The Best Boutique Hotels in Cartagena’s Old City, Colombia

The Anandá Hotel Boutique by Cosmos sits inside a romantic 16th-century colonial mansion and has a divine swimming pool, a rooftop hot tub and a treatment room. Suites have original features such as low wood-beamed ceilings, wooden floors and Juliet balconies overlooking the interior garden. Relax on a poolside daybed before walking to the Getsemaní district for dinner at the delicious Celele Restaurant.

This buzzy spot captures the hearts of the twentysomething crowd with its fancy yet fun design, rooftop bar and positive party attitude. Tropical designs by local artists in the 11 airy and comfy suites set a new style benchmark. Sink a cocktail next to the splash pool before dinner at Interno in the old town – a restaurant inside the women’s San Diego prison. Afterward, head back to Townhouse for drinks at Members Only, the in-house speakeasy.

With a spa, a spacious rooftop swimming pool and four restaurants, the Bastión Luxury Hotel ticks plenty of boxes for a stylish and relaxing stay. Neutral hues set the tone for well-appointed suites; after a restful night, borrow a hotel bike to pedal around the old town and beyond. Sip a cocktail on the roof terrace as the sun sets before dining at the excellent in-house El Gobernador Restaurant.

With just seven chic suites in a colonial mansion, the Amarla Boutique Hotel ensures privacy, tranquility and personalized service. Colombian wildlife and botanicals form the design palette, while communal spaces are home to an abundance of tropical foliage. Enjoy the à la carte breakfast and fantastic coffee in the open-air gallery before climbing the winding staircase to the rooftop for a swim, cooling breezes and marvelous vistas of the old city.

This colonial accommodation is well placed in the old town, just a block from Plaza del Reloj and award-winning cocktail bar Alquímico. Well-appointed rooms at Hotel Boutique Las Carretas include lovely little balconies, while standard category suites also offer charming city views. Cool off with a dip in the rooftop splash pool before sunset cocktails overlooking the ocean at nearby Café del Mar.

Hotel Quadrifolio sits inside a beautifully preserved 17th-century colonial mansion in the heart of Cartagena’s walled city. Each bright, stylishly designed room features high wood-beamed ceilings, huge arched windows with wood shutters and lush garden views, along with handmade furniture, local artwork and fresh flowers. However, the pièce de résistance is the rooftop terrace. Here, you can soak in a hydromassage tub or relax on a sun lounger as you take in views of the city and the Caribbean Sea.

Just a few steps from the Palace of the Inquisition, the Gold Museum and Bolívar Park, the Sophia Hotel has one of the best locations in Cartagena’s old city. This great positioning also means some epic views from the ultra-cool terrace, with its stunning swimming pool, hip chill-out area and poolside bar. The modern rooms come with rain showers, wicker lounging chairs and huge panoramic windows.

Designed by fashion designer Silvia Tcherassi, the Nacar Hotel Cartagena is one of the most striking boutique hotels in the city. Think high ceilings, rich wood floors, beautiful vertical gardens made from more than 3,000 local plants and exposed red and white brick throughout. Each room has a unique flair, but expect freestanding soaking tubs, large walk-in rainfall showers and glitzy, luxury bedding. If this weren’t enough, the hotel also has an outdoor pool, two restaurants and a rooftop terrace.

Hotel Casa La Fe’s quaint rooms are centered around a beautiful, jungle-like courtyard, where a fresh à la carte breakfast and premium Colombian coffee are served each morning. Highlights include a rooftop plunge pool, a lookout point with panoramic views of the old town, classically designed rooms featuring tiled floors and handcrafted furniture, and free-to-use bikes to explore the city.

Considered by many to be the top boutique hotel in Cartagena, Casa San Agustín is as luxurious as it gets. Resembling a lavish palace more than a hotel, common spaces – including a solarium, a colonial-style library and several meeting rooms – are filled with crystal chandeliers, beautiful tapestry hanging from the walls and lush green plants. The rooms are no different, with marble-floored bathrooms, huge walk-in rain showers, four-poster canopy beds in some spaces and iPads. The chic swimming pool (partly covered by Cartagena’s former aqueduct), on-site spa and atmospheric Alma Restaurant are spectacular too.

Inside a 17th-century former mansion just around the corner from Plaza de Bolívar, the adults-only Alfiz Hotel Boutique combines history and colonial charm with modern touches, such as a jacuzzi sundeck, an open-air swimming pool and concierge service. Its eight themed rooms, with antique artefacts, paintings and luxurious furnishings, tell the story of Cartagena’s fascinating history, from being ransacked by pirates and ruled by Spanish conquistadors to the rise of independence and the birth of the Republic.

Visited by the likes of John Lennon and Robert de Niro, El Marqués has captivated the attention of the rich and famous since the 1970s. Retaining 16th-century colonial features, such as thick stone archways and walls, wood-beamed ceilings and beautiful wooden floors, the atmospheric common spaces here look as they would have more than 400 years ago. You can relax in the beautiful courtyard swimming pool before having dinner at Bohemia, the on-site restaurant serving Colombian-European fusion dishes.

In the ultra-cool, artsy Getsemaní neighborhood, part of Cartagena’s outer walled city, the 10-room Casa Lola Deluxe Gallery offers colonial luxury but with a much-welcomed dose of quirky character. From the outside, it’s a pretty yet traditional colonial house, but inside, it oozes modern, experimental and bold design. Highlights include a multilevel roof terrace with pools that wind through the hotel, lush tropical gardens and stunning views across the city. Prices, which include an American breakfast, are very reasonable too.