Description
highlight: El Cocuy
Snow capped peaks and spectacular views near Colombia's highest Andes peaks at close to 5000 meters altitude.
highlight: Barichara
Wonderful tiny colonial era village at the edge of the enormous Chicamocha Canyon. Super off-road trails in and out of town.
highlight: The Trampoline
The trampoline of death road is a gnarly piece of road engineering the connects Pasto with Mocoa across the central Andes range.
TOUR DETAILS
50% paved roads 50% gravel, dirt, mud and varied with good highways to small sealed back roads with potholes. Many curves, Andean Mountain passes and extreme scenic routes. For riders with EXPERT off-road and touring skills, good curving skills, ability to stay calm in hectic traffic and the ability to ride longer sections of gravel and dirt roads, and parts on muddy tracks. We stay in mid-range hotels. We always opt for the best option available – clean, safe and practical location. Temperatures can vary between 12 to 40°C (53.6 F to 104°F). Temperatures can drop for a short period going over the mountains passes. It is recommended to ride with ventilated riding gear. A pull over rain suite is a good idea to carry against mountain temperatures and possible short rain showers that can occur year round.
Riding Skills
Off-Road Amount
Adventure Level
Culture Shock
Comfort Level
Fun Level
INCLUDED
✓ Professional Bilingual Tour Leader
✓ Accommodation with Breakfast in Shared Room
✓ Small group sizes (Min 2 / Max 10)
✓ 500cc or 660cc Rental Motorcycle (Upgrades available)
✓ Fuel and Road Tolls
✓ Mandatory 3rd Party and Rider Medical Insurance
✓ Motorcycle Liability Reduction Insurance
✓ Group Activities and Entry Fees
✓ Pre-tour Preparation Materials and Briefing
✓ Transfers to / from nearest Airport
✓ Price Match Guarantee
✓ All Taxes
✓ Gift Bag
✓ Support Vehicle & Driver included with 5+ Riders
NOT INCLUDED
✗ Airfare
✗ Upgrades
✗ Lunches, Dinners and Drinks
✗ Bikes are NOT available on rest-days
✗ Medical Evacuation Membership (Available from Global Rescue)
✗ Trip Cancellation Insurance (not offered by us)
✗ Tips to staff
✗ Any inclusion not specified
Requirements
» Valid Driver’s License with MC Endorsement
» Valid Passport with at least 6 months left upon entry
» 1 year of +500cc Riding Experience
» Minimum 20 years of age
» Credit Card with sufficient funds to cover Security Deposit
INSURANCE
Mandatory Insurance Included:
Mandatory third party liability insurance is included for all rentals and tours. This insurance covers all assistance in case of injure to third party, rider and passenger. It does not cover third party property damage.
Motorcycle Liability Reduction Insurance Included:
Motorcycle Damage and Theft Liability Reduction Insurance is included on all guided tours.
How does it work?
This insurance will limit your responsibility towards loss, damage or theft of the rental motorcycle. A Security Deposit is held on your credit card to cover the insurance deductible. Size of deductible depend on the motorcycle model. The Motorcycle Liability Reduction Insurance will cover damages that exceed the deductible. The insurance reduces, but does not eliminate responsibility for damage or theft and it will not protect you if you provide fraudulent information, use the vehicle in connection with conduct that could be properly charged as a felony, drive under influence of drugs or alcohol, reckless driving, use the vehicle in a speed test or contest, or if the vehicle is driven by a person other than the driver authorized on the contract. The rider must additionally comply with all terms and conditions in the rental contract and the local laws. Police or other authorities might demand a blood test in connection with an accident. Result here of might also be used by the insurer to determine insurance settlements. Personal and third part property is not covered by this insurance. The insurance does not cover recovery of the bike in case of un-repairable damages and the renter is solely responsible for all costs involved with returning a damaged bike to Motolombia in Cali, Colombia. Motolombia will go above and beyond to help recover damaged bikes at as low cost as possible and often at no cost at all.
Trip Cancellation Insurance:
We strongly recommend that you take out Trip Cancellation Insurance with your Travel Insurance. Some Credit Cards also offer such coverage if the trip is paid by card.
Emergency Evacuation Insurance:
For complete peace of mind some travelers prefer to have Emergency Evacuation set up in case of an accident. Motolombia is recommending a short or long term membership with Global Rescue if your normal travel insurance does not cover extraction.
