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Most walking tours in Bogotá show landmarks. When experiencing Barrio Egipto with Breaking Borders, you’ll see transformation. Even more than just a walking tour, it’s a way for the Egipto community to reclaim dignity and rewrite its future—on its own terms. We walked its streets, talked to those who live here, and left with changed perspectives. For intentional travellers seeking authentic connection and a way to support a local community, this is the Bogotá experience we most highly recommend.
In case you’re wondering: We paid for this experience ourselves, and we did not disclose (until much later) that we might be writing about it. So you can be sure that the experience we had is what anyone else is likely to experience too.
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A brief history of Barrio Egipto and Breaking Borders
A short climb up the streets from Chorro de Quevedo, Bogotá’s historic centre, Barrio Egipto feels like a different world. The 17th-century church of Nuestra Señora de Egipto stands at its base, which gave the neighbourhood its name. The church is host to vibrant Epiphany festivities.
Barrio Egipto is named after the 17th-century church of Nuestra Señora de Egipto that stands at its entrance
Among the oldest (and thus most centrally located) neighbourhoods of Bogotá, Barrio Egipto’s land was/is precious to the government and developers. So, they removed basic services, including a kindergarten, school and hospital, and built a motorway that cut the barrio off from La Candelaria, hoping those who called Egipto home would move out. But they didn’t. Instead, a now isolated community was left to fend for itself.
In this vacuum, gangs flourished, four in total, making Egipto notorious as one of Bogotá’s most dangerous neighbourhoods. Outsiders were warned not to enter. Students at the nearby (private) Universidad Externado de Colombia, who were regularly victims of robberies, knew to keep their distance. Violence was commonplace, and opportunities for a better life were scarce.
Joining the Breaking Borders walking tour is safe, but until 2016, Barrio Egipto's streets were scarred by violence and dangerous, even for locals
In this environment, Jaime Calabazo Roncancio, once leader of the Decima (10th Street) gang, began to imagine something different. While serving time in a Medellín prison, he discovered the concept of community-based tourism. On his release in 2016, he and fellow (ex-)gang members launched Breaking Borders. Their vision was simple yet radical: to face their pasts and share their stories using street art to (re)build trust within the community and with the outside world.
Since 2016, Breaking Borders has taken thousands of visitors on walking tours through their neighbourhood. While its charismatic founder, Calabazo, is no longer with us, the project continues – now led by his surviving co-founders and his widow, Viviana Ramírez.
Former gang leader Calabazo co-founded Breaking Borders after learning about community-based tourism in a Medellín prison | Image courtesy of Breaking Borders
What to expect on the Barrio Egipto walking tour
Crossing the busy highway in front of the church of Our Lady of Egypt with Andrea, our English-speaking guide, we meet Aureliana, Carmen and Viviana – three women who have lived through Egipto’s darkest days and are now determined to spearhead its rebirth. A group of eager students also joins us to learn about Breaking Borders.
We meet our Breaking Borders tour guides in front of the Church of Our Lady of Egypt, its square host to lively Epiphany festivities
After a brief stop inside the church, where Viviana points out beautiful Italian ceiling frescos and the Pyramids of Egypt above the altar, our small group slowly makes its way up into the neighbourhood along Calle 10.
Our first stop: the church itself, with Italian ceiling frescoes and the Pyramids of Egypt above the altar
Carmen and Viviana alternate, revealing the story of the barrio one stop at a time…
We pass houses older than the church and see pictures of the narrow path into the barrio before it was widened and sealed to improve emergency services’ access.
We rest on the steps of the former gang headquarters, its bullet-riddled façade telling more than words ever could. We learn the hand signals used in the narrow alleys and up the hillside to notify fellow gang members of prospective victims, the police or other enemies.
And we listen to the moving stories behind the murals, each holding strong symbolism that keeps memories alive and the community motivated to keep going despite all odds.
Each mural holds strong symbolism - like this one of a ten-year old boy whose death marks an especially violent chapter
We pause at the Buena Semilla Foundation, a Christian organisation supporting the community since 1995, and the workshop space the foundation has created for community members to learn practical skills (like carpentry, sewing and weaving), which help them earn a living.
We also stop at a lookout point with stunning panoramic views over Bogotá and visit Viviana’s house, before our hosts walk us back down to the church square to say goodbye.
We also visit Viviana's house - with stunning views of the city (and of the alleyways patrolled by gang members below)
Is Barrio Egipto safe to visit?
Unlike Comuna 3 in Medellín, we don’t recommend visiting Barrio Egipto in Bogotá alone. Joining the walking tour with Breaking Borders, though, is generally safe. You will be walking around with guides who live in and are known in the neighbourhood, and who know where (not) to go. They will also monitor for and quickly respond to potentially unsafe situations (as will your English-speaking guide). While we never felt unsafe on our tour (quite the opposite, actually), according to our guide Andrea, the situation was a bit more volatile in 2023/24, and during that time, no tours were conducted.
Social impact of the Breaking Borders tour
Breaking Borders has given Barrio Egipto something it didn’t have much of before: hope. Streets once too unsafe to walk along (even for locals) are now places of conversation and canvases for murals. Where hand signals once warned of danger, paintings of butterflies, turtles and children remind locals of a different future.
With the Universidad Externado, the Buena Semilla Foundation, and other partners, Breaking Borders has created jobs for community members, helped improve infrastructure, and turned some of the hillside into thriving veggie gardens and a soccer field for kids to play on.
Children who might once have been recruited by gangs now grow up with role models who prove there is life beyond violence. For women like Viviana and Carmen, guiding tours is a livelihood and a way to honour lost husbands, brothers and friends while keeping their community’s story alive.
