How to Have an Amazing Vacation in Barranquilla

What’s the best way to spend your vacation in Barranquilla and make the most of it?

Whether you’re on a family trip, planning out your date with a Colombian girl, or just plain soul-searching, you might just want to go all out and see what Barranquilla has to offer. Tour the capital of the department of Atlántico, the main economic center of Colombia’s Caribbean Region, and have an unforgettable experience!

Not sure where to go or what to do first?

You’re in luck. We got you covered.

Where are the best places to go?

First up, we look at the tourist attractions and see what you could do there to have fun. It’s going to be a week-long vacation so we covered some of the most popular places and activities that you and your date could enjoy.

• Barranquilla Carnivals

The best carnival in Barranquilla is Bypass Rio. It lasts for more than 3 hours while there are some Carnivals — like 1 Day at the Barranquilla Carnival — that last for an entire day. You can get different inclusions depending on which tour you get. They all vary in prices but expect them to be around $ 150 more or less with free lunch in a box.

What are the Carnivals about?

Carnaval de Barranquilla is Colombia’s largest celebration and one of the world’s largest carnivals (religious festivals), beginning on the Saturday before Ash Wednesday. As you would expect from a carnival, it features live music, dancing, and a parade full of masked people.

Their carnivals shut down the city to make way for the next four unforgettable days. It’s the perfect idea for a fun date with your Colombian girlfriend.

• Private Bogota’s downtown Tour (Candelaria + Gold Museum)

Visit Monserrate Hill for an unforgettable memory. This incredible panoramic view of the city offers the top of the historic hill. You get to see the Sanctuary of the Fallen Lord and walk through the Artisan Market while also getting to know the neighborhood of La Candelaria.

The entire duration is around 4 hours and there is an entrance fee for the Gold Museum. There is a maximum of 8 people per booking but luckily, the minimum is 2 people so you and your date can still enjoy the tour just by yourselves.

• Barranquilla Cultural Tour with Mud Volcano and Mar Rosa from Cartagena

Join a cultural and adventure activity where you get to spend 1 day in famous places that represent Barranquilla and Cartagena.

In the morning, they’ll pick you up from your hotel to take you to their first tour stop, which happens to be the Totumo Volcano. You’ll also get to visit the famous Pink Sea in Galerazamba (a municipality located between the departments of Bolvar and Atlántico). Next, you continue the journey to a tourist spot called Sombrero Vueltiao, which has an infrastructure similar to that of a hat vueltiao.

Here you will have lunch and you can choose from the variety of typical dishes that this restaurant offers. The journey continues in Barranquilla, where you will visit three of the city’s major parks and tourist attractions, including the Monument to the Sale of the World, the Shark’s Fin Monument, and Malecón Puerta de Oro.

And at the end of the tour, delicious fresh juice will be served to you to make you really feel the Caribbean flavors.

The trip is about $165 per adult but prices may vary. You will also need to book in advance for it so you and your date should check it out before you go.

What food should you try out?

Expect to eat, see or at least hear about some of the dishes and snacks on this list.

• Egg Arepa — “Arepa de Huevo”

A traditional fried corn arepa with an egg inside. some add meat or pieces of pork rinds.

• Sweet Arepa — “Arepa Dulce”

A sweet and salty thin arepa of corn with anise.

• “Caribañola”

Cooked yucca dough, oval in shape, stuffed with ground meat or cheese, and it is fried.

• Black-headed bean fritter

Basically black-eyed pea fritters.

• “Mojarra”, coconut rice and patacones

Mojarra is a fish that is fried and served with coconut rice, “patacones” and salad.

• “Mote de Queso” — Cheese Soup

A thick soup typical of the Colombian coast. It is made from yam and salty cheese.

• “Posta” Meat and Coconut Rice

Thick-cut meat with flavorful, sweet sauce.

Of course, there are so many more traditional dishes out there too. The cuisine itself is a compound of the culinary traditions — from the 6 main regions (Pacific, Amazonian, Andean, Orinoco, Caribbean, and Insular) — and varies regionally.

Regardless of all of that, the one staple that Colombia is known for is its coffee.

It’s generally weaker than other coffees but the taste is far superior. This is because Colombian coffee uses Arabica, generally accepted as the higher-quality coffee bean.

Ask your date to take you to known coffee shops to get a taste for yourself.

Where are the best places to stay?

There are many places where you could park yourself in for a few nights! We recommend the ones below.

• Alto Prado

This area is known as one of the best neighborhoods and is one of the most pleasant areas of Barranquilla. It has residential buildings, shopping centers, and offices.

It is also home to many luxury and boutique hotels such as NH Collection Royal Smartsuites, Hotel American Golf, and Hotel Estelar Alto Prado.

• El Prado

A bit further away from Alto is El Prado. It is mostly known as Viejo Prado, a historic area with a unique atmosphere in the city of Barranquilla. The neighborhood is filled with pretty houses of different styles, with gardens and mansions mostly commissioned by Italians, Germans, Jews, and Arabian immigrants, and has a 20th-century air to it.

It’s a lot more elegant than Alto Prado and it is surrounded by hotels such as Hotel Majestic, B.B. and Hotel El Prado.

• Riomar

Riomar is a district and is one of the five localities in which the city of Barranquilla is divided. It has about 25 neighborhoods spanning from the city center all the way to the Magdalena River. Most of its residents are upper and upper-middle-class, with high residential buildings, some of which are equipped with their own pools.

The places you can stay here are Wyndham Garden Barranquilla, Hogar de Freddy, and GHL Collection Hotel Barranquilla.

Why Barranquilla?

Why not? Barranquilla is unique even amongst Colombian sites. It’s known for its Carnival celebrations that take about 4 unforgettable days that no one should miss.

It’s a city full of history and life. For anyone wanting to get an intimate experience of Colombian living, come and take a visit!