u/Leather-Question-138

My fiancée & I are making our way round the Carribbean coast in Colombia currently. We are in Islas de Rosario, and will return to Cartagena & on to Palomino.

After that we probably have around 5 days to explore more of the region before heading south to Bucaramanga.

My question - I've read a few blogs and posts from Reddit that say Tayrona has become a bit of a shakedown - expensive entry fees, purely maintained trails and accommodations, and overall not worth the day/overnight visit.

I'd had it pegged as a must do, but wondering whether those days and money are better spent elsewhere (we will probably visit Minca as well regardless). Keen to hear from anyone who has been recently, and what their experience was hiking in and staying overnight in one of the basic accoms (hammock/tent)

Thanks!

Quick question for anyone who has been;

Where should 30+ year olds stay in Medellin? Online suggests Laureles or El Poblado - were relatively social, but don't do dorms as a couple and will definitely be avoiding any places where drinking and partying is a sole focus.

Any advice on neighbourhood or a specific place for us would be grand!

Just a hopeful message to see if anyone in this community is landing at Baltra around 1220 on 3 June and interested in joining my wife and I on the Highlands circuit en route from the airport?

Seen all the posts about this making good use of the taxi and obviously cheaper with an extra person or two. Just DM me if interested!

Hoping to hear from any tourists that have crossed the Ecuador land border recently from Peru? We had wanted to cross at La Balsa from Chachapoyas to Vilcabamba/Loja, but online research indicates most small border posts are closed due to ongoing domestic issues, and the Huaquilla crossing near the coast is the only regular option? Buses seem to run overnight from Mancora, but other reports say the border closes 2300 - 0500 each night.

Also any guidance on the need for criminal record check, or application for an exemption for foreign tourists to Ecuador? Ecuador's official immigration site states these are needed, but Reddit posts in the past few months suggest these are rarely enforced?

Hoping to hear from any tourists that have crossed the Ecuador land border recently from Peru? We had wanted to cross at La Balsa from Chachapoyas to Vilcabamba/Loja, but online research indicates most small border posts are closed due to ongoing domestic issues, and the Huaquilla crossing near the coast is the only regular option? Buses seem to run overnight from Mancora, but other reports say the border closes 2300 - 0500 each night.

Also any guidance on the need for criminal record check, or application for an exemption for foreign tourists to Ecuador? Ecuador's official immigration site states these are needed, but Reddit posts in the past few months suggest these are rarely enforced?

Hoping to hear from anyone that has crossed the Ecuador land border recently from Peru? We had wanted to cross at Las Balsa from Chachapoyas to Vilcabamba/Loja, but online research indicates most small border posts are closed due to ongoing domestic issues, and the Huaquilla crossing near the coast is the only regular option? Buses seem to run overnight from Mancora, but other reports say the border closes 2300 - 0500 each night.

Also any guidance on the need for criminal record check, or application for an exemption for foreign tourists to Ecuador? Ecuador's official immigration site states these are needed, but Reddit posts in the past few months suggest these are rarely enforced.