Which is better, Medellin or Cartagena?
Are you coming to your bachelor party? What you should not miss on your first visit to Colombia. Charm and adventure are guaranteed on any trip to Colombia. From the bustling cities such as the festive and innovative Medellín through the colonial Cartagena de Indias, so beautiful on the shores of the Caribbean.
Cartagena de Indias, the queen of the Caribbean coast
Cartagena de Indias is the great tourist symbol of Colombia, although some have dared to qualify it with some daring as “the most beautiful city in Colombia”. It is not surprising, because the wooden balconies and the narrow streets of its old city remind us of those of Andalusia when you travel to this colonial city as in the past by carriage or calender – what a delight at night! – or on foot during the day to Despite the heat and humidity that punishes this authentic living urban museum that always deceives visitors. Already in 1984 Unesco inscribed on the World Heritage list the port, walls and monuments of the Cartagena de Indias, which, without a doubt, is the most beautiful destination in Colombia. A city to which Gabriel García Márquez expressed a deep love in his literary works. Here are his house and his mausoleum in the central courtyard of the Cloister of Mercy, where the ashes of the 1982 Nobel Prize in Literature rest.
This historic center, with two hotels at the head (Santa Clara and Charleston Santa Teresa) that surprise by the symbiosis of its artistic jewels and its modern facilities, is as alive as in the colonial era. Today it is populated by boutique hotels, cocktail bars, restaurants and shops, but also its streets, squares and, of course, its palenqueras, those women always smiling, dressed in colors, who elegantly wear the most varied and fresh fruits of the country. Foreign tourists also take over this magical enclave, although the Getsemaní neighborhood still allows you to discover what the daily life of Cartagena is like. Not to be missed. And outside that old city the forts, such as San Felipe or San Fernando, built by the Spanish to avoid pirate attacks, and the most beautiful beaches of the Colombian Caribbean in Barú and the archipelago of the Rosario Islands remain.
Medellín, an innovative city
If there is a throbbing destination in Colombia, that is Medellín. With its four million inhabitants, adding those of the surroundings, “the city of eternal spring” stands out in the Aburrá valley for the variety of its architecture adorned with its great variety of trees that line the streets, the complexity of its social fabric and, above all, for its magnificent potential as an innovative city. For much of the 20th century it was the industrial capital of Colombia and today, as a major communications hub in the country, it is committed to its transformation into a modern city that boasts its transport network, with the subway at the head and 55 stations from your network. Gone is its darkest past, when in the 90s of last century it was considered the most violent city in the world and the phenomenon of drug trafficking took over the conversations of its inhabitants. Today, Medellín is a suggestive destination that must be visited. Starting with La Comuna 13, its most popular tourist attraction today, once a conflict zone between criminal gangs and now a seductive space for graffiti and the works of other urban artists who work in Barrio Las Independencias I, western Medellin. . The area, which enjoys spectacular views over Medellín, has been transformed since 2011 as a result of the installation of the only public escalators in the country and the promotion of a broad traditional gastronomic bet that attracts visitors. Within the city, you should also visit the Botero Square, where 23 outdoor sculptures by Fernando Botero are exhibited and the Museum of Antioquia with its excellent art collection. Among the different excursions that can be made from the city, the Peñol and Guatapé stand out to admire the great granite rock that dominates its nearby dam, which is accessed by climbing 659 steps, and the colorful baseboards of the facades of the houses in the town .
Have you already planned your bachelor party? Colombia awaits you with open arms in these two emblematic cities.
