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Cartagena, Colombia, top 10 things to do (Wimup travel guide)
▶ Video · Cartagena Colors
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Top 10South AmericaColombia

Top 10 Things To Do in Cartagena

Country
Colombia
Best months
Dec · Jan · Feb · Mar
Population
1M
Language
Spanish
Budget / day
$60–130
Quick answer

Give the first day to the walled city on foot: the Torre del Reloj, the Plaza de Bolívar with the gold museum on one side and the Inquisition palace on the other, San Pedro Claver, then the ramparts at dusk. Day two starts early at Castillo San Felipe, climbs to La Popa for the view, and ends in Getsemaní. Keep day three for the water. Take the middle of the day indoors.

Cartagena Colors

▶ Video guide

Pedro de Heredia founded Cartagena in 1533, and within a century Spain had turned it into the strongbox of the Caribbean: the port where the silver of the Americas was gathered, and the largest slave-trading port in the empire. Both facts are still legible in the street plan. Three days is the working minimum.

The 10 best things to do in Cartagena

The walled city and its ramparts, Cartagena, Colombia
1

The walled city and its ramparts

Landmark· Centro Histórico, Cartagena de Indias

Eleven kilometres of masonry went up around this peninsula over nearly two centuries, and most of it is still standing. The walls are the best introduction because they are free, open at all hours and completely uninterpreted: climb at the Baluarte de San Francisco Javier and walk above the roofline past cannon and the sea.

Time2 hours
CostFree
Best atAn hour before sunset
TipStart at the Baluarte de Santo Domingo and walk north towards Las Bóvedas
↗ UNESCO listingMap
Castillo San Felipe de Barajas, Cartagena, Colombia
2

Castillo San Felipe de Barajas

Landmark· Cerro de San Lázaro, Barrio Pie de la Popa

The largest fortress the Spanish built anywhere in the Americas, begun in 1657 and enlarged after 1762 into the sloped, layered thing you see now. Every face covers another, and the tunnels beneath were cut to carry sound as well as soldiers. It worked: Admiral Vernon left without the city in 1741. Go early; there is no shade.

Time1.5 hours
CostTicketed
Best atOpening time
TipThe tunnels are low
↗ WebsiteMap
Getsemaní and the Plaza de la Trinidad, Cartagena, Colombia
3

Getsemaní and the Plaza de la Trinidad

Neighborhood· Getsemaní, outside the Puerta del Reloj

The old artisans' and dockworkers' quarter, just outside the inner wall, and where the city actually moves in the evening. Independence started here on 11 November 1811. The Calle de la Sierpe is an open-air gallery of murals, and the square by the Trinidad church fills after dark with fruit carts and dancers.

TimeAn evening
CostFree
Best atAfter 7pm
TipEat before you sit down in the plaza
Map
Islas del Rosario, Cartagena, Colombia
4

Islas del Rosario

Island· Boats from the Muelle de la Bodeguita, Centro

An archipelago of low coral islands an hour southwest by fast boat, protected since 1977 inside a national park. This is where the water finally turns the colour the brochures promise, because the bay in front of the city does not. The reefs are the reason to bring a mask, and park entry is charged separately from the boat.

TimeFull day
CostBoat plus park entry
Best atFirst departure
TipBoats leave the Bodeguita between roughly 8am and 10am and come back mid-afternoon
↗ Parques NacionalesMap
Museo Histórico de Cartagena, the Palacio de la Inquisición, Cartagena, Colombia
5

Museo Histórico de Cartagena, the Palacio de la Inquisición

Museum· Plaza de Bolívar, Centro Histórico

The Holy Office set up a tribunal here in 1610, one of only three in Spanish America, and the baroque palace was finished in 1770 with a denunciation window on the side street so accusations could be made without a name. The building is the finest civil facade in the city. Labelling inside is mostly Spanish.

