Best Things to Do in Cartagena Colombia: 12 Experiences Worth Every Peso
- Raelyna Catalon
- Jun 23
- 5 min read
Cartagena Luxury Series Week 2 of 4
The hardest thing about Cartagena is not finding things to do — it is choosing. The city layers experience upon experience: history that you can walk through, food that redefines what Colombian cuisine means, coastline that belongs on a postcard, and a social energy that makes you want to cancel your flight home.
These twelve experiences are not a tourist checklist. They are the things that consistently produce the best stories, the best photographs, and the most honest answer to the question you will be asked when you get back: so, what was Cartagena actually like?
1. Walk the City Walls at Sunrise
The Murallas — the colonial fortifications that ring the old city — are 11 kilometres of history you can walk in one circuit. The walls rise up to 18 metres in places and offer views over both the old city and the Caribbean beyond.
Go at sunrise. The light is extraordinary, the heat is still manageable, and the walls are quiet in a way they will not be by 10am. This is one of the defining experiences of Cartagena and costs nothing beyond the early alarm.
2. Day Trip to the Rosario Islands
The Islas del Rosario are a national park about 35 kilometres southwest of Cartagena — 27 coral islands in water so clear you can see the seabed from the boat. The snorkelling is exceptional, the ceviche at the beach restaurants is better, and the experience of being out on the Caribbean with nothing but water in every direction is the kind of thing that resets something in you.
Shared lanchas depart from the Muelle Turistico early morning. For groups, a private charter is transformative — your own boat, your own pace, stops where you want them. [Rosario Islands private charter]
3. Spend a Morning in Getsemaní
Getsemaní is the Cartagena that the postcards don't show — and it is arguably the most interesting part of the city. The neighbourhood is a gallery of street art, a working-class barrio turned creative hub, and the place where the best new restaurants in the city have quietly been opening.
Walk Calle de la Sierpe. Get a coffee at one of the small cafés on the plaza. Stop at every wall that interests you. Buy something from the local market. This is the Cartagena that is still figuring itself out — and it is fascinating.
4. Take a Cooking Class
Colombian cuisine is having its international moment — and Cartagena is where Caribbean coastal cooking at its best is practiced. A cooking class here is not a tourist activity. It is a genuinely good use of two hours that sends you home with recipes you will actually use.
Look for classes that cover arepas de huevo, ceviche de camarón, patacones, and the arroz con coco that is one of the most underrated dishes in South America. [Cooking Class Cartagena]
5. Shop for Emeralds
Colombia produces 70–90% of the world's emeralds, and Cartagena — alongside Bogotá — is one of the best places in the world to buy them. Prices are significantly lower than anywhere outside Colombia, and the quality is verifiable at source.
Buy from established shops in the Walled City with certification and receipts. The emerald market has its share of tourist-grade stones — a reputable dealer will explain grading to you and provide documentation. Budget anywhere from $50 to several thousand dollars depending on quality and size.
6. Sunset on a Rooftop
Cartagena does sunset with particular commitment. The light turns the walls gold, the sea goes from blue to copper, and the city transitions from its afternoon quiet into its evening energy in about forty-five minutes of spectacular sky.
The best rooftop views are from the Walled City and the walls themselves. Café del Mar (on the walls) is the classic spot — crowded, but classic for good reason. Casa San Agustín and Hotel Sofitel Santa Clara both offer excellent rooftop bars with better service and slightly less tourist density.
7. Chiva Bus Night Tour
The chiva is a traditional Colombian bus, brightly painted and open-sided, and in Cartagena it becomes a party on wheels after dark. A chiva tour takes you through the neighbourhoods with music, rum, and locals who have been doing this for generations.
This is a genuinely local tradition that has been adapted — tastefully — for visitors, and it is one of the best group experiences the city offers. Book through your hotel or a reputable tour operator. [Chiva Bus Tour]
8. Visit the Palace of the Inquisition
The Plaza Bolívar anchors the Walled City and is ringed by some of Cartagena's most important buildings. The Palacio de la Inquisición is among the most significant — a museum housed in the 18th-century building that served as headquarters for the Spanish Inquisition in the New World.
The architecture is as interesting as the history, and the museum contextualises colonial Cartagena in ways that make everything else you see in the city land differently. Budget 60–90 minutes.
9. Playa Blanca, Isla Barú
Isla Barú is closer to Cartagena than the Rosario Islands and accessible by road as well as boat. Playa Blanca is its primary beach — a long, white-sand stretch with the kind of Caribbean water that makes you question every other beach you have ever visited.
Go early (arrive before 10am) or late afternoon to avoid the peak vendor activity in the middle of the day. Stay for a seafood lunch at one of the beach restaurants. [Playa Blanca Day Trip]
10. The Gold Museum
The Museo del Oro (Gold Museum) in Cartagena is smaller than its famous counterpart in Bogotá but excellent — a beautifully curated collection of pre-Colombian gold work that gives the clearest possible picture of the civilisations that existed here long before the Spanish arrived. Entry is free. Budget 45–60 minutes.
11. A Private Sailing Trip
Cartagena's bay is beautiful from the shore. From a sailboat, it is exceptional. Private sailing charters depart from the Club de Pesca marina and range from half-day coastal cruises to sunset champagne sails around the bay and the islands.
For a group, this is one of the most memorable things you can do — two to four hours on the water with the city's skyline behind you and the Caribbean ahead. [Private Sailing Charter Cartagena]
12. Dinner in a Walled City Courtyard
Save one evening for a long, unhurried dinner in one of the Walled City's courtyard restaurants — the kind where the ceiling is open sky, the bougainvillea is lit from below, and the meal takes three hours because no one is in any hurry to leave.
Carmen, La Vitrola, and Alma are among the most consistently excellent. Book ahead — these fill quickly, particularly on weekends. This is the Cartagena dinner you will describe to people for years.
Happy Travels!
Raelyna
🗓️ Experience All 12 — February 2027 Group Trip The Bags & Tags Travel February 2027 Cartagena group trip is built around these experiences — the islands, the cooking class, the sailing, the courtyard dinners, and everything in between. Every detail is handled. All you bring is yourself (and a good packing list — see Week 4 of this series). Spaces are limited and filling. Enquire now to reserve your place. |
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