Cartagena is
a city, the fifth largest in Colombia located
on the northern Caribbean coast and is in fact two vastly different cities with
the modern Miami style high rises and the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the
colonial walled city. It was the historic area that drew us to Cartagena and we
were not disappointed. Reading the guide books were advised of possible
muggings and theft and the need for care and although it had a ‘gritty’ edge to
it we found no issues in walking the streets of the old city. We did not go
beyond the tourist area or walk the streets of the high rise as well. Cartagena
has an International airport linked to a number of major cities in US however
we selected Barranquilla which is serviced by American Airlines as the point of
entry and took a local bus to Cartagena which was interesting including the
police check , mainly of the locals for drugs along the way.
During the mid-1500’s Cartagena became a strategically
important city for Spain and served a key role in the Spanish expansion in
South America. The old walled city was defensible and retains much of its old
character and became a designated UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984.Most of
the time was spent in the walled city which has much to offer although the
Hop-on Hop-off bus did provide a good opportunity to see both cities and the
area beyond the old town.
There are some great old style hotels within the old walled city and some just outside in a small boutique hotel called Hotel Allure Chocolat which met all our needs and was only a short walk to the Old city and had some interesting bars nearby as well as a great view of the newer part of Cartagena from a roof top swimming pool.
The Entrance To The Walled City
A Typical Street Scene
Typical Street Views
Hotel Allure Chocolat From The Entrance
The View Of New Cartagena From The Rooftop Pool Of The Hotel Allure Chocolat
