Tcherassi Hotel and Spa
Address: Calle del Sargento Mayor, Number 6-21, Cartagena, Colombia
Phone: + 57 5 664 4445

Tcherassi Hotel and Spa in Cartagena is one of the best boutique hotels in Cartagena.

The Tcherassi Hotel and Spa is cozy and intimate with just seven guest rooms.

The hotel was designed by the famous Colombian fashion designer Silvia Tcherassi.

As such, the hotel features excellent interior decor in whites and earth tones.

The Tcherassi Hotel and Spa also features a swimming pool and a spacious roof terrace.

The terrace is perfect for soaking up the sun away from the bustle of the street below.

There are a lot of new boutique hotels opening all the time in Cartagena.

It’s sometimes hard to keep track of which are the best of the boutique hotels in the city.

However, a few of the boutique hotels in Cartagena stand out above the rest for their quality and service.

Below is my list of the best boutique hotels in Cartagena.

Casa El Carretero

Finding the best restaurants in Cartagena takes time, but I’ve put together a list to help you get started.

Below is a list of what I consider to be the best restaurants in Cartagena.

I’ve eaten at all of them, and they all had great local cuisine, good wine and cocktails, and friendly service.

My thoughts on the best restaurants in Cartagena are below.

La Vitrola

La Casa de las Palmas

La Cocina de Soccoro

Hotel Agua
Address: Calle de Ayos No. 4-29, Centro Historico e Isla Baru, Cartagena
Phone: (5) 6649479

Hotel Agua in Cartagena is a great boutique hotel in the historic center of the walled city of Cartagena.

Hotel Agua is situated near the cathedral and amongst the emerald shops in the city and is a great location for exploring Cartagena.

Hotel Agua has a large reception area with a lounge.

The high ceilings and oversized furniture lend a colonial feel to the entry area.

The guest rooms on the upper floors are full of all the luxury amenities one would expect from a boutique hotel in Cartagena.

Hotel Agua boasts of a gorgeous rooftop pool and deck area that is perfect for the hot afternoons in Cartagena.

The staff at Hotel Agua are friendly and accommodating, and add all the little touches that makes a stay so memorable.

Cartagena is a city of beautiful colors, rich history, and great nighlife. Visitors to Cartagena can expect to be dazzled by Cartagena’s beautiful architecture, rich culture, and vibrant energy.

Officially named Cartagena de Indias, Cartagena was founded in 1533 by Spanish explorer Pedro de Heredia. Its history is rich with tales of pirate battles, castles, and cathedrals, and today visitors can take in much of Cartagena’s history at its museums, churches, castle, and other famous sites.

Cartagena is also a city for walking. Whether its getting lost in the walled city’s narrow streets or taking a stroll along the city walls, Cartagena’s bright colors and beautiful flowers are in bloom year round.

Cartagena is known around the world for its restaurants and nightlife. Whether you dine at La Vitrola or have a sunset cocktail at Cafe del Mar, Cartagena is bursting with energy every night.

Its proximity to the Islas Rosarios makes diving in Cartagena a great activity for those wanting to get out of the city. Daily dive and snorkel expeditions leave from Cartagena and offer world class coral reefs and marine life sightings to divers.

Whatever your pleasure, Cartagena can keep you busy for weeks. But if you don’t have unlimited time, try to spend at least five days in Cartagena to enjoy everything the city has to offer.

La Vitrola Restaurant in Cartagena
Address: Centro Cll 33 #2-01 Calle Baloco, Cartagena
Phone: 664 8243

La Vitrola restaruant is generally accepted as being the best restaurant in Cartagena and the wider coastal area.

The restaurant is packed nightly with locals and visitors alike.

La Vitrola restaurant is famous not only for its great Colombian food, but also its impressive live music.

La Vitrola restaurant gets booked up quickly.

Have your hotel call for reservations in advance so you won’t be disappointed when you get there.

1. Visit the Castillo San Felipe de Barajas on the hill above the walled city in Cartagena

2. Walk along the city walls for great views of Cartagena and the Caribbean Sea

3. Tour the Gold Museum to learn about Cartagena’s history

4. Take a horse and carriage ride through Cartagena

5. Visit the Modern Art Museum to see the works of some of Cartagena’s famous artists

6. Have cocktails at sunset at Cafe del Mar on the city walls

7. Visit the Palace of the Inquisition

8. Wander through the colorful streets in Cartagena’s walled city

9. Have dinner at the famous La Vitrola restaurant in Cartagena

10. Go diving in the Islas Rosarios

The best dive company in Cartagena is Dolphin Dive School S.A.

Dolphin Dive School has an office in Cartagena where staff can help you choose a diving or snorkeling excursion in the Rosario Islands.

You can also have your hotel arrange your trip with Dolphin Dive School for you.

Daily diving boats leave from the Marina Todomar in Dolphin Dive School’s boat and take visitors to the school’s island in the Rosarios.

Dive gear is piked up there, and groups are taken to various reefs for some of the best diving in the Rosarios.

