The Best Weekend Trips From Cartagena Colombia

Cartagena is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Colombia, and thousands of travelers visit each year to enjoy the Caribbean climate, beautiful Old City and delicious food. However, after a few days, you might want to get out and explore the nearby beaches and islands. Here are the best weekend trips from Cartagena.

Isla Grande

This beautiful island might just be the perfect weekend getaway from Cartagena. It takes less than one hour to get there by boat – so it”s convenient with limited time – and it’s a paradisiacal Caribbean island of white-sand beaches, crystalline waters and warm sunshine. You can go snorkeling, relax on the beach or rent a kayak to explore the mangroves. The best spot to stay is the lovely Paraiso Secreto, a collection of hostels in the former mansions of emerald barons.

Casa en el Agua

Playa Blanca

The most popular day trip from Cartagena actually works much better as a weekend getaway. The lovely Playa Blanca can get incredibly crowded during the day, but at night (once the tourist boats have returned to the city), you’ll practically have the place to yourself – same in the early morning before the boats arrive.

Isla Mucura

Just across the water from Casa en el Agua is the beautiful Caribbean island of Mucura, home to the luxurious holiday resort of Punta Faro. This lovely hotel has a private beach, a spa overlooking the sea, an excellent restaurant serving local seafood, and scuba diving and kayaking excursions. It’s a pricier weekend getaway from Cartagena, but worth it for the luxury and stunning surroundings.

San Andres

San Andres is a lovely Colombian Caribbean island in the middle of the sea – actually closer to Nicaragua than Colombia – but it makes a nice weekend getaway from Cartagena (from which there are regular flights). Enjoy excellent seafood, beautiful beaches and world-class diving in just a couple of days.

San Basilio de Palenque

Palenque is a small village about an hour inland from Cartagena and is famous for being the first settlement in the Americas for previously enslaved people. It’s a Unesco-recognized village, which still maintains many African traditions. The people speak Palenque, spoken nowhere else in the world. Most people visit as a day trip, but staying overnight will give you more time to absorb the unique atmosphere and meet local people. Interested in visiting? You can do so as part of Culture Trip’s immersive eight-day Colombian Caribbean tour, led by our local insider.

Santa Marta

A much more ambitious weekend trip from Cartagena includes a four-hour bus ride to Santa Marta (although there are also regular flights). If you have limited time on your trip to Colombia, then it’s worth traveling along the coast from Cartagena towards Santa Marta to visit either Tayrona National Park, the small fishing village of Taganga or the lovely mountain village of Minca.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.