First Time to Cartagena- need advice

ColombiaBoard says on May 11, 2004, 07:33:

1. Apart from the usual and personal stuff for a stay at a beach city you don´t need anything.
2. The best restaurants are located in the old walled city and some in the hotels along Bocagrande. Get a local tourist guide because those restaurants open and close often.
3. Avoid neighborhoods close to the old walled city, for example La Popa , Boquilla, Marbella. Bocagrande and Castillo Viejo are OK, that´s where all the high rise hotels are. The old walled city is ok.
4. Walk all over the old walled city, it´s full of colonial architecture, churches, palaces, houses, hotels, monuments. Go to Castillo de San Felipe, an old spanish fortress, you may want to go up to La Popa Monastery, walk all over Bocagrande. Take a boat to Islas del Rosario and Bocachica.
5. Rosario Islands: great for scuba diving. Vendors can be a nuisance not only there but on the beaches everywhere.

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santiago says on May 11, 2004, 13:10:

Cartagena ideas 1) Must take items to pack
You should take CIPRO a medicine for stomach problems. I travel with Doctors to Colombia all the time and they never leave home without it. It’s expensive but it really works “if” you have a problem.
2) Great restaurants
For steak go to Carbon de Palo and ask about the baby beef. Best in Cartagena and a great atmosphere. Club Pesca Retaurant, “upscale” but terrific.
3) Safety - I thought it was safer this April 2004 than in any other trip.
Do not change money on the street. Otherwise normal big city caution.
4) Must see
5) Rosario Islands – I recommend you stay overnight. The trip there and back make for a very short stay on the island. I stayed at the link below and the food was good and villas were very nice. Pool is not so great, but the boat landing is for swimming in the ocean. You can hire a local to take you scuba diving or to a “private island” for very little money. You can buy lobster from the fisherman and have the cook make it for lunch or dinner. MMMMMmmmmmm take extra pesos if you like lobster & pargo rojo. (red snapper) If your Colombian family has not beem there you can rent a villa and the whole family can go and bring your own food to cook.
http://www.paraisosecreto.com/english/home.htm

There is another hotel - Hotel Cocoliso with a great pool that is part of the day trip packages that is also terrific. I also stayed there and loved it. Ask the owner to take to the other side of the island to dance “champata” with the locals. Unbelievable nice people.

I could go on but now I want to go back again. Hope you enjoy.

Santiago

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tjtravels says on May 11, 2004, 19:43:

Thanks! Thank you both so much for your suggestions, can't wait to check out Carbon de Palo, will let you know how the baby beef was!
If you think of anything else let us know, we are leaving in 10 days and are so excited! We have been looking for info for months and finally found this forum - we are starved for info!

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Gator says on May 11, 2004, 19:53:

He Is a Couple Additional......... In the Old Walled City go to the Plaza Pedro Claver across from the church Pedro Claver-through the Clock Gate, turn left and around the corner? Try the Restaurante San Pedro. It offers meat, fish, Mexican dishes, and Asian food. Some tables are inside the restaurant and others are located outside, in the square, surrounded by iron sculptures that make reference to the customs and lifestyle of the region. Great for people/chica watching.

Try the Bodegón of La Candelaria, in la Calle de las Damas very good restaurant in a remodeled colonial house in the old city.

One of my very favorites, and my wife's, for the best sea food I ever had is the Club de Pesca. Great food and atmosphere in the Fort of San Sebastián de Pastelillo in the Manga neighborhood. Recommend the Festival de Mariscos, a seafood combination of lobster, king prawns, fish fillet, squid, conch and mussels accompanied by coconut rice and fried plantains; or the Pargo Rojo entero de temporada, fried red snapper served with coconut rice, green salad and fried plantains, the wife's favorite. For desert the mamey chutney with vanilla ice cream and nuts is to die for.

