6 Days in Cartagena: The Walled City Base
Six days is the Walled City, Getsemani, San Basilio de Palenque and Bocagrande route plus a genuinely quieter sixth day: Manga and La Boquilla instead of another packed sightseeing day. Want less or more? Drop to the 5-day version or step up to the 7-day plan, built on this same spine.
Book these before you go
- Walled City or Getsemani hotel: check current listings on Booking.com
- Castillo San Felipe history tour: search dates on Viator
- San Basilio de Palenque day trip: browse fixed-departure tours on GetYourGuide
- Colombian cooking class: check availability on GetYourGuide
| Day | Focus | Travel time | Rough daily cost (COP) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Arrival, Walled City orientation, Getsemani sunset | CTG airport to center, 15-20 min | 150,000-300,000 |
| Day 2 | Castillo San Felipe, La Popa, Palace of the Inquisition | Everything walkable or a short taxi | 150,000-300,000 |
| Day 3 | Getsemani street art, MAMC, Plaza de la Trinidad night | On foot from the Walled City | 120,000-250,000 |
| Day 4 | San Basilio de Palenque day trip | 1-1.5 hours each way by tour van | 150,000-250,000 |
| Day 5 | Bocagrande half-day, chiva party bus night | Short taxi to Bocagrande | 150,000-300,000 |
| Day 6 | Manga, La Boquilla, cooking class | Short taxi to both | 150,000-280,000 |
Day 1: Arrival and the Walled City
- Land at Rafael Nunez International Airport (CTG), fixed-rate taxi kiosk, roughly 20,000-30,000 COP to the Walled City or Getsemani, 15-20 minutes.
- Walk San Pedro and San Diego in the morning or late afternoon: Plaza Bolivar, the Cathedral of Cartagena, Calle Santo Domingo. Skip the midday hours.
- Stop at Las Bovedas, a free artisan market in the old munitions vaults.
- Evening in Getsemani for dinner, sunset on the walls near Baluarte Santo Domingo.
Day 2: Castillo San Felipe and the city’s history
- Morning at La Popa monastery, entrance 4,500-11,000 COP reported, verify.
- Midday at the Palacio de la Inquisicion, 24,000 COP.
- Late afternoon at Castillo San Felipe de Barajas, the largest Spanish fortress built in the Americas, go after 3pm. Foreign adults pay 38,000 COP (official rate), audio guide roughly 15,000 COP more. Part of the 1984 UNESCO listing .
Day 3: Getsemani, deeper
- Walk the murals radiating from Calle Sierpe and the quieter San Diego lanes.
- Visit the Museo de Arte Moderno de Cartagena (MAMC).
- Treat the neighborhood’s gentrification honestly, a Four Seasons opened here 2 April 2026.
- Night at Plaza de la Trinidad for live champeta.
Day 4: San Basilio de Palenque
- Fixed-departure day tour to San Basilio de Palenque, a village founded by escaped enslaved Africans, UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage since 2008, roughly 1-1.5 hours out with an organized tour and local guide.
- Learn about Palenquero, the Spanish-lexicon Bantu-grammar creole, and the community the Cartagena palenqueras trace their heritage to.
- Back in Cartagena by evening.
Day 5: Bocagrande and a chiva night
- Half-day at Bocagrande, the beachfront high-rise strip with big hotel brands (InterContinental, Hilton, Hyatt Regency); the beach isn’t the region’s best but it’s a workable break from history.
- Afternoon back in the Walled City for anything missed.
- Evening chiva party bus, roughly 50,000 COP per shared seat or around 650,000 COP for a private full bus.
Day 6: Manga, La Boquilla and a cooking class
- Morning in Manga, a quiet residential island neighborhood connected by a short bridge, with a handful of boutique hotels and none of the crowds, a genuine change of pace from five days inside the walls.
- Afternoon at La Boquilla, a fishing-village-turned-beach spot north of the city with mangrove canoe tours and kitesurfing, more local than touristy.
- Evening cooking class covering Colombian coastal staples: arepa de huevo, coconut rice, fresh ceviche, a hands-on way to close out the food side of the trip instead of one more restaurant dinner.
Six days is the point where a slower pace pays off more than another attraction. See the 7-day itinerary for a genuine flex day at the end.