My recommendation for traveling to Colombia is to make your first stop Cartagena aka Cartagena de Indias. The city of Cartagena is located in the northwestern part of Colombia and faces the Caribbean Sea to the west. To the south is the Cartagena Bay and the peninsula of Bocagrande. It is a smaller beach community that offers sandy beaches, warm sunny weather and a relaxing, laid back allure.
Three Barrios in Cartagena to Know
In my mind, there are three neighborhoods, or barrios, in Cartagena one should get to know to get a full understanding of this city. These barrios each provide a different look into life in this Caribbean paradise.
Downtown or the Old City is the location for sightseeing, there you will find the Castillo San Felipe de Barajas and many historical streets to walk outside the walled city. This castle and fortress is located here as well as other historical landmarks. This area is a reminder of the colonial times when Cartagena had to protect itself from outside forces including pirates. The castle is not well preserved but is fun to visit and walk around. In 1984, UNESCO listed the castle, with the historic center of the city of Cartagena, as a World Heritage Site.
Getsamani is considered the hipster area full of restaurants, bars, shops, a wild nightlife and a great place to meet women. It is home to the old Walled City. Guided tours are available or one can set out on foot and just walk around. Be sure to take time to sit just inside the gated entrance as this area is prime for people watching. More often, than not, there are some activities including music and dancing and even sometimes protests.
The Bocagrande area is the prime place for tourists. It is known for its high rise buildings, mainly comprised of hotels and condominiums. There are also ample restaurants and shops to enjoy oneself. It is located on a peninsula with the Caribbean ocean on one side and the Cartagena Bay on the other. It is quiet, safe and a little more expensive than other parts.
Don’t forget to plan
Before traveling to Colombia, it is very important to plan ahead. If you are not a Spanish speaker like me, it becomes doubly important. I recently created an itinerary for a three week trip that included San Andrés, Wayira Beach Hotel in Guajira and Decameron PANACA in the Eje Cafetoria Region of Colombia
Why travel to Colombia?
So why did I select Colombia and ultimately Cartagena Colombia as my first destination?
There are many reason and here are the top three:
- Beautiful women – Colombia is know to have some of the most beautiful women in the world and I can verify this as a fact. With the advent of international dating apps, like Colombian Cupid, it is possible for men to easily find beautiful travel companions. Of course one must be careful, but from my experience, this is true with any type of online dating.
- Strength of the US dollar – Colombia is an extremely affordable place to visit. The airline flights are relatively inexpensive with a round trip ticket costing somewhere between $300 and $600 from Miami or Fort Lauderdale. And once you arrive in Colombia, food, hotels or Airbnb accommodations, and transportation are cheap for a tourist from the United States.
- Communications – By using apps like WhatsApp and Google translate, it is easy and inexpensive to communicate. There are a few challenges as Wi-Fi is not readily available except in hotels, established Airbnb accommodations and the malls. Note: Spanish is not only the primary language of Colombia and it is often difficult to find English speakers even in tourist areas
Why Visit Cartagena First?
So why Cartagena in Colombia? There seem to be so many options.
I narrowed my initial selections to four possibilities: Bogota, Medellin, Cali and Cartagena. Both Bogota and Medellin are larger cities, in fact, Bogota is one of the largest cities in the world with a population around 7.4 million people. I thought my trip would be easier if I traveled to a small destination.
From watching many YouTube videos by mongers and expat advisors, it seemed that Bogota and Cali were a little more dangerous for a non-Spanish speaking gringo like me. I have traveled and spent time in “more dangerous” places, but why lead with one.
Super Traveling Experience
Cartagena is a smaller, coastal beach community. The weather is incredible with annual highs in the upper 80s and lows in the middle 70s Fahrenheit.
The people are laid back and accommodating. As a culture the Colombia people are happy, family-oriented and proud of their heritage. Unlike most people from the United States, they live for their families not for working.
There are also some super excursions that are available like: tours around Cartagena including a blast on one of the party buses and day trips by boat to the beaches of the Rosario and Barú islands
There are many things about Colombia that I don’t have space to touch on at this time. Namely things like: the lack of hot water, septic not sewer – so no flushing toilet paper. Don’t even think of slamming the taxi doors, and there is great food, and in particular, fabulous fruit.
Cartagena is a great place visit as my first destination in Colombia. For me, I met some wonderful people, spent a good amount of time at the beach and enjoying the hotels and local restaurants. In fact, I expanded my planned two week trip into a three week vacation in paradise. I hope to return soon.
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