Arrive To: Evening arrivals at Bogotá Airport. Coach transfer from the airport to the hotel.

Evening: Snacks will be served in each room.

Lodging: Hotel Casa de la Botica

Note: Bogota's altitude is up to 9,000 feet. Limited walking will allow for acclimitazation.

Breakfast: Buffet breakfast at the hotel

Morning: Meet your Study Leader and fellow travelers for a welcome and orientation to the program. Introductions, currency and other housekeeping issues will be discussed. Following will be an introductory lecture on the history and geography of Colombia.

Lunch: Light lunch at the hotel

Afternoon: Visit the significant sites of Bogota by coach, ending with a sunset visit to Monserrate, famous for its religious pilgrimages to the historic church and beautiful view overlooking the city.

Dinner: Dinner at Monseratte

Lodging: Hotel Casa de la Botica

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Note: Museum visit will require some walking and does have places to stop and rest. Some walking on uneven/bumpy streets in the afternoon. Hotel will be nearby within 15 minutes walking distance at any point in the afternoon.

Breakfast: Breakfast buffet at the hotel

Morning: Learn about figurative Colombian artist Fernando Botero, one of the country's most famous and prolific artists in a morning lecture. Then enjoy a guided tour of the museum, featuring many of Botero's works and providing more insight into his characteristic "oversize" style. Works of Picasso, Dali, Monet and other iconic artists are also on display at the museum. The rich artistic history of Colombia will be the focus of the tour, followed by lunch at the museum restaurant. Then enjoy a true Colombian coffee from the now world famous "Juan Valdez" coffee shop.

Lunch: Lunch at a local restaurant.

Afternoon: Enjoy a short tour of Bogota's historic Plaza Bolivar or main square, home of Colombia's Congress, the Palace of Justice and the Cathedral Primada. Walk back to the hotel to relax, enjoy some free time for shopping, or join your group leader to visit the presidential palace for a hopeful sighting of the changing of the guards.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel or a local restaurant.

Lodging: Hotel Casa de la Botica

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Note: Short walking in the morning on uneven surfaces at Plaza Mercado. It can be bustling with wet surfaces. Walking required at the Gold Museum, and steps required to access the upper level. Opportunity to rest and see the exhibit at own pace throughout the afternoon.

Breakfast: Breakfast buffet at the hotel.

Morning: Depart after breakfast for the Bogota's Mercado Plaza, an authentic local market filled with fruits, plants, meats and other daily necessities. Talk with a local trader about the market and learn how business runs in this busy daily market.

Lunch: Early lunch at the Gold Museum

Afternoon: Enjoy an early lunch at the museum cafe, followed by an organized tour of this impressive collection. The Gold Museum is a must-see for any trip to Colombia. It house the largest collection of Pre-Hispanic gold anywhere in the world. The sheer diversity of the collection is staggering. The museum's centerpiece is the musical "Offering boat", just one among many examples of Pre-Hispanic goldwork or craftmanship. Enjoy the museum on your own after the tour.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel

Lodging: Hotel Casa de la Botica

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Note: Please note that internal flights allow one carry-on of up to 10kg (22 lbs) and one checked bag of up to 20kg (44 lbs) without additional charges.

Breakfast: Early breakfast buffet at the hotel

Morning: Depart early for the flight to Armenia, and begin the journey north to Manizales. This is a full day out in the countryside visiting a couple of the many local villages (pueblitos) in the region. It is in these villages that you will get a real feel for the region, its history and its culture. Take a coffee break at a local tienda (shop) and stroll through the main plaza with the guide to learn more about the architecture, history and culture of the region. This part of Colombia is unique, yet at the same time forms part of the foundation of Colombia's rich history. There will also be plenty of time to see (and photograph) the amazing landscapes of the region, with rolling hills carpeted with coffee trees and guava plantations. The morning part of the trip will finish in the village of Salento.

Lunch: Lunch at a local restaurant featuring a local trout specialty.

Afternoon: After lunch the group will continue north ending the day in Manizales. Late afternoon arrival to Manizales and dinner in hotel.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel.

Lodging: Recinto del Pensamiento Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Note: Manizales tour will be by coach, with short portions of the plaza by foot. Some uneven ground and crowds of people but minimal distances (300 feet or less) at each point during the day.

Breakfast: Breakfast buffet at the hotel

Morning: In the mornning discover the important work of a local charity. The Nutrir foundation works with local communities to increase nutrition education and support the health and wellbeing of children. They provide over 4,000 meals at their feeding centers. Visit a feeding center and see firsthand, then take a trip to the Nutrir Headquarters to learn more about their important work.

Lunch: Lunch in town

Afternoon: Manizales is one of the oldest cities in the coffee region and has a wealth of history, from the expansion of colonists from Medellin in the North to the indigenous cultures that existed here when the "New World" was unheard of in Europe. Explore this city by coach and learn more about its expansion due to the coffee trade.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel

Lodging: Recinto del Pensamiento Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Note: Walking in the plantation on rough terrain for up to 2 hours and standing for periods of 30 minutes at a time. Bathroom facilities are rustic and may be located up to ten minutes walk from the program activities.

