If you are around Colombia’s Caribbean coast and are looking for a multi-day jungle adventure, you should not skip Ciudad Perdida, Colombia’s Lost City.

There are many guides on the internet and after reading them, we were honestly thinking that the trek is way harder than what it turned out to be.

In general, make sure to buy directly with one of the licensed tour companies as many other companies on the internet just overcharge you. The price is set at $2.150.000 COP, which is around £435.

This price includes basically everything: transport, meals, accommodation, water at camps to refill, fruit snack breaks, the tour guide, and even a translator (if needed).

This guide will provide you with, what the Lost City is and how it was discovered, the best time to go, your trekking options, the route & difficulty level, our favourite tour company and what you should pack.

Backstory

The archaeological site in the middle of the Colombian Sierra Nevada is believed to have been founded 800CE, which is about 650 years earlier than Machu Picchu.

A couple of thousand people used to live in the ancient city, but due to Spanish colonisation, the city was abandoned.

Although indigenous people knew about its existence, the general public and government weren’t aware of the ruins’ location. In 1927 self-proclaimed treasure hunters or frankly looters discovered the site and took precious artefacts that they sold on the black market. After three years the government finally intervened and started protecting the site.

Best Time to Go

The best time to do this trek is generally during the dry season, which means from the beginning of January to the end of March. During this time you will very likely have no rain and thus the trek will be way easier to manage because you won’t have to deal with mud. On the other hand, it can get quite busy and you might have to book a bit more in advance.

Tip: Find out the exact time of Holy Week and avoid going during this time at all costs. During this time Colombians have their big yearly holidays and will be travelling especially up to the coast with their whole family. It just gets super busy and expensive everywhere.

Other months with a low chance of rain are April, June and July. During this time you might experience some rain or even non at all. This is when we went and we didn’t have any rain. The floor can be a bit wet and muddy though, so bring some good shoes for better grip and fewer chances of slipping.

During the month of September, the Lost City Trek is completely closed off. During this time the indigenous tribes living in the area will have the Lost City for themselves to come together and do a spiritual cleansing of the territory.

Trekking Options

To trek to the Lost City, you will need to go with a licensed tour company. The territory you are walking through belongs to the descendants of the Tayrona people and only six tour companies are allowed to guide tours through it.

Regardless of the company you choose the trek itself is always the same. Tour companies cannot choose another route, and everyone sleeps in the same camps.

The only difference is if you choose the 4 or 5-day option for the trek. This will determine, which camp you sleep in. We can recommend the 4-day option as the extra fifth day will just split up the return route and is really not necessary. The 4-day option is also the most popular one.

The Route & how difficult it really is

On many blogs on the internet, the hike seems way harder than what it felt like in our experience. We went during the dry season (see recommended time to go) and without rain, the trek is more than doable. As it is on no high elevation it is basically a long walk with some ups and downs that can be a bit challenging in the heat and humidity.

To put it into perspective: if you walk a lot in your everyday life or even if you just enjoy extensive walks, this is not much harder.

In general, there are breaks every 1-2 hours, where the whole group gathers and often you are served fresh fruit and can chat with your guide and your group members.

If you have weak knees or ankles, it might be challenging for you, but even then, it is doable. We had someone in our group with knee problems and she went slow and steady, but she made it.

As the 4-day route is the most popular one and the one we would also recommend, this is what you will get:

Day 1

At around 8-9 am you will be picked up at your hostel in Santa Marta and drive for like a good hour just after Tayrona National Park for a stop. At this stop, you will receive your wrist band to enter the territory, will be able to buy a snack and use the bathroom (most likely you will need your own toilet paper though).

Then you will get into the van again and drive another 1.5 hours along a windy road. In the small town of El Machete, which is the start of the trek, you have lunch, and your guide will introduce himself and the translator (if needed) and will explain the route to you.

You start hiking after lunch to Camp Adan. In total it will be about 4 hours walking, but it has plenty of breaks and at some of them you will be served fresh fruit (all included in the tour price). This part is mainly sunny and uphill, so make sure to pack enough sunscreen and a hat.

When arriving at the camp, you will be able to take a dip in a natural pool close to the camp. We highly recommend it; it helps sore muscles.

