La Ciudad Perdida

Getting Here & Around

Although traveling around the Caribbean coast either by bus or car is getting safer, it's worthwhile going with an organized tour group. In Cartagena, Tesoro Tours arranges everything from city tours to boat trips to the Islas del Rosario. Caliente Tours offers a day trip to the town of Santa Marta (northeast of Cartagena, at the foot of the Sierra Nevada coastal range) and the beaches at El Rodadero. In Bocagrande, Raphael Pérez has a unique trip to the Volcán Totumo, where you can enjoy a mud bath (35,000 pesos).

City tours of Santa Marta can be arranged through Aviatur. The company also offers a boat tour to Acuario Playa Blanca, an aquarium off the coast of Santa Marta. Turcol offers trips to Parque Nacional Tayrona, a reserve with forest-clad slopes, ancient ruins, and palm-fringed beaches as well as the hike to the Ciudad Perdida.