SECURITY DEPOSIT
A fully refundable Security Deposit equal to approximately 10% of the motorcycle’s commercial value in Colombia will be held to your credit card for the duration of the tour.
The size of the Security Deposit depends on the bike you choose to rent:
- Honda CFR250 Rally = $500 USD
- Royal Enfield 500 = $500 USD
- BMW G310GS = $1000 USD
- Honda CB500X = $1,000 USD
- Yamaha XT660R = $1,000 USD
- BMW F700GS = $2,000 USD
- BMW F800GS = $2,000 USD
- Honda Africa Twin CRF1000L = $2,000 USD
- BMW R1200GS LC = $3,000 USD
(BE AWARE: No bike leaves the premises before the Security Deposit hold has been approved on your card. We do not accept cash deposits.)
DAMAGE
Before rental:
We strive to handover motorcycles in near showroom condition and to ensure that you always ride a latest model bike, we renew the fleet often. Motorcycles will have a maximum of 50.000 km on the clock or 2 years of age at the time of handover and many aftermarket protective accessories installed. You will be offered an opportunity to inspect the bike before signing off on the condition. Our staff should be informed immediately if there are any issues that seems irregular. Vehicles must be returned in the same condition with only normal wear and tear.
Damages:
If you damage or lose the vehicle or parts of the vehicle or accessories or need vehicle recovery or assistance due to damages, all repairs and replacements and/or lost time and business and/or price of recovery will be deducted from the Security Deposit or charged to the Credit Card provided as guarantee. Damages are identified as parts that are either broken, bent, dented or profoundly scratched in paint or other materials penetrating the surface to a point where it can not be polished out. Additionally your Credit Card will be charged with no delay for any traffic infraction obtained during the rental or tour, plus a $50 USD administration fee. Such traffic infractions can arrive up to 6 month after the rental. Legal documentation will be provided upon request.
After return of the Motorcycle:
1) Once the bike is returned to Motolombia, our in-house mechanics will wash and inspect the motorcycle within 3 working days. If you are returning the bike at any other destination the time for inspection will start as soon as the motorcycle arrives at Motolombia’s premisses. Consult for transport times.
2) If the motorcycle is returned unharmed, the Security Deposit hold will immediately after inspection get cancelled.
3) If damages to the motorcycle are registered, a damage-report with pictures of damages and a quote for the cost of repairs and/or replacement parts will be worked out as fast as possible. Depending on the damage report and the insurance plan chosen, funds to cover damages will be charged to your credit card or deducted from the Security Deposit before a partial refund is issued.
ITINERARY
Itinerary may change without further notice due to weather, road- or any other condition that Motolombia or its guides feel will jeopardize the safety of the group or material.
Day 1
Fly-in to Cali (CLO) – Motolombia will pick you up in airport and bring you to the hotel. Depending on what time in the day you arrive, we will meet to sort out paperwork and prep the bikes. A tour briefing will be arranged once the last rider has arrived.
Day 2
Cali to Pasto – Motolombia will pick you up at the hotel at 8 am and about 9 am we are ready to hit the road. The first day of riding will present thousands of curves as we make our way south toward Pasto. The route is all paved first day but we will have stay on our best game as we snake through the narrow section of the PanAmerican mountain “highway”.
Day 3
Pasto to Mocoa – From Pasto we make our way up over a high pass to the laguna La Cocha before the dirt starts. The famous “Trampoline of Death” road will take through breath taking mountain scenery on a ultra narrow cliff hanger road with sheer drops several hundreds meter down on one side. We spend the night in the all green Mocoa on the edge of the Amazon basin.
Day 4
Mocoa to San Agustin – The road from Mocoa to San Agustin is all paved and continues to curve through incredible scenery. Arriving into San Agustin early afternoon there is time to check out some of the local sites in this traditional Colombian village.
Day 5
Rest-day: San Agustin – The options are many for non-riding activities in San Agustin. We can arrange a trip to Colombia’s most important archeological find – the more than 500 Easter island type sculptures left by an old ancient Indian tribe well before the Spanish arrived on the continent or we can horse back ride, hike or do an awesome rafting trip on the wild Magdalena River.
