A Romantic Weekend in Cartagena

October 20, 2026

Advisory for visitors: Colombia is rated Level 3, “Reconsider Travel”, by the US State Department (issued 31 March 2026). The UK FCDO names border and rural regions to avoid, including the south of Bolívar Department, but not the city of Cartagena. For couples out in the evening, the main hazards are chain and phone snatching, drinks drugged with scopolamine (sometimes after a dating-app meeting) and taxis hailed on the street. Book rides through an app or your hotel, watch your glasses and keep jewellery covered. Read the current US State Department and UK FCDO pages.

A weekend in Cartagena de Indias can be paced for two, with a golden hour on the walls, a slow dinner, a morning on the water and a stay in a historic house. Here is one way to lay it out. Pesos convert at about 3,200 COP per US dollar, so check the day’s rate.

Friday evening: sunset and a first dinner

Start on the walls about an hour before dusk and head for the Baluarte de Santo Domingo, now a free public viewpoint. Drinking alcohol in public is illegal in Colombia, so keep the drinks for a terrace afterwards. Dinner in the Walled City or Getsemaní can be booked ahead. Celele on Calle del Espíritu Santo appeared on Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants list in 2025 and serves a seasonal carta; prices are not confirmed, so ask when you reserve through its official website . Get a taxi back instead of walking Getsemaní’s side streets late at night.

Saturday: a sail or a quiet beach

Boats leave from the Muelle de la Bodeguita, in front of the walls. For a short outing, a sunset catamaran sail of about 2 hours has been listed at roughly 131,000 COP per adult by Bonavida, one of the operators on the Corpoturismo list ; confirm the price, and be aboard before 5pm. For a daytime escape, the Rosario archipelago has Pao Pao Beach Club, described as a calmer sibling of Bora Bora. An island day carries three cash charges outside the tour price: a pier-use fee (roughly 18,000 to 34,000 COP), park entry (13,500 COP in the Rosario sector) and compulsory accident insurance, reported at about 8,800 COP. Visitors without the insurance cannot land. The port captaincy’s sea flags can stop sailings, so keep a spare afternoon.

Sunday: a slow morning in Getsemaní

Wander the murals on Calle de la Sierpe and Calle San Juan in daylight, when the neighbourhood is calm, and pause at Plaza de la Trinidad. Getsemaní was the birthplace of the 1811 independence movement, so it rewards a slower pace.

Where to stay

A new Four Seasons Hotel and Residences welcomed its first guests in Getsemaní on 2 April 2026. Casa San Agustín, a boutique hotel spread over three 17th-century houses and home to the Alma restaurant, appears in recent guides, though its current status needs checking. If you want fewer crowds, a night on the Barú peninsula is another option.

Small things that help

Heat peaks in the middle of the day, so keep that time for a long lunch indoors.
Drink bottled water.
Take app or hotel cars at night.

Search stays on Booking.com .