Ciudad Perdida (Lost City)

Archaeological Park Of Teyuna, Protected By ICANH, Colombia'S Anthropology Institute. A Tayrona Culture City Of Stone Terraces, Rings And Paths Founded Around 800 AD, About 650 Years Older Than Machu Picchu, Rediscovered By Looters In 1972 And Still Sacred To The Kogi, Wiwa, Arhuaco And Kankuamo Peoples. · Santa Marta, Magdalena

Ciudad Perdida, called Teyuna by the peoples who still hold it sacred, is a city of stone terraces, circular platforms and paths laid on a ridge in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta around 800 AD, roughly six and a half centuries before Machu Picchu. Looters found it in 1972, and it is now an archaeological park run with the Kogi, Wiwa, Arhuaco and Kankuamo communities. There is no road and no day trip: you reach it only on a guided trek of about 44 km round trip from the Santa Marta side, through heat, river crossings and jungle, finishing with roughly 1,200 stone steps. The ruins themselves are modest compared with the big Andean sites - mostly grassy terraces, not tall walls - and the journey is the real attraction. Go for the walk, the forest and the chance to hear the place explained by the people it belongs to. Expect sweat, mud, early starts and simple camps, and do not expect comfort or a quick visit; if a four day hike does not appeal, this is probably not the stop for you.

Terraced mountain city in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, reached only on a guided trek of about 44 km round trip from El Mamey, inland from Santa Marta, Santa Marta, Magdalena, Colombia

There is no ticket office and no walk-in entry. You can only visit with a licensed operator from Santa Marta, and the operators share a permit rota run with the anthropology institute ICANH and the indigenous authorities. Treks leave on set days and the ruins are visited on the final morning of the climb. The trek is usually closed for a community rest period around September, and may close for weather or other reasons, so confirm dates and current rules with the operator before paying. Nothing is open to independent walkers, and there is no mobile signal on the route.

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