KIRAN GOES PLACES
1. Start with a free walking tour
If you follow along regularly, you'll know I nearly always recommend a free walking tour when you land somewhere new, and it's especially worth it here. Cartagena has such a complicated, rich history that a good guide brings it to life properly, the indigenous people, Spanish colonisation, and the city's dark role as one of the main slave ports of the Spanish Empire. Hundreds of thousands of enslaved people passed through this port, and that legacy still runs through the city today, not tucked away in museums, but out on the streets, in the art, the music and the faces of the people. One tip from the tour that stuck with me, just an hour away is San Basilio de Palenque, founded by those who escaped, the first free African-led settlement in the Americas, and a genuinely worthwhile day trip if you have the time.
2. Explore the street art of Getsemaní
Getsemaní used to be a working-class neighbourhood, and it's now the artistic soul of the city. Every wall here tells a story, some of it political, some of it a celebration of the African heritage that runs through Cartagena, and you'll regularly see artists out painting roadside. If you're ever looking for somewhere to feel creatively inspired, this is it.
Getsemaní's street art leans into both politics and the African heritage that runs through the city.
3. Plaza Trinidad
In the heart of Getsemaní is Plaza Trinidad, calm by day and completely transformed by night. As the sun sets, locals gather on the benches, the food stalls start sizzling, and the sound of salsa fills the air. It's full of travellers, families and performers, with locals just hanging around enjoying a drink. If you want somewhere with a proper local feel, this is the spot.
Plaza Trinidad, calm by day, completely transformed once the sun goes down.
4. Coffee at Nia Bakery and Café San Alberto
I've written a whole separate post on the food and drink here, so I'll keep this brief, but Nia Bakery and Café San Alberto both deserve a mention on any list like this. Nia Bakery has arches, tiles and clay colours with the perfect light, basically a Pinterest board you can sit inside, and Café San Alberto is officially Colombia's most awarded coffee shop, brewing since 1972 and turning tasting into a proper performance. Between the two, it's some of the best coffee I had anywhere in South America.
5. Take a stroll down Calle del Jardín
One of Cartagena's most photogenic streets, and honestly it's hard to pick just one because so many of the streets in the old town are ridiculously pretty. Pastel houses lean into each other, balconies drip with flowers, and every corner is a perfect Instagram shot waiting to happen. Wander through the independent boutiques too, even if, like us, you can't really afford anything in them. Still nice to look.
Calle del Jardín, pastel houses leaning into each other and balconies dripping with flowers.
6. Shop the arts and crafts market at Las Bóvedas
Follow Calle del Jardín down and it leads you to Las Bóvedas, an arts and crafts market tucked beneath the old city's yellow arches. It used to be storage space built into the old city wall, and now it's a proper market full of handmade crafts. Our guide told us that everyone selling souvenirs on the streets around town actually sources their stock from here, so if you're picking up gifts, you'll get the best prices going straight to the source.
Las Bóvedas, once storage built into the old city wall, now a market full of handmade crafts.
7. Spot the wildlife in Parque Centenario
This is a random one, but right in the middle of the city is a park with genuinely wild wildlife. Parque Centenario is a proper green escape, with monkeys swinging overhead, sloths napping in the trees, and iguanas crawling around at ground level. It's a strange thing to see surrounded by traffic and city life, and it's easily accessible whether you're staying in the walled city or in Getsemaní.
Parque Centenario, a genuine green escape in the middle of the city, iguanas and all.
8. Cocktails at Alquímico and dancing at Café Havana
Cartagena is home to what's regularly ranked one of the best bars in the world, Alquímico, a three storey former colonial mansion turned into an ultra stylish cocktail bar, with a different atmosphere and drinks list on every floor. But for the best night out overall, it's Café Havana, the city's most famous Cuban-inspired salsa bar. The moment you step in you're hit by live music, brass, trumpets, violins and drums, everyone dancing shoulder to shoulder with a mojito in hand. It's packed, that's the only downside, but it's the best spot in the city at night and a proper must-see.
Café Havana, live brass and salsa most nights of the week.
Cartagena is culturally one of the richest places I've been to in Colombia, whether it's the history, the art, the wildlife or just chasing the perfect Instagram spot, there's a genuinely huge amount packed into a fairly small old town. If you're planning a trip, give yourself more than a couple of days here, we barely scratched the surface.