Travel & Accommodation
A little over a month ago, I arrived home from LA, California, exited my plane, and immediately walked into the airport, found the Spirit Airlines kiosk, and booked a flight to Cartagena, Colombia for 320$!
The flight was from March 20 – 26, so a total of six full days. I never realized that
Accommodation : Viajero Hostel: I definitely recommend this hostel. The staff is so helpful and friendly, there are different activities every night of the week, a bar with happy hour everyday from 7-9, and free breakfast. I met a bunch of new friends at this hostel and met some friends staying at other hostels in Cartagena who were not as happy with their hostel. The rooms have AC which is much needed – the only downside I would say are the bathrooms aren’t amazing. Don’t use the water to brush your teeth!
For approximately 70.00$ for a 6 night stay in a 12 bed hostel room, I would say this hostel was definitely worth it.
Taxis: There is a complicated situation with Uber in Cartagena so we relied on taxis – our hostel would call reliable taxis for us so we were not ripped off. To get to the hostel (which is inside the walled city) from the airport (and vice versa) should be around 4-5$ American or 15,000 Colombian pesos.
Food and Drinks
All of the food in Colombia was fairly cheap by U.S. standards – even the drinks at clubs and high end bars were still inexpensive in comparison to Chicago standards. The most expensive place we ate at was Bacco Trattoria but the food was fantastic.
Coffee Shops, Breakfast and Ice Cream
Abaco Libro & Cafe: This is an adorable coffee shop and library in one.
Cafe Epoca: A good brunch spot, we had avocado toast – it was good but not my favorite place.
Cafe Stepping Stone: Incredible amount of food for the price and SO DELICIOUS. I got an avocado toast and I swear they used 2 avocados probably.
Cafe De La Manana: The breakfast items are so large they are definitely shareable, Paulina and I shared a guacamole toast and a breakfast meal that included juice, coffee, tomato, eggs, an arepa and more. The guacamole toast you can pass on but the rest of the food was great.
Se Volvió Prispri: I feel that this was a more touristy breakfast spot. I had yogurt and Paulina had an omelette here. They had good coffee and the omelette was good but the yogurt was meh.
Cafe San Alberto: Best coffee I had. We visited here multiple times it was great!
La Paletteria: A popular ice cream bar place. They have all sorts of flavors from cookies and creme to coconut (which is what I had).
Gelateria Paradiso: Cartagena is very hot – if it wasn’t for this gelato place I am pretty sure I would’ve passed out. For one scoop it was around 1-2$ and they have A/C. 🙂
Lunch and Dinner
Crepes & Waffles: Went here for lunch one day, I was feeling nauseous part of the trip, probably due to something I ate or drank at one point, the crepe here was so delicious and it did not bother my stomach at all. I had a crepe with Mozzarella, tomato and basil. So good!
Quero Arepa: This was the first place we ate in Cartagena and I am SO HAPPY we did. We had a chicken Arepa and a beef and avocado plate. It was so delicious we wanted to come back but we also knew we had to try other places.
Arepa Stands (the main one was right outside of Townhouse): I was very hesitant to try the street food since I am such a wuss when it comes to nausea and my stomach but our last night we tried and Arepa stand outside of the Townhouse rooftop bar and it was so. amazing. I only had a cheese arepa because I was not sure how I would handle the meat but it was so so so good! and only 3,000 Colombian pesos!
La Mulata: This place has incredible reviews online but I thought it was only good. Paulina and I ordered fish and beef, it came with rice, pantacones and avocado. We did have a very good coconut lemonade here tho, and when you arrive they give you a bowl of seafood soup on the house, which I thought was the best part of the meal, it was yummy!
Bacco Trattoria: Italian food in South America? It may seem strange but this place was so delicious. I had the mushroom risotto and Paulina had a pizza with prosciutto and both items were so good, I would be willing to return here if I am ever back in Cartagena. It was a nice change from all of the seafood!
La Cevicheria: This place is very, very popular. We waited two hours to be seated – You have to put in your name and they told us to come back in 40 minutes, we then proceeded to wait another hour until we actually were seated. The Ceviche was very good and we ordered the seafood paella which was amazing especially for the price: it included lobster, mussels, clams, and shrimp. The entire meal with a glass of wine each was about 33$ USD which I mean… there was lobster so… it was inexpensive by U.S. Standards.
El Arsenal: The Rum Box: I loved this place! The staff was so hospitable. We came in and the hostess and waiter both hugged each of us. We were then given a shot of rum and a piece of chocolate as a chaser. The ambiance in this bar is great, it has a chill and relaxing vibe. I had orzo with sausage and pesto, and Paulina had Seared Tuna. Both great options.