If you really want to make an impression go to La Fragata,Calle Real No. 41-15, in Barrio el Cabrero. It's located in a beautiful republican house from the 19th century, next to the house of Colombian ex-president Rafael Nuñez. This restaurant is outstanding and my wife's very, very favorite. Excellent seafood. The house is an architectural gem, has a wonderful view of the Old City walls, the India Catalina, Apolo Park and San Felipe Castle. The Fragata king prawns, the Tres Fragatas lobster and the Crab teeth are some specialties. La Fragata has a great wine list and exotic desserts. I THINK you can get horse drawn carriage from Boca Grande.

La Vitrola in the walled city, is on Calle Baloco. Very good with a Cuban bent but the food is really international. Try the Grouper filet aux fines herbes and the Camarones en hamaca.

BTW none of these are cheap but in USD and compared to what you would pay in the US, not too bad. I would strongly again STRONGLY recommend reservations ESPECIALLY, Friday and Saturday or over major holidays, or during events.

Cartagena is loaded with sea food so here are some translations:


English names of fish and the general Spanish name (may be some difference of opinion here):

Snook – Robalo (about the best, you must try it if you like fish)
Wahoo – Wahoo
Kingfish – Macarela
Yellow Fin Tuna – Atun Aleta Amarilla
Grouper – Mero
Snappers- Paro (Pargo Rojo=Rednapper)
Mojara- Mojarra (Great dish fried whole)
Dolphin – Dorado
Trucha - trout
Some main dishes you will find are Ajiaco Santafereño, a thick soup prepared from chicken, different kinds of potato (at least three), a herb called guascas, and a sweet corn accompanied by capers and fresh cream a hearty soup/stew popular in Bogotá but served everywhere,
Bandeja Paisa (literally a hillbilly platter) red beans (cargamantos) , carne en polvo (finely chopped beef), chicharron, a couple of plátano maduros, a fried egg, avocado and an arepa. Enough to last all day. Sancocho de Gallina, kind of like the national dish of Colombia. It's like a soup consisting of chicken, yucca, potato, corn on the cob and appropriate spices-hard to beat. A variation would be Sancocho de piscado (out with the chicken in with the fish.)Bravas Caldas Figs and white cheese;Arroz con coco frito, rice made with coconut milk and fried shredded coconut. Seviche which is a combination of fish and onions (fresh lemon/lime juice poured over and then covered and refrigerated for about three days. The juice cooks the fish ( DO NOT order from a beach vendor. Better you were captured by FARC).Cazuela de Mariscos A sea food stew that is about the best you will ever eat, especially in Cartagena or Barrenquilla where everything is fresh caught Consists of fish (corvina), lobster, shrimp, squid, clams, red snapper. Eat this at the Capilla del Mar in Bocagrande or the The Bodegón of La Candelaria, in La Calle de las Damas, in the Old City and you will think you have died and gone to heaven. Grab a Patacones; Green plantains, mashed and fried about the size of a dinner plate. A little salt and enjoy comes with side that can be ordered on the side. Carne a la Barbacoa sobre Pancitos (Sloppy Joe’s in case you can’t hack “foreign” food) Arequipe Ice Cream, a taste treat. Chicharrones, Colombian Cracklin’s for you Southern boys.

In the morning find a little bakery (many on the main drag in Bocagrande along San Martin ) and settle down with a café or café con leche with fresh hot pan de yuca, buñuelos or almojábanas and watch the passing parade. And last but not least, Arepas de Chóclo with butter, salt and a little white cheese. As ubiquitous as grits in the south. Some less expensive, but nice, places are La Olla on Av SanMartin and about 5th; Restaurant La Tinaja, in the LaMatuna area near the old city and try the Sancocho de Costilla; Restaurante Dany El Churrasco Argentino on fifth and about 2 just off Av SanMartin.
The food is good and it's air conditioned;.

Pack, dress light because it is HOT and HUMID. Dress is casual but I always like to wear long pant at night. Sun screen, some medicine to combat the tropical trots. You will sweat and change clothing frequently.

Safety? No problem the safest place in Colombia. Use normal precautions you would anywhere else-if in doubt seek local advice.
Castillo de San Felipe de Baraja, La Popa. Take a longggggggggggg walk, make that walks, in the Old Walled City. Pay attention to the details - the doorknobs, the small plazas with lots of park benches, the flowers on the colorful balconies, the street intertainers. Remember, it's damn hot in Cartagena so dress LIGHT. No real worries about propriety here, its Cartagena. Do a google search and you will find list after list of things to do. Don't be afraid to ride the buses. Cheap and they go everywhere-meet people and see the town on for a very few pesos. Take a Rumba Chiva at night. Hope you will have a full moon coming up over the city walls.

