Departamento de Bolívar Travel Guide

In the nearby town of Turbaco is a botanical garden. You can take a bus from Cartagena to get to Turbaco & a moto-taxi to the Garden. I forget, but think admission was 17.000 Was decent if you didn't plan to go into the jungle anywhere else.

I made a rookie mistake. Most tours you take include the cost of admission & transportation in the total cost. Some even include lunch. So when taking one of my tours, I didn't ask what was or wasn't included. Out tour didn't include transportation or admission (or lunch), so it ended up being an additional 100.000 for 2 of us to take what became a...

Comedor Costeno is a place we would have likely checked out even if not in our guidebook due to its scenic riverfront location but perhaps not as early in our stay. We were very glad we did go there for our first lunch as we returned each day not just for the view but also for the cheap tasty food. Right on the Rio Magdalena, this is one choice...

Getting to Mompos is no easy task and you'll want to travel light. A backpack will make such a trip easier it's not like you're going to be on one mode of transit the whole way through if coming from the east! This is a hot town and you'll be happy wearing nothing but light breathable cotton. Sandals are a must but if you forgot them, plenty of...

It's not unusual for something you've read about for awhile to disappoint you especially when it comes to the world of travel but that usually confines itself to destinations, places you have to see or even a local delicacy. It does not generally apply to the transportation getting there but that can be the case when getting there is a bit of an...

La Boquilla is so close to Cartagena that getting there is very easy. You can take a colourful but uncomfortable local bus from the India Catalina monument on avenida Venezuela in Cartagena or else you can take a more comfortable taxi. Even this way it will not cost you a fortune, possible some 15000-20000 COP. Once you want to leave, from the main...

La Boquilla is a fishing village just outside Cartegena, but it seems like a world apart... quiet and relaxed - with simple houses made of concrete or wood, with dirt streets and friendly children playing about. There are about 14000 people living there, grandchildren and greatgrandchildren of emancipated slaves of African descent I will always...

La Boquilla is a fishing village about 10 minutes (by car or bus) from Cartagena... it's quiet, it has a long brown beach, a calm sea with clear dark waters, and some simple open-air beach restaurants. There are no pshing sellers like in Cartagena and the sea is, well... just like in Cartagena, which means that it is not spectacular.if you want a...

Manzanillo del Mar is a quiet fishing village about 20 minutes from Cartagena, by road... between Punta Canoa and La Boquilla. Manzanillo owes its name to a variety of trees popular in the region, the manzanillos. It is also the place where people in the past took the stones that were used to build the Cartagena old walls. There are two main...

In Manzanillo, for a smal fee (I think about 20000 COP) you can ask a fisherman to take you out on a small boat to see the mangroves. The one who took us around called himself "the papa" and he was very nice - explained the five types of mangroves that live in the manglares and rowed us though channels and cienagas (salmaster lakes) to the next...

While you can get to manzanillo by bus or by taxi, to get to the manglares (mangroves) you obviously need a boat... local fisherman are used to taking people out through the mangrove channels. Because these channels are very shallow, they use small wooden boats that they "push" using a long wooden stick while standing, instead of rows. Even the...

Zodiac boats to the islands leave from the Pier of Pegasos next to the old city. Inquire at your hotel for the island tour package.

This fort was built by the Spanish to guard the passage to Cartagena. You will pass it by on your trip.

There is a decent aquarium on the islands, and its visit will be included in your trip. It is not Sea World, but still enjoyable and great if you came with kids.There are a dolphin show, many turtles, and trained (!) sharks.