Cartagena Visual Travel Guide

Traveling for me has to be the most authentic way to desconnect, rest and get inspired. 2018 was filled with amazing news and adventures. One of that amazing news was that my darling friend @ariospina is getting married. So of course we decided to plan the most amazing bachelorette getaway to Cartagena!

After months of planning and getting all the details together here’s my Cartagena Travel Guide and a sneak peek into what our experience in one of the most beautiful cities in Colombia.

Where to Stay –  Hotel Casa Pombo

It’s amazing how the universe can surprise us! The first things after booking our flights was finding where to stay, to be honest our experience in Cartagena began with chaos and set back regarding our hotel. The hotel we booked ended up being awful and after we tried to check in we ended up canceling and we booked last minute in Casa Pombo. BEST DECISION AND INVESTMENT EVER!

If there’s anything I learned in this trip was to really invest in where you’re staying while you’re traveling. At least for me I need to stay in places that will make me feel comfortable, where I can feel great and really relax. So hostels are a big no no for me (nothing wrong if you’re into hostels). But let me tell you about Casa Pombo and why it was the best decision I ever made while traveling.

Casa Pombo

Casa Pombo is located in the heart of Ciudad Amurallada. It’s one of the oldest and most beautiful houses in Cartagena. Inside Ciudad Amurrallada you won’t find hotels or hostels, you will find boutique antique houses that have been redesign as apartaments for you to have an one of a kind experience within the city.

We had our one apartment with 3 rooms, a kitchen, private pool and breakfast included. It was by far the best way to experience the city. Cartagena’s heat can be intense so we had the chance to scape the heat in this amazing oasis.

Hotel Casa Pombo
Calle del Arzobispado, Cra. 5 #34-14, Cartagena, Bolívar, Colombia
http://www.casapombo.com/
Instagram: @hotelcasapombo

Where to Eat in Cartagena

Cartagena is a gem, it’s a city filled with color, flavor and culture. So we HAD to really experience its culture and enjoy the real cuisine behind the coast of Colombia. We had the most amazing ceviches, limonadas con coco, mojitos, brunch, coffee and gelatos. A true Caribbean paradise filled with flavor!

La Cevicheria

To start our foodie journey in Cartagena we headed out to @lacevicheriacartagena, this was the first spot we wanted to visit and it ended up being one of the most iconic places to eat in the city. You can imagine how amazing was their ceviche de la casa.

Basically we ended up having lunch every single day of our trip, it was that good! My best tip is to try to get a little early before lunch so you can book a table and have a walk around while you’re table is ready!

La Cevichería 
Calle 39 #7 14, Cartagena, Bolívar, Colombia
Instagram: @lacevicheriacartagena

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TIP: While you wait head over to Cuba 1940 for some passionfruit mojitos! You can thank me later.
Instagram: @cuba1940

Epoca Espresso Bar

Near Casa Pombo we stumbled upon @weare.epoca, one of the best specialty coffeeshops in Cartagena. To make the most out of our day we got up early in the morning to walk around and enjoy the streets without too many traffic or people. When the heat got too intense we sheltered in WeareEpoca for a late breakfast!

It’s so good that believe you’ll be coming back over and over to this amazing place.

Epoca Espresso Bar & Roasters
Calle de Arzopispado, Carrera 5 #34-52, Centro Historico, Cartagena
Instagram: @weare.epoca

Absenta Bistro

Finding Absenta was like love at first sight! As soon as I saw their pink storefront, their amazing cocktail menu I knew it was going to be such a great place to have drinks and enjoy our evening. Special thanks to Cartagena Connections for this amazing recommendation.

Our favorite picks were the montaditos de atún, limonadas con coco and their amazing cocktails!

Absenta Bistro
Calle 39 #8-33 Plaza San Diego, Cartagena, Bolívar, Colombia
Instagram: @absentacartagena

Gelateria Paradiso

Cartagena is filled with so many places to visit and grab a bite, so to deal with the heat we went to cool down with some local gelato in Gelateria Paradiso. It was by far one of my favorite pit stops to hide from the heat inside la Ciudad Amurrallada.

If you want to survive Cartagena’s extreme heat add this Gelateria to your itinerary!

Gelatería Paradiso
Esquina Carrera 5 Calle 36, Cartagena, Bolívar, Colombia
Instagram: @gelateriaparadiso

Where to visit in Cartagena

Cartagena is by far one of the most beautiful cities in Colombia, so you can imagine the amount of places we wanted to visit! Thanks to Cartagena Connections we found so many hidden gems filled with local artisan shops, iconic places to visit within the city to make our stay so memorable.

Ciudad Amurallada

The heart of Cartagena is within the doors of Ciudad Amurallada, this iconic part of the city is filled with the most beautiful bougainvilleas, old mansions and houses, cobblestone streets, colorful walls! It’s filled with local music, colors and flavors that will make you fall in love.

The amount of places to visit in Cartagena is huge. You can find museums, stores, restaurants, art galleries, etc; so here’s a small list of my favorite places to visit in Ciudad Amurallada.

ST DOM @stdomcartagena
Territorio @territorio.co
Centro Artesano @elcentroartesanocartagena
Teatro Heredia y Plaza de la Merced
Agua de León @aguadeleon
Palacio de la Inquisición
Torre del Reloj
Getsemaní

Cheers to endless laughter, golden hours and sipping 
agua de coco together

Cartagena is such a dream city to visit and it has so much to offer. We enjoyed our trip to the fullest and had the most amazing stay in Colombo. I hope this travel guide helps you find the most iconic places in Cartagena and inspires you to add Cartagena to your travel bucket lists!

Sending you a big virtual hug,
Ka