Money in Colombia
Legal Tender.
The only legal tender in Colombia is the Colombian peso (COP). All other currencies are generally not accepted.
Exchanging money in Colombia.
We advise against bringing major currencies to Colombia and exchanging them in a bureau de change or currency exchange. Euros, US Dollars and UK Sterling are often exchanged for up to 10% less than their value.
Recommendations for spending in Colombia.
- We recommend bringing a fee-free debit card and a credit card. It is always prudent to have replacement cards in the event of loss.
- Aim to use your credit card for most transactions in shops, bars and restaurants.
- Either at the airport upon arrival or during a city tour on your first day, withdraw spending money from an ATM. Bancolombia allows a withdrawal of 600,000 pesos per transaction and charges 15,500 pesos. Effectively when drawing the maximum amount this represents a fee of 2.5%.
- Harder to find but cheaper, BBVA ATMs allow you to withdraw 300,000 per transaction with no additional charges. You can withdraw as many times as you wish.
- For a family of 4 undertaking a two-week trip, 2 x 600,000 pesos should be sufficient. If you still have pesos at the end of your trip then start spending them in lieu of using your credit card.
Cities where credit cards are widely accepted.
You will have no problem using a credit card for most of your spending in Bogotá, Medellín, Cartagena, Villa de Leyva, Santa Marta, Salento, San Agustín, Popayán, Cali, Leticia
Most hotels that we offer accept credit cards for incidentals. Certain places will only accept cash, Tatacoa for example.
Availability of ATMs
If you do run out of pesos. The above cities where credit cards can be used also tend to have ATMs. Certain destinations only have one ATM and often they are emptied by tourists, especially on holiday weekends. Do not assume that it will be possible to withdraw money in Salento, Taganga, Barichara, Villavieja, Bahía Solano, Palomino, La Macarena, Mompox.
San Agustín has no major banks, provincial banks may not work as expected with international debit cards.
Medellín, Bogotá and Cartagena Airports all have ATMs. Pereira has inbound flights from Panamá City but limited ATMs. For clients arriving to Pereira we are happy to add a stop at Bancolombia before leaving the city.
All inclusive tours
Bear in mind that certain tours have no ATMs and nowhere takes credit cards, but also there is nowhere to spend money either. Palmarí, Gorgona and Ciudad Perdida are such examples.
Other all inclusive tours such as Caño Cristales have very limited spending opportunities and cash is only required for night time drinks.
Hotel or nature reserve packages such as Bahía Solano and Palomino hotels only have hotel incidentals to spend money on.
The coffee zone
For clients staying in family fincas in the coffee zone, most meals are included and there is nothing additional to spend money on apart from beers and other drinks during the evening. When continuing onwards to Salento the above information relating to credit cards and ATMs applies.
Avoiding scams
- NEVER exchange cash in the street.
- A genuine law enforcement officer will never ask to check your bank notes. NEVER show your money to strangers in the street
