There are countless hikes throughout Colombia, but one of the most rewarding is the Lost City Trek that departs from Santa Marta. Over the course of four days, you’ll cover over 30 miles with plenty of elevation gain as you sweat your way through the jungle to the Lost City of the Indigenous Tayrona people. It’s a difficult trek, there’s no doubt about that, but it’s a bucket list item for many hikers.
So, during my extended trip through South America, I set aside a few days to do the Lost City Trek. Here’s what that was like.
What is the Lost City Trek
The Lost City is a bit of a misnomer. It was never truly lost because the local indigenous people always knew where it existed. It was until the late twentieth century that it was “rediscovered”. Now days, plenty of tourists make the 3, 4, or 5 day trek from the town of El Mamey to the Lost City. It’s tough trek covering over 30 miles with over 10,000 feet of elevation gain and descent across uneven terrain. Your reward for all of this hard work is the chance to visit this spiritual place.
The Lost City Trek
There are a few ways to do the Lost City Trek. Every trek follows the same route, but the number of days varies. Four days is the most common option, and that’s what I chose to book. But there are also options for 3, 5, and even 6 days.
The price for the Lost City Trek is fixed across all operators, so if you only care about price, it really doesn’t matter which company you trek with. Everyone is going the same route and you’ll inevitably be sharing at least one camp with other tour groups.
And lastly, you are required to go with a group. One guy in our group tried his hardest to find a way to visit the Lost City without a guided tour. Since he was in my tour group, it’s safe to say that he failed that mission.
Ok, here’s what the Lost City Trek is actually like.
Day One – The “Easy” Day
The first day of the Lost City Trek is known as the easy day, but it doesn’t feel easy in the moment. Once you complete the trek, you look back and realize that it was the easiest day of the trek, which is how it gets its name. But before you can start trekking, you have to get to the trailhead.
I booked my trip with ExpoTur because they had the most reviews and some of the highest reviews at the time I booked. With ExpoTur, they’ll pick you up from your hotel in the morning and bring you to their office. For me, this was nice because I stayed at a hostel outside of the Santa Marta historic center (where their office is located). For others, it felt like an inconvenience because their hotel was less than a five minute walk from the office, but they still had to go through the process of being picked up.
At the office, people were given the chance to store any bags that they didn’t want to bring with them. I purposely booked a hostel that included free baggage storage, so I thankfully didn’t have to lug my big backpack across town which is a decision I don’t regret. It took nearly an hour of waiting around the tour office before we finally loaded up and left. No one is really sure why it took so long because we all made our payments and storing bags took about 10 minutes tops, but we all sat and waited. This sitting around and waiting would prove to be a trend on our Lost City Trek.
From Santa Marta, you have a two hour drive to El Mamey. The first part is easy and it’s along a paved road (the same road that goes to Tayrona National Park and Palomino), but then you turn off into the mountains and get a complementary “massage”. The road is so bumpy and the seats of the ExpoTur jeeps are sideways so we bumped and bounced along the windy mountain road for an hour before reaching El Mamey.
Along the way, our jeep stopped to pick up a rather large package. We weren’t quite sure what it was, so we joked it was a TV while the driver and guide struggled to get it strapped to the roof of the vehicle. This package would become very important later in our trek.
We arrived in El Mamey in time for lunch. This is where we got our first meal of the trek and it was delicious. I cannot speak highly enough of the food on my Lost City Trek. The food was incredible and some of the best I’ve had in Colombia (and I wasn’t alone in that declaration). Lunch was grilled chicken in a tomato sauce with rice, fried plantain, and a small salad. Delicious.
After lunch, we were given an overview of what the trek would look like. I took a photo of the diagram of the wall and referred to it often, but I don’t really think the diagram really does it justice to show what exactly you are getting into on this trek. It just isn’t possible to full illustrate the terrain and elevation profile of this particular trail.
Finally, it was time to start trekking.
On the first day (and last day), you’re given a choice to take a moto taxi to Camp 1 (for 35,000 COP) or to send your bag ahead (for 25,000 COP). No one in my group took them up on the offer and honestly, I think if you can’t survive day one, you’re not going to survive the rest of the trek. But that’s just my opinion and the option for a mototaxi is there.
