[ElongatedMusket]

Every person I've spoken to who visited Colombia warned of two things: 1) There is a very large homeless/beggar population in the cities, who prey on tourists. 2) If you like to explore countries beyond typical tourism, it's safer to do this with a native Colombian that you trust, who knows the dangerous places.

Oddly when I speak to Colombians, they refute both of these warnings every time. I'm not sure if it's a cultural thing to downplay danger or discomfort, but those are #1 on my travel priority list.

[jstarfish]

> Oddly when I speak to Colombians, they refute both of these warnings every time. I'm not sure if it's a cultural thing to downplay danger or discomfort

It's just a practical bias. You see this everywhere on Earth.

Natives aren't the victims of the crimes alleged, so since they don't see it, they assume it's not actually happening as often as reported.

For example, #2-- I've heard the same about Brazil, then heard the denials by Brazilians, and shortly after that there was that tourist couple who got murdered when their GPS routed them through a slum.

Tourists anywhere are conspicuous, vulnerable and lucrative prey. The #1 travel safety advice anywhere is never letting yourself appear lost or confused. Hence, the advice to only travel off-course with a local you trust.

[CPLX]

Bogota is comparable to a large American city in terms of safety, visible homelessness, and so on. The rich neighborhoods feel like suburban California.

Like most of Latin America the very poor areas are beyond anything you’re likely to see in the US but unless you’re the kind of person who’s also afraid of Miami or New York City you’d have nothing to worry about.

[gfarah]

Related: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cities_by_homicide_r...

[o_____________o]

Many countries that aren't systematized to the same degree as advanced economies don't report the true level of crime, and those who rely on tourism have additional incentive not to. Much of Colombia is palpably dangerous and overflowing with prostitution, even minors, while cops look the other way.

[gfarah]

I shared global per-capita murder rates by city, a notoriously difficult-to-falsify metric. I verified the data's reliability by cross-referencing Wikipedia (Statista) with official UN and OECD sources.

Regarding prostitution in Colombia, it's legalized since 2016, which may explain its greater visibility.

Colombia's major exports are commodities; while tourism has grown, it's not the primary export.

[alisonatwork]

This advice sounds a bit out of date. I spent 3 months cycling solo through Colombia a year or two back and it was fine. Lots of villages to stop at, most of them have places to eat and stay the night. To be fair I neither went deep into the jungle nor spent any time in either Medellin or Bogota, but there's plenty of countryside to visit along the Rio Magdalena that is pretty safe.

[Beijinger]

It might be back up to date due to the Venezuelan immigrants (that don't have money). I have been there at least 10 times. Never hat any issue with counterfeit money. Last time I got stuffed with it.

Recommended, rafting in the jungle. Loved it: https://expeditioncolombia.com/tours/rafting/rafting-day-tri...

[Beijinger]

"1) There is a very large homeless/beggar population in the cities, who prey on tourists"

They had this long time ago, they now have this again. This is mainly caused by poor Venezuelan immigrants.

#1 on my travel priority list.

Possibly. But I think we traveled in very different places. Forget Somalia, try to travel in Venezuela (hint: Dont!)