48 Hours in Cartagena: A Local’s Guide to the Old City and Rosario Islands
Plan 48 hours in Cartagena with a local’s tips: old city walks, dinner at Celele, a sunset cruise, and a private boat trip to the Rosario Islands.
2-Day Cartagena Itinerary
48 Hours in Cartagena at a Glance
This local’s suggested itinerary pairs an early walk through historic Cartagena with Caribbean cooking, a sunset on the bay, and a day in the Rosario Islands. Keep the midday hours slow and leave room for a swim, a long lunch, or an unplanned evening.
Day 1: Old City, Bay Views, and Caribbean Food
- Breakfast: Start at Época in the historic center with coffee and huevos divorciados, the contributor’s usual choice.
- Morning walk: Explore San Diego, the plazas, and smaller streets. Take time to look into courtyards instead of following a strict route.
- Midday break: Enjoy a long lunch, then return to your hotel for a rest or pool time out of the strongest sun.
- Sunset: Take a private cruise on Cartagena Bay for views of the old city walls and modern skyline.
- Dinner: Head to Celele in Getsemaní for Colombian Caribbean cooking. Let the changing menu guide your choices.
- After dark: Have a rooftop drink or continue through Getsemaní for music if you still have energy.
Day 2: Rosario Islands at Your Own Pace
- Early departure: Plan a morning departure by private boat for the Rosario Islands, with timing agreed with your operator.
- On the water: Choose a quieter swimming spot rather than trying to visit every island or beach club.
- Swim or snorkel: Leave time to enjoy the water, with stops suited to the day’s conditions.
- Caribbean lunch: Make time for fresh fish, coconut rice, and patacones.
- Afternoon return: Let the crew set the return schedule around navigation conditions, with enough time for a comfortable trip back.
- Last evening: Shower, rest, and decide on dinner when you’re ready. Leave the evening open.
The local’s advice: Resist the urge to fill every hour. Prioritize a good boat and crew, good food, and a base inside the old city.
Day 1 — Morning
Época is one of my favorite places for breakfast in the old city. It’s a Colombian coffee house and restaurant right in the historic center, and I usually go for the huevos divorciados and a good coffee. The “Chinese empanadas” are completely different. They’re a little local favorite in the old city, the kind of quick bite you know about from living here rather than something you necessarily find on a tourist itinerary.
After breakfast, I’d walk. Cartagena is best early in the morning, when the streets are still relatively quiet. Walk through San Diego, the plazas and the smaller streets without following a strict route. Look inside the courtyards, stop when something catches your attention and take your time.
By late morning, I’d be done with sightseeing. Cartagena at midday is not the time to prove anything.
Day 1 — Afternoon and sunset
The afternoon is when I’d slow everything down. Have a long lunch, go back to the hotel, enjoy the pool and stay out of the strongest sun for a couple of hours.
Then I’d get out on the water for sunset. We do private sunset cruises at Colombia Luxury Group, and it’s honestly one of my favorite ways to see the city. From the bay you get the old city and its walls on one side and the modern skyline on the other.
Have a drink, put some music on and watch Cartagena change as the sun goes down and the city lights start coming on. It’s simple, but you get a completely different perspective of Cartagena from the water.
Day 1 — Night
For dinner, I’d go to Celele in Getsemaní. If you only have two nights in Cartagena, I think it’s worth having one dinner that really explores the Colombian Caribbean rather than simply going somewhere with a beautiful room.
I’d let the menu guide me because it changes and uses ingredients from around the Caribbean region. I’d choose fish or seafood and try things I wouldn’t normally find outside this part of Colombia.
After dinner, I’d have a drink somewhere with a view of the city rather than rush into another plan. A rooftop and a late-night breeze is usually enough for me. If you still have energy, walk through Getsemaní and continue somewhere with music. I wouldn’t plan every hour of the night. Cartagena is better when you leave a little room for things to happen.
Day 2 — Morning
Day two is for the islands.
I’d leave the dock around 8:30 or 9 a.m. on a private boat and head toward the Rosario Islands. Going early makes a big difference. You get ahead of a lot of the traffic, you have more time on the water and the whole day feels less rushed.
This is also where I think a private charter is worth spending money on. You’re not following a group excursion or spending your day waiting for twenty other people to be ready.
Day 2 — Midday
My first piece of advice is: don’t try to collect islands.
People sometimes think they need to stop at every famous place because they’ve seen it online. I’d rather find beautiful water, stop the boat and actually enjoy it.
Swim, snorkel if you feel like it and then have a proper Caribbean lunch. Fresh fish, coconut rice, patacones and something cold to drink is exactly what I want when I’m out there.
What most visitors miss is the quieter side of the Rosario Islands. There are beautiful places away from the busiest beach clubs and party stops. Having your own boat gives you the freedom to find one of those places and stay there. Sometimes the best part of the day is turning the music down, jumping into the water and doing absolutely nothing for a while.
Some of my favorite moments with clients happen when nothing is really happening. I remember being out on the water with a group and stopping at a quiet spot where we were completely alone. Everyone got into the water, the music was turned down, and nobody wanted to leave. Those are the moments I love because you realize they’ve stopped thinking about the itinerary and are simply enjoying where they are.
Day 2 — Afternoon
You don’t necessarily have to be back in Cartagena by 4 p.m.
What matters is respecting the navigation conditions and giving yourself enough time for a comfortable return. We normally start heading back later in the afternoon so we can be in Cartagena at around 5 p.m.
The ride back is part of the experience. After spending the day swimming and eating in the islands, you cross the Caribbean and slowly see Cartagena appear again in front of you.
Once I’m back, I wouldn’t schedule anything immediately. Shower, rest, have a drink and then decide what you feel like doing for your last night.
What most visitors get wrong
The biggest mistake is trying to do too much. People arrive with a checklist and want the old city, Getsemaní, five islands, three beach clubs and every restaurant they saved on Instagram in 48 hours.
Cartagena is much better when you slow down.
I’d spend money on a good private boat and crew. That’s not an area where I’d make a decision based only on the cheapest price. The condition of the boat, the crew, safety and knowing who is actually operating your charter matter.
I’d also spend on good food and somewhere special to stay. For 48 hours, I’d stay inside the old city. Casa San Agustín is a beautiful option because you’re staying in the middle of historic Cartagena rather than commuting in and out of it.
Where wouldn’t I spend my money? On every “VIP” experience someone tries to sell me just because it has the word “luxury” attached to it. Expensive doesn’t automatically mean good.
And leave some empty space in the itinerary. Cartagena has been my home my entire life, and I still think some of the best moments here are the ones you weren’t planning to have.
About Melanie Viaña
I’m from Cartagena, born and raised. My family has been involved in commerce for generations. My grandfather served in the Colombian Navy and later worked in the maritime and port industry, supplying provisions to ships arriving in Cartagena, so the maritime world was always familiar to me.
I actually started studying law, but eventually realized it wasn’t for me. Around that time, someone encouraged me to focus on what came much more naturally to me: business, working with people, and being of service.
In 2012, I started a water sports company. From there, I gradually expanded into other parts of the nautical business. Clients started asking me for boats, restaurants, places to stay, and help organizing the rest of their trips.
That’s really how Colombia Luxury Group started. There wasn’t a big master plan behind it. It grew from what my clients were asking for and from the trust I had built with them. One service led to another, and what started with water sports eventually became what Colombia Luxury Group is today.
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Melanie Viaña is the founder of Colombia Luxury Group, a DIMAR-licensed yacht charter, villa, and concierge company in Cartagena, Colombia, operating since 2012 with a fleet of more than 55 boats from 33 to 96 feet.
