Cartagena

Why Is Cartagena the Most Beautiful City in the Americas?

Bougainvillea spilling from wrought-iron balconies in impossible shades of purple and orange, Caribbean light painting pastel facades across the day — Cartagena de Indias is, without exaggeration, stunning.

I have spent time in many colonial cities across Latin America — Havana, Antigua, Oaxaca, Cusco — and Cartagena de Indias stands at the very top. The walled old town is a masterpiece of preservation, a place where every street corner looks like it was designed to be photographed. But Cartagena is more than a pretty face. Beneath the colonial grandeur is a city with serious culinary depth, a complicated history that includes slavery and resistance alongside Spanish wealth, and a Caribbean soul that expresses itself in music, food, and a pace of life that refuses to be hurried. The heat here is relentless — but it is also part of the experience. Everything in Cartagena moves at the rhythm the heat demands: slow, languid, and deliberate.

What Is There to See in the Walled City?

The best way to experience the Ciudad Amurallada is to walk without a fixed plan — every block reveals a plaza, a doorway framed by flowers, or a tiny bar where locals sip rum and argue about football.

The Ciudad Amurallada — the walled city — is the heart of Cartagena and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1984. The massive stone walls, originally built in the late 16th century to protect against pirate attacks, still encircle the historic centre almost entirely intact. Inside, the streets are narrow and cobblestoned, lined with colonial mansions converted into boutique hotels, restaurants, and galleries.

The light changes throughout the day — early morning is soft and golden, midday is harsh and bleached, late afternoon returns the warmth — and each hour gives the same streets a different character.

Plaza Santo Domingo is the most popular gathering spot, centred around Botero’s voluptuous sculpture La Gorda. The church of Santo Domingo, Cartagena’s oldest, stands on one side. Restaurants with outdoor seating line the perimeter, and in the evenings, musicians fill the square with cumbia and vallenato.

Plaza de los Coches, just inside the Clock Tower gate (Torre del Reloj), is where I always begin. The Portal de los Dulces is a row of stalls selling traditional Caribbean candies made from coconut, tamarind, and condensed milk. Buy a cocada, sit on the plaza steps, and watch the city wake up.

Walking the walls is a Cartagena essential. The stretch between the Baluarte de Santo Domingo and the Café del Mar offers views over the Caribbean Sea, the old town rooftops, and the modern skyline of Bocagrande. Arrive about an hour before sunset. Vendors sell beer and snacks along the wall. Find a spot, sit on the warm stone, and watch the sun drop below the sea.

What Is Getsemaní and Why Should I Stay There?

Just outside the walls, Getsemaní is where the authentic Cartagena lives — lower prices, better street art, and a Plaza de la Trinidad that fills with locals every evening.

Just outside the walled city, the neighbourhood of Getsemaní retains a defiant local identity despite rapid gentrification. The street art here is some of the best in Colombia. Plaza de la Trinidad, the neighbourhood’s central square, fills with locals every evening — families, friends, kids playing football, vendors selling empanadas and cheap beer.

I stayed in Getsemaní on my second visit and preferred it to the walled city. The prices are 30-50% lower, the energy is more real, and the short walk to the Centro Histórico takes five minutes. The street art walking route starts at the corner of Calle de la Sierpe — nearly every wall along the way has been painted with portraits of Afro-Colombian community leaders, psychedelic tropical scenes, and political commentary that uses the peeling colonial facades as part of the composition.

The Castillo San Felipe de Barajas is the largest and most important Spanish colonial fortress in the Americas. Built in the 17th century on the Cerro de San Lázaro, the fortress is a massive complex of walls, tunnels, and batteries designed to withstand naval bombardment. The tunnel system is particularly remarkable — the acoustics were designed so that approaching footsteps could be heard from deep inside the structure. I spent a solid two hours here, exploring the tunnels by flashlight and climbing to the upper batteries for city views. Entry costs COP 25,000 (~$6 USD). Go early in the morning to avoid both the heat and the cruise ship crowds.

What Are the Best Day Trips to the Islands?

The Rosario Islands — 27 small islands 45 minutes by boat — offer deep blue to translucent turquoise water, coral reefs, and a pace that drops to near zero.

The Islas del Rosario are an archipelago of 27 small islands about 45 minutes by boat from Cartagena’s port. Most visitors come on day trips that include boat transport, snorkelling, lunch (usually fried fish with coconut rice and plantain), and beach time. The quality of these trips varies enormously — book through your hotel or a reputable agency and pay slightly more for a smaller group with better equipment. Expect to spend COP 120,000-250,000 (~$30-62 USD) depending on the level of service.

Playa Blanca on the Isla de Barú is the most famous beach near Cartagena — white sand, clear water, swaying palms. It is heavily visited and aggressively hawked by vendors, but if you want a lively beach day with fresh ceviche served to your hammock and cold Águila beers from roving coolers, you will have a great time. Walk to the far ends of the beach where the crowd thins considerably.

What Should I Eat in Cartagena?

The food draws from African, Caribbean, indigenous, and Spanish traditions — coconut rice, cazuela de mariscos, fresh ceviche from street vendors for COP 10,000–15,000. Nothing in the walled city comes close to Bazurto Market's flavour and energy.

Cartagena’s food draws from African, Caribbean, indigenous, and Spanish traditions. Arroz con coco — coconut rice — accompanies almost every meal. Cazuela de mariscos is a creamy seafood stew loaded with shrimp, squid, and fish. Patacones — twice-fried plantain discs — appear on every table.

For the freshest ceviche, find the women in the old town selling it from large bowls. Their ceviche de camarón (shrimp) and ceviche de pulpo (octopus) are made fresh daily and cost COP 10,000-15,000 (~$2.50-4 USD) per serving.

If you want to see where Cartagena actually eats, go to Mercado de Bazurto — not as a tourist attraction but as a raw, unfiltered food experience. Fried whole fish, juice stands blending exotic fruits you won’t find outside Colombia, butchers and fishmongers in a maze of narrow aisles. Go with a food tour guide for your first visit. At the high end, Celele has earned recognition on Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants list; La Cevichería on a quiet street in the walled city draws a line out the door at lunchtime.

How Do I Beat the Heat and Get Around Cartagena?

The strategy that works: 7 to 11 AM for sightseeing, 11 AM to 3 PM for pools and shade, 5 PM onward for the city at its most magical — the light softens, the heat eases slightly, and the streets fill with music.

The walled city and Getsemaní are entirely walkable. For trips to Castillo San Felipe, Bocagrande, or the Bazurto market, Uber and DiDi are widely available — most rides within the city cost COP 8,000-15,000 (~$2-4 USD). For the Rosario Islands and Playa Blanca, boats depart from the Muelle de los Pegasos or the Muelle de la Bodeguita.

Cartagena is the most expensive city in Colombia for travellers. Restaurant prices in the walled city are roughly double what you would pay in Bogotá or Medellín for equivalent quality. Budget travellers should eat outside the walls in Getsemaní, where a full lunch still costs COP 15,000-20,000 (~$4-5 USD).

The walled city and Getsemaní are generally safe during the day and evening. Be alert to pickpockets in crowded areas, especially around the Clock Tower and on the walls at sunset. The beach areas attract persistent vendors — a firm but polite no, gracias is usually sufficient.