Most people who travel in South America will overland their way from one country to the next.
While I was in Ecuador, I decided I wanted to go to Colombia next, since both countries are next to each other. It turns out there are several steps required to complete this long journey from Quito to Bogota.
In our fourth and final Hilton credit card points redemption for this trip, we decided to splurge in our final city in South America.
Although some of our redemption choices in the past were for more stylish hotels, the Hilton Cartagena in Colombia was calling to us in order to recover after our six month journey around the continent. With 120,000 points and two weekend certificates remaining in our accounts, we were able to exchange these for five-nights in an Executive room (after our gold status upgrade) worth $279/night.
As in the case of our previous stays, we have to ask one question: was the property worth our points?
Colombia is an interesting destination for coffee lovers.
Just because Colombia is the third largest producer of coffee in the world doesn't mean you can easily find a great cup of joe there.
Similarly to the great cacao produced in Ecuador, in the recent past pretty much all of the great coffee produced in Colombia has been exported to other countries.
That left Colombia with low-quality beans and people who didn't necessarily know how to roast and brew coffee.
Luckily, over the past few years, specialty coffee shops focused on local brews have popped up all over the place and coffee farms have started opening their doors to visitors.
It's now possible to see first hand how coffee is grown and processed, and even taste some coffee brewed from the high-quality beans that farmers are starting to keep behind to sell to tourists.
Perhaps the most beautiful place to start your exploration of the Colombian coffee region is Salento. With several coffee farms within walking distance of town, well-preserved and brightly colored architecture, and the Cocora Valley with the world's tallest palm trees nearby, Salento makes a great place to spend a few days.
We toured three fincas during our time there, each having their own unique philosophies on growing coffee and each providing different and insightful information on this revered plant.
Salento, Colombia, may not be on your radar of places to visit, but after you get done with this photo essay we can assure you it will be.
Why? Well, there is one wonder that can only be seen here, and after our visit we can say that the world's tallest palm trees are definitely worth the trip (and drinking some incredible Colombian coffee from the nearby farms isn't worth forgetting, either).
Be prepared to feel very small as the photos in this series show off just how massive these palm trees truly are.