From El Mamey, the trail starts off nice and pretty flat for Colombia. The first mile is pretty easy hiking and then you get your first taste of hiking uphill on the Lost City Trek. It’s still paved road, but it’s incredibly steep. Over the next 2.8 miles, you gain about 1500 feet of elevation. It’s tough and made harder by the fact that it’s on pavement.
This area is completely exposed so most hikers have to add heat and direct sunlight to the steep uphill. We got lucky and hiked on an overcast day, but I still wouldn’t call this easy and I wasn’t surprised that I fell behind most of the group.
I spent last year training for hiking in South America by taking full advantage of the gym at my company’s office. As much as I hated all those hours on the treadmill and stair master, I 100% think it helped me here. Yes, I was often last in my group, but only by about five or ten minutes (even less when it was a more flat or downhill section).
Speaking of my group, it’s a good time to mention that I seemed to be paired with some of the most athletic people on the planet. In our group of 12, eight of them kept up with our guides pace without any problem (which is pretty unusual for Lost City hikers). One couple floated between the back and keeping up with the group and another girl was pretty close to my pace.
I didn’t think I was slow, and by the average pace of the Lost City Trek, I was average or even slightly faster than average. I just happened to be in a group full of incredibly fast hikers (to the point that our guides commented that we were a very fast group). I made it, but holy crap, it was a workout to try to keep up—on top of the workout that is the Lost City Trek.
Anyway. Along the way we’d stop at little shops where they sell water, gatorade, and snacks to the hikers passing through. This first day lulled us into a false sense of security. Our first stop was about 45 minutes in and then we had another stop 20 minutes later and another stop 20 minutes after that. We’d learn later that this is not the norm which in some ways was kind of disappointing to learn.
After the 1500 feet of elevation gain, we transitioned into “Colombian Flat”. The first mile of the trail was more or less flat, but from this point on, any flat section came with plenty of up and down. It was just not as extensive enough to be justified as an “uphill” or “downhill” section. For another mile and a quarter, we hiked along the Colombian Flat, before we finally began our descent into camp.
At some point during the Colombian Flat, it began to rain, so we stopped to put on our rain covers. We were already drenched in sweat, so we didn’t care about our clothes getting wet, but we definitely wanted everything in our packs to stay dry. It can be a massive challenge to get anything dry on the Lost City Trek so we had to take whatever precautions we could. I had a cover for my backpack but many others were tying rain jackets around their packs into a makeshift cover.
The descent into camp was treacherous, thanks to the rain. The clay path turned muddy and slippery and it was very slow going. Those of us who had hiking poles were incredibly grateful. We joked that we complained about carrying them all over Colombia but this last mile into camp proved their worth. We made it into camp five minutes before the heavens opened and unleashed a torrential downpour.
One of the highlights of the Lost City Trek is swimming in the river after a long day of trekking. We got into too late and didn’t get to take advantage which was a bummer, but the cold shower felt incredible. We rinsed off, hung out our clothes in an attempt to dry them, and settled into dinner where we had another delicious meal. More rice, plantain, and salad, but this time with fried fish and a candy bar for dessert. There’s also a store in camp so most people celebrated with beer (I stuck with Gatorade).
After dinner, our guide and translator told us about the history of farming in this part of Colombia. It’s a fascinating history filled with displaced farmers, narcos, and indigenous people and there is no way I can possibly do the story justice, especially since our main guide was one of those displaced farmers.
Lights out was at 9:00 pm, so we crawled into our bunks lined with mosquito nets and tried to get some sleep for the next big day.
Day Two – The “Long” Day
Day two is supposed to be the longest day on the trail, but day 3 would prove to be almost equally as long. Today we needed to reach camp 3, which is nearly 10 miles away.
