Where the locals go

Cartagena is the most expensive city in Colombia. Here are some tips to help you stretch your money and enjoy more for less:

Buses from the hostel to Mall Plaza in downtown cost 1,000 pesos (Tell the "cobrador" "mil pesos a Mall Plaza" before you get on). Coming back, take any bus that says Torices either across the street from Mall Plaza or Across the street from La India Catalina. Give 1,000 pesos per person and say "Torices." You can get off in front of the hostel. 

   Mototaxis from the hostal to La India Catalina is 3,000 pesos.  

Taxi ride from the hostel to the Centro Historico costs between 10 and 12 Pesos. Always haggle. I never pay more than 8,000 pesos, unless it is really late at night or I am in a hurry

The taxi app most people use in Cartagen is InDriver. You put how much you want to pay, and drivers will either accept it or they propose a higher prices. It is up to you to accept or reject the drivers' offers. You can download it from the Apple Store and Google Play.

You can also use Uber here as well, and they "MotoTaxi" services. It is cheaper if you travel solo and it gets you where you are going faster 

 Cheap restaurant : from the house, walk lef to the traffic light, and at the light turn left at and walk 4 blocks on Cra 14. The restaurant will be in a corner painted in Orange. Cra. 14 corner of Calle 51. Lunch is 8000 pesos.

   The store downstairs (Tienda El Retorno) closes at 10PM, but most nights it stays open until 11 PM.  

There is a small pharmacy that is on the first floor of the Sagitario building next to the hostel on the right. For better prices, check out the phrarmacy on Cra. 15 and Calle 50; or the one that is on Paseo Bolivar (Cra. 17), across from the supermarket "Tienda D."

        From the hostel, if you walk straight on your left, cross the traffic light, Paseo Bolivar is the next main st around 3 blocks. From there, turn right on Paseo Bolivar. You will see lots of street food places. 

     Getsemani: Plaza de La Trinidad. Cheapest entertainment in town. Street performers, imitators, break-dancers, magicians... and more. There is a convenience store in the corner that sell beer by the liter for about 7,000 pesos (a deal compared to the street vendors who sell the 12oz. can for 5-6,000 pesos).   

PRO TIPS:

 In Getsemani and Plaza la Trinidad as a whole: The street food and the street vendors triple and quadruple their prices, and it is not worth it. Most people you see lining up at the food stalls are from out of town, and food is either bland or tastes like salty salty cardboard. I stick to the cheap bear from the corner store and watch the performers. If you must eat something, stick to the restaurants recommended above.

For souvenirs, locals go to Centro Comercial Getsemani located on Calle 30 in Getsemani, behind Parque Centenario. Remember to haggle or you will pay too much. 

  For meat lovers: If you are a carnivore, the is a juicy "meat place" near the house. If you walk to the right (toward the beach) right before the bridge, there is an alley that comes alive at night, and locals love it. You can have all sorts of meat cuts cooked in different manners. You get great "home made style cooking" at a fraction of the costs of a typical steak restaurant. The place is not much to look at, it is an alley--but it is a gastronomical experience that is totally worthy if you are looking for a local food adventure.

Bus Terminal Berlinas:

(Address: Calle 46C No. 3-80, Marbella, Cartagena

Bus Terminal Berlinas:

(Address: Calle 46C No. 3-80, Marbella, Cartagena

Phone: 318 724 2424 

Open Hours: Monday to Saturday 4:30 a.m. a 8:00 p.m. 

Sundays and holidays 5:30 am a 8:00 pm )

Berlinas Terminal is located 3 blocks from the hostel 

Berlinas Terminal is located 3 blocks from the hostel 

More tips:

There is a cultural center called La Presentación , which is very nice and ideal for having a coffee. Also, the Paradiso Ice cream parlor is a good stop, both have good air conditioning. Definitely a splurge,

Beaches: the beaches of Boca Grande are not very good because they are always crowded and you are bothered by vendors selling various things and women offering massages. But if you go to the end where the Hilton hotel is, there is a nice and quiet place that seems like the hotel's private beach... but it is not private. Just walk to the right around the hotel.

