Colombia has had an image problem until now. Despite having miles of unspoilt beaches, beautiful desert stretches and the Amazon, tourists have avoided it, wary of being caught up in the world’s longest civil war.

Mention Bogota to many travellers and they think of war, Pablo Escobar and cocaine, which in different forms have plagued the country for decades. The signing of a peace deal last week with Farc, the country’s biggest armed rebel group, allows the government to open its coffers to the tourist dollars.

Farc ordered all its fighters last night to observe a ceasefire from midnight local time. Its leader, Timoleón Jiménez, whose real name is Rodrigo Echeverri, said that the war against the state was over.

Before the peace deal was…