Time1 hour
CostTicketed
Best atLate morning
TipThe denunciation window is on the Calle de la Inquisición side and is easy to walk past
↗ WebsiteMap
Iglesia y Claustro de San Pedro Claver, Cartagena, Colombia
6

Iglesia y Claustro de San Pedro Claver

Church· Plaza de San Pedro Claver, Centro Histórico

Built between 1580 and 1654 and named for the Jesuit who spent forty years meeting slave ships at the quay, and who called himself the slave of the slaves forever. His remains are in a glass reliquary under the high altar. It is the one monument here that addresses what the port was for.

Time45 minutes
CostTicketed
Best atMorning
TipThe cloister rooms
Map
Convento de Santa Cruz de la Popa, Cartagena, Colombia
7

Convento de Santa Cruz de la Popa

Viewpoint· Cerro de la Popa, Barrio Pie de la Popa

The Augustinians founded this convent in 1607 on the ridge that gives the city its only height, and from the terrace the geography finally makes sense: the walled peninsula, the bay, the container port and the marshes inland. The chapel holds the Virgen de la Candelaria, whose February feast draws a pilgrimage up the hill.

Time1 hour
CostTicketed
Best atLate afternoon
TipTake a taxi up and agree the fare including the wait
Map
Museo del Oro Zenú, Cartagena, Colombia
8

Museo del Oro Zenú

Museum· Plaza de Bolívar, Centro Histórico

The Banco de la República's Caribbean gold museum, and the best hour of history in the city. The Zenú engineered the flooded plains of the Sinú with canals covering hundreds of thousands of hectares, and the goldwork here is filigree of a delicacy that reads as modern. Small, air-conditioned and free.

Time45 minutes
CostFree
Best atMidday heat
TipClosed on Mondays
↗ WebsiteMap
Mercado de Bazurto, Cartagena, Colombia
9

Mercado de Bazurto

Market· Avenida Pedro de Heredia, Barrio Bazurto

The city's working market, and the antidote to the walled centre. Everything Cartagena eats passes through it: fish landed that morning, plantain, sacks of coconut, and counters serving mote de queso to people there to eat rather than look. Loud, wet underfoot and unpolished. Go in the morning.

Time2 hours
CostFree to enter
Best atBefore 10am
TipEat at a counter with a queue of market workers
Map
San Basilio de Palenque, Cartagena, Colombia
10

San Basilio de Palenque

Day trip· Mahates, Bolívar, about 50 km southeast

A village founded by people who escaped slavery in Cartagena and fortified themselves in the hills behind it, recognised as free by the Spanish crown in 1691: the first free town in the Americas. It still speaks Palenquero, and UNESCO listed its cultural space in 2005. Visit through the community's own guides.

TimeHalf a day
CostGuide and transport
Best atMorning
TipArrange the visit with a community guide rather than arriving unannounced
↗ UNESCO listingMap

6 of the 10, mapped

Cartagena · 6 spots
AllLandmarksMuseumsFoodFree

Cartagena travel FAQ

How many days do you need in Cartagena?+
Three is the working minimum. Day one is the walled city on foot, day two is San Felipe early, La Popa for the view and Getsemaní in the evening, and day three is the water. A fourth day buys San Basilio de Palenque or a slow morning at Bazurto.
When is the best time to visit Cartagena?+
December to March. That is the dry season, when the trade winds take the edge off the heat, and it is also the festival run: music and Hay in January, Candelaria on 2 February, FICCI in March. The rains build from August to November. It is hot all year, so the season decides rain and prices rather than temperature.
Where should you stay in Cartagena?+
Inside the walls if the architecture is why you came, and San Diego rather than the Centro for the same streets with fewer people. Getsemaní is ten minutes away, cheaper and louder after dark. Bocagrande is the modern strip with a beach you can walk to. Manga is quiet and needs a taxi for everything.
How do you get to the Rosario islands?+
By boat from the Muelle Turístico de la Bodeguita beside the walls, with departures through the morning and returns mid-afternoon. Most people buy a day pass through a beach club on Isla Grande, which covers the crossing and lunch. The park fee is separate and paid on arrival, so carry cash.
Is Cartagena safe for visitors?+
The walled city, San Diego, Getsemaní and Bocagrande are busy and heavily policed, and the everyday risk is petty theft and overcharging. Agree taxi fares before getting in or use an app, keep phones off the table at night, and say no once and clearly to street sellers. Bazurto is better visited in the morning.
Where to eat

