Cartagena Travel Guide

The Clock Tower (Torre del Reloj) is the gateway to the Walled City. Expect heat, history, and a constant flow of vendors.

Finding the Local Rhythm

Cartagena is easy to visit, but it takes a little strategy to actually live in it.

A typical 3-day itinerary looks very different from a one-month stay. When you are here for a month, you trade the expensive rooftop dinners for $5 lunches and daily grocery runs at Carulla. You start to realize that the heat dictates your schedule.

Regarding logistics, one of the biggest questions is the water. Can you drink the tap water? Technically, yes. Cartagena’s tap water is treated. However, most locals and long-term expats stick to filtered or bottled water just to be safe. If you are in an Airbnb for a month, buy the large five-liter jugs known as botellones at the grocery store.

Views from our Airbnb in Bocagrande. While the Walled City has history, Bocagrande has the ocean views and modern conveniences.

Where to Stay: Neighborhood Guide

Cartagena is defined by its neighborhoods. Your experience will change completely depending on where you sleep.

Bocagrande (The Home Base)

This is where we lived, and it is the best option for long stays or remote work. It looks a bit like Miami with its high-rise condos and beaches. It works perfectly as a home base because you have modern grocery stores, gyms, and reliable internet, all while being a 10-minute ride to the old city.

Centro Histórico (The Walled City)

This is best for short trips, first-timers, and romance. It is packed with cobblestones, flower-draped balconies, boutique hotels, and high-end dining. The trade-off is that it is more expensive, louder, and the internet can be spotty due to the thick colonial walls.

Getsemani and Manga

Getsemani is the cool, gritty neighbor. It is best for nightlife, street art, and social vibes. Plaza de la Trinidad is the beating heart of the neighborhood. Manga is the quiet, residential alternative across the bridge. It is leafy, local, and offers much cheaper rent than Bocagrande.

Start with dinner in the Walled City, but end your night in Plaza de la Trinidad in Getsemani for street beers and people watching.

Best Time to Visit

Cartagena is hot year-round. The difference is not the temperature. It is the humidity and the rain.

The Dry Season runs from December to April and is the most popular time to visit. It is sunny, breezy, and sees virtually no rain. This is when we lived there, and the weather was perfect.

The Shoulder Season from May to August is hotter and more humid, with occasional showers. The Rainy Season hits hardest from September to November, bringing daily downpours and high humidity. October is often the wettest month.

Street fruit is the best fast food. Mango biche (green mango with salt and lime) costs pennies and saves you from the intense midday heat.

Cartagena Budget and Costs

Cartagena has two price tags. There is the Tourist Price inside the Walled City and the Local Price everywhere else. You can spend a hundred dollars on dinner or four dollars on lunch depending on which street you walk down.

Cash is Still King

While nice restaurants and grocery stores like Carulla take credit cards, you need cash in Colombian Pesos for street food, vendors, taxis, and smaller bars. Try to break your large bills whenever you are at a nice restaurant or a major grocery store. Street vendors and taxi drivers rarely have change for a 50,000 or 100,000 peso note.

Never use standalone ATMs on the street, especially at night. For the best exchange rates and overall safety, use the ATMs located inside grocery stores or shopping malls during the day. If you are staying in Bocagrande, the Plaza Bocagrande mall has a secure bank of ATMs on the upper levels.

Tierra Bomba is only 15 minutes away by boat, making it the easiest day trip for a proper beach day.

Getting Around the City

Rideshare apps like Uber and InDrive are your best friend. They are safe, air-conditioned, and crucially, they have a fixed price. No haggling required. We used Uber for almost every trip between Bocagrande and the Walled City during the daytime.

Yellow taxis are everywhere, but they do not use meters. You must agree on the price before you open the door. A typical ride in town should be around three to six dollars.

The Airport Taxi Hack

Rafael Nunez International Airport is uniquely close to the city. It is only a 10 to 15 minute drive to the Walled City or Bocagrande.

When you walk out of arrivals, do not negotiate with the drivers yelling for your attention. Instead, walk straight to the automated yellow taxi kiosk on the sidewalk. You type in your neighborhood, and the machine prints a ticket with the official, fixed price. You hand that ticket to the driver, and you pay exactly that amount when you arrive. It completely eliminates the arrival tourist tax.

The Rosario Islands offer the spectacular Caribbean water that is missing from the city beaches.

Top Adventures and Day Trips

You can see the historic walls in a single day, but these are the experiences that actually stick with you.

The Bonavita Sunset Catamaran Cruise

We actually booked this trip twice because we had two different groups of friends come down to visit us. Cruising the bay of Bocagrande at sunset with drinks in hand is a fantastic experience. It is a more relaxed, elevated way to see the city from the water compared to the crowded daytime party boats.