Restaurante El Cabildo Gastro-Mar: This was the most inexpensive place we ate, We had fish, rice, salad and fries all for around ten dollars each. Good for a big group, around nine of us went and they were able to accommodate all of us!
Piadina, The Italian Street Food: We wandered here after a night of drinking and were very pleasantly surprised. I had a Piadina with goat cheese and truffle – probably the tastiest drunk food I have ever had.
Drinks, Clubs, and Going Out
Cafe Del Mar: Very touristy but you must visit! The prices are more than other areas, and you can just bring your own beers and sit up on the wall in a different area and watch the sunset, but we had a very nice time sipping cocktails, reclining on the couches and watching the sunset up here. Great view.
Townhouse: Townhouse is a boutique hotel that will let you take the elevator to the top floor, the rooftop, where there is a swimming pool and a bar. We went here several nights, it has a bit of a club-like feel. In Chicago it would cost so much to drink at a place like this but it is only about 8$ USD for a cocktail with a breathtaking view. This place has a very Miami type feel.
KGB bar: Okay. If you are an American, European, or know much about Russia you need to at least stop in this place to see it. It is a Pro-communist bar with a ton of memorabilia from Russia including old officer hats and uniforms that the staff wheres. The drinks were on the pricier end but huge and full of liquor.
Elvissa: A club located in the main square entrance of the walled city. It is a multiple floor club, I loved the roof top of course. Our hostel provided tickets which include entrance and a free beer!
The Clock Pub: A British pub in the middle of Cartagena? If you’re looking for more of a chill vibe for drinks I recommend this cute little pub located under Elvissa within the walled city.
Alquimico: A higher end spot for drinks, there is a dress code. I recommend going here if you’re looking for more of a club-type vibe.
Cafe Havana: A popular bar with live salsa music and cuban cocktails, very popular, dancing – but you have to pay a cover!
Bonche Bar: I did not visit this gastrobar but it has great views online. It seems to have a more chill vibe and is popular for food and drinks.
Things to Do and What to See
The Mud Volcano & Pink Sea Beach Tour: We booked this tour with Backpackers through our hostel. The tour is usually 80$ online but we paid 60$ when we booked through the hostel two days before the tour. The tour starts at the Mud Volcano, make sure to bring a bathing suit that you don’t mind getting covered in mud and some inexpensive flip flops. Make sure you bring plenty of small bills for “tips.” You change into your bathing suit and walk barefoot over to the volcano. You climb some old wooden stairs and at the top you climb into the volcano. It feels very weird inside. The men working in the volcano will try to massage you and later clean the mud off of you – if you allow them to you need to later tip them a small amount, like 5,000 pesos each. You also need to tip if you have someone take your photos or someone to help clean the mud off of you in the small body of water nearby. We were then served breakfast before heading to a small museum of salt. Afterwards we went to the Pink Sea Beach. If you go into the water make sure you wear your shoes because the salt is very sharp. After this we went and had a late lunch before heading back to the hostel.
Playa Blanca: A beautiful beach about an hour away from our hostel and the walled city of Old Cartagena, for a taxi to the beach I paid 70,000 as did two of my friends who took the taxi with me. So about 22$ each or 66$ in total for a round trip taxi ride to and from Playa Blanca. There are also tours that go to Playa Blanca but we wanted to be able to do what we wanted and come and go as we please. Now, the beach is very beautiful but it is a tad touristy. People will come up to you and try to sell you things every couple of minutes but that is just how most of Cartagena is – if you just reply “no gracias or no quiero” they will leave you alone. The water was beautiful though and it gets so hot in the city I do recommend paying Playa Blanca a visit.
Getsemani: A beautiful neighborhood only a short walk from our hostel and the walled city. Beautiful street art and delicious food. The Plaza de la Trinidad, street performers, and everywhere you look is an instagram moment.
La Gorda Gertrudis: The fat lady statue sits in the Plaza de Santo Domingo, I read somewhere that if you rub her behind it means you will return to Cartagena but no one else besides Paulina and I seemed to be doing that. Apparently this statue is worth over a million dollars and is just sitting out in the open.
Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas: This castle is a fortress in the city of Cartagena, located on the Hill of San Lázaro in a strategic location, dominating approaches to the city by land or sea. Admission is around 10$ and with a tour is closer to 28$ USD.
The Chocolate Museum/Museo Del Cacao: This is a little free museum where they offer free samples of different types of chocolate. It does not take much time but it is a cute activity.