Best restaurants in Cartagena

Eight kitchens, from a Latin America 50 Best dining room to eight tables doing ceviche on a corner.
All 8 restaurants →
Getsemaní

Celele

Colombian Caribbean · Calle del Espíritu Santo

Jaime Rodríguez cooks the ingredients of the Caribbean coast that nobody else was cooking, out of a decade of field research. In Latin America's 50 Best. Book well ahead.

↗ WebsiteMap
CarmenSan Diego

Carmen

Contemporary Colombian · Calle del Santísimo

A tasting-menu kitchen in a courtyard behind the Santo Toribio church, built on Caribbean produce and technique. The most reliable fine dining inside the walls.

↗ WebsiteMap
San Diego

La Cevichería

Ceviche and seafood · Calle Stuart

Eight tables on a corner in San Diego, made famous by Anthony Bourdain and still turning out the ceviche that earned it. No reservations.

↗ WebsiteMap
Centro Histórico

Candé

Cartagenera cooking · Carrera 10

The place to eat the city's own repertoire rather than a chef's reading of it: posta negra, arroz con coco, cazuela de mariscos, with champeta between courses.

↗ WebsiteMap
San Diego

Interno

Set menu · Cárcel de Mujeres San Diego

A restaurant inside the women's prison, staffed by the women serving sentences there, with profits going into their reintegration. Book ahead and bring your passport.

↗ WebsiteMap
Centro Histórico

Alma

Caribbean and Colombian · Hotel Casa San Agustín

The courtyard restaurant of Casa San Agustín, and the quietest good dinner in the walled city. Seafood under an arcade, with a bar that stays civilised.

↗ WebsiteMap
Centro Histórico

La Vitrola

Cuban and Caribbean · Calle Baloco

Ceiling fans, white jackets, a live Cuban trio and the city's see-and-be-seen dinner for decades. The cooking is solid rather than inventive. Reserve.

Map
Getsemaní

El Boliche Cebichería

Ceviche · Calle Cochera del Hobo

A dozen seats and a short blackboard of ceviches worked with coconut, tamarind and local fruit. Small enough that lunch is the easier service to get into.

Map
After dark

Best bars and nightlife in Cartagena

Five rooms: a salsa institution, a bastion at sunset and three bars worth staying in.
All 5 bars and nightlife →
Centro Histórico

Alquímico

Cocktails · Calle del Colegio

Three floors of a restored townhouse, each with its own bar and menu, and a rooftop that fills last. The safest first drink in the city.

Map
Café HavanaGetsemaní

Café Havana

Live salsa · Calle del Guerrero

Corner doors open to the street, a brass-heavy band on the floor rather than a stage, and no room to stand still by midnight. Cash, and go late.

Map
Café del MarCentro Histórico

Café del Mar

Sunset bar · Baluarte de Santo Domingo

Tables on top of a bastion, facing straight west over the sea. The drinks are priced for the view. Arrive an hour before sunset for a wall seat.

Map
Centro Histórico

Donde Fidel

Salsa bar · Portal de los Dulces

A narrow room papered with photographs beside the clock tower, playing salsa clásica loud enough that most of the crowd ends up outside with a beer.

Map
Centro Histórico

El Barón

Cocktails · Plaza San Pedro Claver

A corner bar on the Plaza San Pedro Claver doing serious cocktails without ceremony, with tables out on the square. Good early, before the plazas fill.

Map
What to see indoors

Best museums and history in Cartagena

Six collections, and the two best of them sit on the same square.
All 6 museums and history →
Museo del Oro ZenúCentro Histórico

Museo del Oro Zenú

Free · Plaza de Bolívar

The Banco de la República’s Caribbean goldwork collection, covering the Zenú canal civilisation of the Sinú floodplain. Free, air-conditioned and closed on Mondays.

