The Best Things to Do in Cartagena

Over the past couple years, we've spent a ton of time exploring Cartagena while planning our wedding, which you can read more about here. In between venue hopping and cake tasting, we've gotten to know the historic city very well and have compiled the top 10 things to do on your Cartagena vacation! I'll provide tips, logistical info, what to bring, and what to watch out for during your time in Colombia. Let's dive in!

1. Visit La Ciudad Amurrallada - La Ciudad Amurrallada is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Colombia - and for good reason! La Ciudad Amurrallada is the walled city of Cartagena, a stunning fortress that has weathered over 400 years in its existence. Within the walled city, you'll see breathtaking architecture, restored historic aristocratic homes, contemporary restaurants and shops, and the fortifications constructed to protect the city from conquistadors in the mid-1500s. Today, you can walk atop the fortress walls, where you'll find panoramic views, street vendors, and live performances. The large city inside the fortress hosts some of the best gastronomy in the city, with both local and global cuisine available. Though many of the buildings in La Ciudad Amurallada have been restored, the original architecture and coloring have been preserved, highlighting the unique culture of historic Cartagena. Within the fortress walls, you'll find Catedral de Santa Catalina de Alejandría, a beautiful cathedral, the Museo Naval, where you can take a tour of the naval history of the region, and on any given night in the walled city, you'll hear music, see fireworks, smell delicious cuisine, and step back into time off the coast of Cartagena. You can also take a horse-drawn carriage ride through the city, where the guide will give you a tour of the significant history of the area as well as take you past some of the prominent buildings today. The bright yellow clock tower serves as the main entrance to the city, which makes for a great meeting point for groups. One thing to watch out for in this area, as in many major cities, is pickpocketing during busy times and especially at night. I recommend keeping anything valuable in front pockets rather than back, and carrying a crossbody bag that you can keep with you at all times.

2. Visit the Rosario Islands - The Rosario Islands, located about an hour's boat ride from the bay of Cartagena, is a must to experience. The prime location in the Caribbean Sea offers all the things you would expect from an exotic island - crystal-clear water, turquoise views, flora and fauna, etc., but the majority of the Rosario Islands excursions also show you the local culture in their hospitality and the food they serve. A day trip to the islands usually costs around $60 USD for the standard boat trip, a welcome drink, a plated lunch, and a common seating area. Most of the islands have a VIP experience option, which features a variety of enhancements such as private seating areas for groups, all-inclusive beverage packages, or individual cabanas with shade, among others. The VIP packages vary by island and range from $80 to $100 USD per person. One thing to note is that the departure station is actually the worst place to buy your excursion package. The contractors selling excursions on the street are usually priced the best, however it is important that you make sure someone in your group speaks Spanish to negotiate for the best price and make sure you understand the departure instructions. As always, it's important to watch out for scammers, though the people in Cartagena do rely on tourism as their main economy and generally tourists are treated very well. If you're not comfortable arranging the trip on your own, many of the hotels in the area offer a concierge that can help you book the excursion. Most of the boats leave from the station between 7:30 and 8:30 in the morning and depart for Cartagena around 3:00 in the afternoon. We've done two excursions to the Rosario Islands in the past, and I would recommend the Bora Bora Beach Club and Isla Lizamar. We had a great experience with Isla Lizamar, with a private dock area with shade and cabanas for a group of about 35 people.

3. Experience the Nightlife in Getsemani - Getsemani is located near La Ciudad Amurrallada, but has a totally different vibe. While the walled city is full of posh shopping and dining, you'll find better nightlife and street food over in Getsemani. The majority of the clubs in the area close around 1 or 2 in the morning, but you'll also run into some after-hours clubs that stay open until 4 in the morning! My favorite spot in Getsemani is Café Havana, a salsa dancing club with live music that is always packed. The resident band puts on an energetic show Thursday through Sunday night every week, and the club is always jumping! Whether you love to dance or watch, this club is worth the experience. If you want to learn to dance salsa, there's always someone around willing to teach as well! A couple things about this specific club - they do have a small cover, they close at 1 a.m., and they don't have air conditioning, so the breezier months of the winter are usually a better time to go. They do open up all the windows, so even people on the street are dancing, singing, and enjoying the music!

