re: Visiting Cartagena, Colombia - Recommendations?

Wear a bulletproof vest

It's a fantastic city. Old city is great and the vibe, culture, and women are amazing. Called the Vegas of South America. I would get smart on basic Spanish and display your American machoism because the chicks love it. Terrific food. Did I mention the women? Bring money..

Thanks for the great info pdiben1 & tiger20009!

pdiben1

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"Take a tour of the castle and go through the tunnels. Have a romantic dinner at the fort at night and walk around it after. And Rosario Islands are pretty, my uncle camps out there a lot.

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This sounds perfect and confirms some options that I was considering as I'll be there with the SO.

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And take the Chiva, it's like a party bus that goes around the whole city

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I watched a clip of the Chiva earlier that was posted by a couple from New Zealand. Actually looked like a lot of fun in your typical, touristy kind of way (which I'm not opposed to, especially if it involves booze).

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"Tell him MAKE SURE he has fish out by the beach. But they'll probably take advantage if he doesn't speak any Spanish at every place he goes."

They gonna overcharge you baw

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I'm extremely excited to try the seafood and was hoping to get some good recs on this. Luckily the SO is fluent in Spanish, so hopefully not too many ripoffs for this gringo.



tiger20009

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You can stay at the Santa Clara or the Santa Teresa, both ancient monasteries converted into luxury hotels. There are also many nice boutique hotels.

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We actually booked a nice, sizeable AirB&B for us and a few other wedding guests during the first 4 nights. Great location. Then the two of us are staying at the Tcherassi the final 2 nights. The photos did look amazing for both hotels though, perhaps another time.

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You can fly to Cartagena direct from Miami, which I HIGHLY recommend.

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This is what we booked and was much cheaper than I initially anticipated.

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The Rosario Islands are beautiful. The more distant ones are nicer than the close ones. You can arrange a dive trip if you like. The city beaches are not very nice. Hotel pools are usually nice. The Santa Clara has a pool on the roof which is nice.

You are going to have a fantastic trip. Colombians are fun people. Hang out with the Colombians in the wedding party and you will have a blast.

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Really looking forward to all of the above!

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Lots of good restaurants.

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Any specific recommendations?

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And, as a general rule, plan on everyone being an hour late.

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I am more than aware of this fact from first-hand experience.

I cannot think of any specific restaurants to recommend. There are a lot of tourist traps, so do some research beforehand rather than wandering into a place that looks good.