The lights came on at 5:00 am and we all stumbled out of bed and started to get ready for the day. In the jungle, it’s damp and humid and nothing ever dries, so putting on our damp clothes from yesterday wasn’t a particularly pleasant experience. That said, you get used to it and within twenty minutes of hiking, all of your clothes are wet again, so it doesn’t really pay to bring a clean pair of clothes for every single day (though dry socks and clean underwear are obviously a must).
Breakfast was eggs, toast, and fresh fruit. By 6:00 am, the morning light was starting to shine through and shortly after, we started our hike. Yes, it’s early, but is much cooler in the morning, so we always wanted to get an early start.
Day two of the Lost City Trek is divided into two parts. In the morning, you’ll hike from camp 1 to camp 2. At camp 2, you’ll stop for a break and for lunch. Then in the afternoon, you’ll hike to camp 3 which includes a section sarcastically named “happy hour”.
From camp 1, you’ll gradually climb up 1200 feet over the course of about two miles. Honestly, this felt like some of the easiest uphill of the trek and I was able to keep pretty good pace with the rest of the group. I was toward the back, but I was right with them nearly the entire way, which I was very proud of. We stopped at a store about an hour and 15 minutes in for a break where we could take off our packs, get some water, and enjoy some fresh fruit. At the lower stops, we were given fresh watermelon (which I’m not a fan of, but I was told was delicious).
After about twenty minutes, we got back to hiking for another hour hike into camp 2. This was downhill and we descended nearly 1100 feet over a mile and a half. Again, I was able to keep pretty good pace with the rest of the group and we made it into camp 2 shortly after 9:00 am. That gave us a very long time to spend at camp 2, since we’d be eating lunch here. We already knew it’d be an early lunch, but we still had time to kill.
Since our meals are served warm, all of our meals have to be timed with the camps along the Lost City Trek as these are the only places that have kitchen facilities. But before lunch, we had time to kill. The sun was out and there were loads of clothes lines, so we all took our damp things from yesterday and left them out in the sun. Believe it or not, we actually had some dry items of clothing and it was wonderful.
We also took a short walk down to the river for a swim. A few of us, myself included, decided to skip the swim just because we didn’t want to go through the hassle of changing into swimsuits and then putting our dirty, stinky clothes back on. After 45 minutes by the river, it was back to camp for lunch. We had soup, carne asada, rice, and vegetables. A very filling meal to prepare us for the afternoon.
Now’s where we got frustrated again. All of the other groups in camp got to leave pretty soon after they finished eating, but we were told that we had to wait an hour “for digestion”. I’m all for letting your food settle, but we all wanted to get to camp early so we’d have the opportunity to take a dip in the river at the end of the day, but our guides said we had to wait. Spoiler: we didn’t make it to camp in time.
Finally, at 11:30, we packed up and started our trek again as the last group to leave lunch. This would be one of the harder sections of trail. The first hour is pretty normal as it’s Colombian flat as we worked our way through a village and passed another camp until we reached a suspension bridge.
This was one of the very few break spots we had that didn’t have a store nearby, but it’s the perfect place to stop. We caught our breath, drank some water, and ate some snacks to prepare for what was to come. I broke out a bag of Nerds Gummy Clusters that I had received in my company Christmas box. They were great for giving me a sugar boost and a huge hit among the group of international travelers who had never tried them before.
Now it was time for “Happy Hour”, a section of trail that is anything but happy. It’s an exposed section of trail that’s straight up for an hour. Over a mile and a half, you gain about 1200 feet of elevation and it’s just unrelenting. Unsurprisingly, I fell to the back of the group, but there were four of us powering through it together. The rest of our group was able to go at our assistant guide’s pace and made it with minimal issue from what I heard.
But here’s the problem. The four of us at the back got separated from the main group. We were only about five minutes behind, but the assistant guide just powered through until the next scheduled stop. That’s fine, but she led the group through an alternate route that was incredibly easy to miss. How do I know it’s easy to miss? Because we walked right past it.
The alternate route is incredibly steep, and debatably steeper than the rest of “Happy Hour”, but it has a huge advantage: there isn’t a mud pit that is a foot deep and eats shoes. We continued on the “normal” route and came to the worst mud path. At one point, I nearly lost my shoe, but I got it back. Then a bit later, I lost my other shoe and that was an ordeal. Thankfully, there was another guide leading two women who was able to come and help me dig it out.
