Renting an apartment in Cartagena

peteyw says on Jan 28, 2008, 07:28:

Dawnx, I'll give you the best choices. If its not listed here its because its an unsafe area for you, might be safe for a local, but not for you.

On how... the best way is to come to Cartagena, get a hotel for a week or so and find a place while already here. Most of the rental agents and even private owners looking to rent won't really want to talk to you unless your here already. I'll give you links below.

Timing.... Cartagena gets two busy seasons and its difficult to rent for anywhere close to a reasonable price during those times. The high season is mid-june to mid-july and mid-december thru mid-january. The rest of the year you can get a good deal.

Castillogrande (more residential, nice quiet beach, most expensive, few one bedrooms ),

Bocagrande (very touristy, but has all the resources, shops, large variety of restaurants, medical
facilities including the best hospital in town, most hotels, 24 hour supermarkets, etc..,
lots of apartment choices expect 240 to 450 pounds a month incl. utilities)

El Centro (downtown, the beating heart of Cartagena, schools, shopping,musuems, eateries,
bars, clubs, etc.. Offers everything from refurbished apartments with modern fixtures
and appliances to hidden colonial gems to disaster apartments not upgraded since
the 19th century. prices all over the board.)

Laguito: I don't recommend. Frequented by too many foreigners looking for hookers and
attacts bad character locals, especially at night. But a lot of people will try to
recommend it to you since it is right next to Bocagrande and Castillogrande. Stay
away, trust me.

Other areas: Manga, Crespo, La Boquilla, Cabrero, Pie La Popa are all choices, but each has
issues. Manga is nice, but has some crime issues with theft, even though there is a
large police presence there . Crespo is close to the airport, but is pretty boring and
has very few resources except for a few shops and restaurants. La Boquilla is up
and coming, but you'll need a car unless you want to ride the bus everywhere which
can be dicey.
Cabrero is on the rise and walking distance to downtown , but is across the bridge
from a bad neighborhood and you can run into some seedy characters at night
especially along the beach there. Pie La Popa is pretty, but has crime isssues.

Dawnx, I'm going to assume from your name you are a female and therefore I'll make this recommendation as though you were my 24 year old sister...
Choose either Bocagrande or Castillogrande. The number one reason is safety. They are by far the safest areas in the city. A young woman or an elderly lady can walk alone in those areas anytime day or late at night unmolested. In those areas there is just one road in and one road out and its right along the largest naval base in the country with military police 24/7, city police, tourist police and private security at all the hotels. All the resources are in these areas to make a one year visit very liveable and you can walk to downtown from Boca in 20 minutes and from Castillo in 30; in a taxi its 5 minutes.

Links... http://www.eluniversal.com.co the daily look in the classified section
http://www.ibrinmobiliaria.com
http://www.bozzimbett.com
http://araujoysegovia.com
http://inverbienes.com
A word of caution on the links. The realty agent sites always list the most expensive rentals in an area. Don't let that bother you. When you get here you'll find lots of listings for half the prices on the sites.

Also, you can email me to my poorbuthappy mail and let me know when you'll be here and I'll show you around. Good luck.

Peteyw

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tomtom33 says on Jan 28, 2008, 13:11:

Pete, you forgot to mention Semana Santa as a high season. Semana Santa is generally more costly than the June/July high season.

I lived in Laguito for 4 years. The foreigners do not hurt anyone. There are hookers all over Bocagrande/Centro/Getsemani as well. As a matter of fact, there are hookers all over Colombia. If that creates problems, avoid Colombia.

But don't forget to overpay your taxista. And them that Pete sent you.

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peteyw says on Jan 28, 2008, 17:24:

You lived there..and for 4 years. Figures. Proves my point.

Never said the foreigners hurt anyone; its the seedy characters (foreign and locals) that are attracted to the area and create a negative atmosphere for everyone else.

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tomtom33 says on Jan 29, 2008, 01:53:

Except for me, the characters in Laguito are no seedier than those in Bocagrande. But I moved to Medellín. So the neighborhood should have recovered.

There are more hookers along San Martin in Bocagrande than you will find on the streets of Laguito. And I do know my hookers.

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deckstrouz says on May 28, 2008, 13:54:

Hey Dawn, did you make it to Cartagena in the end? I'm a paisano tuyo (British), currently living in Ecuador but have a flight booked to Cartagena for June 16. So I find myself in exactly the same boat as you were. Daunting times....

Let me know how you got it! That is, if you ever did.

Peace,
James

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Ctg Bound says on Jun 12, 2008, 03:53:

We offer apartments for rent in Cartagena de Indias.

Our apartments are located in the neighbourhoods of Laguito, Bocagrande and in the Old Historic City:

http://www.colombiarental.net/

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