When to go
It's hard to find a single period that is fine for all of Colombia, but in most of the country the best time is from
December to March, since it is the driest, or at least the least rainy. It must be said that in Bogota and in the Andes, it is the coldest period at night, and fog forms more often.
The best time to visit Barranquilla and Cartagena is from December to April.
In San Andrés and Providencia, there is a dry season from mid-January to April, which is therefore the one to be preferred.
In the areas where the rains are abundant throughout the year (see the
forest) too, rainfall generally decreases somewhat in the northern hemisphere winter.
In the southernmost part of the coast of the Caribbean Sea (see Acandí), the only period when precipitation drops to less than 150 millimeters (6 inches) per month is from
January to March, which therefore is the best period in this area.
If you want to venture into the Chocó, the extremely rainy region facing the Pacific (see Quibdó), you can choose
February and March when it rains for "only" 22 days per month, with "only" 520 millimeters (20.5 in) of rain per month... otherwise, if you're looking for strong emotions, you can choose August, when 840 mm (33 in) of rain fall, so it practically rains in a single month like it does in an average rainy city in an entire year.
All in all, you can also choose the summer of the northern hemisphere,
from June to August, which is the least rainy season in the southern part of the Andes and the Amazon forest. In this period, however, it is very hot in the far north, while some areas (the central-north and the region facing the Pacific) are very rainy.
In fact, as mentioned, there are also areas where the least rainy season is inverted (the extreme south both of the Amazon and of the Andean area, see Popayán, where the best time goes from mid-June to mid-September), or areas where the least rainy period runs from August to November (the southernmost part of the Pacific coast - see Tumaco - which as mentioned is also affected by the El Niño cycle).
As previously mentioned, the Caribbean Sea is warm enough all year round for
swimming and sun bathing. The Pacific Ocean is warm all year round as well, and has more constant temperatures: 25/26 °C (77/79 °F) for most of the year, with a peak of 27 °C (81 °F) in October, but as we said this coastline is rainy all year round.
What to pack
In
plains and lowlands, in general, bring light clothing all year round. In the forest, bring loose-fitting clothing, light shirts and pants of natural fibers (cotton, linen) or synthetics that breathe, maybe with long sleeves against mosquitoes; possibly a light sweatshirt and a light raincoat for thunderstorms. On the coast, and possibly a light scarf and a light sweatshirt for the sea breeze. In the savannah (Barranquilla, Cartagena), you can bring a light sweatshirt and a light raincoat for thunderstorms during the rainy season.
In the
tierras templadas (see Medellín), bring light clothing, a sweatshirt for the evening, a raincoat or umbrella.
In the
tierras frías (see Bogota), bring clothes for spring and autumn, a sweater or sweatshirt, a jacket, a raincoat or umbrella.
In
high mountains, bring warm clothes, such as a down jacket, a hat, gloves, a scarf, hiking shoes.
Back to the climate of
Colombia