Colombia Photography Tour | Indigenous People, Coffee Haciendas and Tropical Forests of Caribbean Colombia | May 2020
‒ led by Tristan Quevilly
Join us in Colombia for a life-changing photography tour where you will get to photograph breath-taking locations and visit the coffee haciendas.
Adventurer
Next Tour:
from $4,768
23 May - 04 Jun 2020
| Duration | 13 Days |
| Start Location | Bogotá |
| Maximum Participants | 8 |
| Accommodation | Included |
| Transport | Private car, Van & Boat |
| Food and Drink | Included |
| Payment Schedule | 3 Installments |
| Activity Level | 3/5 |
What to Expect
Our Colombia photo tour is about discovering the authentic local culture, exploring superb & unique places and developing your photography skills. You can expect a unique & wonderful new experience with each day of this photo holiday. With Tristan’s help, you will go deeper than most tourists ever get to, to observe and capture the beauty of life in Colombia all its forms.
Colombia is an ideal destination for travel photography. With its diverse landscape, breath-taking scenery and colorful local culture, Colombia will inspire and enchant you.
Is Colombia safe? In brief: yes. A lot of bad press created a rather negative image of the country for travelers, but Colombia is actually a great hidden gem. In addition, the regions we will be visiting are rather rural and our tour leader has been there in the past.
April is an ideal month to have a photography tour in Colombia as the rainfall is not heavy and the popular urban areas like Cartagena are not crowded. This way we get the time and peace necessary to take unique photographs.
Colombia is known for its dramatic landscape, coffee farms (haciendas) and colorful culture. During our Colombia photo tour, we will also discover hidden gems such as untouched exotic beaches of the Caribbean Sea, the picturesque fishermen villages in Cienaga Grande and local coffee & cocoa farms.
Our Colombia photography tour is also about helping you develop your photography skills. Tristan will offer practical & theoretical photography insights and offer feedback and guidance throughout the tour.
All the activities in our Colombia photography tour are designed to enrich your knowledge of both photography and the Colombian local culture and to help you create unforgettable memories and experiences.
Adventurer Tours
Adventurer by name, adventurous by nature. Our Adventurer tours are for those of you who love to take the path less beaten, to explore beneath the skin of a country and to find those magical moments of authenticity. To hear stories from those who live the wonderful cultures of this planet and to photograph real life, as we find it, wherever that may be.
Tour Highlights
- Discover coffee haciendas (farms) run by local villagers and capture the stunning beauty of Tayrona Park, a natural wonder of Colombia
- Have photography workshops and photograph the remote fishermen of Nueva Venecia
- Take street photography in big cities like Cartagena, but also the colorful town of Salento.
- Photograph the indigenous people of Colombia and learn about the day-to-day lives of native tribes in idyllic villages far from Western civilization.
Full Itinerary
Day 1 of the Colombia photography tour - Bogotá (arrival)
Buenos días and welcome to Colombia!
Tristan and our local team will be happy to arrange an airport transfer for you to make sure that you start your photography holiday in Colombia the right way.
If you plan to get to Bogotá prior to day 1 of our Colombia photography tour, we can help with tips and arrangements. Please let us know what you have in mind and we can design a short itinerary to capture the best parts the city has to offer.
In the evening, we all have dinner to meet and greet everyone. A great opportunity to discuss the photography tour itinerary, but also your expectations about the photography workshop.
Day 2 of the Colombia photography tour - Paloquemao Market & Street Photography in Candelaria Colonial District
The first exploration day of the Colombia photography tour starts with the fruit and vegetable market of Paloquemao. You get to see and capture a typical side of Colombia while strolling through the retail market, one of the largest in the country. Most of Bogotá’s restaurants get their supplies here, which makes it very lively. You will get to see different kinds of fruits and vegetables you would never have heard of!
You will then be taken to a street photography session around the old center of the city and have a unique travel photography experience in Colombia. You will discover the colonial district of la Candelaria and its squares and markets. It is a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the local culture and photograph the Colombian way of life.
During the late afternoon and early evening, you will visit Bogotá’s iconic Plaza Bolívar and Ciclovia to take the perfect angle shots. Then we all go up a high skyscraper with an amazing view of the Colombian capital to take photos at sunset.
Day 3 of the Colombia photo tour - Coffee Hacienda (Farm)
The third day of the Colombia photo tour starts with a morning transfer to Bogotá airport to take a short flight to Pereira.
Around lunchtime, we arrive at the beautiful coffee hacienda (farm) where we will be staying during our third night of this photography holiday.
In the afternoon, around 3 pm, we get to see the plantations and meet the locals before exploring the small factory where the coffee is processed. The drink that boosts our mornings will have no secret for you after some coffee tasting with full explanations from our local host.
We spend the night at Hacienda Combia.
Day 4 of the Colombia photo tour - Colourful Town of Salento and Cocora Valley
We leave the hotel in the morning to continue our Colombia photography tour in Salento, a friendly and colorful town.
