Cartagena, Columbia?

[diane.in.ny]

Looking for some feedback from anyone who has been here recently. Past reports have been that the city is dirty and not particularly safe. Now Princess even offers a do-it-yourself City Explorer shore excursion. So I'm wondering if things have really changed that much.

 

My husband and I do like to wander old cities...we like to look at the architecture, pop into local markets, see how the locals live.

 

Would anyone recommend walking the Old City by ourselves?

[F02]

I visited the old town of Cartagena on an excursion offered by the cruise line. I found it to be cleaner than I would expect any city to be and the streets we walked were very busy and I never considered them to be dangerous.

 

Of course the local operator would not have picked bad looking or dangerous streets. Groups might deter hold ups but hardly pick pockets. But even considering these particu-larities of organized tours, I would not hesitate to visit the old town Cartagena by myself. Of course I would be cautious about what I wear, what streets I walk into and how I con-duct myself but that should be standard procedure in any town.

[diane.in.ny]

Your advice, as you said, is good for any city....we dress conservatively and are careful about where we walk. Maybe we will give it a try.

 

Thanks!

[jaydro]

I have not been to Cartagena before but will be there later this month for a cruise shore excursion, and I asked my friends who were there for four days in September what they recommended--they suggested just walking around the old city. And fwiw, they thought Puerto Limon, Costa Rica, was dangerous to walk on your own.

[diane.in.ny]

Interesting.

 

Looking forward to your feedback after your visit. Have a great trip!

[deserttraveler]

Even though I walked the old city in a small group with a guide, I would have felt find doing it on my own. It seemed both safe and clean. It's probably a good idea to have a map, study it ahead of time, and know how you are going to get there and back from/to the ship.