MUSEO DE LA ESMERALDA/ The Emerald Museum: I did not visit the Emerald Museum but I did stop into a lot of different shops selling emeralds, some were selling them for as low as 60$ in a ring. Be warned, however, a lot of Emeralds are sometimes fakes! Make sure to do your research before buying any.
Rosario Islands: Our tour with Magic Paradise was 62$ and I do not recommend this tour one bit. However, the islands are beautiful and different areas are more attractive than others, if you are going to visit the Rosario Islands you need to do so with a tour or rent your own boat. I recommend looking into the tour if you decide to book one to avoid getting a bad deal like Paulina and I did. Our tour had us wait at the port for our boat for two hours, it was disorganized and we were almost put on the wrong boat! The boat takes over an hour to get to the island and I will just say the boat probably has seen better days…. For an hour boat ride in the ocean and two hour boat ride back I would be lying if I said I was not scared most of the ride. Different parts of the island have more attractive beaches, the part we were on did not and it was a thirty minute walk to the nicer beaches. We did have a pool which came in handy since it was so hot, and lunch was included in our tour and it was delicious. The boat ride back to Cartagena was terrible, however, because of how high the waves were… I wish I hadn’t changed out of my swim suit because I was completely drenched by the time we reached land.
Shopping: I am not proud of it.. but we did shop every single day we were in Cartagena. Most of the shops are inexpensive and are willing to negotiate prices with you. BUT the people selling on the street have even better deals for some items that are the same in the stores! I bought my sister and myself these beautiful shirts for around 7$ each. You will want to buy souvenirs for everyone back home, my advice is definitely to haggle.
Safety & Other Tips
Personally I was not worried about safety during this trip, so many people warned Paulina and I to be careful because we are two blonde American girls traveling (somewhere other than Europe) alone. However, only one moment did we worry about our safety and it only lasted about ten minutes. As with any country you travel to be smart.
Don’t leave your drinks unattended – Colombia has a pretty notorious reputation for drinks getting spiked
Don’t show off your valuables: cell phones, cameras, money, jewelry – whenever I travel I leave any jewelry at home, you don’t need it. We met some people who had jewelry stolen while being massaged on the beach. If you are at the beach don’t leave your items unattended.
Taxis, Hagglers, Scammers: I already mentioned but taxi drivers will sometimes try to rip you off – always ask prices for items, goods, anything, ahead of time. We took a photo with the ladies who carry fruit on their heads – you need to tip for these photos. We forgot to ask ahead of time and it went from 20,000 pesos for Paulina AND I to 20,000 pesos EACH. (rookie mistake!)
Solo Female Travel: We met several young women who were traveling Colombia and/or South America on their own. As with any country just remember you are a woman in a foreign country and I am sorry that this is the way the world is but it is – you need to just use your best judgement! Paulina and I did get catcalled probably at least once every ten-to-fifteen minutes but that’s the extent of the harassment. You ignore the catcalls and they leave you alone!
Visit.
Cartagena was absolutely stunning and amazing. I recommend visiting to anyone and everyone – I hope to return to South America very soon. The people I encountered in Cartagena, although not all Colombian, are so unbelievably kind. In our hostel we befriended several Brazilians and Argentinians, all of whom I hope to remain friends with, and even visit in their home countries!
When I was visiting the pink sea one lady on the tour insisted on not wearing her shoes in the water because they were not made for it – however she did not know the sea is full of sharp pieces of salt. I had a cut on my foot so the salt burned, therefore I decided not to go into the sea with everyone else on my tour. A woman from Colombia and her friend from Venezuela were walking along the beach and approached me. They could not speak any English and my Spanish is mediocre at best. Somehow, we managed to carry on a conversation about why I was not in the water and where I was from. While we were talking the woman who did not wear the shoes in the sea became trapped because the salt was so sharp. It was then that my new Colombian friend took of her own shoes and gave them to the man from Venezuela and he went into the water BAREFOOT to give these shoes to a complete stranger! Risking cutting his own feet! I was so overcome with love for my new friends all I could keep telling them was “eres muy amable” which in my poor Spanish translates to you are so kind. Honestly with everything going on in the world this small act of kindness truly touched my heart. I am sad to think that I may never see my two new friends again but I wish them the best in life – if Karma is a real thing they should have positivity heading their way.
Overall, I have now been to 25 countries and I would definitely put Colombia in the top five countries that were the kindest and most hospitable. I don’t like to visit the same country twice because there are so many to explore in the world – but i definitely would stop back in Colombia, if not Cartagena at least Bogata or Medellin, on my way to Brazil or another South American country, no questions asked.
Runaway Blond 