78 Cool and Unusual Things to Do in Colombia - Atlas Obscura

Unusual Attractions in Colombia

Vista Hermosa, Colombia

Caño Cristales

An explosion of natural color known as "the river that ran away from paradise."

Nariño, Colombia

Las Lajas Sanctuary

A dangling church built over a Colombian gorge.

San Antonio del Tequendama, Colombia

Tequendama Falls Museum

This picturesque mansion has gone from opulent ruin to nature museum.

Guatape, Colombia

Guatapé

The Andean town where every single building is decorated with a brightly colored frieze.

Jardín, Colombia

Cave of Splendor

Enchanting cave with a river crashing through the roof.

Santa Catalina, Colombia

The Volcan de Lodo El Totumo

The caldera of this mini-volcano has been turned into a naturally heated mud bath.

Barú, Colombia

Pablo Escobar's Abandoned Secret Island Mansion

Hidden amid the tropical forest in the Caribbean Sea are the decaying ruins of the Cocaine King's luxurious island party home.

Villavieja, Colombia

The Tatacoa Desert

Unparalleled stargazing, one of Colombia's best observatories, and a swimming pool can all be found in the middle of this ancient tropical forest.

See All 78 Things to Do in Colombia See All 78 Places

Unique Food & Drink in Colombia

Peanut Butter Fruit

Its pulp tastes just like the creamy spread.

Ice Cream Bean

The South American bean that looks like cotton candy and tastes like ice cream.

Banana Passionfruit

This tangy fruit flavors everything from ice cream to cocktails.

Blackberry Jam Fruit

Inside a hard, yellow shell lies a sweet, black spread.

See all 27 things to eat in Colombia See all 27 things to eat in Colombia

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September Colombia Trip	6 August 22, 2019	749	August 22, 2019
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Stories About Colombia

Colombian glaciologist Jorge L. Ceballos and assistant Andres Cruz Mendoza climb the highest peak of the Santa Isabel glacier.

An Elegy for Colombia's Tropical Glaciers

"We are the place on Earth where glaciers shouldn't be, and they are here.”

by Megan Janetsky

Colombian conservator Clemencia Vernaza peers up at her work in Colombia's Parque Arqueológico Nacional de Tierradentro.

The Effort to Save Colombia's Underground Mountaintop Tombs

Scientists and conservators are finally able to return to what was once an Andean war zone.

by Megan Janetsky

February 24, 2020

You can't easily spot the poop in the soupy green water, but it's definitely down there.

Pablo Escobar’s Hippo Herd Is Treating Colombia's Lakes Like One Big Toilet

They're thriving, pooping, and fouling up the water around the drug lord's former estate.

by Jessica Leigh Hester

February 12, 2020

Alternating Currents

The rise and fall of Venezuela, as seen from a Colombia border city, its grand mosque, and the migrants and converts who worship there.

by Megan Janetsky

September 29, 2019

Bunches and bunches of Cavendishes.

No, the Banana Apocalypse Is Not Around the Corner

But Colombia’s outbreak of lethal banana fungus is still bad news.

by Sabrina Imbler

August 16, 2019

The observatory in the Tatacoa Desert.

Deep in the Tatacoa Desert, There's an Observatory Unlike Any Other

At his DIY institution in Colombia, Javier Fernando Rua Restrepo watches the stars.

by Lucy Sherriff

September 26, 2018

The crabs make their way across a road, while locals evade them.

The Crab Migration That the Colombian Army Is Dispatched to Protect

The crustaceans, native to Providencia, have seen declining numbers.

by Lucy Sherriff

From left, the photographer Jorge "Jota" Arango, the conservationist John Myers, the tourist and birdwatcher Jim Sandor, the Colombian ornithologist Oswaldo Cortes, and the local guide Jose Luis Ropero stand at the top of the Serranía del Perijá mountains.

In Search of Rare Birds and Glory in Colombia

How an international birdwatching competition draws attention to the country's at-risk natural bounty.

by Lucy Sherriff