About Discovering Colombia

Discovering Colombia, One City at a Time

Scott · American · First passport: 2002 · First Colombia trip: many years ago

My first trip to Colombia started almost by accident. A friend who had spent a month in Cartagena wouldn't stop talking about the energy — the music, the food, the sense that every neighborhood had its own personality. I booked a flight and haven't stopped exploring the country since.

What I found in Colombia was something most travel sites completely miss. This country isn't just beaches and coffee — it has centuries of pre-Columbian and colonial history, world-class cuisine, and cities that rival anything on the planet for culture and energy. But the travel information available was either outdated, superficial, or written by someone who spent three days there on a press trip.

Over the years, I've walked the cobblestone streets of Barichara, watched the sun set over Cartagena's walls, hiked the Cocora Valley from Salento, explored the Amazon from Leticia, and eaten my way through the street food stalls of Bogotá. Each trip deepened my appreciation for a country that deserves far more nuanced coverage than it gets.

Colombia rewards the curious traveler — the one willing to take the local bus instead of the tour van, eat at the neighborhood tienda instead of the tourist trap, and stay long enough to feel the rhythm of a city. That's the kind of travel this site is built for. I want you to experience these places the way I do — not the Instagram version, but the real one.

Our Story

20 Years in the Making

First Trip
First Landing: Bogotá

A friend's recommendation leads to a week in Bogotá. La Candelaria at sunset, tinto on every corner, the sense that this is a country the mainstream travel world only scratches the surface of. The obsession begins.

Caribbean
Cartagena & the Caribbean Coast

A month-long trip through the Caribbean. The walled city of Cartagena, the Sierra Nevada trails near Santa Marta, and the turquoise waters of San Andrés. The realization that Colombia is not one place — it's dozens of distinct cultures.

Andean
The Andean Discovery

Medellín, Salento, Villa de Leyva — three destinations, three distinct personalities. Eternal spring, towering wax palms, colonial plazas. The Andean highlands become a favorite corner of the country.

Deeper
Deeper Into the Country

Return trips to Cali, Barichara, Tatacoa Desert, Leticia. Off-the-beaten-path towns, Amazon treks, local food markets. Documenting everything — video, notes, real prices in COP.

2025
Discovering Colombia Launches

Years of notes, videos, and travel experience finally become a proper resource. The site we wished existed when we first started exploring this country.

Meet the Writer

The Person Behind the Pages

Scott Murray
Scott Murray
Founder · Writer · Videographer

Healthcare IT professional by day, Colombia travel obsessive by every other waking moment. Based in San Diego, California. Has returned to Colombia many times over the years. 40+ countries traveled, but Colombia remains the first love — the energy, the food, the music, and the sense that there's always another city worth exploring. Enjoys the trip planning almost as much as the travel itself.

12
Destinations covered
4
Regions explored
40+
Countries traveled
Our Promise

What You'll Never Find Here

We built this site because we got tired of Colombia travel content that's secretly a press trip recap or a sponsored hotel review dressed up as honest advice. Discovering Colombia exists because we wanted the resource we wished we had when we first started exploring this country.

0
Sponsored posts
ever
0
Press trips or
free hotel stays
12
Colombia destinations
covered in depth
100%
Real prices in
COP & USD
If we recommend it, we've been there. If we list a price, we've paid it. If we tell you to skip something, we've wasted our own money there first. This is a truthful, fact-based site — and we want you to feel like you've experienced it with us.
What We're Building

More Than a Travel Blog

Discovering Colombia isn't a collection of "Top 10" listicles. It's a living resource built on years of real experience and technology that actually helps you plan a better trip. Here's what makes us different:

  • 🎥 Video guides for select destinations — see the beaches, historic centers, and landscapes before you book
  • 🤖 An AI trip planner that builds custom itineraries with real prices, not hallucinated estimates
  • 💰 Every price listed in COP with USD equivalents, updated regularly based on what we actually pay