Alfy Border Crossing , Colombia , ecuador , south america 0. Traveling from Ecuador to Colombia turned out to be the border crossing journey from hell.
The poor luck was mostly due to bad timing. Take this ride during the day to take full advantage of the scenery. Okay, okay to be completely transparent we knew it was a holiday but we were unaware of how many people would be headed for the border. Turns out there are a ton of Colombians living in Quito itching to visit their homeland any given chance. This is a ten minute ride from the bus terminal to the border control. Turns out there are some indigenous communities on strike. They are blocking the road between Pasto and Cali.
Buses full of would be travelers to Cali are returning to the border. Just our luck! On the bright side Ecuador and Colombia share a friendship bridge. You can cross from country to country without stamping in and out. We ended up crossing and spending the night in Colombia until morning when we crossed back to get our stamps. I imagine you can get into a lot of trouble if stopped within the country having entered illegally.
We felt okay doing so given the situation. Not to mention we asked a friendly military member at the border and this was his recommendation. Money exchange handlers are present on both sides of the bridge.
Exchange only enough money to get you to Pasto. The exchange rates on the border will be criminally low. If you get to Ipiales early enough then there is a short detour trip you can take to Las Lajas. This is a church built into the side of a cliff 15 minutes by colectivo via Ipiales terminal. This is a must if in the area! The church is an amazing architectural design and worthy of a few hours of your time.