Islas del Rosario worth a trip if you snorkel or SCUBA but it's a tough, long, boring ride to get there unless a tanga comes on board.. Can be crowded on the weekends.

One word- Loaded with touts who will drive you nuts because that don't give up and they are everywhere. BE FIRM and say NO! One other aside, there are "guides” every where but I have found that are not worth the $$$$$$$$$$

"Credidi pretio parvo emere et magno vendere tibi in animo fuisse!" .

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guavaberry5 says on May 12, 2004, 07:00:

your recommendations i've been particualry interested in ideas for where to eat and what to do around ctg. you definitely provided a ton of them in your posting and i am looking forward to checking some of them outwhen i go next year. any ideas about where to stay in islas de rosario? i have accessed some places online and have heard other people talk of others on this forum but i'm soliciting various opinions. (i am not one for package tours and loads of gringos hanging around poolside bars so anyplace off the beaten track with a tranquilo environment, good access to swimming/snorkeling and buena gente would be most welcome :))

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seattlejames says on May 12, 2004, 09:41:

maybe We took a boat ride from Cartagena which took about 15 minutes or so to a beach which I do not think was an island but it was very calm and beautiful. You could look from the beach and see Cartagena over the water. I have pictures I will post if I can figure out how. We also went to a Italian restaurant named Cin Cin and had a great time. On the ceiling of Cin Cin there is a drawing I made that says Seattle on it.....It was funny...Plus they speak English....

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seattlejames says on May 12, 2004, 10:01:

little more Cartagena is amazing....Maybe the most beautiful city I have ever been to. Now, I have been to Colombia once, so obviously take everything I say, uummm, with salt, or not set in stone, but I felt so safe in Cartagena. I never felt any type of pressure or never encountered anything that threatened me. And my Spanish sucks. Basically everything for me in Cartagena was perfect. We had no reservations so we walked by apartments and there was always somebody their trying to rent apartments. We rented a 2 bedroom, really nice apt for like $40 bucks a night. Of course, my friends told me to not talk while discussing price. Touts, again I had no problems with them. Yes, their job is to sell stuff, but again no problem with them. For me, I just listened to them, treated them with respect, and said no, gracias. Sometimes a couple of times said, no gracias.......But I did buy lots of stuff from people selling stuff, feel free to look at their stuff and than say no, gracias....The painting I bought are amazing...

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Sam Salmon says on May 12, 2004, 10:08:

Gator-a man after my own stom Gator-a man after my own stomach!;)


' a la orden!'

' a la orden!'

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seattlejames says on May 12, 2004, 10:30:

little more I realize I am no 'gator'. My Spanish, spelling & writing sucks. But I am on a roll thinking maybe my stupid advise could help. In Colombia they have these great vans that go from sity to city. They hold like 14 people and have a TV playing movies or Shikira concerts. But they were great, rode in them 4 times. From Barranquilla to Cartagena, Barranquilla to Rodadero, and back of course. If you want to check out other cities this was perfect transportation. I would recommend Rodadero, close to Santa Marta. Great apartments and small city. You can also take a boat ride for like 20 minutes to a perfect beach with not many people. You stop at a aquarium on the way for some reason, but the dolphins were cool. From Rodadero we took a taxi and guide to Arrecife Park. It is like a Colombian Park, or something. You hike like 3 miles or so and the beaches are amazing again. One beach the waves were amazing and they say do not swim their. The second beach was like, La Pacino, something like that...You can swim there because I think Indians a long time ago put these huge rocks out in the ocean which the waves hit.....This was amazing. The whole beach was for only us. I found this funny, regarding the hike. After I was told we were going hiking I was like damn, no REI or North Face shit with me, I hope I will be OK. So I go with three other people (Colombians) and the girls show up in flip flops, and I think they must have brought shoes. But no, they walk the whole way barefoot over some crazy stuff. Me, all worried about shoes, them with flip flops....I still laughed at myself all the time...I guess you had to be there.......

