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Originally Posted by rivardco  What's the story on the Colombian islands off the coast of Nicaragua? Are any of these developed? Is commercialization a possibility?
I get the impression that Cartagena is expensive and just another Caribbean travel destination played over? Does Barranquilla differ from Cartegena in costs; culture and sophistication; and crime? |
The only two islands I know of off the coast of Nicaragua that belong to Colombia are San Andres and Providencia. San Andres is probably more popular in terms of tourism, but the less "developed" Providencia is definitely more beautiful. Both are accessible by plane from the airport in Cartegena. While commercialization is always a possibility, I think the logistics and red tape involved with a person from outside of Latin America trying to do something like that in Latin America make it an exercise in futility.
Cartegena is probably the most popular destination for international tourists visiting Colombia. I would not go as far as calling it expensive but like any other place in the world, prices automatically go up when foreigners are buying. With the exception of Carnaval Season, one thing you could probably find cheaper in Barranquilla are living quarters. Barranquilla is a bigger city, so there is a wider variety of housing options. There are very few economical luxury hotels or condos for rent in Cartegena. Most are very expensive. However, restaurants, souvenirs, and transportation are probably going to cost you the same in both cities. As far as culture the two do not differ much. In my opinion Cartegena is much more culturally rich because of the city's historic landmarks, but both share a lot of the same cuisine, art, festivals, and that beautiful Costeņo Spanish. There are places in Colombia that cuturally differ greatly from the Northern Costal Region but Cartegena and Barranquilla have a lot in common. Most people that live in one have family in the other.
There are many dangerous places in Colombia and both Cartegena and Barranquilla have areas that you should not put on your sight seeing list, but for the most part the police presense in these cities prevents a lot of the petty crime you'd experience in other places in Colombia. Both rely heavily on revenue from tourism so the Colombia government does all it can to keep them safe for visiting foreigners.