There is also a beautiful beach called Playa Linda on the big island across the bay called Tierra Bomba. If you go to Boca Grande hospital, behind it there are men with boats who will take you to the other side. Ask them to take you to the village of Tierra Bomba, which shou ld cost 30k for two people or less, depending on your bargaining skills.

Once on the other side, walk to the left towards the back of the village, away from the buildings of Boca Grande and towards the open sea. After about 10/15 minutes, you will find Playa Linda.

In the evening, Plaza Trinidad in Getsemaní becomes quite festive; the entire old town has a great atmosphere at night.

Restaurants: for lunch near the house, very simple and economical, go down the stairs leading to the hill to the left of the house, continue down the street, to the right at the corner there is a store, and just after the store they serve basic but tasty lunches for 6,500.

In the historic center, on Tripita y Media street in Getsemaní, there are several options for economical restaurants, for example: Vive and Coroncoro.

From the house, walk to the left. The 3rd cross street is Paseo Bolívar. Walk a few blocks on your left, you will find Ara supermarked. Further up there are pizza and hamburgers, and roasted chicken. Don't go past the Mega Tienda supermarked because that area is not very safe after dark. 

If you walk to the right on Paseo Boliva, right after the traffic light you will see a Chinese Food place: Lindo King. Try the "Arroz Valenciana." It is a yellow rice with ham, shrinp, and vegetables. It come with fried chicken. 

In the historic center in Getsemaní, the annex next to Trattoria da Silvio is a favorite, good food and good prices.

In San Diego, La Mulata is also delicious. A good vegetarian option is the salad bar to go at Crepes and Waffles, half a kilo of delicious salad for 12,000. The menu is very interesting, with reasonable prices and vegetarian and non-vegetarian options, and delicious ice cream and desserts.

There is also a very nice Crepes and Waffles in a large mansion in the historic center and another one in Bocagrande, one block from the beach.

Los Girasoles in San Diego is also vegetarian.

If one day you want to celebrate something and enjoy a luxury, the Doña Lola restaurant at Casa Lola hotel is excellent. Upstairs on the hotel rooftop, they serve cocktails. They are not cheap but the view is great.

Another place to have some cocktails is Alquímico in the old city; although the drinks are expensive, the rooftop terrace is great!

For salsa dancing... Crazy Salsa and Quiebra Canto.

The Mangrove Park, between our house and the Old Town, is a beautiful, safe, and quiet place to relax, rest with a coffee or some food while trying to see the local sloth that rests in the treetops. Ask the guards. There are also iguanas and some toucans. Highly recommended.

lace that seems nice to me near the Wall, in the "el Cabrero" area, is the Museum House of President Rafael Núñez, who was also the composer of Colombia's national anthem.

Visiting the Pies Descalzos School of singer Shakira can also be an interesting visit to discover a completely different side of Cartagena that is not shown in magazines and tourists don't see, but you should always go by taxi, never walking.

Walking along Calle Real in the Manga neighborhood and seeing the mansions of the aristocratic families that stopped living in the historic center at the end of the 19th century due to the frequent cholera epidemics that plagued the walled city.

The Manga cemetery is also an interesting visit. And walking along the Manga Malecón is nice at any time, including at night.

A taxi ride up to Cerro de la Popa and its museum is interesting.

if you want to make excursions outside the city beyond the beaches or islands, a boat ride through the Mangroves of La Boquilla can be beautiful. (We can hook you up with a good and honest guide)

The beaches of the Americas and La Boquilla, especially at the end of La Boquilla, are less crowded, but be careful always ask for prices in advance if you order something as they love to deceive tourists.

The National Aviary on Barú Island can be interesting.

Also, the Botanical Garden of Turbaco and a little further away, in the town of San Juan Nepomucemo, there is the natural reserve of the Red Monkeys, but that is a fairly long trip...

The Mud Volcano is fun, and a walk around the lakes in the area is very beautiful; the cheapest way to get there is to take a bus with Berlinas to Lomita de Arena (15,000) and then a motorcycle taxi to the volcano for 5,000 pesos. Also in that area, you can visit the pink salt flats of Galerazamba, also 5,000 pesos from Loma de Arena by motorcycle and 5,000 to visit the pink lakes; you can take some beautiful photos.

Enjoy your say and send us email if you have any questions or suggestions to add to this list: [email protected]