Julio César Rivera, trained as a journalist and shaped by years of travel across Colombia, brings a sharp, honest perspective to every walk he leads through Bogotá. For the past fifteen years, Julio has guided international visitors through the capital and its surroundings. Offering more than historical facts he offers insight, dialogue, and a deep connection to each place.
Born and raised between two contrasting cities Bogotá and Pasto, Julio learned early on that Colombia is not one single reality but many. This understanding became the foundation of his guiding style: reflective, critical, and rooted in storytelling. Today, as an urban guide, he invites travellers to explore Bogotá on foot, encouraging them to engage with the city’s layered histories and contemporary transformations. For Julio, every street holds a story and every conversation is a step toward understanding the complexity of Colombia.
Between Two Worlds: Bogotá and Pasto
Julio defines himself not just as Colombian, but as an Andean Colombian, from the high plains. His upbringing was split between Bogotá and Pasto – two cities that embody contrasts in geography, culture, and pace of life. Pasto, near Ecuador, carries strong indigenous influence, rural traditions, and the presence of the jungle and the Pacific. Bogotá, situated high in the Andes, is more urban, cosmopolitan, and shaped by a different rhythm.
Travelling overland between these cities was formative. Julio recalls how crossing a single mountain could transform everything, such as the scent in the air, the temperature, and the way people speak. This early awareness of regional contrast, along with his passion for literature and sports, led him to journalism.
Journalism as a Window to Contrast
His years as a reporter took him across Colombia, revealing the country’s deep diversity from the remote territories of the Awa people in Nariño to the institutional corridors of Congress. He witnessed how different realities coexist: from public figures arriving in armoured vehicles to farmers walking for hours to reach a local market. “Journalism taught me that there are many Colombias,” he says. “And many versions of Bogotá.”
One memory stays with him: walking down Calle 11 after class and spotting Fernando Botero across the street in a paint-stained apron, speaking with locals. Botero had just donated part of his collection to Banco de la República which would soon become the Botero Museum. Moments like that shaped Julio’s lasting relationship with the city’s historic centre.
A Guide Who Walks to Understand
Eventually, Julio returned to Bogotá. Journalism had taken him elsewhere, but the streets always called him back. Encouraged by an uncle who had worked as a guide when tourism was just emerging, he chose to pursue guiding himself. “It’s a profession,” he says, “but also an excuse to walk, to witness, to listen.”
Today, he leads walking tours mainly in Bogotá and surrounding areas. He calls himself an urban guide and brings with him a journalistic sensibility: open, unscripted, thoughtful. His tours become conversations on history, society, memory, and everyday stories that shape the city. Travellers experience Bogotá through multiple layers beyond what’s in the brochures.
A Guide Like No Other
With a sharp mind and a soft step, Julio offers something rare: a guided experience that feels like walking through stories fluid, alive, and real. He doesn’t rely on rehearsed stories or glossy versions. Instead, he offers context, nuance, and a way of seeing Colombia that is both personal and rooted in dialogue.
And as he often tells his guests with a smile: “Yes, I’m Colombian. No, I don’t know how to dance.” That honesty, that warmth, that depth is what makes walking Bogotá with Julio César Rivera unforgettable.
For more information on Colombia or adventures with Colombian Journeys, please contact millie@americas.co.uk