↗ WebsiteMap
Museo Histórico de CartagenaCentro Histórico

Museo Histórico de Cartagena

Palacio de la Inquisición · Plaza de Bolívar

The Inquisition palace of 1770, now the city’s historical museum: founding, sieges, independence and the tribunal that sat here from 1610. Labelling is mostly in Spanish.

↗ WebsiteMap
Centro Histórico

Museo Naval del Caribe

Naval history · Calle San Juan de Dios

Two floors on the naval history of the Caribbean, from the treasure fleets to the modern Colombian navy, beside San Pedro Claver.

↗ WebsiteMap
Centro Histórico

Claustro de San Pedro Claver

Church and cloister · Plaza San Pedro Claver

The cloister where Claver lived and died, with rooms on the slave trade he worked against and a courtyard that is the coolest place in the centre at midday.

Map
Museo de Arte Moderno de CartagenaCentro Histórico

Museo de Arte Moderno de Cartagena

Modern art · Plaza de San Pedro Claver

A compact collection of Colombian and Caribbean modern art in a colonial customs building, strongest on the coastal artists the national museums under-show.

Map
El Cabrero

Casa Museo Rafael Núñez

House museum · El Cabrero

The wooden Caribbean house of the president who wrote the 1886 constitution and the words of the anthem, kept as he left it, ten minutes north.

Map
Where the water is

Best beaches and islands near Cartagena

Six options, because the beach in front of the city is not one of them.
All 6 beaches and islands →
Playa Blanca, BarúBarú

Playa Blanca, Barú

White sand · 1 hour by road or boat

The white sand and turquoise water the city itself does not have. It is also the busiest beach in the region by midday, so come early and walk from the boat landing.

Map
Isla Grande, Islas del RosarioIslas del Rosario

Isla Grande, Islas del Rosario

Island day · 1 hour by boat

The largest of the Rosario islands, with an inland lagoon, mangrove channels to paddle and the best of the reef snorkelling. Day passes include lunch.

Map
Playa Manzanillo, Tierra BombaTierra Bomba

Playa Manzanillo, Tierra Bomba

Nearest island · 15 minutes by boat

Ten to fifteen minutes across the bay from Bocagrande, the shortest crossing to clear water and a beach club. Good for a half day.

Map
La Boquilla

La Boquilla

Fishing village · 20 minutes north

A fishing village north of the airport where the beach is grey, the crowd is local and the draw is a canoe trip through the mangrove tunnels.

Map
BocagrandeBocagrande

Bocagrande

City beach · walkable

The high-rise strip south of the walls, with grey sand and a promenade. Nobody comes for this beach, but it is the one you can walk to.

Map
Isla Múcura, Islas de San BernardoIslas de San Bernardo

Isla Múcura, Islas de San Bernardo

Overnight · 2 hours by boat

Two hours south, past the Rosarios, into the San Bernardo archipelago. Quieter water, better reefs and far fewer boats. Best as an overnight.

Map
Where to stay

Best neighborhoods in Cartagena

Five districts, and the trade is always price against quiet.
All 5 neighborhoods →
Inside the walls

Centro Histórico

Plazas, museums, hotels

The postcard half of the walled city: the Plaza de Bolívar, the cathedral, the museums and most of the grand hotels. Beautiful, busy, and priced accordingly.

Map
Inside the walls

San Diego

Quieter walled quarter

The northern half inside the walls, with the same architecture and a fraction of the foot traffic. Las Bóvedas and the best small restaurants are here.

Map
GetsemaníOutside the Puerta del Reloj

Getsemaní

Nightlife, murals, hostels

The old workers’ quarter, now the city’s evening. Murals, the Plaza de la Trinidad, the cheapest beds and the loudest nights, all within ten minutes of the walls.

