Colombia · DAY TRIPS IN CARTAGENA
Every trip has one free day too few. These 15 day trips in Cartagena justify the slot, priced and timed so you can decide in minutes and get back to the fun part of planning.
Review of Cartagena’s private boat tour to Rosario, Cholon, and Baru, with honest advice on costs, snorkeling, rough seas, lunch, and value.
“Great attrntive staff, seeking to go elsewhere extra mile and meet your needs. Extremely professional and pleasant.”
Hike through the Montes de María from Cartagena, see petroglyphs and wildlife, then enjoy a San Jacinto gaita workshop.
“What an incredible experience! If you love hiking, nature, animals, plant life - this is for you! Olinto our guide is so knowledgeable and passionate and we learned so much about not only the plant and animal life, but about Colombia in general and their culture, food, music, etc. He was very punctual, professional, and fun! We were able to see many different types of birds and also monkeys! The views were INCREDIBLE and seeing the petroglyphs was a once in a lifetime experience! Getting to have lunch at a local hotel and have the local music played for us was so special and cool. We cannot recommend Olinto and…”
Is Isla del Sol worth $180? See what to expect from Cartagena’s Rosario Islands day trip, including beaches, lunch, snorkeling, boats, and costs.
“over price for what you get. Did not meet our expectations, the beach did Mach the picture on the brochure, food was mediocre. It took over an hour to organized the group in to the speed boat, we left the port at 9:15 am . We got there about 10:20 am The place is very nice a little hotel with a small beach, for about 100 people to be there. They offer lobster for a extra price about Us40 a piece. By 3pm we were in the boats back to Cartagena by 5:30.pm People was very friendly and helpful,”
Review of Cartagena’s private Rosario Islands and Barú day trip, with mangroves, snorkeling, local meals, village visits, and practical advice.
“Absolute 100% must do! The only thing better than visiting one of the most beautiful places in the world is the experience of learning the culture first hand. This tour offers it all. Valentina was amazing, as was the entire on and offshore crew. The BEST! Trip hack, visit the Baru Yellow House before departing to the islands. Honest, pure, love…”
Review of Cartagena’s Barú and Playa Tranquila day trip, covering beaches, lunch, transport, extra costs, pickup details, and honest value advice.
“Tudo aconteceu como descrito no anúncio. Porém não tem muita comunicação, não falam qual bar/barraca vc vai poderá ficar, ficamos na primeira que não tinha uma vista bonita e estava cheia de motos aquáticas e barco em frente, perguntamos se podíamos mudar mais lá pro final e mudamos. A comida estava muito boa, tinham 3 opções, escolhermos peixe e frango e estava bom. A aqua da praia onde nos deixam não é tão azul como nas fotos, o lado esquerdo perto dos hotéis tem águas mais claras e pode ir tirar fotos, de resto foi tudo dentro do previsto e pelo preço valeu a pena”
Spend seven hours at Playa Blanca from Cartagena with beach time, local lunch, bilingual guidance, transport, fruit, and water.
“Our tour guide was amazing! He went above and beyond to make us feel comfortable. He even helped us confirm and locate our pick up point for a different excursion that we planned for the following day with another company! Definitely recommend going!”
Review of Cartagena’s private Rosario Islands boat charter, with family-friendly stops, snorkeling, beach time, price advice, and key cautions.
“This tour advertises that snorkel gear is provided. Once we were on the boat, our guide, Isabella, asked what we would like to do. We had already communicated ahead of time when booking that we wanted to snorkel and explore relaxed beaches and areas of the islands away from the party scene. The ad for the experience listed snorkel gear as being included. When we asked about snorkeling, Isabella informed us that there wasn’t any on the boat. Then they found this guy selling random drinks on a floating kayak and borrowed three Ill-fitting, dirty masks and one snorkel (for four people reservation), and no flippers were available at all.…”
Review of Cartagena’s Playa Blanca scuba day trip, with reef time, lunch, transport details, costs, tips, and honest drawbacks.
