Cartagena Tours and Excursions: What to Book and What It Costs in 2026

The single most-booked excursion out of Cartagena, and the one with the widest quality gap between operators. The islands sit forty-five minutes to an hour away by boat; the boat leaves La Bodeguita pier between 7:15 and 8:30 in the morning and is back mid-afternoon.

If you are still deciding which island, start with the Rosario Islands day trip guide, it explains the crossing, the port taxes nobody mentions, and which beach club suits which group.

• Rosario Islands

  Private island day pass

  Your group alone on the sand, from 8 people

  From COP 594,000 per person

• Rosario Islands

  Bora Bora Beach Club

  A DJ every day. Adults only

  From COP 449,000 per person

• Rosario Islands

  Pao Pao

  Speedboat, guided snorkelling and lunch included

  From COP 439,000 per person

• Rosario Islands

  Paue, Isla Grande

  The quiet one. Children from 4 years

  From COP 470,000 per person

• Rosario Islands

  Three islands in one day

  Speedboat and a bilingual guide

  From COP 509,000 per person

• Baru

  Aura, Cholon inlet

  A pool by the sea. Children from 4 years

  From COP 420,000 per person

• Cartagena bay

  Eteka

  Facing the skyline. Three departures a day

  From COP 290,000 per person

• Tierra Bomba

  Makani

  The closest island. Boat transfer included

  From COP 280,000 per person

Not the same thing as an island day, even though they overlap. A beach club is a place with beds, a bar and a kitchen; some are on the islands, one is twenty minutes away on the bay with the city skyline in view. Adults-only at some, children from four at one.

The full comparison, with 2026 prices and what each day includes, is in the Cartagena beach club guide.

An inlet on the Baru peninsula where boats raft up and the party happens on the water rather than on a beach. It is its own kind of day, so it suits its own kind of group. Everything about how it works, what it costs and when to go is in the Cholon guide.

If you want the boat to be the day rather than the transport, you charter rather than buy a seat. A catamaran carries a large group comfortably and slowly; a sport yacht is faster and better for a smaller group that wants to move between spots.

• Boat and yacht rental in Cartagena, the full fleet, by size and capacity
• Catamaran charter, for groups, sunsets and slower days

Bachelor and bachelorette weekends, birthdays and corporate days are their own planning problem: the boat is the easy part, the schedule is not. So the Cartagena bachelor party guide covers what works, what to avoid, and what it costs.

Rough figures per person, in Colombian pesos, for 2026:

• Island day pass with boat and lunch: COP 185,000 to more than COP 1,000,000 depending on the island and the plan
• The cheapest island day: from COP 185,000, on the island closest to the city, with lunch included
• A private island for your own group: from COP 594,000 per person, minimum eight people
• Yacht or catamaran charter: priced by the boat and the hours, not per person, ask us and we quote it

Two costs that catch people out: the port departure tax at some piers, paid in cash on the day, and the boat transfer on the private island option, which is quoted separately because it depends on your group size.

• First time in Cartagena, no strong preference: an island day pass with the boat included
• Travelling with children: the quiet beach club on Isla Grande, which takes children from four
• A group that wants the party: the adults-only club on the Rosario Islands, or Cholon
• You want nobody else around: the private island, from eight people
• Half a day, not a full one: the beach club on the bay, with three departures a day
• The boat is the point: a private charter, not a day pass

Two things worth reading first: how safe Cartagena actually is, written plainly rather than defensively, and where to stay, because the neighbourhood you pick changes how easy every one of these days is to reach. If you have four days and want them planned, there is a four-day itinerary too.