8901
10/22/2016 02:34 EST
Me and some friends will be making a 3 to 4 day stop in Cali just wondering :
#1 How far is the city from the airport (CLO) and what is a normal taxi price ?
#2, What part of the city should we stay in ?
#3. What would you recommend seeing/doing while there ?
Thanks in advance.
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timllowe
10/22/2016 09:22 EST
1: Far. Really far. Think Denver far. I couldn't tell you cab fare because I've never done it. I've either been picked up by friends or taken the bus to the terminal in Cali which is not much ($5.000?) and isn't bad.
2: There are so many choices. There are a lot of modern, Anerican and European chain hotels close to downtown. The Sheraton Four Points in Versalles, the Marriott on Juanambu and the hotel Dann Carlton in El Peñon are all nice and close to downtown. There are also several similar hotels in the south.
If you want something a little more... Colombian (and less expensive) I would recommend the barrio San Antonio. It is the historic district with lots of nice small hotels, bars, restaurants and clubs. It's a lot of fun at night and the view of the city for the top is nice. I can recommend one new hotel in particular. Just shoot me a private msg.
3: What do you like to do? The two big urban hikes are up to Cristo Rey and Tres Cruces. Both can be done, up and back in half a day but are not for the faint of heart (think hiking up to Monserrate). There are a lot of museums. All the big universities are in the south of the city which is where the upscale shopping and housing is. The barrio Ciudad Jardin is particularly good for shopping and dining. Closer to downtown Juanambu, El Peñon and Centenario are good areas for eating and drinking.
There are two big concert halls that usually have something going on. Theatro Municipal and Theatro Jorge Isaacs, both close to El Centro. El Centro itself is fun and chaotic on a good day. There are two main plazas, Plaza Caicedo and Plaza San Francisco. There is a big international film center in Centenario just across the street from the CAM which lies in the very large park that follows Rio Cali through the center city.
The big malls which have good commercial movie theaters, restaurants and great shopping are Chipichape in the north, Jardin Plaza and Unicentro in the south. The rest are pretty unremarkable.
The art scene is vibrate. Major traveling exhibits are usually at the Biblioteca Deparamental (beautiful place worth a visit even if there's no show there) or the El Archivo Historico (across the street from Theatro Municipal). The rest is a movable feast with small galleries and dozens of pop up shows, mostly in San Antonio but also scattered across the city. You do sort of have to either know or stumble across them. Street art is big here as there are 6 large universities, all in the south.
Get a transit card at any station. The MIO is fast, absurdly cheap, clean, safe, mostly air conditioned and the best way to get around the city.
Then, there are so many great day trips. The huge PNN Farallones de Cali is enormous and spectacularly beautiful. Literary fans might want to visit the location of Jorge Issacs' classic novel "La Maria" which is about an hour from the city. Lago Calima is a pleasant place to spend a day or two. Surrounding towns are very "Colombian" and each offers something unique. (Come on out to Jamundi for cholados and a real taste of El Valle life.) Or head across the mountains to Bueanaventura for a completely different experience of the Pacific coast. (Right now, the weather has been just awful with a lot of flooding over there. Maybe better to go to the galaria in La Alameda from a beautiful example of an old market and some great seafood restaurants. No black volcanic beaches though.)
I think I've rattle on enough. Let me know what you're interested in and I'll send you some specifics.
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stevegema
10/22/2016 10:07 EST
WE visited in March and stayed here:
Hotel Casa Alegre (Airbnb)
Carrera 9 4-28
Cali, Valle del Cauca 970001
Colombia
Mr. Giancarlo Magnago
+57 3175839760
Giancarlo even picked us up at the airport, likely because he was just flying in as well. Have fun and connect with Tim when you are there.
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timllowe
10/22/2016 10:11 EST
Thanks, Steve. That is the hotel I was going to recommend in San Antonio. It's a great place.
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8901
10/22/2016 16:15 EST
mmmmm ...
so the airport to city is how far ??
time wise ?????
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timllowe
10/22/2016 16:25 EST
Well... what time? to where?
At this moment google says drive time to Torre de Cali is 29 mins. If you check it rush hour on a week day you will most likely get more than an hour.
