Cartagena, Columbia

[lovetotraveltx]

Our october cruise stops in Cartagena. We are doing a Disney excursion that gives us 2 hours of free time to do an excursion. Can anyone recommend a good restaurant or two for lunch. Also, coffee that we can purchase somewhere to bring back to the US. And, do we need cash? If so, local currency? Thank you!

 

[SnowWhite2]

If it is the excursion we did which gave us a few hours of free time, there is a Hard Rock Cafe close to where they let you loose to roam. It was ungodly hot and the street vendors so obnoxious that we wanted to find somewhere to hide from them all. The Hard Rock fit the bill. We used a credit card to pay. There was another cafe that was partly outdoors that was close and several stopped there. We are going back in March and staying in the port area this time. I have no desire to go outside of the enclosed area.

 

[xavier2001]

I don't know that I'd venture off alone in Cartagena, and I am one who usually has no problem exploring. For one its HOT, for 2 the vendors are really aggressive. We had a wonderful private tour of the city with an independent excursion but afterwards we were ready to get on board. There is a gift shop and aviary in the secured port area that might be fun to explore.

 

[xavier2001]

And I am super jealous of your PC cruise, we were on the West bound this year and hand down best trip we've taken!

 

[GPaLarry]

We had the same experience with aggressive vendors, hot weather and sketchy surroundings. Also, we bought coffee as we boarded a bus from our DCL excursion and it was terrible. I would advise asking your guide for advice on where to get good coffee. I don't care to ever go back to that port...lots of history and interesting sites, but weather and "pound on your window while you are on the bus" vendors I can do without.

 

[darnheather]

My children and I are doing the WBPC in February and after much research we are just going to do the aviary right next to the port. I've traveled completely alone or with my children in several countries, but Columbia while reasonably safe is just not one I'm willing to do so for the reasons mentioned above.

 

[GPaLarry]

My children and I are doing the WBPC in February and after much research we are just going to do the aviary right next to the port. I've traveled completely alone or with my children in several countries, but Columbia while reasonably safe is just not one I'm willing to do so for the reasons mentioned above.

Our stop there was in 2008 during our first DCL cruise (EBPC), one of the first times in a long time that that city was "safe" enough for any cruise ships because of drugs, crime, etc. We went to Aruba next, which was a complete 180 degrees, especially if you like iguanas.

 

[eeyorefanuk]

Hi
same cruise
We are staying within the area of the port. Supposed to be a few shops/coffee shop and little “zoo” area
I hate the thought of being hounded so decided against any tour

Or going to do the Rosario islands

 

[Flossbolna]

A word on the vendors: in our experience they were horrible as long as we were part of a group, as soon as my husband and I were walking around in our own, they were far less in our face. So, for me they are not something that would keep me from exploring on my own.

 

[cyclenut]

We were on the WBPC this past April and had some time (not two hours) to venture off. We found the Hard Rock, but we were there just to buy pins. The street vendors dogged the large groups more than individuals. The best approach to them is just ignore them. I like to be polite, but as soon as you make eye contact, they think you are interested. There are a lot of nice shops around the Hard Rock. A block or two away is a Pandora store.

You don't need local currency. I don't recommend you carry much cash. Use a credit card, one that doesn't charge a foreign transaction fee. They will always use the most current exchange rate. I use the Capital One Venture One card. No annual fee, no foreign transaction fee, airline miles bonuses, visa signature benefits, etc.

We did not feel unsafe AT ALL. There were a lot of cruise ship passenger groups being guided around. We stayed in those very popular tourist areas though. We didn't feel comfortable just wandering off anywhere.

 

[darnheather]

I love the Disney Cruise Mom Blog in particular. I have been known to reread her trip reports multiple times as I await my next cruise. Here is her entry for Cartagena with some nice photos of the aviary.

http://www.disneycruisemomblog.com/panama-canal-trip-report-day-6-cartagena-part-1/

 

[xavier2001]

I don't want to discourage anyone from going to see Cartagena, it is a beautiful place with rich history. What I have found from reading multiple trip reports is that people tend to have more positive experiences on the private tours. We did one with this company (http://www.cartagenatour.com/_index.php ) and it was one of the highlights in our 2 week cruise. I wrote about the experience in a trip report here on the Dis.

 

[Minnie & Daisy]

We were there on a disney group tour and the vendors will come right up to you while you are in your group. We were stopped at one point while the tour guide was explaining something, and I totally missed it all as I had some vendor shouting in my face. They are not only impolite, but aggressive, as well.

 

[smacmillan83]

We did the 2015 EBPC which stopped in Cartagena. We did a Disney excursion which gave us 60mins free time in the old town. We wandered around and didn't get hassle from any vendors but also didn't go anywhere for lunch so we don't have any recommendations there. The areas where we had the most issues with vendors were at the Fort and a small shopping area. As others have said, a firm no is needed. I loved this port, would love to go back and explore more of the old town.

 

[LNMom]

My family went to Cartagena in 2016 for 4 nights (it was the least expensive flight out of Miami where we were vacationing, so we said "why not?"; turned out to be a fabulous trip and I look forward to going back). Now, we were myself, DH, MIL, and 3 kids including a baby, so most people probably wanted to avoid us like the plague even if it meant losing a sale. We did not have an issue with vendors. People offered us hats once, but I was firm (I used my school teacher voice). We did 1 private tour of the fort and another group trip to Rosario Islands. Perhaps this is why we had no problems with vendors at all! We were out and about day and into the evening with no problems at all; I went for walks with the baby and was just fine.

It is hot, hot, hot. We took about 3 showers a day because we were soaked. Dress in very light clothing. I wore sundresses-they work if I'm walking the streets, but they are also great for a nicer restaurant.

Do not buy drinks from vendors. Just remember that out gut is not used to the microbes that live in the water in other countries. We have plenty of microbes in the U.S., but we are used to them. I drank the water at hotels/restaurants and was fine, but it's not worth chancing it since you're just there a few hours.

We loved Mila, which serves light lunch fare and desserts. La Vitrola is a classic; we had dinner there. We also had dinner at Cande, which we loved. There are two large hotels, the Casa San Augustin and the Sofitel Legend Santa Clara (both are in the old city). I am sure they will have lovely restaurants.

I hope you love Cartagena as much as we did! Happy Sailing!!

 

[LNMom]

Oh, I forgot to add that we needed Colombian pesos. We couldn't use U.S. dollars. But, my credit cards worked just fine everywhere.

 

[lorimay]

We are on the February PC cruise next year and we are looking for an excursion to see sites.
We are from South Florida, so we are use to the humidity and heat that Colombia offers.
The private tours look so much better, but I have to say we prefer to go thru Disney, I hope we find something we like.

 

[lovetotraveltx]

We are on the February PC cruise next year and we are looking for an excursion to see sites.
We are from South Florida, so we are use to the humidity and heat that Colombia offers.
The private tours look so much better, but I have to say we prefer to go thru Disney, I hope we find something we like.

I booked the taste of Cartegena through Disney. We are going this October and I'll report back!

 

[cyclenut]

I booked the taste of Cartegena through Disney. We are going this October and I'll report back!

This is THE most popular choice and can be a bit crowded. They take several buses full of people on the tour and when you visit the places they take you to, I found that there were multiple groups at the same venue at the same time. The guides were trying to talk over one another describing the different things we were seeing in their own way.

 

[darnheather]

I thought about doing the culinary tour as well but decided to do one from a private company in Puerto Vallarta instead.