We do not stop for a long time as we will take a typical old car towards the Cocora Valley in the east. This is the start of a unique hike on the shores of Quindio River and through a forest of huge palm trees called „Palma de Cera“, the Colombian national tree. This part of the photography holiday in Colombia will give you a chance to reconnect with nature.
We return to Salento to enjoy its colonial houses and musicians on the street corners. With an incredible diversity of handicrafts and the unique trout on Patacón, this charming place is a must-see for all visitors of Colombia. It is also an ideal place for a practical photography workshop.
After that, we will have a late lunch in town, plus a chance in the afternoon and evening to explore Salento and get another unique travel photography experience.
We spend the night at Reserva El Cairo.
Day 5 of the Colombia photography tour - Santa Maria, Caribbean Sea
In the morning, we take a short flight to get to Santa Maria. Upon arrival, we will take private transport to Tayrona National Park and check-in to Maloka Barlovento, located right on the seashore.
We spend this beautiful afternoon of our Colombia photo tour doing landscape photography and also enjoy a unique blue hour shot in the hotel surroundings. Later, you can have a photography workshop with Tristan and discuss your travel photography experiences so far.
Day 6 of the Colombia photo tour - Tayrona Park: Arrecifes and Cabo San Juan
Our Colombia photography tour continues with a morning trip to the entrance of Tayrona National Park (30-minute car transfer).
The 3-hour photography hike inside the park will take you to a stunning place located between mountains, the tropical forest, and the sea. You will discover the most untouched white sand beaches of Colombia and ancestral volcanic rocks in the crystal clear Caribbean Sea. This breath-taking scenery is ideal for travel photography.
Together with Tristan, you explore and photograph the jungle and beaches of Tayrona Park. You start with a hike in the tropical jungle from Cañaveral, then enjoy the exotic beaches of Arrecifes and stop at La Piscina, ideal for swimming and snorkeling.
We continue to the Cabo San Juan del Guia, a wonderful bay of white sand surrounded by huge volcanic rocks. On the way, we get to see the local fauna and flora of this magnificent park. This is one of the highlights of our Colombia photo tour.
We’ll have a delicious picnic lunch and spare time to enjoy the Park and its beautiful beaches. A unique and wonderful experience in this photography holiday in Colombia is that we get to spend the night in hammocks.
OUR ADVICE
We will meet our guide at the park entrance. Bring the copy of your passports, sun protection, mosquito repellent, hiking shoes, a swimsuit, towels and a plastic bag to protect your belongings in case of rain.
Day 7 of the Colombia photography tour - Tayrona Park, Minca
The seventh day of the Colombia photography tour starts early with a morning sunrise photo workshop at the beach with Tristan.
Afterwards we go for a photography hike and get a chance to photograph wildlife before heading to the village of Minca.
We will have lunch at Minca and photograph the locals. From there we continue in 4x4s to Mundo Nuevo. Next to our eco-hostel lies La Candelaria Coffee and Cocoa Farm, which we can visit. The same welcoming local family has managed the place for several generations and will share its passion for this treasure with us. You will get a chance to take amazing photos and also taste the end product of the farm.
Tristan will coordinate a sunset photo shoot over a stunning view of Minca and the town of Santa Maria. We spend the night at Mundo Nuevo Hostel.
Day 8 of the Colombia photo tour - Mundo Nuevo Indigenous Village
During the morning, our tour leader Tristan will accompany you to the Mundo Nuevo Awindua project which began with the construction of Wiwa indigenous houses as found in their native villages. A truly unique experience and one of the highlights of our Colombia photography tour, this trip allows us to learn a lot. We get to discover unique local bio-construction methods and also photograph and visit families from the indigenous community. No concrete or other similar materials are used in building the houses.
We have lunch at Mundo Nuevo before taking a 4x4 to go on a photography shoot and discover the waterfall of Marinka. Here you can also take a little bath to refresh yourself.
We get back to Mundo Nuevo for another sunset photography workshop and spend the night there in private rooms.
Day 9 of the Colombia photo tour - Sierra Nevada & the town of Taganga
In the 9th day of our Colombia photography tour, we get up very early (around 3 am) to photograph the sunrise over the Sierra Nevada and observe the snowy peaks.
We first go from the lodge to the starting point of the daytime activity (a 2h 30min drive). Then the photo session will last for about three hours and we will reach an altitude of 2,600-2,700m.
From there, you will experience a superb view of the Sierra Nevada which will provide us an amazing panorama of the mountains, especially the snow-capped peaks of Bolivar and Colon. The walk takes different paths for a more diverse trek, crossing streams, water sources and giving you the opportunity to observe many endemic species living in the region. You will get the chance to capture spectacular travel photography images. We may also encounter coffee farmers and other locals on the way.
After our photoshoot, we will get back to Minca before leaving Sierra Nevada to head to the town of Taganga. Once there, we go down to the beach to watch the fishermen boats and observe the local life. Here, we will have another photography workshop during the sunset.
We spend the night at Ecohabs Taganga.
Day 10 of the Colombia photography tour - The Remote Fishermen Village of Nueva Venecia (“New Venice”)
We start the 10th day of the Colombia photo tour with a trip to an area called Cienaga Grande. It is the widest and most important lagoon of Colombia and also one of the main fishing spots of the northern coast. It is considered as a strategic point and of vital importance for the planet.