The Rosario Islands and Tierra Bomba

The beaches in Cartagena city are just okay. The beaches in the Rosario Islands are spectacular. Do a boat day, or better yet, stay overnight on Isla Grande once the day boats leave. If you want a quicker escape, Tierra Bomba is just a 15-minute boat ride away and is perfect for a lazy day at a beach club like Blue Apple.

Bazurto Market Tour

This is the anti-tourist experience. It is loud, chaotic, and real. Go with a guide to eat Anthony Bourdain-style shark soup and see the working side of the city. Just be sure to watch your pockets.

Cartagena in 3 to 5 Days (Simple Plan)

If you are visiting Cartagena for the first time, this is a simple way to structure your trip without overplanning it.

Day 1: Walled City and Sunset

Start inside the Walled City. Wander the streets, visit the Clock Tower, and get your bearings. Plan dinner in Centro Histórico, then grab a drink or a beer on the wall for sunset.

Day 2: Island or Beach Day

Take a boat to the Rosario Islands or keep it simple with a beach club on Tierra Bomba. This is your full Caribbean water day.

Day 3: Getsemani and Food

Explore Getsemani during the day for street art and cafes. At night, head to Plaza de la Trinidad for a more local vibe, then finish with rooftop drinks in the Walled City.

Day 4 to 5: Slow Down and Sunset Cruise

Use these days to slow the pace. Sleep in, enjoy long lunches, and revisit your favorite spots.

Book the Bonavita sunset catamaran cruise to cap off your trip. It is one of the best experiences in Cartagena and a perfect way to end your time in the city.

La Cevicheria is legendary for a reason. Order the ceviche prepared with coconut milk and fresh lime.

Eating in Cartagena

You can eat world-class food here, but you can also eat incredibly well for pennies. The secret is knowing when to splurge.

For lunch, look for the Menu Ejecutivo. It is a set meal featuring soup, a main like fried fish or beef, coconut rice, plantains, salad, and juice. It usually costs under seven dollars. Spots like Espíritu Santo in Centro or Coroncoro in Getsemani are perfect for this.

When you want to spend money on an unforgettable meal, look to places like Celele or Alma. Celele is consistently ranked in Latin America’s Top 50 and treats Caribbean ingredients like a high-end research project. You will need to book it weeks in advance.

Enjoying the sunset at 51 Sky Bar with Melissa and RaeAnne. As the highest bar in Colombia, the panoramic views of the Bocagrande peninsula are unmatched.

Rooftop Bars and Nightlife

Because Cartagena is so hot during the day, the city really comes alive after the sun sets. Both the Walled City and Bocagrande have incredible rooftop bars.

In Bocagrande, you get sweeping views of the entire peninsula. We highly recommend checking out 51 Sky Bar at the Hotel Estelar. It is the highest bar in Colombia and offers stunning 360-degree views of the ocean and the city lights.

Inside the Walled City, the vibe is more boutique and historic. The rooftop at the Movich Hotel offers the classic view looking over the colonial domes toward the modern skyline. If you want world-class cocktails, head to Alquimico. It frequently ranks among the World’s 50 Best Bars. It spans three floors, each with a different menu focused on Colombian ingredients, but go early if you actually want to taste the drinks.

Digital Nomad and Internet Guide

Since we lived here and worked remotely, we can vouch for the internet. If you are a digital nomad, Cartagena is viable, but you have to be strategic about your location.

In Bocagrande, we had fiber internet with speeds over 100 Mbps. It was flawless for video calls. In the Walled City, the internet can struggle because the colonial walls are so thick they actively block Wi-Fi signals. Always ask a host for a speed test before booking a month-long Airbnb in the Old City.

If you need to work from a cafe, Libertario Coffee Roasters offers a quiet atmosphere and great coffee, while TuWork in Bocagrande is a proper coworking space if you need a dedicated desk.

Late night ceviche and fresh oysters at Ostreria Del Mar Rojo. Look for the massive Sombrero Vueltiao roof. It is a staple of the Cartagena street food scene and a great place to break your larger peso bills.

Safety and the Street Vendors

Cartagena is generally safe, but with caveats. Violent crime against tourists is rare in the main zones like Centro, Bocagrande, and Getsemani.

Walking at Night

During the intense midday heat, it is too far to walk comfortably between Bocagrande and the Walled City. However, once the temperature drops at night, the walk becomes much more enjoyable. We walked every single night from our Airbnb in Bocagrande into the Walled City for dinner, and walked back after going out. We never had a problem and always felt safe. There is a paved waterfront path, and there were always plenty of other people walking back and forth.

The Vendor Situation

The number one complaint from visitors is the street vendor situation. You will be approached constantly to buy hats, cigars, massages, and tours. It can be exhausting.

The best strategy is a firm, polite “No, gracias” while keeping your walking pace. Do not stop to engage, or the pitch continues. If rappers approach your table to freestyle a song about you, wave them off early, or they will demand money when they finish.