We are so excited for a "Shades of White" wedding, but many of you may be asking "WHY?!" Cartagena is such a colorful and vibrant place, we feel like it is the perfect excuse for you ladies to pull out your white dresses and for you men to wear something comfortable and light. Wearing white is traditional in Cartagena, and we hope you will all enjoy various shades whether it’s cream, champagne, ivory, beige, linen, etc.!
February is hot but not humid, and with temperatures in the mid 80's daily. Expect lots of sunshine and breeze!
Cartagena is in the Eastern Standard Timezone (same as eastern USA).
It helps, but is not necessary to get around in Cartagena. All hotel concierges and most restaurant and bar staff speak English. However, if you feel like brushing up on your Español, we recommend downloading the free app, DuoLingo, for a fun and easy, gamified way to learn as much or little Spanish you like.
The local currency is the Colombian peso. The currency symbol is the “$”, just like in the US, Canada, and Mexico. Remember that the meaning of periods and commas in numbers is reverse of that in the USA. So $ 15.000, means fifteen-thousand Colombian pesos (about $5,25 USD). To find how much something costs in dollars just divide the amount (the price in pesos) by ($2.900 COP) NOTE: This can change according to the exchange rate.
No, they are not.
Yes, there are plenty of ATMs (cajero automáticos) in Cartagena. We recommend taking cash out at the airport. Credit cards are great for any larger purchases and pesos when you’re bartering with the locals. We recommend exchanging currency in the U.S before traveling to Cartagena but do know it can also be done at the airport once you arrived.
The majority of places do accept cards, but not all, so make sure you have some pesos on you. Most credit cards nowadays offer no foreign transaction fees, but it’s a good idea to check. You should also call your bank and any credit cards you plan on using to let them know you’ll be traveling abroad.
There is typically a 10% tip (service) added to your bill. If service was extraordinary, feel free to add some extra pesos. If not, you will not be offending anyone. Please tip any tour guides you may use.
Some tap water is safe, but err on the side of caution, bottled water and cervezas are readily available in the area.
Nope. Colombia uses the same plugs and outlets as USA.
Yes, many of the hotels offer WiFi. Unless you have an international plan, you should switch your cell phone to “airplane mode” to avoid any surprise charges for international roaming, texting, and/or data usage.
For those in the Apple ecosystem, you can use iMessage and Facetime while connected to a WiFi network for no charge. WhatsApp is another great app for free international texting while on a WiFi network. Skype is a useful tool for making international calls for a low, flat rate.