The fishermen communities in Cienaga Grande live in picturesque villages, which you will be able to photograph.
We take a boat for a 4-hour trip to reach the mangrove and see the small village of Buena Vista. We get off there and meet the fishermen to photograph and understand their day-to-day way of life. During this trip, you will have the chance to create lively and stunning travel photography.
We have lunch in the nearby colorful village called Nueva Venecia (“New Venice”). And indeed, the place is an indigenous version of the Italian city with houses built on water pillars and people mostly traveling around by boat. An amazing chance for great portrait photos during this photography holiday in Colombia.
We also get to visit the school and interact with the Palafitos inspired by afro culture. In the afternoon, we leave for the city of Cartagena where we have dinner and spend the night at Monaguillo Hotel.
Day 11 of the Colombia photography tour - Cartagena
Get up early to witness the beautiful historical center of Cartagena at sunrise for a unique photo workshop.
During the 11th day of our Colombia photography tour, we will follow the footsteps of famous pirates and discover the "Pearl of the Caribbean", an exotic city rich in culture, diversity, and heritage. This stroll around the streets of Cartagena will bring you back to colonial times, amidst colorful houses and lively squares.
We will walk through the colonial neighborhoods of San Diego and Santo Domingo. During this photo shoot, you will get to see iconic places such as Plaza de Los Coches, Plaza de la Aduana, Parque Bolívar, el Museo del Oro, el Palacio de la Inquisición, Plaza de Santa Teresa, Plaza de Santo Domingo, Las Murallas and Las Bóvedas.
We have lunch in the city center and then you will have a free afternoon to enjoy Cartagena and perhaps buy gifts for friends and loved ones. You can also take more travel photography and to make the most of your Colombia photo tour.
Tristan will coordinate a sunset photography session in the historical center before taking you for a cocktail and dinner. You also have the chance to review your travel photography images and discuss feedback with Tristan.
We spend the night at Monaguillo to prepare for departure the next day.
Day 12 of the Colombia photo tour
We all meet for breakfast and do a round-up of the Colombia photography tour you have just had. Tristan and our local partners are ready to help you organize your departure and can also give you tips should you decide to stay for longer or come back.
It was great to have you as part of our Colombia photo tour and hopefully nos vemos pronto!
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To book, please use the buttons below or email [email protected]
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course! If your partner in crime wants to join our adventure they’re more than welcome. All our tours are designed to immerse you fully into the culture of the destinations that we visit. We think even non-photographers would find this pretty fascinating. The only caveat we have is that this is first and foremost a photography adventure and any accompanying non-photographers would be required to stay with us at all times throughout the tour.
Yes. It is a mandatory requirement on all of our tours that each participant has their own travel insurance policy. We highly recommend a travel insurance policy that not only covers medical expenses and repatriation but also covers your personal belongings and liability. For more information on travel insurance and our suggested providers please visit our travel services section.
Also, as a traveller with Intrepid Exposures, it is your responsibility to ensure you have the correct visas and travel documents. Despite the fact we can’t sell you visas directly, we work with a number of partners who can find you the best solution to match your needs. If you need help arranging visas for any of our tours, please get in touch and we will do our best to accommodate your needs.
We will try our very best to cater to any dietary needs, that being said we cannot always guarantee it due to the remoteness of some of the places we stay. We will notify you if this is the case and work with you to come up with a fair solution. As long as you notify us of any requirements or allergies when booking your trip we will do our best to accommodate any needs you have.
Yes, of course! Unfortunately our website doesn't offer this functionality yet. If you wish to pay the deposit and then the remainder in one instalment you can do so using the website. If you would instead like to pay for the trip in its entirety in one payment, please contact us directly and we can advise you on the best way to do this.
Cancelations and any changes you want to make to your tour can be found in our booking conditions here.
To put it simply, if you wish to cancel more than nine months prior to the date of departure we will refund any money paid (excluding the non-refundable deposit).
Cancellation under 6 months prior to the date of departure, will be liable to a refund of 75% of any money paid (excluding the non-refundable deposit).
Cancellation under 3 months prior to the date of departure, will be liable to a refund of 50% of any money paid (excluding the non-refundable deposit).
In the case of cancellation within 30 days prior to the date of departure, we withhold the right to refuse a refund for any money paid.
We do, but on a trip by trip basis. Some tours naturally lend themselves to extensions, others not so much. Please consult the individual tour pages for more details on the extensions offered. If you would like to create your own personal tour extension, please contact us directly for assistance in doing so.
We do everything in our power to make sure out tours run smoothly, that being said there’s certain things we can’t control. Natural disaster or conflicts in the areas we travel may mean that we have to rearrange our plans and itineraries. However, we will keep a close eye on developments in the areas we travel and notify you if there are any issues or doubts.
In a word, Yes. All our tours are covered by Protected Travel Insurance (PTS). This means that your money goes into a protected bank account and can’t be accessed by us until you get back from your trip, so should anything happen your money is 100% protected. Find out more