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Yes, Cartagena de Indias is touristy, with the street sellers to match, but the beauty of the old town is worth putting up with it. I visited for 3 days in August; time to wander and explore without feeling rushed. I spent a morning watching and photographing the pelicans on the beach; the chiva tours are just drink as much as you can and shout a lot.

Avoid the Darrien Gap - Read The Cloud Garden by Tom Hart Dyke and Paul Winder to know why!

I've visited Colombia quite a few times and i'm slowly trying to visit as many places as i can but it has so much to offer that i may not have time to do it all in my lifetime :op If you go up to Santa Marta, there isn't a great deal to do in Santa Marta itself, but get yourself over to Parque Tayrona which is spectacular and that will be a definate highlight of your trip. Usually you have to trek through the jungle to get to the paradisiacal beaches but for you, seeing what you like, you can also hire horses to ride through the jungle and also along the beaches which is a very nice touch. Taganga is very good for diving so that is definately a good option. I would highly recommend visiting Cartagena because although it is quite touristic it's nothing like other mass tourism destinations in Latin America so this makes it a must for its sheer beauty and friendly atmosphere. You can also take a speedboat ride to the Rosario Islands just off the coast to do some scubering if it tickles your fancy. San Agustin is the largest area of ancient standing stone sculptures in all of latin america as laid out by UNESCO and is very interesting but you're right that it's quite far. It just depends on your budget and the time you have to spend there. Other recommendations for you would be La Guajira desert peninsula which is the northernmost point of South America, the department of Santander that is the extreme sports capital of Colombia, the famous Coffee Region with it beautiful landscapes and of course the Amazon Rainforest in the south. Hope this helps and have a great time. If you want any other advice or wanna ask me other questions, drop me a message no probs. Mitch

Mitch Thank you so much for the great advice. La Guajira sounds wonderful - will try and get there if I have time! I think I'm going to skip San Agustin this time and stick to north Colombia - like you say there is always next time! Cheers, Laura