Map
BocagrandeSouth of the walls

Bocagrande

Towers, beach, chain hotels

A peninsula of apartment towers, shopping and a workable city beach, twenty minutes on foot from the Puerta del Reloj. Where the city goes about its business.

Map
Across the Puente Román

Manga

Residential · republican villas

An island of early twentieth-century villas and shaded streets over the bridge from Getsemaní, with the marina and a waterfront walk. No sights, which is the appeal.

Map
Out of town

Best day trips from Cartagena

Five days out, from a coral national park to the first free town in the Americas.
All 5 day trips →
Islas del Rosario1 hour by boat

Islas del Rosario

National park · Muelle de la Bodeguita

The coral archipelago inside the national park. Boats leave the Bodeguita in the morning and return mid-afternoon; the park fee is paid on arrival.

↗ Parques NacionalesMap
Barú and Playa Blanca1 hour by road

Barú and Playa Blanca

Beach · road bridge since 2014

Barú stopped being an island when the bridge over the Canal del Dique opened, so it is reachable by road as well as by boat. The earlier you get there the better.

Map
San Basilio de Palenque1.5 hours by road

San Basilio de Palenque

UNESCO intangible heritage · Mahates

The first free town in the Americas, still speaking Palenquero and teaching its drum traditions. Go with a community guide.

↗ UNESCO listingMap
Volcán del Totumo1 hour by road

Volcán del Totumo

Mud volcano · Santa Catalina

A fifteen-metre cone of warm grey mud northeast of the city that you climb into rather than up. Undignified, memorable, with a lagoon to rinse in.

Map
45 minutes by boat

Bocachica and Fuerte de San Fernando

Fortress · Isla Tierra Bomba

The horseshoe fort that closed the southern mouth of the bay, built after the 1741 siege. Boats go from the Bodeguita and from Bocagrande.

Map
What to bring home

Best shopping and crafts in Cartagena

Six places, from vaults built as dungeons to a concept store of Colombian designers.
All 6 shopping and crafts →
San Diego

Las Bóvedas

Craft market · 23 vaults under the wall

Twenty-three vaults built into the wall in the eighteenth century as storerooms, later cells, now the craft arcade. Hammocks, mochilas and sombreros vueltiaos.

Map
Portal de los DulcesCentro Histórico

Portal de los Dulces

Sweets · Plaza de los Coches

The arcade beside the clock tower, lined with stalls of cocadas, panela sweets and tamarind balls in glass jars. Buy the coconut ones and eat them the same day.

Map
Mercado de BazurtoBazurto

Mercado de Bazurto

Working market · Avenida Pedro de Heredia

Not a souvenir stop. This is where the fish, fruit and spice come in, and where the best cheap lunch in Cartagena is served at a counter.

Map
Ábaco Libros y CaféCentro Histórico

Ábaco Libros y Café

Bookshop and café · Calle de la Iglesia

A bookshop and coffee counter on a corner in the centre, open since 2002, with a good Spanish literature wall and enough in English to get you through the flight home.

Map
Centro Histórico

St. Dom

Concept store · Calle Santo Domingo

A concept store stocking Colombian designers across clothing, jewellery, homeware and art. The one place to buy something made here that is not a craft-market piece.

Map
Silvia TcherassiCentro Histórico

Silvia Tcherassi

Fashion · Plaza Santa Teresa

The Barranquilla-born designer’s Cartagena boutique, in a colonial house beside the Plaza Santa Teresa. Resort dressing, made for this climate.

↗ WebsiteMap
What's on

Festivals & annual events in Cartagena (2026)

Time your trip around the city's biggest dates.
January

Cartagena Festival Internacional de Música

Ten days of chamber and orchestral music in the Teatro Adolfo Mejía and the churches, with a free open-air programme.

Late January

Hay Festival Cartagena de Indias

The Latin American edition of the Hay Festival, four days of writers across the walled city. Beds in the centre go months ahead.

