Cartagena Old City in 4 Days on a Budget
Four days: the same walled-city spine, plus a market and a kitchen
Four days keeps the 3-day plan, walled city, Castillo San Felipe, Getsemani and Bocagrande, and adds a fourth day for Bazurto Market and a cooking class, the two most requested additions once the headline sights are done. Shorten to the 2-day plan or extend to the 7-day version, which adds a Palenque day trip.
Book these before you go
- Check Getsemani hotel rates on Booking.com
- Book a walled-city walking tour on GetYourGuide
- Book a Castillo San Felipe tour on Viator
- Book a Cartagena cooking class on GetYourGuide
| Day | Focus | Travel time | Daily cost (COP) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Walled City walk, Getsemani evening | walkable, no transit needed | roughly 120,000-180,000 (food and drinks; lodging extra) |
| Day 2 | Castillo San Felipe, La Popa | 10-15 min taxi each way | roughly 150,000-230,000 (entry fees and food) |
| Day 3 | Getsemani history walk, Bocagrande beach | 15-20 min taxi to Bocagrande | roughly 100,000-180,000 (beach snacks, optional chiva ~50,000) |
| Day 4 | Bazurto Market, cooking class | 10-15 min taxi to Bazurto | roughly 150,000-250,000 (class fee plus market spending) |
Day 1: Walled City orientation and a Getsemani evening
Land at CTG , 15-20 minutes from the center, and take the fixed-rate taxi kiosk into Getsemani or the walled city, roughly 20,000-30,000 COP. Walk the free ramparts, part of the UNESCO-listed fortification system since 1984, and the San Pedro and San Diego zones: Plaza de Bolívar, the Palace of the Inquisition’s exterior, and Las Bóvedas’ free artisan market. In the evening, cross into Getsemaní for street art and a cheaper dinner, then walk the walls near Baluarte Santo Domingo for sunset.
Day 2: Castillo San Felipe and La Popa
La Popa monastery in the cooler morning, roughly 4,500-11,000 COP (verify before you go, published prices vary widely), then the Palace of the Inquisition proper at midday, roughly 19,000-24,000 COP. Save Castillo San Felipe de Barajas for late afternoon, roughly 38,000 COP for foreign adults, up to 50,000 COP by some sources, since the fort has almost no shade and midday heat there is genuinely punishing.
Day 3: Getsemani’s history, then a Bocagrande beach afternoon
Spend the morning in Getsemaní with its history in mind: the neighborhood was historically home to the city’s Afro-Cartagenero working class and free Black population, and the palenqueras selling fruit and posing for photos (roughly 8,000 COP, agreed first) trace directly back to San Basilio de Palenque’s maroon community. In the afternoon, take a short taxi to Bocagrande for beach time, cheaper and more modern than the Old City’s waterfront. Close with a chiva party bus (roughly 50,000 COP a seat) or a quieter Getsemani dinner.
Day 4: Bazurto Market and a cooking class
Bazurto Market, a working produce and crafts market well outside the tourist core, rewards a morning of browsing and haggling on souvenirs, coffee and spices, best visited with a taxi booked for the return trip rather than wandering after dark. In the afternoon, book a hands-on Cartagena cooking class covering coastal staples like ceviche cartagenero and arroz de coco, or swap it for the Museo del Oro Zenú’s pre-Columbian gold collection if cooking isn’t your thing. Spend the evening on a last walk through the Old City before departure the next morning.
Is Bazurto Market worth a budget traveler’s time?
Yes, if you go with a plan: it’s the real working market locals actually use, genuinely cheaper for coffee, spices and crafts than the walled-city souvenir shops, and worth 2-3 hours. It’s not polished or curated for tourists, so keep valuables minimal, agree on any taxi fare beforehand, and haggle as a matter of course.
What does a 4-day trip cover that a 3-day trip skips?
A full extra day for Bazurto Market and a cooking class or the gold museum, activities that need unhurried time rather than a rushed afternoon slot. Everything from the 3-day plan (walled city, Castillo San Felipe, Getsemani, Bocagrande) stays intact; the fourth day adds depth rather than replacing anything.
Book the cooking class or Zenú museum entry a day ahead if your dates fall in the December-April dry season peak; both fill up faster than the free walking days do. Cartagena sits inside Colombia’s Level 3: Reconsider Travel national advisory, but the walled city and Getsemani are the country’s most heavily tourist-police-patrolled areas; see the official Cartagena tourism page for current hours before you lock in this schedule.