Cartagena 6 Day Itinerary (Old City First)
Six days keeps the same Walled City, Castillo San Felipe, Getsemani, market, and Palenque spine as the 5 day itinerary and adds a lower-key beach half-day plus a second, more relaxed Getsemani night rather than a second history-heavy day trip. Want a full seven-day version with a slow departure morning? See the 7 day itinerary , or start with the Cartagena guide .
Book these before you go
- Book a Castillo San Felipe tour , 38,000 to 50,000 COP entry plus a tunnel-history guide.
- Book a Walled City walking tour for the colonial and slave-trade history.
- Book a San Basilio de Palenque day trip , a small-group, fixed-departure tour.
- Check rates on Booking.com for Getsemani, walking distance to everything.
Day 1: Arrival and the Walled City
CTG airport is a 15 to 20 minute drive from the historic center; the fixed-rate taxi kiosk outside arrivals prints the fare, roughly 20,000 to 30,000 COP. Walk the Old City’s plazas while the heat is tolerable, Plaza Bolivar, Plaza Santo Domingo, Las Bovedas’ free artisan market, then into Getsemani for dinner and back to the walls for sunset.
Day 2: Castillo San Felipe and La Popa
Visit Castillo San Felipe de Barajas in the late afternoon, not midday. Entry runs 38,000 to 50,000 COP, plus 15,000 COP for an audio guide explaining the tunnel network engineered so footsteps carry to guards above. Use the morning for La Popa monastery (4,500 to 11,000 COP) and the Palace of the Inquisition (roughly 24,000 COP) between the two.
Day 3: Getsemani, properly
Spend the day in Getsemani rather than passing through for dinner: the murals on Calle Sierpe in daylight, then Plaza de la Trinidad after dark. This is the honest place to sit with Cartagena’s slave-trade history: Getsemani was historically home to the city’s Afro-Cartagenero working class and free Black population, and the palenquera fruit-sellers here (agree roughly 8,000 COP before the camera comes out) trace directly to the Cimarron maroon communities of self-liberated enslaved people.
Day 4: Bazurto Market and a chiva bus
Morning at Bazurto Market, Cartagena’s real working market, afternoon on Old City shopping at Portal de los Dulces and San Diego’s boutiques. Evening: a chiva party bus, roughly 50,000 COP a seat for a shared run with a live band and drinks included.
Day 5: San Basilio de Palenque
San Basilio de Palenque sits roughly an hour and a half from Cartagena, the only surviving palenque (maroon) settlement in Colombia, UNESCO-recognized as Intangible Cultural Heritage, and the ancestral home of the palenquera fruit-sellers working the Walled City’s streets. Book a small-group, fixed-departure tour; it is the strongest “go deeper” day trip on this itinerary.
Day 6: Bocagrande and a second Getsemani night
Bocagrande is Cartagena’s modern beachfront peninsula, big international hotel brands, a walkable strip, and a workable half-day of sand without leaving the city, though it is not the region’s best beach and should not be mistaken for one. Spend the morning there, then head back into Getsemani for a second, more relaxed night, the bars and restaurants day three did not get to.
| Day | Focus | Travel time | Rough daily cost (COP) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arrival + Walled City orientation | CTG to center, 15 to 20 min | 80,000 to 150,000 |
| 2 | Castillo San Felipe (afternoon) + La Popa + Inquisition | Short taxi to each | 150,000 to 230,000 |
| 3 | Getsemani, murals and history, day and night | Walkable from the walls | 60,000 to 120,000 |
| 4 | Bazurto Market + shopping + chiva bus | Short taxi to Bazurto, rest walkable | 90,000 to 160,000 |
| 5 | San Basilio de Palenque day trip | About 1.5 hours each way | 150,000 to 300,000 guided |
| 6 | Bocagrande half-day + second Getsemani night | Short taxi to Bocagrande | 70,000 to 150,000 |
Is Bocagrande worth basing in over the Walled City?
Not for this trip. Bocagrande’s beach is workable but not the region’s best, and basing there trades away the walking-distance access to the Walled City and Getsemani that makes days one through five work. A half-day visit from a Walled City or Getsemani base gets you the beach option without the trade-off.
Do you need two nights in Getsemani?
If nightlife matters to you, yes. One night on day three barely scratches Plaza de la Trinidad’s scene; a second, more relaxed pass on day six covers the bars and restaurants the first one did not, without the pressure of also sightseeing that day.
Sunscreen and a hat matter more on day six than any other day here; Bocagrande’s beach offers none of the Old City’s shade.