It is easy for remote workers to get around Bogota and take advantage of the city’s many activities. Indeed, Bogota is a huge city and its many diverse neighborhoods offer activities and features unique to the area. As a visitor to the city, you certainly will want to check out as many neighborhoods within the city limits as possible to get a comprehensive sense of what the city is like and what every area has to offer.
Of course, remote workers will also want to be careful, particularly when using public transport in Bogota, as the system can get very congested and pick-pockets are known to operate under such conditions. To ride the city’s public transport network, you can buy a rechargeable TuLlave Card at any station for 6000COP. Conveniently, lots of private transport options and taxis operate around the city and make it very easy to get around.
Below we outline some of the main ways remote workers get around Bogota.
Without a metro system in the city, the Transmilenio is one way for remote workers to get around Bogota. This rapid bus transit system is frequent and generally reliable, with stations located across the city along the main Avenues (Troncales) connecting Bogota from north to south and the suburbs. It is affordable to ride the Transmilenio with tickets costing only 2500 COP (0.73 USD) per day with a TuLlave card. Remote workers looking to use the Transmilenio will certainly want to avoid peak hours when the system becomes impossibly congested and pick-pockets regularly operate. Expect your journey on the Transmilenio to be eventful - vendors, beggars and all sorts of people regularly board services asking for money in exchange for sweets and stories. Main exchange hubs include Universidades, Bicentenario, Ricaurte and Avenida Jimenez.
The city’s local bus system services to support the Transmilenio services feeds the main BRT networks from within the city’s main central and suburban neighborhoods. This extensive network of hundreds of lines will be one of the easiest and most convenient for remote workers to get around Bogota - buses are frequent and the MoovIt or MiTransmi apps give real-time information on arrival times and routes. Bus tickets have a cost of 2000 COP per day and serve all areas of the city. Visitors should, of course, be aware of busy times when the system maybe congested and also of using the network around areas far from the city center.
The city has an extensive yellow taxi network and these are easily available around all the major parts of town. When boarding a taxi it is always a good idea to establish a price for your ride or ensure that the meter is running with the correct base fare. Most taxis in the city will have a Driver’s Card on the back of the passenger’s seat which details the driver’s taxi license as well as the fares as established by the city and the local taxi unions. In general, yellow taxis are safe to use around the city, but it is preferable to call one using the Easy Taxi app than to hail one off the street.
Uber, Didi and Cabify are the most popular rideshare services in the city and represent probably the safest and best way for remote workers to get around Bogota. Fares are extremely affordable and all apps regularly offer discount to recurring clients and during off-peak hours. Rideshare services occupy a gray area of legality in Bogota and, as such, you may be asked by your driver to sit up front with them during your ride. It is always a good idea to keep a record of your driver’s name and ID information as provided on the apps, and to report any suspicious activity.
For more information about living in Bogota as a remote worker, check out our complete Bogota guide.