Until relatively recently Columbia was a country to avoid due to the high level of violent crime and the drugs issues which are prevalent in the country. Recently crime has been bought back under control and this destination is firmly back on list of places a tourist should consider, having said this caution should still be exercised when visiting Columbia.

With a wonderful mix of vibrant cities, beautiful Caribbean beaches, Amazon rainforest safaris, good scuba diving and archaeological ruins. This Spanish speaking nation is a pleasure to visit with excellent weather, diverse cultures between the regional centres of; Bogotá, Medellín and Cali, once you visit you may not want to leave.

Columbia is located on the equator and as such there are no real seasons, with the local climates dictated by altitude. On the Caribbean coast temperatures average 28°C, with Bogota averaging 12°C as it is perched up in the Andes mountain range. Although there are no seasons rainfall tends to be low for most of the year except from October to November and April to June. Generally the driest times of the year are December to March in the mountainous regions and December to April and July to September in the low lying areas and coastal regions.

December to April

December to April tends to be the best time of year to visit with little rain and good underwater visibility.

With two coastlines, one on the North Pacific and one on the Caribbean Sea, there are some great places to dive such as; Providencia Island with some beautiful dive sites, San Andres Island with its great marine life and wrecks and last but not least Malpelo island which is renowned as a great place to dive with schooling sharks. With its Caribbean coast and interesting live aboard destinations you may want to consider Columbia as your next dive destination.

There are daily direct flight to many of the hub cities from North America, South America and Europe. Travellers from the UK may need to transfer via North America or France.

There are many activities to do in this diverse country including:

• Amazon Treks
• Andes Treks
• Visiting the countries many ruins
• Surfing
• Chilling out on the beach
• Visits to the countries various regional cities

Due to the long running mix of civil unrest and narcotics trafficking in the region, there as certain areas of Columbia which are still unsafe to travel to. Please check your Foreign Office for advice before travelling.