Heading to Columbia (Cartagena) on Dec 23rd. Have a place to stay for 6 of us till Dec 26th at which point we will catch a flight to Medellin and rent a car to travel around that part of Columbia for 5 days or so. We do not catch a flight out of Cartagena for Boston till Jan. 2 2015. So what I'd like help with is this: Do I want to spend New Years Eve in Cartagena with my adult children (ages 28, 25, 22, 16 & Hubby) or will there be some cool place near Medellin to spend it? I'm hesitant to stay in Medellin itself, as it's just too big and might be too much of a zoo (ha ha as if Cartagena won't be a zoo too, but maybe less crazy?). My son (25yr) is traveling throughout Columbia this month and next and he seems to think that 3 days in Cartagena is plenty. He says the areas outside of Medellin are amazing, will offer lots of diversity and interesting places to see and so that's why we are going down there. I've looked into the following airlines to travel from Cartagena; Vivacolumbia, Avianca and Copa. Any feelings on these airlines, much better price than Spirit for travel within Columbia!

Small point - it's spelled "Colombia", not "Columbia".

hey SusaninToronto, so I'm actually reading you're very long trip report, and it's helpful, so thanks for taking the time to do that. But sigh, it's a bummer to see 1 response to my question and find it's someone correcting me on a simple spelling error made in haste to ask my question. Double sigh...

Unfortunately there is not a lot of action on Colombia on this board. there is another excellent TR by glover. you might try Trip Advisor, perhaps there is more traffic.

Sorry, Molly - I didn't mean to sound nasty. I agree that there isn't much action on this board for Colombia. You might find that there is more on Tripadvisor. If you're reading my trip report, you'll know that we didn't get to Medellin - that's on the list for a future trip!

Shoot I hope that isn't a sign that folks don't like Colombia. I guess it's gonna have to happen the old fashion way with a lot of leg work from me.

I'm so frustrated with myself to be honest. I had so much time to plan this trip and then a couple of family related emergencies cropped up and so here I am scrambling at the last minute I feel, going to a place where xmas is the high season. Oh well, one can always have hope that it will all work out! Hey trips that we sometimes wing end up being fantastic!

We loved Colombia. I think most people who visit Colombia love it. Americans in general seem to be afraid to visit, which I think is their loss. Like I said, you might find more information on Tripadvisor.

Maybe there is also info on Cruise Critic, since Cartagena is a popular stop.

Hope to be there for half a day next spring, so please report back!

there are some lovely places around Medellin such as Guatape (rural town by scenic lake and rock), Santa Fe de Antioquia etc. Cartagena is also cool, but rural Antioquia is maybe the more typical 'Colombia'. Interested to see you are hiring a car, be aware very steep hills around Medellin, and traffic jams, so allow alot of time for even short journeys. If you drive the main road east towards the Magadalena River from Medellin, it is very scenic as it descends to the hotter areas. There are some tourist attractions like Pablo Escobars ranch (Hacienda Napoles) though this is not to everyones taste. I have a blog with other areas and some advice in driving in Colombia at www.travelswithmitzi.blogspot.com, good luck.

Perhaps it is too late for an answer your date trip is coming but spending New Year in Cartagena or Medellin are great because people here are very happy, regarding what your son said about Medellin it's true in Cartagena you can visit more islands and in Medellin you can go to different town and try their traditional food and coffee. Christmas it is a high season so the flight tickets get more expensive when they are reaching the 24th and new year, the cheapest one is vivacolombia however from time to time they are late, if you need more about Colombia let me know and will help you!!