Tourism has been rapidly expanding in Cartagena. Foreign visitors to grew 300% between 2006 and 2019 and tourism more than tripled from 1 million foreign visitors per year in 2006 to 3.1 million in 2018.90% of cruise ships visiting Colombia stop in Cartagena (US Department of commerce). Between 2018 to 2019, 616,429 cruise ship passengers arrived in the city of Cartagena and had an economic impact valued at $66.2 million.
Cartagena is a world renowned tourist destination attracting international visitors looking to enjoy the fine restaurants, nightlife, beaches and stunning colonial architecture of the city. A city famous for its magic, romance, legends and superbly preserved beauty lying within an impressive 13km of centuries-old colonial stone walls. The old town is a Unesco World Heritage site—a maze of cobbled alleys, balconies covered in bougainvillea, plazas, monasteries and palaces with stunning architecture.Cartagena was chosen from a list of 481 cities around the continent as the city with the best strategy to attract investment in America in the Top Large American Cities of the Future 2017-2018 ranking, published by the Financial Times’ FDi Magazine. The city was part of this version ranking, under the “Large City” nomination, surpassing North American cities such as Ottawa, Orlando, Cincinnati, Las Vegas, Nashville, and La Paz in South America.
Canalete Cartagena 