Really, it's the 21st century. Google knows all this stuff. ;)
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8901
10/22/2016 16:38 EST
If you find the query vexing or burdensome simply do not respond.
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timllowe
10/22/2016 16:43 EST
Neither. I am pointing out you can get real time data whenever you want it.
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8901
10/22/2016 17:15 EST
Thanks for the hotel recommendation, looks good !
Is it within walking distance to the train ?
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WhoaNellie
10/22/2016 17:22 EST
Train???
While there are train tracks in and around Cali I don't think there is any passenger service.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rail_transport_in_Colombia
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timllowe
10/22/2016 17:25 EST
Yeah but the train from Yumbo to B/Ventura is really cool. ;)
The hotel in San Antonio is very close to the MIO.
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timllowe
10/22/2016 17:33 EST
Oh, one thing that I find cool about the MIO: You can tweet a "How do I get from A to B?" to @metrocali and they will answer you with all the possible routes. I've never seen that in any other city.
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timllowe
10/22/2016 18:00 EST
Same as the TransMilenio in Bogota. Large, articulated buses that run station to station on mostly dedicated lanes. Intermodal buses that can serve both main line and street stops. And small, local buses that only have street side entry.
Smart card fare system. You can purchase and refill cards in any station. Fare is 1.800.
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WhoaNellie
10/22/2016 18:02 EST
Yes, many of the MIO (Masivo Integrado de Occidente) buses are the big articulated ones. They have about 1000 of them (but not that many in service) that replaced (or tried to replace) over 5000 buses from over several dozen different companies.
Some people like MIO but many have found it's worse than what it replaced as far as wait time for a bus, travel time and cost.
Anyway you can always get a taxi, they are cheap and everywhere.
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timllowe
10/22/2016 18:12 EST
I can't understand the people that are nostalgic for the old, horrible, private transit system. The buses are tiny, usually dirty and in disrepair. They also were/are tiny (I'm not a small gringo) and totally unsafe. I won't even take local bus service between my pueblo and Cali. The pirata service is much better. The cost has risen since the MIO opened but it's still incredibly cheap.
Taxis are cheap. Particularly if there is more than one of you. But most times of the day the MIO is faster. Traffic in Cali continues to get worse.
Uber is good but goes "surge" pricing promptly at 6pm. I seldom use it.
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WhoaNellie
10/22/2016 18:58 EST
The pirates, though, arose because of the poor/slow/expensive (relatively) service of MIO! People couldn't get to work on time taking MIO (and still can't).
I admit nostalgia for the old system - anywhere you were, you waited no more than 5 minutes for a bus!
Hopefully MIO will improve but it hasn't noticeably reduced traffic - they are going to have to bite the bullet and build some real roads especially going to Jamundí but north as well, and have at least one good, wide route maintained in good repair along the north-south "spine" of the city.
So, it ain't gonna happen...
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timllowe
10/22/2016 19:55 EST
Eh, that does not reflect the current MIO service at all. They have more than doubled the number of buses. The rush hours are very heavily covered.
There were some start-up issues but that was 5 years ago.
I'm a Chicagoan. I'll take the MIO over the CTA ANY DAY. Doesn't smell like piss. ;)
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testolas
10/22/2016 20:13 EST
Yes the Cali airport is about 30 minutes away. Taxi cost about $40,000 cop but most of the time they want to charge you $50,000 cop. The bus cost about $6,000 cop this was last year.
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8901
10/22/2016 20:38 EST
Thanks Testolas. I like having that information before touchdown.
Knowing the fair price makes the whole process so much smoother.
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timllowe
10/22/2016 20:49 EST
Uber advertises TO the airport but not FROM. Anyone know? It is a better alternative to a taxi. Unless it's at night. Then a taxi is cheaper.
And the bus to the terminal is a good alternative. Maybe showing up at the terminal isn't the best "WELCOME TO CALI" experience though. ;)
For me it's fine. Two block walk to the MIO. Honestly, I seldom use the Cali airport. I fly from Armenia (El Eden) to the US. I only fly from Cali if I'm going to Bogota or Cartagena.
I actually enjoy Bolivariana if it is during the day. Spectacular views. But 10 hrs on Bolivariana vs 45 mins, wheels up to wheels down to Bogota is not for everyone. Some times Viva Colombia is the better part of valor.
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