Colombia won first prize as an "emerging travel destination" at this year's Destinations Show in London on Thursday.
The prize was awarded as part of a ceremony by Wanderlust Travel magazine, where Colombia was nominated within the category alongside Madagascar, Butan, the Maldives, Israel, Mongolia, Libia, Iran, Ruanda and Uzbekistan.
Winners were voted for by over 2,000 of the magazine's readers and 97% of those who voted for Colombia expressed their satisfaction with the country as a tourist destination, compared with other locations.
Wanderlust described the ceremony's new "Emerging Destination" category as a chance to "rewards countries that received fewer visitors – and therefore votes – than those in the main country category, but which wowed those who did visit."
Maria Elvira Pombo, president of Colombia's tourism agency Proexport, said that winning the prize was a clear indication of Colombia's capacity to compete globally as an attractive destination for all types of tourist.
Colombia received 18,915 visitors from the UK in 2009, contributing 1.4% of the total number of foreign tourists coming to the country.
