Cartagena Walled City Walk
Photo: Dr. Thomas Liptak, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
Founded in 1533, Cartagena became one of Spain's most important ports in the Americas. Silver for Spain passed through it, enslaved Africans were sold in it, and pirates and enemy fleets attacked it again and again. The walls that grew up around it are why the old city survives so beautifully today.
This loop has 12 stops and takes about two hours at an easy pace, including time to look inside a church or two. It starts at the Clock Tower Gate, dips into the lively Getsemani neighborhood, then winds through the plazas of the old town, up onto the walls and north to Las Bovedas before returning close to the start.
Cartagena is hot and humid all year. Walk in the early morning or late afternoon, carry water, and duck into shady plazas often. Street vendors are friendly but persistent; a smile and a firm "no, gracias" works, and if you want a photo with a fruit vendor, agree on the tip first.
12 stops on this tour:
Torre del Reloj - The Clock Tower Gate
Getsemani and Plaza de la Trinidad - Where Independence Began
Plaza de los Coches - A Market of Human Lives
Plaza de la Aduana - Customs, Columbus and City Hall
Church of San Pedro Claver - Servant of the Enslaved
Las Murallas - Walking the City Walls
Plaza Santo Domingo - Legends and a Botero
Palace of the Inquisition - Fear Behind a Fine Doorway
Cathedral and Plaza de Bolivar - Shade, Stone and Gold
Plaza de San Diego - Convents and a Novelist's Ghost Story
Las Bovedas - Vaults in the Wall
Church of Santo Toribio - The Cannonball at Mass
Plan your visit
- Route: 12 stops · about 2.6 miles · walking, one way
- Time: about 2 hours at an easy pace, with stops
- Start: Torre del Reloj (directions)
- Cost: free tour
- Audio: narrated - tap ▶ Listen at the top of any stop
Stops on this tour
- Torre del Reloj - The Clock Tower Gate
- Getsemani and Plaza de la Trinidad - Where Independence Began
- Plaza de los Coches - A Market of Human Lives
- Plaza de la Aduana - Customs, Columbus and City Hall
- Church of San Pedro Claver - Servant of the Enslaved
- Las Murallas - Walking the City Walls
- Plaza Santo Domingo - Legends and a Botero
- Palace of the Inquisition - Fear Behind a Fine Doorway
- Cathedral and Plaza de Bolivar - Shade, Stone and Gold
- Plaza de San Diego - Convents and a Novelist's Ghost Story
- Las Bovedas - Vaults in the Wall
- Church of Santo Toribio - The Cannonball at Mass