After a delicious dinner and some good conversations, most people will go to bed quite early around 8-9ish because it will be an early start (5 am) the next day.

Note: Although the camps are quite nice and well-organised, if the trek is fully booked, there are not enough beds for everyone. This means some people will have to sleep in hammocks. Each group is assigned an equal number of beds and hammocks and you will be able to sort it out with your group members. Often couples or even friends will share a bed, so the whole group can sleep in a bed.

Day 2

Today you will hike all the way to Camp Paraiso, which is around 6 hours of walking in total.

After a 5 am start and a quick breakfast, you will start hiking into the sunrise. It is simply stunning how the sun makes its way through the valleys and trees in these early hours.

Our guide asked us if we wanted to visit a Wiwa tribe and of course, everyone in the group said yes. So, we made a little stop before lunch, could rest a bit and a member of the Wiwa explained to our group their main customs and traditions.

After that, we arrived at around 10.45 am at Camp Mumake for our lunch break. While the lunch was being prepared everyone went for a dip in the cold river. Super refreshing!

After lunch, you will hike with one more major stop and some fresh fruit before arriving at Camp Paraiso at around 4-5 pm. Here you can take another dip in the river and then settle in for the night.

Day 3

Today is the big day. Depending on your tour guide, you will start hiking at around 5-6 am. After a short hike, you will reach the river crossing, where you will need to walk through the river holding on to a rope. After that, you have about 1200 steps to climb to reach the Lost City.

The walk through the Lost City starts at the lower terraces with the best view from the highest point at the very end. It never comes across on pictures how incredible it is to explore this ancient city. As it has way fewer tourists than in Machu Picchu, you feel more connected to the site.

You can also take a dip in the “fountain of youth” but be aware the water was extremely cold.

You have lunch at Camp Paraiso, pick up the things you left there in the morning and make your way back to camp Mumake for the night.

Day 4

Today is the last day and you basically just walk back to camp Adan for some late breakfast and then all the way back to the start for lunch before you will be brought back to Santa Marta.

Tour Companies

As mentioned before there are six tour companies offering the trek to the Lost City. Our friend recommended we go with Teyuna Tours, one of the smaller tour companies and this is also the company we are using for the trek that is part of our Vibrant Colombia Tour.

Prior to the pandemic, the company had a different name and owner, but when the pandemic came around the owner decided that he didn’t want to keep up with all the Covid restrictions. So, some of the tour guides came together, invested, talked to the indigenous people for permission and founded their own tour company. Because there is a high chance of your tour guide also being a partial owner of the company, the level of service and attention you get is incredible.

With a tour that is basically the same route and camps for everyone, the friendliness of your guide, the food you get served and the attention to detail are the biggest differentiators in this scenario.

We saw other tour companies pushing people to walk faster, some guides making rude comments to girls, but with Teyuna it felt like a family. We had some people in our group that weren’t as fast, but our guide Daniel would just let the faster ones walk to the next stop, where we waited for the rest, and patiently walk with the slower ones at their own pace, not rushing anyone and supporting where he can.

What to Pack

You won’t need to pack much as

Food, some fruit snacks and water are included in the price
It is quite warm, even at night – so no need to bring too thick layers

What we packed for the 4-day hike in a 24-litre backpack (per person)

1 set for sleeping: long-sleeved shirt, long jogging pants, long socks (if it looks rainy, put them in a plastic bag to stay dry)
3-4 thin t-shirts
1 pair of shorts for hiking during the day (some people prefer leggings, but with the humidity, shorts are easier to put on when damp)
4 pairs of sneaker socks
4 pairs of underwear
1 sports bra (for women)
Flip Flops (for the evenings & showers)
Trainers or hiking shoes (for during the day)
1 bikini or swim shorts
1 travel towel
Sun hat or cap
Shampoo and shower gel in travel size (we shared between the two of us, so it is less to carry)
Face wash & cream in travel size (if needed)
Deodorant
Sunscreen
Strong mosquito repellent (recommend one)
Head Torch

Discovering Colombia’s Lost City – Guide to Ciudad Perdida (2024)