2 February

Fiesta de la Virgen de la Candelaria

The city's patron saint, honoured with a nine-day pilgrimage up the Cerro de la Popa, on foot and mostly at night.

March

Festival Internacional de Cine de Cartagena de Indias

Founded in 1960 and the oldest film festival in Latin America, from the Teatro Adolfo Mejía to open-air screenings in Getsemaní.

March or April

Semana Santa

Holy Week processions leave the walled city's churches, and the whole coast takes its holiday at once. The busiest week.

16 July

Fiesta de la Virgen del Carmen

Patron of fishermen and drivers, marked with decorated boats in the bay and blessings at the quays in La Boquilla.

October

Festival de Tambores de San Basilio de Palenque

Four days of drumming, dance and Palenquero song in the village 50 km away. Transport fills, so arrange it in advance.

11 November

Fiestas de Independencia

The city declared itself free of Spain on 11 November 1811, and marks it with parades and street dancing. Getsemaní is the centre.

Getting around

Cartagena transport & airports

How to arrive and move around the city.
CTG

Rafael Núñez International Airport

Three kilometres from the walled city, one of the shortest airport transfers in the Americas. Use the official taxi desk inside the terminal, which prints the fare before you go outside.

↗ AerocivilMap
BRT

Transcaribe

The city's bus rapid transit line, running from the Terminal de Transportes to the walled city and Bocagrande. It uses a rechargeable card rather than cash.

↗ WebsiteMap
City

Taxis and walking

The walled city, Getsemaní and San Diego are best done entirely on foot, and the centre is flat. Taxis are not metered: agree the fare first, or use an app that prices it in advance.

Onward

Long-distance buses and island boats

Coaches to Santa Marta, Barranquilla, Medellín and Bogotá leave the Terminal de Transportes, twenty minutes out by Transcaribe. Island boats leave the Muelle de la Bodeguita.

MapMap
Traditional food

Must-try dishes in Cartagena, Colombia

The classics to order before you leave.

Arepa de huevo

Corn dough fried once, split, filled with a whole raw egg and fried again until the egg sets.

Posta negra cartagenera

Beef braised for hours with panela until the sauce turns almost black. It arrives with coconut rice.

Arroz con coco

Rice cooked in coconut milk until the sugars catch on the pan, which is the titoté that colours it.

Cazuela de mariscos

A thick casserole of prawns, squid, fish and shellfish in coconut milk.

Mote de queso

A soup of yam and salty coastal cheese, sharpened with sour orange. Cheap and filling.

Carimañola

A torpedo of yuca dough stuffed with seasoned beef or cheese and fried.

Pescado frito con patacón

Whole mojarra fried crisp, with twice-fried green plantain and coconut rice. The beach lunch.

Cocadas

Coconut pressed with panela into chewy discs, sold under the arches of the Portal de los Dulces.

Cartagena fact sheet

Cartagena at a glance

The essentials worth knowing before you go.
Country
Colombia
Region
Cartagena de Indias District · Bolívar Department
Population
1,011,520 in the district (2025 DANE projection)
Founded
1 June 1533, by Pedro de Heredia
UNESCO
Port, fortresses and monuments, inscribed 1984
Language
Spanish
Currency
Colombian peso (COP)
Time zone
UTC-5, no daylight saving
Calling code
+57 605
Airport
CTG
Power
110V · Type A & B
Emergency
123, the single national number
Ideal length
3 days
Getting around
On foot, taxis & Transcaribe
Tourism board
Official site

Interesting facts

  • UNESCO inscribed Cartagena in 1984 as one property covering the port, the fortresses and the monuments.
  • In 1741 Admiral Edward Vernon besieged the city with some 180 ships and 20,000 men, and lost.
  • Castillo San Felipe de Barajas was begun in 1657 and rebuilt so that each battery covers the one below it.
  • Cartagena declared its independence from Spain on 11 November 1811, before Bogotá did.
  • San Basilio de Palenque was recognised as free by the Spanish crown in 1691 and is considered the first free town in the Americas.

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