4. Take a Chiva Rumbera Tour - Chiva rumberas are essentially old buses that have been converted to open-air tour buses. They take you on a tour of Cartagena while a DJ plays your favorite music and opens up the dance floor in the center for everyone to bust a move! These tours are an awesome way to experience some of Cartagena's most significant landmarks while making the drive a much more entertaining experience - and it's especially fun if you have party people on your bus. The traffic in Cartagena moves pretty slow, so there's plenty of opportunity to get up and dance. You can reserve seats on a chiva for a small group with others, or rent out an entire chiva rumbera for a large group! You can always find someone on the street selling seats for chivas, and it can be a great way to bargain down prices for a trip to Islas Rosarios if you use the same tour vendor to book both experiences. Most chiva tours will also include admission to a club or a sunset party cruise as part of the package deal. We rented an entire chiva with access to a dedicated seating section of a club at the end of the night for $4 USD per person! We were able to negotiate our trip to Isla Lizamar and the chiva rumbera tour with the same vendor and got some pretty cheap rates.

5. Hang Out in the Zona Hotelera - The hotel zone, or Zona Hotelera, is the long strip of Cartagena that is a popular place to stay for tourists. This area has been revitalizing over the last few years, with renovation of historic hotels with cool ties to Colombian celebrities of the mid-1980s and mid-1990s as well as brand new hotels and condominiums that you can rent on AirBnB. This area is full of local vendors and tons of restaurants, as well as casinos, movie theatres, and shopping malls. Many of the restaurants and bars in this area play live music in the evenings, and chiva rumberas can be heard passing through the streets. This area is generally safe for tourists and many of the vendors and restaurant staff speak English.

6. Spend the Day on the Beach - While the beaches of Cartagena aren't as beautiful as experiencing the Rosario Islands, Cartagena does offer clear waters with strong waves for a more local beach day. Many of the public beachfronts have umbrellas and chairs set up that you can rent from the local vendors, which will also bring you food and drinks throughout the day if you choose. I would recommend negotiating a price and renting a station this way instead of setting up your own spot on the shore, since the local vendors who rent out their equipment will keep an eye on your things for you while you're in the water. Another thing that’s different about the beaches in Cartagena is that traveling salespeople do come around pretty often to sell their products, which can be a little annoying at times. Just be polite and firm in turning them down if you're not interested, and you'll still have a nice day on the beach at a pretty affordable price. Most of the food and drinks from these vendors are relatively inexpensive if you're converting currency from USD, so it's a pretty easy way to spend the day and not super costly. Be sure to have cash on hand, since that is the only way to pay the local vendors with whom you set up your camp. The beaches close up around 5 or 6 since the tide can change rapidly, but nearly all the hotels and condominium buildings also have swimming pools to hang out in as well!

7. Eat Some Seafood - Whether you like seafood or not, seafood in Cartagena is at least worth a try! Everything served in the restaurants in Cartagena is likely the freshest food you'll ever have, and the seafood is another dimension in comparison to the non-coastal areas of the United States. Not only is the seafood (and fish) here extremely fresh, but the way it's prepared is also elevated. My favorite thing to eat in Cartagena is muelitas de cangrejo al ajillo, or crab claws stewed in a butter and garlic sauce. You can find these at many local restaurants, but the best place we've ever tried them was Restaurante Fuerte de San Sebastian del Pastelillo - formerly known as Club de Pesca. This restaurant is a more upscale dining experience, with marina views out on the waterfront terrace and a wonderful selection of wine as well.

8. Visit Baru - If you're okay with a bit of a bus or boat ride, visiting the beach at Baru is a great way to spend the day! Baru has the same beautiful views that you'll see in the Rosario Islands, but a bit wider of a beachfront in general. While the public beaches of Baru are very similar to the beaches of Cartagena in terms of the vendors and usually needing to rent a station, Baru usually has more to offer in terms of water sports and snorkeling than Cartagena, and the views are better. One thing to watch out for in Baru is that the locals charge you for everything, including using their bathrooms and changing stalls, so I would recommend coming dressed and packing clothes you can throw on top of your swim gear, and of course, keeping some cash and smaller denominations of peso coins on hand. Trips to Baru can be secured by local street vendors as well, and can be packaged and negotiated with other excursions that you're planning to do on the trip. The ride to Baru is about 2 hours via bus, but is great for travelers who want to see picturesque beaches but prefer not to travel by catamaran, which is the only way to get to the Rosario Islands from Cartagena.

I hope this list has helped you decide to visit Cartagena, because it truly is a beautiful place with so much history and culture to experience! Whether you speak Spanish or not, the vibrance of the city leaves an impression and is a destination that we plan to visit over and over again. Please leave any additional thoughts or questions in the comments section below!