“I asked for a guide in English, but had someone who only spoke Spanish. What was good was that the bus came to the hotel. An hour late, without letting me know or responding to a message. Furthermore, I got the entire explanation in Spanish. The guide did not know that I was registered for scuba diving. I had to find out for myself. Diving was very good, only the description said one hour of diving and this was only 20 minutes. Even after that I had to figure out where I had to go myself, the guide, Mary, was nowhere to be seen and did not respond to whatsapp…”
Review of Cartagena’s San Basilio de Palenque day trip, with local culture, music, food, transport, guide quality, price, and practical tips.
“Le repas était délicieux c'est le seul point positif. Le guide ne semblait pas maîtrisé parfaitement sa culture. On sent vraiment une approche mercantile plus que culturelle dans cette excursion. Dommage car ce village est plein de ressources qui ne sont pas mises en avant.....”
Review of the Santa Marta and Tayrona Park day trip, with Playa Cristal, Seven Olas, lunch, timing, value, and practical booking advice.
“El viaje es carísimo para lo que incluye. Te dejan en una playa durante horas con la unica posibilidad de seguir pagando dinero por cualquier cosa que se te ocurra hacer alli al margen de un almuerzo sin bebida. Para colmo mi jersey desapareció del bus y no fueron capaces de indicarme nada cuando en principio era "un lugar seguro". Hay mejores excursiones por Tayrona y seguro que mas baratas.”
Review of Cartagena’s Rosario Islands day trip, with speedboat views, Isla del Sol, beach lunch, aquarium tips, costs, and practical advice.
“¡Todo excelente! Hermosa la isla. Pudimos hacer snorkel e ir al oceanario, ver todos los animales y terminar con el show de los delfines. Son cosas que se paga por separado del tour pero si pueden hacerlo, son actividades Super recomendables.”
Review of Coralina Island’s Cartagena day trip, with speedboat travel, beach time, snorkeling, lunch, pass options, costs, and practical tips.
“From the moment we arrived, we knew we had discovered something truly special. The level of privacy and the exquisite quality of the food were simply unmatched—every bite a masterpiece, every moment a retreat into pure bliss. But what made our experience truly extraordinary was the warmth and dedication of our service guest, Alvaro. Alvaro didn’t just serve us; he made us feel like royalty while remaining humble, kind, and incredibly attentive. His genuine care and hospitality gave us a deep appreciation for the people of this breathtaking Colombian coast. It’s rare to find someone who can turn a trip into a life-long memory, but Alvaro did just that. We…”
Review of Cartagena’s Cristal Beach day trip, with aviary visit, speedboat ride, cocktail, lunch, beach club time, and practical tips.
“The Aviary is a really beautiful place. Highly recommended. My only complaint is that is very confusing when you book the activity it says Playa Tranquila + Aviary, but we have to pay an extra amount to enter the Aviary. That’s something you need to put clear, so people don’t get confused.”
Review of Cartagena’s Aviary and Playa Blanca day trip, with bus transport, lunch, costs, beach conditions, and practical booking advice.
“They kept moving us from bus to bus and my friend lost her sunglasses due to having to move so rapidly. Once we arrived at Playa Blanca we were bombarded with locals selling stuff. Also, we would order drinks and they would overcharge us for a different liquor. TBH it was not the relaxing trip I had in mind.”
Review of Cartagena’s Rosario Islands boat trip, with Cholón, Agua Azul, Playa Blanca, lunch, costs, tips, and key drawbacks.
“Devo dire che non mi e’ piaciuto proprio quasi niente (il quasi e’ un regalo) venendo da San Andres devo dire che non c’è paragone.quasi tutto il tempo sulla barca,dove siamo sbarcati pieno di venditori che ti torturano per venderti qualcosa .la cosa peggiore e’ stata l’isola di colon mi sembra, che e’ una isola dove si mangia con i tavolini sull’acqua . Strapieno di gente neanche da smontare. Poi non dico del pranzo ,in una baracca pieno di mosche che vanno sul cibo, non pretendo un cosa di lusso, ma che sia accettabile. Questo tour lo sconsiglio vivamente, organizzato male giornata persa. Franco”
From island boats to coffee fincas, and the best of each.
