Columbia tourism include complete information about famous Columbia tourist attractions. Little is known about the various Indian tribes who inhabited Colombia before the Spanish arrived. In 1510 Spaniards founded Darien, the first permanent European settlement on the American mainland. In 1538 they established the colony of New Granada, the area's name until 1861.
After a 14-year struggle, during which time Simón Bolívar's Venezuelan troops won the battle of Boyacá in Colombia on Aug. 7, 1819, independence was attained in 1824. Bolívar united Colombia, Venezuela, Panama, and Ecuador in the Republic of Greater Colombia (1819-1830), but he lost Venezuela and Ecuador to separatists. Two political parties dominated the region: the Conservatives believed in a strong central government and a powerful church.

Colombia is bordered on the northwest by Panama, on the east by Venezuela and Brazil, and on the southwest by Peru and Ecuador. Through the western half of the country, three Andean ranges run north and south. The eastern half is a low, jungle-covered plain, drained by spurs of the Amazon and Orinoco Rivers, inhabited mostly by isolated tropical-forest Indian tribes. The fertile plateau and valley of the eastern range are the most densely populated parts of the country.

401,042 sq mi (1,038,699 sq km); total area: 439,736 sq mi (1,138,910 sq km)

(2006 est.): 43,593,035 (growth rate: 1.5%); birth rate: 20.5/1000; infant mortality rate: 20.4/1000; life expectancy: 72.0; density per sq mi: 109

Santafé de Bogotá, 7,594,000 (metro. area), 7,185,889 (city proper)

Cali, 2,283,200; Medellín, 1,957,800; Barranquilla, 1,330,400; Cartagena, 901,500

Colombian Peso

Spanish

mestizo 58%, white 20%, mulatto 14%, black 4%, mixed black-Amerindian 3%, Amerindian 1%

Ordinary visas shall be marked with different Chinese phonetic letters and issued to different foreigners according to their stated purposes of visit to China:
Visa D for foreigners who are to reside permanently in China.
Visa Z for foreigners who come to China to take up posts or employment and for their accompanying family members.
Visa X for foreigners who come to China for study, advanced studies or job-training for a period of six months or more.

Roman Catholic 90%

93% (2003 est.)

Coffee, cut flowers, bananas, rice, tobacco, corn, sugarcane, cocoa beans, oilseed, vegetables; forest products; shrimp.

Holders of Passports from visa exempt countries are granted visitors visas valid for 4 months on arrival. Extensions can be made up to 6 months on condition that they hold a valid passport (valid for 3 months) beyond the intended period of stay in Fiji, outward ticket and sufficient funds to facilitate duration of stay.
The following countries are visa exempt.
Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Austria, The Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Columbia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominica, Estonia, The Federal Republic of Germany, The Federated States of Micronesia, Finland, France, The Gambia, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guyana, Holy Sea (Vatican), Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Kiribati, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Nauru, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, The Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Romania, Russia, Samoa, Slovak Republic, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & The Grenadines, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Tonga, Trinidad