Day 6
San Agustin to Tatacoa – Riding from San Agustin to the Tatacoa desert will be all types of terrain as we make our way north. We will spend the night in South America’s second most important location for fossils the Tatacoa desert. We will also visit natural springs and an Alien landing site 😉
Day 7
Tatacoa to Bogota – As we make our way north through the Magdalena River valley it will be hot and dry and there will be both dirt, rocks and paved roads to manage. At the end of the day we will engage in “urban enduro” as we fight our way through the hectic traffic of Bogota. A good diner in the fashionable Zona T will be a well deserved reward
Day 8
Bogota to Yopal – We get out of town quickly in the morning and straight into the mountains on Colombia’s eastern Andes mountain range. After a few hours of intense curves we’ll arrive on the totally flat Eastern Plains that is the start of the Amazon basin (Llanos Orientales). We spend the night in frontier mining town Yopal. Expect hot and humid climate!
Day 9
Yopal to El Cocuy – Day 9 will have it all. Flat plains, high mountains, paved sections, dirt sections from super hot to quite cold weather as we make our way up to almost 5000 meters altitude. The scenery is outer worldly as we approach the the snow capped peaks at El Cocuy.
Day 10
Rest-day: El Cocuy – On this “rest” day we will have the option of taking the bikes up to the snowcapped glaciers at El Cocuy national park or we can arrange alternative transportation including horseback riding. Some riders might wish to spend the day relaxing in the colonial village of El Cocuy and surroundings.
Day 11
El Cocuy to Barichara – This is another fantastic day of riding as the route takes us up and down high mountains on a mix of paved and dirt roads and tracks. We pass through San Gil before arriving in the beautiful Barichara colonial village on the edge of the Chicamocha canyon.
Day 12
Barichara to Puerto Berrio – From Barichara we head down the mountains to the Magdalena River valley. This time we connect with the river a lot further north. The river is now huge and wide at this point and we’ll stay in the river town of Puerto Berrio in cattle and oil exploration country.
Day 13
Puerto Berrio to Guatape – Hopefully every rider is still as excited as we are with getting back into more curves as we make our way into the Central Andes mountain range (Cordilleras Central). We end the day in Guatape, a wonderful little vacation town for locals from Medellin. We’ll visit the El Peñol monolith rock for a breath taking view of the lake district.
Day 14
Guatape to Manizales – We continue in the central Andean mountain range south to the interesting collage town of Manizales. The night life is usually pretty good for those who still have energy to go out.
Day 15
Manizales to Cali – Last day of riding brings us down through the coffee region and into the Cauca River Valley. The roads flatten out coming into towards Cali and we reach “civilisation” again late afternoon in time to return bikes and get cleaned up for a last night out in the Salsa Capital of the World – Cali.
Day 16
Fly-out Cali (CLO): Motolombia will make sure to transport you to the airport in time for your return flight.
RELATED PRODUCTS
TESTIMONIALS
“Perfect in every detail! Bikes in excellent conditions, very good service and a local knowledge out of this world. Mike takes very good care of you and he knows where to find any kind of riding, and designs a route with a perfect mix. I will come back really soon, and bring my friends!”
“Probably the best roads in the world! I don’t remember when I had so much fun riding the bike before. Thanks Mike!”
"It was a great trip. Dennis and Jhonner were very helpful and a lot of fun."
"Best bikes in Colombia, the competion doesn't have that choice of bikes."
"My first time in South America and this was an excellently planned trip with detailed preparation and just a blast from beginning to end."
"Riding a motorcycle in Colombia must be a bucket list item for every one."
"Yamaha XT 660 R. The bike was in great shape with only 5,000 kilometers on it. I drove it on and off road about 800 kilometers."
"Dennis the guide went "the extra mile" parking /turning / boat loading my bike where needed due short legs."
"This was my first tour with a tour company, the Motolombia guys and gals made it all so easy! The guide knew everything about everywhere we went, The tour itself worked perfectly; each hotel was comfortable, meals were good and inexpensive. I will return!"
"The tour is very well set up and planned; just show up and RIDE! Colombia is a beautiful country and the people are extremely nice. I will be back for sure."
"Motolombia is a first class operation. We had so many worrisome questions before the trip, all of which were patiently answered. But looking back, there was really nothing worthy of worry. Overall it was the most epic of our many riding journeys."
"Incredible riding experience, would do it again in a heartbeat."
"There is more to Colombia than most non-residents know: pretty, lush countryside, great views from the hills & mountains, & plenty of interesting roads to ride."
"The bikes were in great shape. The staff was willing to do any request including putting new tires on when there was tread left."
"Motolombia delivered on the promise of a motorcycling adventure of a lifetime. The routes provided us with some of the curviest paved roads ever!"
"The whole team was superb, start to finish" .