Want to learn some Spanish before your trip?
You don’t need fluency to find your way around and connect with locals on your travels. But knowing some Spanish can make everyday situations easier and more meaningful. Busuu offers a structured way to learn the basics of a language before you go, and it’s easy to combine the app with language school studies, too.
Another mural full of symbolism: a butterfly with two different wings - left the past/right the future
For us, the experience was also deeply personal. We didn’t feel like tourists on a polished tour around graffiti-lined alleys. Quite the opposite: We were welcomed into a resilient and proud neighbourhood willing to acknowledge and share all that’s good and bad about it.
Listening to Viviana and Carmen speak openly about their lives was incredibly humbling. Their strength, ability to forgive and commitment to a peaceful future for their children left us reflecting on our own lives and the privilege of having grown up free from such hardship.
The hugs we exchanged at the end weren’t polite gestures; they felt like farewells to new friends.
For us, the tour was a poignant reminder of the power of human connection and how travel, done respectfully, can have a lasting positive impact for both us (travellers) and the communities we visit.
Egipto somos todos/We are all Egipto - a colourful reminder of our shared humanity
Who this tour is (not) for
The Barrio Egipto tour is for travellers who come with respect, and an openness to listen and learn. If you are a traveller who wants to understand Colombia’s complicated history, who is curious about street art as testimony, not just decoration, and someone who values authenticity over comfort, this tour should be a must on your Bogotá itinerary. We left feeling enriched and humbled – our perspective shifted in ways no museum visit (however good) ever could.
If you’re looking for colourful Instagram photo ops or prefer to keep a safe distance from uncomfortable truths, this isn’t your tour. It’s also physically demanding: steep climbs and some narrow, slippery dirt paths make it unsuitable for those with limited mobility.
How to get around Bogotá by public transport
Our accommodation recommendations are all centrally located, within walking distance of most sights (including Barrio Egipto), and, if you need to get to a different part of the city, near a well-served public transport station. All you need to use Bogotá’s efficient public transport network is a TuLlave Card (a rechargeable plastic card). Load it up with credit, and you’re ready to go. You can buy the card and top it up at any TransMilenio Station. The card costs COP7,200 and each ride COP3,200. You can use the card to tap in multiple people.
Barrio Egipto is easy to reach using Bogotá's efficient public transport system - all you need is a TuLlave Card (with credit)
How to book the Barrio Egipto tour with Breaking Borders
Keen to join the tour? Great. Let’s talk about logistics.
Tours are conducted daily at 10:00 and 14:00, and last about three hours. The maximum group size is eight people. To book the tour, you’ve got the following options:
Option 1 – Breaking Borders (Spanish only)
If you’re fluent in Spanish, you won’t need an English-speaking guide. In this case, contact Viviana at Breaking Borders via WhatsApp to organise your tour.
Option 2 – Get Your Guide, Viator or Impulse Travel
You will want an English-speaking guide if your Spanish is nonexistent or a bit rusty (like ours). Our guide, Andrea, added valuable insights from many years of taking visitors to Barrio Egipto. And her ability to translate the nuances of our questions and our hosts’ responses was key to making our tour a profoundly memorable experience.
Breaking Borders' guides only speak Spanish; the insights and translations by our guide Andrea were key to making our tour a deeply memorable experience
The easiest way to book a tour (with an English-speaking guide) is via GetYourGuide or Viator. Both of these options include a chicha drink and a snack.
As the English-language tours are organised by Impulse Travel (in collaboration with Breaking Borders), you can also book your tour by completing the web form on the Impulse Travel website. The process is a bit more clunky, though:
- After receiving your booking request, you will be contacted by Impulse Travel’s staff with a payment link.
- Only once you have made your payment and forwarded the payment receipt to Impulse Travel, the date/time of your tour will be confirmed. In our case, the slot initially requested was no longer available by the time our payment was acknowledged. So, just be mindful of that and leave yourself a bit of wiggle room.
- Impulse Travel also weren’t the most forthcoming in their communication: Our meeting point, and the name and contact details of our English-speaking guide were only confirmed (after multiple prompting via email and WhatsApp) about two hours before our tour.
Speaking of meeting point: Unless you arranged a different meeting point, you’ll meet your (English-speaking) guide at Chorro de Quevedo [Google Maps location].
Unless agreed otherwise, your Barrio Egipto tour will start at Chorro de Quevedo, Bogotá's historic centre
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What to bring on the Barrio Egipto tour
We walked 4.5km to and from Chorro de Quevedo (with an elevation gain of about 130 metres). While most of it was on paved roads and footpaths, we also walked on dirt tracks that can be slippery during or after rain. Therefore, we recommend wearing comfortable shoes with good traction — Paul wore his Xero Shoes here, which were light and grippy on the mixed surfaces, though any comfortable walking or running shoe will do.
Finally, bring some cash to tip your guide/s and/or to purchase the booklet of gang slang vocabulary the community has created.
How else to support the Barrio Egipto community
Whether you join a tour or not, if you want to support the Barrio Egipto community, you can also donate to
- the Buena Semilla Foundation and/or
- Collective Impulse.
The Buena Semilla Foundation, active in Barrio Egipto since 1995, is one of Breaking Borders' partners
Ready to experience Bogotá beyond the usual sights?
Book the Barrio Egipto Walking Tour with Breaking Borders (via Viator or GetYourGuide). Every booking helps fund community projects and keeps this powerful story of resilience alive.
Are you not quite sure (yet)? Please let us know your other questions, and we’ll try our best to answer them.
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