Last month (while I was mostly offline), we took a trip to Colombia to celebrate Brendan’s 30th birthday with 5 of his friends. The trip was 9 days and we visited multiple cities in Colombia – Cartagena, Medellín, Santa Marta and Minca. I am going to break down the blogs into 3 separate ones. Let’s do it.
We started and ended our adventure in Cartagena. Our group of 7 flew in from (quite literally) all over the country – so we arrived to our Cartagena AirBnb over the course of the 18th + 19th. By Wednesday afternoon, our entire group had made it – and the journey ~officially~ began. Before we fully dive in, I should note that almost everything we did in Cartagena is within the Walled City. We didn’t venture into the downtown (you’ll see a city skyline photo below).
Our first AirBnb in Cartagena (in the Walled City):
If you’re here for the highlights, I’ll give you those now..
Where we stayed:
Our smaller, final night AirBnb linked here
Where we ate + drank + danced:
Cafe del Mar – first night dinner – basically on the wall of the Walled City – overlooking the ocean with a view of Cartagena downtown.
Seven 7 Times – the club we visited in the Getsemani neighborhood – live performers, salsa dancing, multiple floors
Época – coffee +had a delicious brunch there and would’ve gone back
Alma – a high end spot inside a gorgeous hotel where we had our final Cartagena dinner
Café de la Mañana – a cafe and breakfast spot right next to our final AirBnb – we enjoyed it!
Quick Cartagena Notes:
I would HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend either speaking Spanish or traveling with a Spanish speaker if you’re headed to Colombia in general. Very few people speak English and you will have a rough time if you can’t communicate.
You will be haggled almost constantly, especially by the clocktower (simply say no and keep moving) and also will be haggled by children
Don’t drink the water.
You aren’t supposed to flush toilet paper anywhere in the country* (*at least the 4 cities, 3 airports and multiple bus stations we visited)
You can use UBER there!
Weather = WARM AND HUMID. During our time there (mid-late October) it was 80+ and humid.
At the time of writing this, the COP exchange rate was in our favor (USD). Our group found Colombia to be quite affordable!
Travel wise – we flew Detroit – Miami, then Miami to Cartagena – easy flights from where we were!
Time zone is CST, so only a one hour difference than what I’m used to on EST.
If you want to hear about our adventures, keep reading below:
Anyway, the half of the group that arrived Tuesday night visited a rooftop bar in el Centro (not totally sure on the name) and then once we had all met up on Wednesday afternoon, we put our bags down, caught up, then headed out on foot to explore.
The Walled City is very walkable – so we really didn’t use taxis or Ubers much while there (other than airport transit).
Our first day we were all together we truly just wandered – exploring the streets, scoping out restaurants, catching up with each other (and sometimes buying random items from street vendors). We ate at Cafe del Mar – it’s on the edge of the wall – and I mean quite literally on the wall. You’re above street level and have views of the ocean, downtown Cartagena and into the Walled City.
After strolling and dinner we meandered our way back to the AirBnb, finding a money exchange and ice cream along the way. Wednesday night was the only night the 7 of us were together in Cartagena, so we ventured out (with a local) to Seven 7 Times club in the Getsemani neighborhood. Seven 7 Times has a cover of 50.000 COP (roughly $10 USD) and it covered your first drink (of their choice). There were multiple rooms – a front bar, a live performance and salsa(ish) area, and a rooftop bar. The club wasn’t exactly popping, but it was also a random Wednesday night in October. On our walk home we all got caught in a complete downpour (#rainyseason) but it wasn’t a big deal. Did we stay up way too late? You bet. And did we capitalize on our rooftop patio? Also yes.
Thursday we flew out to Medellín in the later afternoon, so we woke up, packed up and then walked over to Época – a coffee roasters + breakfast spot. If I’m remembering correctly, everyone liked what they ordered. I would recommend going for sure and will definitely go back if I’m ever in Cartagena. Service was slower – but overall I found that to be true across the country. Not everywhere is in a rush like the US. (and ya know, we had a group of 7). Some restaurants have english versions of their menu online and some don’t – just a heads up.
Cartagena was as colorful as I expected it to be, which I adored. If I were with a different group (read: not 6 men) I would’ve loved to stop into local stores and boutiques. I will say, one deterrent for me was the constant haggling – it made us walk quicker and have less experiences of simply browsing and window shopping or peacefully taking it all in.
There are plenty of activities we did not get to do because our time was limited (and we got there later than expected due to an unexpected day in Miami) – so if I ever have the chance to return I’d like to: visit the beaches and the islands off Cartagena, at least one boat ride, shopping and visiting the downtown.
We returned to Cartagena on Tuesday, October 25th around 8:30pm. We made the mistake of taking the bus back from Santa Marta. DO NOT DO IT. Fly between cities or hire a private driver – TRUST ME. What could’ve been a 4 hour car ride was a chaotic 7.5 hour bus ride. I’ll share more in the Santa Marta post, but simply don’t do it.
We got back, checked into the AirBnb and IMMEDIATELY went to get food. On our first day we had walked by a restaurant named Alma but didn’t stop – so we headed back there to have a delicious and much needed dinner. Only 5 of the 7 of us came back (2 of the guys stayed in Santa Marta and explored more). It was lovely in there and our waiter spoke English (which was helpful as we were exhausted). We had high hopes of going out again, but after eating everyone was half asleep, so we headed back to our AirBnb to hang out on yet another rooftop patio.
The next morning we had time for a walk and breakfast before heading to the airport. Conveniently Café de la Manaña was just outside our front door – so we ate there.
Overall I enjoyed Cartagena and would’ve liked to explore more. It’s a vibrant city and I’d love to return.
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