The Bucketlist
Stay in an amazing hotel
Start the day with a colombian coffee
Join a walking tour
Be a foodie in the city
Discover the colonial heritage in the walled city
Rest and shop in San Diego neighborhood
Enjoy the street art in Gestameni neighborhood
Visit the castle San Felipe de Barajas
Watch the sunset on the fortified walls
Dance salsa
Experience the vivid nightlife
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Stay in an amazing hotel
There are plenty of hotels as Cartagena de Indias is a touristic destination. Below are a few recommendations:
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Selina Cartagena: a hostel/hotel perfect for digital nomads with a restaurant and pool on the rooftop
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Amarla Boutique Hotel: a charming and intimate boutique hotel
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Casa Pestagua Relais Chateaux : a luxury boutique hotel with only 16 bedrooms
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Hotel Sofitel Legend Santa Clara: a 5-star hotel where heritage meets modernity
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Start the day with a colombian coffee
You have plenty of options in Cartagena de Indias to get a delicious colombian coffee:
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Libertario Coffee Roasters: delicious coffee shop where you can choose your blend between punk, rock, paz, libre
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Epoca Espresso Bar: more a bar place than a coffee shop but they serve the coffee in 5 different ways
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Abaca Libros y Café : a unique coffee shop in the middle of a book shop
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Café San Alberto: a coffee coming from the hacienda San Alberto which has received several international prizes
Join a walking tour
There are several companies that offer free walking tours. You can choose between Beyond Colombia (red unbrellas) or Free Tour Cartagena (yellow unbrellas). Don't forget to tip at the end of the tour (around 45,000 COP/person)! ​
Be a foodie in the city
If you love food, Cartagena de Indias is your happy place! Here is a list of our best spots:
Canteens:
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La cocina de pepina: absolutely delicious - go for the sopa caribe
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Las Veinas de Mi Pueblo: small canteen - go for the monte de queso, a cheese soup, specialty of Cartagena de Indias
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Restaurante Coroncoro: go for the canteen experience and cheap prices in Gestameni
Nice restaurants:​​
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Beiyu: for delicious breakasts and lunches with local ingredients and good vibes
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La Cevicheria: for its good spot and vibe
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Juan Del Mar: for a pizza on a rooftop facing the ocean
Chic restaurants:
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Celele: made it to the list of the 50 best restaurants in the world in 2021 and 2022
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Restaurant Cande: typical night out from high class Colombian travelers with live music
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Mar y Zielo: very good food, lovely rooftop and nice Caribbean design
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Dona Lola: good food in a chic atmosphere
Discover the colonial heritage in the walled city
Wander in the city center! Each street offers the traveler marvelous colors, historic colonial architecture, beautiful squares, churches and places. You can eat and shop as you discover the city.
Rest and shop in San Diego neighborghood
San Diego neighborhood is connected to the city center called Centro. You can take a rest in one of the squares (Plaza de San Diego or Plaza Madrid) and shop in the elegant mall La Serrezuela or in the stalls under the arcades of Las Bovedas (number 13 for local handcrafts).
Enjoy the street art in Gestameni neighborhood
Gestameni neighborhood is covered of street art and murals. They are plenty of galleries if you want to bring back a souvenir home.
Visit the castle San Felipe de Barajas
Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas is the the largest fortress built by the Spanish in the New World. It is located outside of the walled city.
Watch the sunset on the fortified walls
Café del Mar or El Baluarte San Francisco Javier are the two places to go to watch the sunset from the fortifies walls called "murallas".
Dance Salsa
Even though the danse from Cartagena de Indias is champeta, you can enjoy salsa in the city. You can choose between:
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Cafe Havana: an institution of salsa in Gestameni, very touristic but worth it (40,000 to 50,000 COP cover)
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Donde Fidel Salsa Club: more authentic in the city center
Experience the vivid nightlife
Cartagena de Indias is well famous for its nightlife! Gestameni is the neighborhood to go to the party wether with its numerous bars in the streets or at Casa Palenque, a well known clubhouse.