Breakfast: Breakfast buffet at the hotel

Morning: The morning starts with a trip out to a local coffee plantation where we walk around the farm's coffee fields and explore the processing location. We see the whole process from planting to picking to testing and tasting! See the background to this humble bean that keeps the world energized. After this intimate encounter, enjoy a short talk by the owner about the trials and tribulations of the coffee business and the lifestyle and issues faced by the coffee plantation workers .

Lunch: Traditional lunch at the plantation

Afternoon: Learn more about thes science of coffee and brewing the perfect cup. Return to Manizales in the late afternoon and enjoy free time to explore on your own and have dinner.

Dinner: Dinner on your own to explore local flavors.

Lodging: Recinto del Pensamiento Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Note: Long morning drive, rustic bathroom accomodations along the way. Short walking in the evening.

Breakfast: Buffet breakfast at the hotel

Morning: After breakfast the group will travel by land through the mountains to the famous city of Medellin. The drive takes about six hours with ample photo stops along the way. The group will stop for lunch at a traditional restaurant.

Lunch: Lunch at a traditional restaurant.

Afternoon: Arrive Medellin in the mid afternoon and check into hotel. In the later part of the afternoon a local historian/journalist will give a talk about the city of Medellin and its amazing transformation from a city with one of the world's highest murder rates to one of the safest cities in South America. This transformation has brought about socioeconomic change to the city that has permeated through all levels of the city and its inhabitants.

Dinner: Dinner near the hotel at a local restaurant.

Lodging: Hotel Florencia Plaza

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: Enjoy a morning trip to Guatape. Located 2 hours southes of Medellin, the stunning lakes of Guatape are towered over by the monolithic rock of Penol, a 150 foot high geologic marvel by the water's edge. You can take a climb to the top through a serious of wooden staircases but most prefer to take the view in from below.

Lunch: Lunch at a local restaurant

Afternoon: Continue visit at Guatape. Around the lake are the homes of some of Medellin's rich and famous. If time allows, enjoy a short boat trip out on the lake.

Dinner: Dinner on your own in Medellin.

Lodging: Hotel Florencia Plaza

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Note: Walking in the city up to a half mile at a time, rest stops available in some places.

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel

Morning: Led by your Study Leader, take some time to explore Parque Berrio to see some of Botero's oversized sculptures. This will give you the opportunity to enjoy a bit of art and also see firsthand some of downtown Medellin with its associated hustle and bustle. Additionally there may be time to take a short cable car ride on the city's famous Metro Cable. Then transfer to Medellin airport for the flight to Cartagena.

Lunch: Lunch on your own at airport.

Afternoon: Fly from Medellin to Cartegena. Before dinner gather to enjoy a presentation on Cartegena, a city that has played a considerable role in the history of the Americas.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel with a local folkloric performance.

Lodging: Bantu Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Dinner

Note: Up to four hours of slow walking with some rest opportunities available. Uneven and cobbled surfaces. Simple bathroom services available. Note Cartegena is very warm and humid.

Breakfast: Breakfast buffet at the hotel

Morning: Take a walking tour of Cartegena with a local expert. Carved from a colorful history rife of piracy, sultry Caribbean heat, with fusions of African, indigenous and European culture, Cartagena is Colombia's living and breathing museum. Walk through the old town under the Puerta Del Reloj (Clock Tower Gate), a symbol of Cartagena, into the Plaza de los Coches. Your local expert divulges the legends and histories of Cartagena from ancient times right up to the present. From the Plaza San Pedro Claver with its stunning church, on through to the Plaza Bolivar, come to know the real Cartegena.

Lunch: Lunch at a local restaurant

Afternoon: Discover the hill top area of La Popa and then on to the old Spanish fort, Castillo de San Felibe, which was created in 1536 and expanded by African slave labor for another 200 years. Continue by private vehicle to the Convento La Popa in the highest point of the city. Enjoy the views of the bay and old town from the flower filled patio and explore the convent.

Dinner: Dinner on your own to explore local flavors

Lodging: Bantu Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Breakfast: Breakfast buffet at the hotel.

Morning: This morning attend a lecture introducing the life and history of Colombia's most notable writer, Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Our lecturer will point out the inspirations for many of his works found in Cartagena, and also give an insight into the author's often overlooked works of journalism.

Lunch: Lunch on your own at a local restaurant.

Afternoon: Full afternoon free in Cartagena.

Dinner: Farewell dinner at the hotel.

Lodging: Bantu Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Dinner

Breakfast: Light breakfast at the hotel before leaving for the airport.

Morning: Transfer to the Cathagena Airport. Flights depart for the US in the AM.

Meals Included: Breakfast