Things ended up working out fine and we rejoined the path and met up with the rest of my group, but I was so annoyed and my mood was soured for the rest of the day. Well, I was angry about what happened because I was the only one of the four of us that nearly lost a shoe, but what tipped me over the edge, was finding out that there was an alternate route that we didn’t know about. We took that route on the way back and it definitely would have been difficult for the four of us, but at least I wouldn’t have ended up in mud.
So I mentioned that the assistant guide was leading. Where was our actual guide and translator? Well do you remember that “TV” that we picked up on the day one? It was actually a museum display case that for a mini museum that our guide wants to create a camp 3. They were carrying up a fully assembled museum display case on their shoulders so even though they are used to climbing this route, they were significantly behind us and didn’t reach camp 3 until over an hour after us.
It was a shitty situation and one that I think was super unique to my group. It was just a perfect storm. A group that was incredibly fast, guides that needed to carry a display case, and a few people who couldn’t keep up with the main group. Plus, because we were the last group to leave camp, it wasn’t as if we could just stop and attach ourselves to another group.
As mentioned, my mood was soured for the rest of the day and I just couldn’t wait to be done. I stumbled in to the rest stop annoyed and embarrassed and then got angry after learning about the alternate route. Even the delicious fresh pineapple wasn’t enough to snap me out of this bad mood.
We still had another 2.3 miles to hike. The good news is that this was Colombian flat and since my shoes were already covered in mud, I didn’t care at all about stream crossings and just walked straight through. But I still found myself falling behind.
Our assistant guide did stop a twice on this section, but the first stop was only because one woman forced her to stop and wait us stragglers because of what happened last time. The last stop was more to make sure that everyone kept going because there are two camp 3s and we camped in the far one.
I was relieved to be done hiking for the day and once in camp, I took myself down to the river to attempt to clean my shoes. I got a ton of mud off my shoes, socks, and hiking poles, but I knew there was no way my shoes were going to be dry by the time we hiked tomorrow. Still, I didn’t have a choice and I had to try to get some of the mud caked off. I should have taken a picture of my shoes before I cleaned them, but honestly, it was the last thing from my mind.
I took a shower and used the makeshift laundry facility to clean out my muddy clothes as best as I could and tried to put the day behind me. I still had two more days and I couldn’t keep up this bad attitude.
Our guides finally came into camp with the cabinet and you could tell they were just absolutely exhausted. They may climb these mountains constantly (our translator has done this more than 100 times), but even he was completely spent after carrying that cabinet.
Dinner was again delicious and after dinner, our story was about the native Tayrona people and how they have lived on this land. We were tired from hiking, but even our guides were exhausted, so they only gave about half the story. There was a promise to do the rest tomorrow, once we (but more importantly they) had some time to rest.
Again, lights out was at 9:00 and we all tried to get as much sleep as we could. Tomorrow we’d finally be visiting the Lost City.
Day Three – “Lost City” Day
The night before, there was a lot of debate about what time we should get up. We were staying in the closest camp to the Lost City, so we had a 20-30 minute head start from all of the other groups. We wanted to take advantage of that, but our guides wanted to get a later start. It took some convincing, but we finally agreed to a 5:00 am wake up, 5:30 breakfast, and 6:00 am departure.
My clothes were still pretty wet from the day before so I put on my second set of hiking clothes. While I knew they were going to be sweaty and dirty within 30 minutes, it was so nice putting on clean clothes. My shoes weren’t dry, but I didn’t have a choice so I slid on my wet shoes.
Shortly after 6:00, we left camp and started making our way to the Lost City. While an out and back trail isn’t the most exciting, it does mean we’d be retracing our steps so we got to leave most of our things behind at camp. Our backpacks felt so light since the only thing we carried was water, sunscreen, and bug spray (and in my case, one hiking pole).
