Touring Colombia by bike: places to stay
Colombia is such a fantastic place to tour by bicycle. The ecosystems transform from jungle to farmland to barren mountain, all in the span of a few days. Nearer to the Caribbean coast, you'll find mango trees dotting the roadside which offer a refreshing respite from the hot sun.
There are many rural villages in Colombia, and they are spaced pretty evenly every 30-50 kilometres along the main roads. This makes it ideal for touring by bicycle. At our leisurely pace, we covered about 40 kilometres per day on average. Each town, no matter how small, will have a restaurant and a hotel. Hotels attached to gas stations are quite common too, and these are often cleaner and more comfortable than hotels in town.
We found that hotel prices range from 12,000 – 100,000 Colombian Pesos per night, for a private room for two people. In a small town, you shouldn't have to pay more than 50,000. These prices reflect our experience in Spring 2016.
Here's a quick rundown of every place we stayed during our tour of Colombia. We started cycling in Necoclí (Day 2), and left our bikes in Cali (Day 32). After Cali, we rode buses for the remainder of our trip. So no, we didn't cycle 700 kilometres from Cali to Bogotá in four days!
| Day | City | Hotel | Price per night for double occupancy (COP) | Rating /5 | Pros | Cons |
| 1 | Capurganá | Marlin Hostal | 35000 | 2 | Lots of mangoes for the taking | Water only available 2hrs/day |
| 2 | Necoclí | Costa del Mar | 30000 | 3 | Free coffee, public balcony | Shabby rooms |
| 3 | Mulatos | Green Hotel | 12000 | 2 | Excellent fruit juice | No lock, pig slaughter |
| 4 | Arboletes | Zona Camping | 40000 | 3.5 | Nice beachfront lounging area | Run-down rooms |
| 5 | Montería | Casa Linda V | 70000 | 3.5 | Clean, AC, good staff | |
| 6 | Montería | Miami Central | 35000 | 2 | Cheaper than Casa Linda | Dingy, loud street, cockroach |
| 7 | Planeta Rica | Casas Blancas | 40000 | 4 | Clean, courtyard window | Unfriendly staff |
| 8 | La Apartada | El Cairo | 30000 | 2.5 | AC | AC is noisy, dated décor, also a liquor store |
| 9 | El Jardin | El Lago (Gas Station) | 25000 | 4 | AC, window, horses in paddock, swimming pool available at extra cost | |
| 10 | El Doce | El 15 (Gas Station) | 25000 | 3 | AC | Terrible location (isolated), frog in bathroom |
| 11 | Valdivia | Diocelina | 25000 | 4 | Great jungle mountain view, cute room, good water | |
| 12 | Yarumal | Centro Residencial | 40000 | 2 | Hot water | Unprofessional and confusing staff, noisy |
| 13 | Yarumal | Real Plaza | 40000 | 3 | Clean, laundry service, public balcony | |
| 14 | Carolina | Los Balcones | 30000 | 4 | Charming, friendly, great service | No window |
| 15 | Barbosa | Central Park | 55000 | 3 | Hot water, windows | Terrible staff |
| 16 | Medellín | Arcadia Hostel | 68000 | 3 | Patio | Dirty, loud, shared bathroom down hall |
| 17-18 | Caldas | Manantial del Sur | 35000 | 2 | Mold, hot water, angry yelling | |
| 19 | La Pintada | Hotel Dimar | 40000 | 3 | Big room with windows | No hot water, lazy staff |
| 20 | La Felisa | Hotel Nancy | 12000 | 3 | River view, cheap | No gate control, no hot water |
| 21 | Chinchiná | Chinchiná Plaza | 40000 | 4 | Fancy lounges, good bed, hot water, good staff, window | |
| 22 | Termales Santa Rosa | El P…? | 70000 | 2 | Nice first-floor hangout, backyard river | Tourist trap |
| 23-26 | Filandia | Colina de Lluvia | 50000 | 3 | Nice kitchen, nice courtyard | Overbearing host, annoying kitten |
| 27 | La Tebaida | Hotel California Tropical | 35000 | 3 | Window | Couldn’t exit easily, small room, flooding washroom |
| 28 | Tuluá | Los Cristales | 35000 | 4 | Great service, clean big room, warm water | Awkward window |
| 29 | Restrepo | Los Balcones | 50000 | 4 | Charming, warm water, balcony, big bathroom | |
| 30 | San Cipriano | Hotel David | 30000 | 2 | Tourist meeting place | Locked gate, no private bath, gross toilets |
| 31 | Dagua | Beside railway tracks | 18000 | 2.5 | Excellent restaurant, friendly staff | No private bath, dingy barebones room |
| 32-39 | Cali | Diego’s house | ||||
| 40 | Silvia | La Parilla | 40000 | 4 | Cute, hot showers, private courtyard | Cold rooms |
| 41 | Popayán | Hotel Toledo | 50000 | 3.5 | Large rooms w/ windows, large bath | No hot water |
| 42 | Neiva | Hospedaje D’Cache | 40000 | 1 | Stained sheets, huge mirror, no bathroom door | |
| 43 | Tatacoa | Estadero Villa Marquez | 30000 | 1 | Swimming pool | Hot small tent, scorpion |
| 44-46 | Bogotá | B&B Chorro de Quevdo | 100000 | 4.5 | Stunning, charming, breakfast, hot water | Had to wait for the door |
