Cartagena, Colombia

Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio

Price per night from$187.47

Price information

If you haven’t entered any dates, the rate shown is provided directly by the hotel and represents the cheapest double room (inclusive of taxes and fees) available in the next 60 days.

Prices have been converted from the hotel’s local currency (COP826,200.00), via openexchangerates.org, using today’s exchange rate.

Style

Creatives’ canvas

Setting

Walled City wonder

Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio is a picture-pretty ode to Colombian culture in the beating heart of Cartagena’s Old Town. Local artisans were called on to dress its one-of-a-kind spaces, resulting in colorful, art-adorned interiors. Heritage, too, is the spark behind all-Colombian plates in the restaurant. And a spa cabin and bar-edged rooftop pool are sure to kickstart your own tryst with this vibrant pocket of Colombia.

Smith Extra

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Guaranteed late check-out until 2pm

Facilities

Photos Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio facilities

Need to know

Rooms

13, including three suites.

Check–Out

Between noon and 2pm. Check-in is at 3pm, but flexible, on request and subject to availability.

More details

Rates include a buffet breakfast, and à la carte options are available on request.

Also

Unfortunately this boutique retreat isn’t suitable for guests with limited mobility.

At the hotel

Courtyard, lounge areas, concierge, charged laundry service and free WiFi throughout. In rooms: smart TV, air-conditioning, minibar, Nespresso coffee machine, tea-making kit, free glass-bottled water, bathrobes and Loto del Sur bath products.

Our favourite rooms

All but the Superior offer private city-watching balconies. But we’re all for kicking the luxury up a notch, and here, that means snagging a Junior Suite for striking scenes of the Walled City. One of the two also nods to the city’s historic mansions, with lofty vaulted ceilings and exposed brick interiors. For a Jacuzzi of your own, secure one of the three suites.

Poolside

The heated outdoor pool (open 8am to 8pm) rests peacefully on the rooftop, surveying the city’s terracotta roofs. Steps lead down to a terrace lined with sunloungers, primed to lap up Cartagena’s balmy rays.

Spa

There’s a small two-person spa steps from the rooftop pool, hidden in an all-wood hut and decked out with a high-spec sauna, relaxation room and two treatment beds. There’s also a duo of side-by-side tubs if you’re seeking something a little sultrier (without compromising on legroom).

Packing tips

For evenings, bring along your most glamorous vintage threads to pair with the storied elegance of Casona del Colegio’s setting.

Also

Now an events venue, the building opposite Casona del Colegio dates back to 1537, built in the original Cartagena de Indias alongside the city’s first cathedral (since burnt down).

Children

Little Smiths are welcome, but this city escape is better tailored to adults.

Sustainability efforts

Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio was predominantly made by locals: Colombian-based architects were in charge of the Earth-kind design and its interiors are warmed with paintings, artwork, textiles and furnishings crafted by natives. The hotel is also energy efficient, and has a strict ban on single-use plastics.

Food and Drink

Photos Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio food and drink

Top Table

During the day, take a tree-shaded table in the central courtyard. And come evening, sit by the open kitchen to watch chefs at work.

Dress Code

Take your cues from the traditional elegance of Costa’s dining room to wear hand-embellished, vintage or upcycled threads.

Hotel restaurant

Everything at Casona del Colegio is all Colombian, and Restaurante Costa is no exception. Chef Alejandra Mejia spotlights this coastal city’s ocean larder in well balanced dishes such as sea bass in coconut sauce with fried plantains and seafood linguine laden with mussels, prawns and octopus. 

Hotel bar

There’s no formal bar, but there are plenty of spirited cocktails to pick from at the restaurant, including a punchy, rum-based concoction, the Tribu Wayuu. You’ll also find a small, guests-only, rooftop bar up by the pool.

Last orders

Breakfast is served from 6.30am; lunch from noon, and dinner from 7pm. The restaurant and bar close at 10.30pm.

Room service

Anything from the restaurant’s menu can be brought to your door between 6.30am and 10.30pm.

Location

Photos Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio location
Address
Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio
34-82 Calle del Colegio El Centro
Cartagena de Indias
130001
Colombia

You’ll find Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio in Cartagena’s historic Old Town, on Colombia’s scenic Caribbean coast.

Planes

Most flights touch down in Rafael Núñez International Airport, a 20-minute drive from the hotel. Private transfers can be arranged for COP80,000 (around US$20) each way.

Automobiles

If you’re staying in the city, you shouldn’t need a car; but if you do bring a set of wheels, there’s a private carpark a few minutes’ walk away and the hotel can arrange valet parking with advanced notice.

Worth getting out of bed for

Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio’s Old Town co-ords mean you’re never far from Cartagena’s action. Get to know your locale with a walking tour of the city’s 500-year-old history; or take to its galleries, workshops, studios and adorned streets with a guided art or photography tour. Mingle with locals in Plaza de Santo Domingo and Plaza de la Aduana, where artisan-managed market stalls and independent eateries draw creative crowds. If you’d rather escape the city for a day, the Rosario Islands, characterized by their sugar-white sands and clear Caribbean waters, are a 30-minute boat ride from the nearby Los Pegasos Pier.

Local restaurants

In neighboring Getsemaní, chef Jaime Rodríguez has put Celele on the map for its contemporary Caribbean cuisine that includes 72-hour-marinated meats and fried plantain dosed with a creamy peanut sauce. For something more laidback, locals carry a torch for La Cocina de Pepina, a family-run restaurant with eight tables that overflow with traditional Caribbean soups, ceviche and coconut rice.

Local bars

Café Havana has been a Colombian institution since the 1930s, with a dance floor made for salsa moves into the early hours. Just down the road from the hotel, rooftop Alquimico pours creative cocktails against sweeping city views.

Reviews

Photos Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio reviews

Anonymous review

Every hotel featured is visited personally by members of our team, given the Smith seal of approval, and then anonymously reviewed. As soon as our reviewers have returned from this Old Town hotel in Colombia and unpacked their ceramics and market finds, a full account of their city escape will be with you. In the meantime, to whet your wanderlust, here's a quick peek inside Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio in Cartagena…

Storied grandeur isn’t hard to come by in Cartagena, and framed by the timeworn archways of its Old Town, you’ll spot equally eye-catching Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio. It’s not just historic architecture, however, that helps this boutique retreat fit right in: its proudly Colombian decor was almost entirely handmade by local artisans.

A bronzed reception desk welcomes you on arrival; the eagle eyed will notice its wooden countertop is actually an outline of the region— perfectly encapsulating the city’s skilled meld of modernity and tradition. Rooms and suites follow suit, deftly deploying minimalist finishes to serve as foils for bold textiles, sleek wooden furniture and shades-of-green palettes. 

A sun terrace and rooftop pool teamed with a keep-the-mojitos-coming bar and wrapped in skyline scenery are catnip for loafers. But dedicate days to roaming these culture-steeped streets, or perhaps island hopping by boat, and you’ll see that this city’s allure is no mere museum piece...

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Price per night from $187.47