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Gator says on May 12, 2004, 14:13:

CinCin in Laquito on, I think, Cra. 1 I particularly liked the risotto al radicchio en aceto balsamico and the wife the fillet mignon alla pizzaiola con queso. Don't forget to sign your name on the wall (Look for the grinning Gator.)

P.S. My memory is not that good so don't be fooled by the names of the dishs, but the wife collects menus and matchbook covers.

"Credidi pretio parvo emere et magno vendere tibi in animo fuisse!" .

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tjtravels says on May 12, 2004, 19:16:

You guys are amazing!! Thank you so much for the specifics, this is exactly what we needed. We will definitely be printing all of this to bring with us. It's so nice to hear some positive comments about Caragena!
PS- Gator, We will remember to check out the "grinning gator" and when you go back be sure to find the "GO VOLS"!

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Gator says on May 13, 2004, 09:29:

Go Vols Bring your own Jack Daniels and remember, in Colombia people DO NOT eat things killed on the road. No grits but once you try arepas, made with white corn meal, you can forget the grits.

Seriously, have a great time (I know you will)in a wonderful city. At least one of us will be happy late September 18 after the game.

BTW, I was serious about Mr. Jack. If you like sour mash or bourbon whiskey bring your own because it had to find and expensive. I assume you are going through MIA so you might try the duty-free shops there but prices are hit and miss. At times you can get a better price at some place like COSCO or SAMS. Scotch is the big drink and a bottle of Johnny Walker Blackl Label is always appreciated.

Let us know your impression of Colombia/Cartagena when you return.

"Credidi pretio parvo emere et magno vendere tibi in animo fuisse!" .

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seattlejames says on May 13, 2004, 09:47:

Gator...? You wrote, Scotch is the big drink and a bottle of Johnny Walker Black Label is always appreciated.

I am throwing a party in Barranquilla for 50 people at Hotel Prado late June... I rented a room with a buffet. I am trying to figure out what kind of drinks to serve to my future family and friends. I was thinking Ron Viejo de Caldas...But I am not sure...Is scotch very fancy? Do they like it...It is one of my favorites. Should I buy a bunch of bottles for the party? Do you know if they sell Glenfiddich scotch in Colombia? If not, what is a fancy bottle of scotch that Colombians will know of and recognize as fancy..? Damn, Tennessee....Feed him more crap please....

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Gator says on May 13, 2004, 11:59:

My thoughts... forget the Scotch, too expensive and being a good ol'boy I drink burbon. For this reason I reallly don't know anything about Scotch in Colombia other than it tastes like medicine. Ron Caldas would be great and nothing wrong with Ron Antioquia or Tres Esquinas. Aguardiente is kinda the national drink so you can't go wrong there. I drink Cristal or Blanco but there are strong reginal brands so get what is most popular in Barranquilla.

Have a great party (If you serve Scotch you will confirm the belief that gringos are loco and very rich).

"Credidi pretio parvo emere et magno vendere tibi in animo fuisse!" .

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tjtravels says on May 13, 2004, 12:16:

gator and seattle gator, thanks again for all your advice, it's really been helpful. At the risk of turning(of allthings a Columbian travel forum) into a lively sounding board for the one true passion that rivals all others:SEC FOOTBALL, and in anticipated rebuttal to Seattle who is seeming to egg it on; let me say that indeed one of us will be sad this September and I will look foward on Sunday to perusing fireronzook.com and learning your mind about the sound thrashing that was perpetrated upon young master Leak and the bastardized orange(not the true god-made orange of the vols) and blue that glorious day...Again your insights about cartagena have been very apreciated and just as Tennessee gave the Gator nation Steve Spurrier, the state ofn Tennessee has been somewhat repaid in kind by your indepth responses to two excited and wary travelers...but as for the 18th of September...I am afraid you will be forced to wisfully pine to be wrapped in the sweet arms of lady Cartagena, where the lamentations of a Gator fan would melt away in indifference...either that or we will

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