From our camp to the Lost City, it was less than a mile, but it came with nearly 900 feet of elevation. The entrance to the Lost City is a series of 1200 steps. They are made of rocks, have uneven spacing and are of varying widths, so it can be pretty slow going. As always, I was the last to reach the top, but those stairs can be treacherous and I was determined not to fall (and I didn’t!). 40 minutes later we were at the entrance to the Lost City.
For the next three hours, our guides led us on a tour around the area. Like with all groups, we only visited a small part of the Lost City since the site itself is close to 4 square kilometers. But we were one of the first groups to arrive and that meant that as we climbed up to the most iconic views, we were able to get some great photos without other tourists. The site was beautiful and after two days of strenuous hiking, it was exciting to finally be there.
At the top, our guides told us they had a surprise for us. That surprise was fresh fruit kebabs (with some candy and goat cheese). I think every group gets fresh fruit at the Lost City, but from what I could see, we definitely had the most elaborate display of fruit. Like with all of our stops, the fruit was so fresh and delicious. I cannot stress how much I’m going to miss this fresh pineapple.
Many groups hike into the Lost City and hike out the same way they came in. We did a loop through the Lost City, so we continued on to where the market area was and walked down a path that offered another, very different view of the Lost City. That was really cool.
Along the way, we also got a pretty unique experience. The indigenous spiritual leader, Rumaldo, lives here. He’s the representative for all of the indigenous people of Colombia and appears on the back of the 50,000 peso note. We not only got to meet him, but we were able to make a donation and receive a bracelet from him. The bracelet comes with four different colored beads and offers protection from various elements (my bracelet included beads for protection from the mountains, night, and sun).
Everyone in my group made a donation because when else are you going to get this opportunity and it’s a pretty cool souvenir from your trek. It also felt special because when we looked around at camp that night (which we shared with some other groups), we seemed to be the only group with these bracelets. So, again, it’s a pretty cool experience.
Before we knew it, our three hours in the Lost City was complete and we had to start making our way back to our camp. That meant descending those 1200 steps and in my opinion, descending was worse than ascending. I stayed toward the very back of the group, knowing that I would be slow (though one woman explicitly wanted to be last for this so I let her).
To really drive home how tough these stairs can be, I was climbing down and heard someone behind me fall. I stopped and turned around. Our guide was the person who had slipped and fell. He was fine and laughed about it, but it really drove home how careful I needed to be on these steps. The woman at the back of our group (who was behind our guide) later told me that he fell twice.
Back at camp, we had a longer break so we moved all of our clothes out into the sunshine. Lunch was fine, but it wasn’t my favorite meal of the trip. It was a pasta with a ground beef. These on their own were fine, but our sauce option was ketchup, so most of us just ate it plain.
Finally, we loaded up all of our stuff (our bags feeling much heavier than they did this morning since we had all of our stuff again) and started the trek to camp 2. This was the reverse of the trek we did yesterday afternoon. The good news is that it was mostly downhill, but it was still not an easy trek. Over 6.3 miles, we descended 2,500 feet (though we still gained 1,000 feet over the course of the afternoon).
Since we were heading downhill, it was a bit easier to keep up with the group and I saw the alternate route that they took yesterday. It was difficult and one man stayed in place to give everyone a hand during a particularly large step. I’m glad we didn’t have to go through the mud, but I couldn’t help but think how difficult this would have been yesterday if it was just the four of us. I know we would have made it, but I don’t think either route (this extra steep route or the mud route) were particularly pleasant.
What’s funny is we descended through the “Happy Hour” section and all of us had the same strange feeling. Descending “Happy Hour” felt a lot longer than ascending. It made us feel really good about what we did yesterday since we didn’t remember this particular section being that long.
We took one more break at the suspension bridge before the final push into camp. This section felt pretty easy (for the Lost City Trek) yesterday, but today it just felt like a slog. I was ready to be done hiking and the trail just seemed to keep going and going and going. Finally, we arrived at camp for the night.
Despite it being later than we would have liked, a few of us went down to the river for a swim. We hadn’t gotten a lot of opportunities for it and we decided that since it was our last night, we were going to take advantage. The water was cold, but felt so refreshing. Had the sun been out, it would have felt even better.
After a shower and dinner, we all felt exhausted and struggled to stay awake until 9:00 lights out. Our group was exhausted and went to bed early, but another group was celebrating a birthday and somehow still had enough energy to stay up drinking for another hour after lights out. I have no idea where their energy came from and wished I had it.
Day Four – “All Downhill”
We got up at 5:00 am on the last day of the trek and ate a traditional, regional breakfast before setting off. Like every other departure, we were the last group to leave camp, but today was our last day of trekking. I was definitely ready to be done and I think a lot of other people were too. We kept thinking about the small luxuries that awaited for us when we got back to Santa Marta. Things like shampoo, a warm shower (which is not necessarily easy to find in Colombia), a bed without a mosquito net.
Before we could do that, we had one last trek and despite today being the last day, we still had a lot of ground to cover. From camp 2 back to El Mamey, it was 9.1 miles of hiking. The other interesting fact is that today was supposed to be the “downhill” day as we descended into El Mamey. Well it was downhill and my watch logged 3,130 feet of elevation loss, but my watch also logged 2,330 feet of elevation gain. The Colombian flat strikes again.
By the final day, I was tired and I gave up any pretense of trying to keep up with the rest of our group. I let myself fall to the back and didn’t feel guilty about it, especially since I was only 10 minutes behind at most. It was nice traveling at my own pace.
We took an extended break at camp 1 and then we just had one final push uphill and then it was truly almost all downhill as made our way back to El Mamey. On this last section, another girl (who was typically toward the back of the group) and I got talking which really helped to pass the time. By this point we were out of the jungle and walking on pavement, so while we had some mountain views, it wasn’t as interesting as what we had been walking through before. So we stuck together and did the last few miles together, talking about anything that crossed our minds.
Finally, we reached El Mamey where we found our group. We had one last lunch together before our departure back to Santa Marta.
Because of how ExpoTur works, the jeeps that drop off tourists for the Lost City Trek are the same jeeps that take the people who completed the trek back. So we ate at a table just next to people who were getting ready to start day 1 of their trek. We all commented how they looked so clean, so naive, and how they had no idea what they were getting into.
After lunch, we piled into the jeeps and took the bumpy road back down the mountain and the main road into Santa Marta. We made it.
After the Lost City Trek
The trek is exhausting and takes a lot out of you. Most people on our tour planned a least a few days of relaxation before continuing on with their travels. Of course there were some who continued their travels immediately and I have to wonder how they are doing.
As for me, I returned to Santa Marta for the night. It was long enough to get a good shower, send my disgusting hiking clothes out for laundry, and get a good sleep. The next day, I caught a local bus for Palomino, a small beach town about two hours from Santa Marta and the perfect place to just chill for a few days. And chill was all I could do as torrential rains battered Palomino and the Santa Marta area for half of my stay.
The rain was devastating for the local region as it triggered some landslides (including one that took out part of the only bridge linking Santa Marta and Palomino). I’m thankful that my only impact was a day spent entirely inside in a beach destination and a slightly more interesting journey back to Santa Marta. Several locals weren’t as lucky and it wasn’t until I was on the bus back to Santa Marta that I could really see how much damage that rain storm caused.
Lost City Trek Stats
I found it difficult to get actual stats of what to expect on the Lost City Trek, so here’s what I logged on my Garmin watch. Note that the times are just times spent hiking. Anytime we paused for an extended break (which was typically every hour or so), I’d pause my watch. So add roughly 30-60 minutes to any of the times you see listed for the true time it took for hiking.
By Section
Day 1 – El Mamey Village to Camp 1 – 5.5 miles, 1800 feet of elevation gain, 985 feet of elevation loss, 2 hours 30 minutes
Day 2 Morning – Camp 1 to Camp 2 – 3.65 miles, 1240 feet of elevation gain, 1350 feet of elevation loss, 2 hours 5 minutes
Day 2 Afternoon – Camp 2 to Camp 3 – 6.35 miles, 2490 feet of elevation gain, 1000 feet of elevation loss, 3 hours 45 minutes
Day 3 Morning – Camp 3 to Lost City – 0.9 miles, 850 feet of elevation gain, 115 feet of elevation loss, 42 minutes
Day 3 Morning – Exploring the Lost City – 1.85 miles, 427 feet of elevation gain, 410 feet of elevation loss, 3 hours (I never paused my watch at the stops)
Day 3 Morning – Lost City to Camp 3 – 0.85 miles, 115 feet of elevation gain, 800 feet of elevation loss, 50 minutes (I started a smidge late)
Day 3 Afternoon – Camp 3 to Camp 2 – 6.3 miles, 1065 feet of elevation gain, 2555 feet of elevation loss, 3 hours 10 minutes
Day 4 – Camp 2 to El Mamey – 9.1 miles, 2335 feet of elevation gain, 3130 feet of elevation loss, 4 hours 25 minutes
By Day
Day 1 – 5.5 miles, 1800 feet of elevation gain, 985 feet of elevation loss, 2 hours 30 minutes
Day 2 – 10 miles, 3730 feet of elevation gain, 2345 feet of elevation loss, 5 hours 50 minutes
Day 3 – 9.85 miles, 2455 feet of elevation gain, 3885 feet of elevation loss, 7 hours, 45 minutes (includes the full three hours at the Lost City)
Day 4 – 9.1 miles, 2335 feet of elevation gain, 3130 feet of elevation loss, 4 hours 25 minute
Total
Distance: 34.5 miles
Elevation Gain: 10,320 feet
Elevation Loss: 10,341 feet
Total Hiking Time: 20 hours 25 minutes
Important Notes About the Lost City Trek
You must do the Lost City Trek with a tour. The good news is that tour price is fixed, so it doesn’t matter who you book with, you’ll be paying the same amount. Therefore, I recommend reading reviews for the different companies. ExpoTur, MagicTours, and Wiwa Tours were the three big groups I saw doing the trek, but there are other companies who do the trek.
I chose ExpoTur because they had the most reviews and some of the highest reviews. While my guide and translator weren’t as present and I would have liked for day 2, I realize that I had a special scenario because of the display case. Our guide did apologize to us for not being as present that day and tried to make up for it the rest of the trek telling stories and pointing out all sorts of native plants (though since I was behind the main group, I didn’t get some of these explanations). I’d still recommend ExpoTur though.
Remember that you’ll need to carry your own gear, so it’s important to pack light. I have a lot of thoughts about packing for the Lost City Trek, so I’ve put together a Lost City Packing List (coming soon!).
Bring plenty of cash on your trek. There are no ATMs and you’ll need cash to make any purchases from the local stores whether you want water, gatorade, beer, or some kind of snack. I recommend bringing at least 100,000 COP, but if you plan to buy water instead of using the free, filtered water I’d bring more.
Filtered water is provided for free at all of the camps along the Lost City Trek. However, I’ve read so many stories about people getting sick from this water, that I decided to bring my Steri-Pen. I used the filtered water, but I treated it with my Steri-Pen before drinking it. This worked for me and I never got sick during my trek.
When to Do the Lost City Trek
In general, it’s up to you when you do the Lost City Trek, but I would highly recommend reconsidering if you are traveling during the rainy season. The trek is hard enough in the dry season and adding rain just feels like a recipe for disaster.
We had rain on our first day and that made the trail exceptionally slippery and treacherous. We all made it, but it was not easy. I can’t imagine doing the entire trail like that.
Final Thoughts
The Lost City Trek is a difficult hike and one that shouldn’t be underestimated. I knew the hike was going to be hard and it definitely was, but I’m so glad I put in some effort the year before to prepare for it because I know it made my journey easier. At the same time, that difficulty is what makes the experience so much more rewarding.
Continue Your Adventure
Tayrona National Park: It’s more hiking, but before or after your trek, make the trip to Tayrona National Park for a fun beach day.
Colombia: Start planning your trip with my Colombia Travel Guide which includes a realistic travel budget, my top travel tips, safety information, a nine day itinerary, and so much more.