Colombia (Bradt Travel Guide)

• Cover Type: Paperback with 352 pages
• Published by: Bradt Travel Guides
• Edition: 1st Edition July 17, 2008
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 1841622427
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-1841622422
• Book Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.3 x 1.1 inches
• Weighs: 1.3 pounds

Much like neighboring Panama, Colombia is home to a fascinating mix of cultures and wildlife. The country has more plant and animal species per square mile than any other country in the world – over 130,000 endemic plants and 1,900 species of bird – and both coastlines (Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea) are rich in coral reefs and marine life. Sports enthusiasts are catered for with climbing, paragliding, fishing, diving and windsurfing, and for the culture vultures Colombia also boasts historic colonial and six sites with UNESCO World Heritage status.

About The Author

Sarah Woods is a travel writer who divides her time between the UK, Panama, and Costa Rica where she supports conservation efforts.

Reader Reviews
I just got back from my first trip to Colombia. This book has a lot of breadth and helped us in the early stages of deciding where to go and what to do. We didn't have any security problems whatsoever, sticking to the author's recommended areas in Medellin and Bogota. We visited many of the places that the Bradt book recommended in these cities. I felt like the book was well-researched in general. I gave the book only 3 stars because it wasn't sufficient on its own. There weren't enough maps to really be helpful to us. Often, I felt like the book pointed out that a destination existed, but didn't provide enough information to actually get there. I was also surprised to see no information on tipping (restaurants, hotel staff, etc). I don't really blame the author -- I think she had to choose between breadth and depth, and admirably tried to cover most of the country. We supplemented the Bradt book with city and transport maps we got for free in Colombia from the tourism kiosks, and two Spanish-language guidebooks we bought in Bogota: El Tiempo's guide to Bogota (El Tiempo is a newspaper)"Guias El Tiempo Bogota" and "Medellin Turistica" (bilingual, but the Spanish section is better). El Tiempo's book was especially useful with excellent maps, pictures, etc. I highly recommend it and I think it would be helpful even if you don't speak Spanish. The Medellin guidebook we used was just okay -- but necessary considering the Bradt guide's short section on Medellin.