Dolphin Dive School makes sure that there are ample dive instructors are on hand at each dive to teach beginners and supervise experienced divers and snorkelers.

Lunch is served in Dolphin Dive School’s lodge on the island, which also has overnight facilities for visitors who book a multi-day dive excursion with Dolphin Dive School.

Day visitors are taken back on a boat in the late afternoon and arrive in Cartagena in the early evening.

The best place for diving in Cartagena is in the Islas Rosarios, or Rosairo Islands off the coast of Colombia.

The Islands are a protected wildlife park with great opportunities for diving and snorkeling.

Diving in Cartagena and the Islas Rosarios is famous for its hundreds of species of coral, myriad fish populations, giant crabs, sea turtles, squid, sharks, and other marine life.

Boats leave Cartagena for the Islas Rosarios from the Marina Todomar.

Diving companies in Cartagena such as Dolphin Dive School run daily or overnight diving boats to the islands.

All diving levels, from beginner to advanced, are welcome, as is snorkeling.

Casa El Carretero in Cartagena
Colombia Reservations: +57 (300) 660 4475
US Reservations: +1 (415) 508 3927
UK Reservations: +44 (0) 20 8144 1785

Located just off the colorful Plaza de la Trinidad in Cartagena’s Getsemani district, the hotel Casa El Carretero is one of the best boutique hotels in Cartagena.

With a lounge and kitchen on the ground floor, three guest rooms on the first floor, and a pool and deck on the roof, hotel Casa El Carretero is small enough to feel like a home, but has all the amenities of a luxury hotel.

The staff at hotel Casa El Carretero is warm and friendly, and cooks up great breakfasts of fresh fruit and local specialties.

They are happy to make dinner and activity reservations for guests, and are helpful in assisting with plans.

Rooms at Casa El Carretero have large beds and bathrooms, as well as flat-screen televisions, air conditioning and fans, and balconies overlooking the surrounding neighborhood.

Room rates at the hotel Casa El Carretero are US$165 a night for a single and US$265 for a suite.

The entire house can be rented for US$595 a night (US$1,000 a night from December 20-January 8).

Hotel Casa de las Palmas in Cartagena
Hotel Address: Getsemani, Calle de las Palmas No. 25-51, Cartagena, Colombia
Hotel Phone: 6643 630 – 6641 765
Restaurant Address: Calle de la Aguada No. 25-46
Restaurant Phone: 6601 628

Located in Cartagena’s up and coming Getsemani district, Hotel Casa de las Palmas is a quiet guesthouse on a residential street in Cartagena’s historic walled city.

Hotel Casa de Las Palmas, run by Martha Estrada, is a glorious throwback to old Cartagena.

The decor is out of 1950′s Havanna and has an intimate feel that makes the visitor feel like they are a million miles from home.

The restaurant at Hotel Casa de las Palmas, with indoor and outdoor seating, is a hidden gem.

It is one of the best restaurants in Cartagena but one that only the locals seem to know about.

The rice with chicken dish is suberb, and the prices are lower than most others in the city.

La Cocina de Soccoro restaurant in Cartagena is one of the city’s top restaurants.

Serving up great food for 25 years, the restaurant is thriving under the management of Gustavo Ortiz Rodriguez.

Located right across the street from the Centro de Convenciones, Cartagena’s Modern convention center, La Cocina de Soccoro serves up traditional Colombian cuisine and great drinks.

The rice dishes are particularly flavorful, especially the rice with chicken and the rice with prawns.

La Cocina de Soccoro has two floors and a bar area, and often plays American sports games on the television on the ground floor.

After being the set of the Princess Bride years ago, Cartagena’s fame in the filming word has fallen.

The Miami Herald covers a new and hopeful trend to the contrary:

Cartagena Regaining its Former Cinematic Luster

This historic port city, which once claimed to be the filmmaking center of the Caribbean, looks to rebuild its cinema and tourism industries.

BY JOSHUA GOODMAN

CARTAGENA, Colombia – Even if you’re not a location scout, it’s difficult not to become entranced by the timeless beauty of this Caribbean port’s heavy-stone ramparts and trove of Spanish colonial architecture.

But despite a sharp drop in murders since law-and order President Alvaro Uribe took office in 2002, Colombia’s well-earned reputation for violence nearly cost Cartagena the chance of being featured in the film Love in the Time of Cholera. The best-seller novel on which the film was based was set here by Nobel Prize-winning author Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

Read more on Miami Herald

Some of the best beaches in Colombia are on the country’s Carribbean coast.

The absolute best beaches in Colombia are in Santa Marta.

Santa Marta is located on the Carribean coast of Colombia.

The beaches in Santa Marta have mostly domestic tourists, so there aren’t any touts or vendors there.

Cartagena has some nice beaches as well.

Cartagena has many foreign tourists (mainly Americans), which unfortunately means that there are a lot of touts and vendors on the beaches.

Better beaches are located in the Rosario Islands near Cartagena.

The water is clear and while the sand areas are small, they are usually protected from touts and vendors.