Colombia and the pandemic - a short experience report

I have to say, I was quite surprised when I came back to Colombia at the beginning of November 2022. After two years of my "Corona break" in Germany, it is great to see that Colombia has come back to life "after" the pandemic. I still remember the great distress from mid-March 2020 when everything was "shut down". Of course, it had been looming. In Europe and the U.S., diagnosed cases were rising, and in Colombia the first case had just been reported, in Cartagena de Indias. Exactly there I was just as a tour guide with a 9-member tour group on the way. Rarely was a city tour so relaxed, even though it was in the air that something historic was about to happen. The city was emptying out, cruise ships had not been allowed to dock for a few days as they were considered a hotspot and symbol of the onset of Corona-chaos. Cars were no longer allowed in downtown Cartagena. Tourists left the country, and the locals feared for their income. Apocalyptic charm lay over the empty streets of the "Pearl of the Caribbean".

Sunday, mid-March 2020 in Bogota - nothing but empty streets

A short time later, the lockdown was announced throughout the country. Tourism, which had been blossoming for several years, went into a two-year winter sleep. I also devoted myself to other things, went to Germany and cared for my almost 100-year-old grandmother.

Since the beginning of November 2022, I am now back in Bogota and Colombia. A difference like day and night. Life has returned. Even though Corona has clearly left its mark on society and the poverty rate has also increased nationwide, the joy of life is back. It is promising that the number of Corona cases has been very low for quite some time. I have the strong impression that the tourism industry has reorganized itself and is now standing on new, hopefully solid, feet. Even though tourism is still readjusting to 2019 and early 2020 guest numbers, the stars are aligned.
In any case, we will of course continue to keep an eye on the corona virus and other security issues, so that we can always react as quickly as possible to new circumstances.

For travelers to Colombia at this moment just the online registration at Check-Mig, on the homepage of the Colombian migration office, remains mandatory.

Greetings from Bogota from Christopher