Cartagena Fort, Museum and Aviary Visits
Advisory for visitors: The US State Department places all of Colombia at Level 3, “Reconsider Travel” (31 March 2026). The UK FCDO’s list of areas to avoid covers border and rural regions, among them southern Bolívar Department, and does not include Cartagena. Around the attractions below, the issues to expect are bag and phone theft, scopolamine-spiked drinks and taxis without a licence. Ask your hotel to book cars, ignore strangers offering food or flyers, and keep valuables out of view. See the US State Department and UK FCDO for the latest.
Cartagena’s headline attractions are easy to line up for a few days of visits. The summary below gives the practical details, with prices converted at about 3,200 COP per US dollar (check the same-day rate).
| Attraction | Where | Hours | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas | Avenida Antonio Arévalo, Pie del Cerro | Daily 7am to 6pm | 38,000 COP foreign adult |
| Museo Histórico (Palacio de la Inquisición) | Plaza de Bolívar | Mon to Sat 9am to 6pm, Sun 10am to 4pm | About 24,000 COP adult (reported) |
| Museo del Oro Zenú | Parque de Bolívar | Tue to Sat 9am to 5pm, Sun 9am to 2pm (reported) | Free (reported) |
| Aviario Nacional de Colombia | Km 14.5, Cartagena to Barú road | Daily 9am to 5pm, last entry 4pm | 90,000 COP foreign adult |
The fortress with a guide
San Felipe was begun in 1657 on San Lázaro hill and is known as “the impregnable”, since it was never captured. Children aged 6 to 13 pay 16,000 COP and under-6s are free. A guide can be hired at the ticket office, and that cost is not part of the ticket. You can also buy tickets online via the fortress site . Bring a hat and water, and take care in the tunnels, which can be slippery.
Old city museums
The Museo Histórico occupies the former Palace of the Inquisition, started in 1610. The museum site lists free entry for children under 5 (museum ). The torture instruments on show look like replicas or generic reconstructions, so read them as an illustration of the period. Next door in the Parque de Bolívar, the Museo del Oro Zenú shows gold and shell work, ceramics, weaving and flutes that visitors can hear.
The bird park
The aviary opened in February 2016 and covers about 8 hectares, with over 2,000 birds of roughly 200 species. A foreign child or student pays 65,000 COP. Plan on 1.5 to 2 hours on foot, with a flight talk at 11:30am and 3:30pm, though not in rain. Food and pets are not allowed in, and the park has no transport of its own, so use a taxi or a tour. Tickets and times are on the aviary site .
Extras that cost more
- Rosario Islands Oceanarium. Adults were listed at about 38,000 COP, with a dolphin show. It is sometimes a separate paid stop on island tours. Attitudes to dolphin shows differ.
- Rum and chocolate tasting. Casa Dictador in Getsemaní lists tours from about US$100 to 140.
- Hop-on hop-off bus. About US$23 for a day, first departure 9am, last 3pm, roughly every 45 minutes.
Booking sense
Buy guides from official ticket counters or reviewed companies rather than people on the street. Photographing military sites is illegal. For packaged sightseeing, see GetYourGuide’s Cartagena listings .
Read more: sightseeing in Cartagena and the 2 day plan for Cartagena .