Step into Cartagena Colombia
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Colombia is a great choice if you’re ready to 
venture out on a holiday abroad. It’s is a remarkable country to visit and offers great personal experiences for the adventurous traveller. However, Colombia is a vast country with distinctive geographic regions, so don’t expect to be able to see it all in one trip. Let’s focus on a couple of tips to help you get your feet wet on a trip to Cartagena, Colombia, which is a superb vacation area and has a lot of offer history buffs.
Airfare
The first thing you need to do is get a flight. If you’re in the US, Avianca offers one daily direct flight to Cartagena from Miami. If you can’t get on that flight, there are other flights from Copa, LAN, and American Airlines that typically include a layover in Bogota.
Where to stay
The touristy and safe places to stay are Boca Grande and El Laguito. The hotels there know they are the only game in town and their prices reflect that. However, you can probably save $100 a night by staying in a secure apartment with the same level of comfort as a hotel. Cartagena Apartments is a good place to find comfortable accommodation options.
What to see
Where to start: the Walled City, mud volcano, local castle, palaces, museums, or offshore islands? Now do you see why you can’t see Colombia in just one trip? Here is a YouTube video that gives a quick overview of some (but not all) of what Cartagena has to offer.
What to do
Don’t miss the Walled City; snorkelling, scuba diving and beach combing on amazing beaches; eating local dishes (an adventure in itself); dancing the night away; riding the chiva bus; going on a horse carriage ride; heading to the islands; and going outside the city to see the mud volcano (unforgettable experience).
Where to eat
You won’t go hungry in Cartagena. The city is filled with restaurants everywhere, from hole-in-the-wall pit-stops, to high-end dining. You should definitely plan on trying some delicious Colombian dishes while in Cartagena. The city also offers cuisine from all corners of the world: Italian, Chinese, Middle Eastern and numerous other dishes are all here. Check out this diverse list of restaurants from Cartagena Travel Guide.
What to watch out for
Keep in mind that Colombia is still “Colombia”, which means do not go wandering off into the non-tourist areas with your expensive watch or a lot of jewellery. In general, just use the same precautions you would use while in a large city. Don’t flash money on the street; don’t get involved with hawkers pretending to be your friend, especially when they offer services such as being your taxi driver around the city, introducing you to Colombian girls, or whatever else comes up. You can find what you need by asking the reputable people who work with tourist assistance.
There you go, Cartagena in a nutshell. Now it’s your turn to create some memories that will last a lifetime.
(Image by Martin St-Amant (S23678) (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons)
Filed Under: Travel advice • Travel Guides
