there are no hiking trails. The only thing you can do is go up Monserrate and during the hours when there is police escort.
Pollution
The pollution in Bogotá is horrible. The worst is the air. I felt like I couldn’t breathe, and my eyes itched all the time.
Prices
When we visited, the price of the COP was quite devalued, and some things were cheaper than in Europe. Most tickets to the museums cost $1 per person. The only thing that is very expensive is the entrance to the Salt Cathedral, which cost almost 80,000 COP ($20).
Food
Food in general is cheaper than in Mexico (where we came from) and Spain. Even vegan foods are a bit cheaper. The problem is that you can’t find practically anything that you can find in Europe. Tofu, for example, doesn’t exist.
Skincare
The creams are very expensive, they can cost 3 or 4 times more than in Europe. I was looking for products from The Ordinary and on the only website that sold these products, they were 3 times more expensive than in Europe or the USA.
Drinking water
In Colombia you can’t drink tap water because it’s not drinkable, but it’s not just that, tap water comes out brown and it’s hard to use it, even if it’s just for bathing.
People
In general, people in Bogotá are polite.
Weather
In Bogotá it is always cold and to this we must add the altitude and air pollution. When we were in December, at noon in the sun it was not cold, but after those hours, the temperatures dropped quite a bit.
An important fact is that Uber and other similar applications are widely used in Colombia, but they are illegal, so drivers will ask you to sit in the front so that the police do not discover them and fine them. Also, most taxis/Ubers do not have seat belts in the back.
The last three nights we stayed in an aparthotel in the Usaquén area, and it was the most decent thing we saw in the city. This is the best area, and it was a bit more cared for than the rest of Bogotá. Even so, you continue to find many homeless people on the street, and it did not feel safe.
In conclusion, in my opinion Bogotá is a depressing place. Life there is very limited since you can’t walk quietly on the street, you can’t use public transport and you can’t do outdoor activities. Being surrounded by mountains and not being able to go on any route in the middle of nature.
A friend who used to live there told me that many cycle paths had been built to encourage people to ride bicycles and thus reduce pollution, but it did not work because if you use the bike, it will be stolen right away. People only use them on Sundays because it’s full of police and it’s the only safe time.
You go outside and feel like you’re drowning in smoke and your eyes itch all the time. Everything is ugly, dirty, and decadent. I think I’ve never seen so many homeless people, beggars, and thugs together in one place.
You can live in your bubble in the good zone, but it’s an extremely small bubble and you can’t get out of it.
Here is the link to my YouTube channel: