On my second visit to Colombia, I made it a point to take a fruit tour. There’s just so many fruits that I’ve never seen or heard of before and I wanted the opportunity to learn more about them (and to taste them).
So, on my last full day in Colombia, I finally took a tour at Paloquemado Market in Bogota where I was able to sample more than 20 different fruits. It was a fantastic few hours and something that I’d recommend for anyone heading to Colombia.
What to Expect on a Bogota Fruit Market Tour
I met my guide at the entrance to the Paloquemado Market, which is well outside the typical tourist zone. It’s so much outside this zone that our guides recommended taking a taxi or an Uber to get to the market. As you drive past, you’ll understand why. It’s not outrageously dangerous, but it definitely feels more uneasy than some of the bigger tourist areas of Bogota (like La Candelaria). Basically if a local is telling you that you need to take a taxi, there’s a reason for it.
My Bogota Fruit Market Tour was a group tour, but because it’s a market tour (and a non touristy market at that), groups are kept very small, so my group was just three other people. It was a couple from Canada, a man who lived in Bogota (I’m not sure what his story was), and myself. Plus there was our guide, Val, who was absolutely fantastic.
After some brief introductions, we entered Paloquemado Market. As mentioned, it’s well outside the tourist area, so it’s mostly full of locals shopping for their produce. That said, Paloquemado Market isn’t the market most locals visit for their weekly shopping. According to Val, it’s more expensive than many of the other markets in Bogota so unless you live right next store (like Val), most locals will skip this market. However, Paloquemado Market carries many specialty fruits and vegetables which is what draws certain shoppers specifically to this market, despite the high prices.
Our first stop was for something to drink. We had the option for coffee, hot chocolate, or a specialty mix made by the vendor which contained rice, cocoa, and five other ingredients. I’m not a coffee drinker, so I tried the hot chocolate (which was Val’s favorite). I’ll admit that I’m not a huge fan of Colombian hot chocolate. My problem is that it’s just so much more bitter than what I am used to, so it’s not my favorite. Luckily for me, almost everything else we tried that day was delicious.
After our hot drinks, we headed to another treat. Pan de Bolos are popular and you’ll find them all over Colombia. Despite seeing them everywhere (but not having a word for it, or knowing what exactly they were), I had never actually had one. It’s a bread with cheese and since ours were fresh from the oven, it was absolutely delicious.
I know I said this was a fruit tour at Paloquemado Market, but we actually had one more stop before we started tasting the exotic fruits. Paloquemado Market is more than just fruits and vegetables, so we took a stroll through the flower market. It’s a beautiful, colorful area that’s full of great photo opportunities. Did you know that Colombia is the largest exporter of flowers to the United States? The flowers that you see here, which are absolutely beautiful, are those that didn’t quite make the cut to be exported.
We asked how much the flowers were, just out of curiosity. You could get two dozen roses for 20,000 pesos (about $5 USD). Needless to say, we were a bit shocked at that price. It’s so cheap compared to what you’d pay in the United States.
Now, it was finally time to get onto fruit tasting. Like I mentioned earlier, we tried over 25 fruits. I lost track at some point of exactly how many fruits we tried and I can’t even tell you the names of everything.
What I can say is the only fruit that I think I’ve seen at home is a dragon fruit, but the dragonfruit that we tried was yellow, not pink, because Val believes that the yellow dragonfruit has more flavor. I’m not sure if that’s true because the yellow dragonfruit didn’t seem to have a lot of flavor either.
Of all of the fruits, my favorite flavor is the guanoabana (soursop in English), though I’m not a fan of the texture. The mangostein was also delicious.
Since I can’t describe (or even list) every single fruit we tried, here’s some photos from inside the Paloquemado Fruit Market.
About halfway through the fruits, we paused and ate some empanadas, which were also delicious. Then, it was back to tasting more fruits. We tried three kinds of guava, passion fruits, and so many others.
We also tried Colombian apples. Colombia doesn’t produce a lot of apples and after trying theirs, I can see why they focus on so many of their other fruits. The apple was fine, but I wouldn’t call it great. Colombians also know this. Val said she doesn’t usually include apples (because they aren’t great) on her fruit tour but since we asked about apples, she decided to include it just so we could try it.
Three and a half hours later, our tour was over and our stomachs were incredibly full. To recap, we had 25+ fruits, hot chocolate, pan de bolos, and empanadas. Plus our tour finished with a fresh juice of our choosing (I chose the banana passionfruit on Val’s recommendation after I shared that I loved guanabana juice). No one on the tour was planning anything for lunch at this point, but we all went our separate ways, very satisfied with our tour.
Who Offers Bogota Fruit Market Tours
There are a few fruit tasting tours in Bogota and this post was just my experience with my tour at Paloquemado Market. That said, this is not the only market tour, or the only fruit market, that you can visit in Bogota (or even in Colombia).
I had actually planned to book with a different company (Beyond Colombia, who I had used a few years ago for a day trip from Bogota), but they tried to charge me an outrageous single supplement for a group tour which is very frustrating.
Instead, I found a different tour on Viator. It was a little bit more expensive, but we were able to try at least ten more fruits and I loved that it was such a small group.
So, if you’re looking for a fruit tour in Bogota, I highly recommend booking this tour.
When to Take a Fruit Market Tour
The obvious answer to when to take a market tour in when you’re in Bogota. However, I would highly recommend a market tour in any city you visit in Colombia. In fact, I’d recommend trying to take a market tour early in your trip.
As mentioned, I took my market tour on my last day in Colombia. I’m so glad I took it, but it would have been much better had I taken it earlier. It would have made my experience in Colombia that much better had I known about all of these different fruits earlier in my trip.
More in Bogota
Bogota is Colombia’s capital city and it’s full of museums and good food. For most travelers, I recommend one day in Bogota to see the city’s highlights, including a visit to Monseratte for views overlooking the city. Of course, if you plan to take a market tour, you’ll need a little more time in the city. Consider spending two days in Bogota.
If you have even more time, you can day trip outside of the city. On my first trip to Colombia, I spent two days in Bogota and spent my second day on a day trip to Guatavita and Zipaquira. Guatavita is what inspired the legendary city of El Dorado, while Zipaquira is home to the Salt Cathedral, which is one of the Seven Wonders of Colombia.
Final Thoughts
Even though I’m a self described picky eater, I really enjoyed my tour of the Paloquemado Market. The market itself was fun to explore and having a guide to explain what exactly we were eating made everything that much better. So my recommendation? Splurge and take the tour to try just a few of Colombia’s many unique fruits.
Continue Your Adventure
Bogota: See the highlights with one day in Bogota, including the iconic view of Monseratte. For a day trip, consider visiting Guatavita Lagoon and Zipaquirá Salt Cathedral.
Medellin: Bogota is not the only large city in Colombia. Spend two days touring Medellin and take a day trip to Guatapé. To the west of Medellin, you’ll find great hikes in Jardin and the beautiful Cueva del Esplendor.
Cartagena and the Coast: Explore the colorful city of Cartagena in one day. Further down the coast you’ll find Tayrona National Park.
More in Colombia: Start planning your trip with my Colombia Travel Guide, which includes a 9 day itinerary, my top travel tips, a detailed travel budget, my best safety tips, and advice for when to travel to Colombia.
