Cartegena - beach or centre for a week?
 

My dear friend and I are meeting in Cartegena for a week in January. Neither of us have been there and we picked it because it will most certainly be warm. I'm coming from western Canada and she's coming from NE States. Our main goal is to relax and catch up with each other. We are 50-something females. We can't decide if we should stay within the old town walls and take a couple of trips to the beach, or stay in a beach resort and take trips into the centre. Any opinions?

Does one need a car there or can we rely on public transportation/taxis?

Any advice would be most welcome. Thank you!

Sorry - I now realize I spelled Cartagena incorrectly.

I would stay in the old town and go to the beaches when you feel like it. Nice little town.

I agree with Yestravel, stay in the old town and venture out to the beaches ( weren’t that impressive IMO). Santa Marta is a bus ride up the coast and Mompox is a worth a look for a couple of days - although it is a 5 hour drive away.

Some info and photos of our time in Cartagena and Mompox in the Colombia dpsection of our blog from a couple of years ago @ https://accidentalnomads.com/category/colombia/

We stayed in a great place in Getsemani, just outside the old town which I would highly recommend -if interested I will try and find the name. They also had another sister property in the old town.

You don't need a car. We did a fun food tour. If you click on my name you can find our TR to Colombia with put time in Cartagena.

Thanks for the replies and the links! Appreciate your advice and sharing your experiences. This part of the world seems really interesting.