a week in Colombia, from the coast to cacao country
This is a Colombia that runs on real people rather than postcards: a sustainable lodge on the Caribbean coast near Santa Marta, and then, inland in Antioquia, a woman who grows ceremonial cacao tree to bar on her own land and will walk you through the fields herself. It threads together the places we actually visited, a lodge you eat and sleep in, a cacao farm you tour with the grower, and the Colombian makers whose work you can take home.
Nothing here is invented. Every stop is a real listing or story on Hold the Throne. Come for the coast, stay for the cacao, and meet the people changing what Colombian growers get paid.
Your Colombia Itinerary at a Glance
- Day 1 Land on the Caribbean coast
- Day 2 A second coastal base
- Day 3 Into Antioquia, to the cacao
- Day 4 Why this cacao matters
- Day 5 Take Colombia home
Where to Stay in Colombia
YAY Sustainable Restaurant Lodge
A sustainable restaurant-lodge at Guachaca in Magdalena, on the Caribbean coast near Santa Marta.
BookFinca Cuipo
A sustainable finca near Santa Marta in Magdalena, an alternative or second base on the coast before the journey inland to cacao country.
BookWhat to Do in Colombia
Walk the cacao fields at Origen with Danielle
Danielle runs Origen in Antioquia, growing ceremonial cacao tree to bar with no pesticides, biodegradable packaging and no marketing budget.
Learn her 30-second cacao ritual
No incense, no circle, no facilitator.
How Colombian growers finally get paid
For years Colombian cacao farmers were paid a dollar a kilo by just two big buyers.
Where to Eat in Colombia
Dinner at the lodge
The lodge is built around its restaurant, so your first meal is right where you are staying, coastal and locally sourced.
Where to Shop in Colombia
Buy Origen ceremonial cacao
Danielle's Origen ceremonial cacao, grown tree to bar on her land, is the thing to take home, whether you make it a morning ritual or just a very good cup.
Primitiva sustainable clothing
Primitiva is a Colombian sustainable clothing maker on Hold the Throne, the wearable half of taking Colombia home alongside the cacao.
Your Day by Day Colombia Itinerary
Land on the Caribbean coast
Begin near Santa Marta, where the Sierra Nevada meets the sea, at a lodge that feeds you from its own kitchen.
YAY Sustainable Restaurant Lodge
A sustainable restaurant-lodge at Guachaca in Magdalena, on the Caribbean coast near Santa Marta. You stay and eat in one place, which sets the tone for the trip: slow, local, low impact.
Dinner at the lodge
The lodge is built around its restaurant, so your first meal is right where you are staying, coastal and locally sourced.
A second coastal base
Move along the Santa Marta coast to a second sustainable stay before heading inland.
See the full day-by-day itinerary.
This is your only free pass. A free account gives you 3.
Into Antioquia, to the cacao
Travel inland to Antioquia, where one woman grows ceremonial cacao tree to bar on her own land.
Why this cacao matters
Understand the economics behind the cup before you buy.
Take Colombia home
End with the makers whose work you can actually buy and carry back.