If you are currently planning a trip to Colombia, there’s a good chance you’re wondering how to get from Cartagena to Bogotá.
Cartagena is arguably Colombia’s premier international destination, and Bogotá is its capital city, and an under rated destination in its own right based on my experience visiting the city.
It’s also the country’s main hub for both international and domestic flights. So it can be a great gateway to visit other areas, especially in Colombia’s interior.
I lived in Cartagena for over a decade and have made the trip to Bogotá from Cartagena many times. Sometimes those were in route elsewhere, sometimes for things like Susana’s Visa to come to the USA, and sometimes they were simply to enjoy Bogotá.
Here, I’m going to use my experience to go over the different ways to go from Cartagena to Bogotá, including explaining why I think for most travelers, a Cartagena to Bogotá flight is by far the best option, and what to keep in mind if you prefer to do a Cartagena to Bogotá bus.
So read on to learn all about how to get to Bogotá from Cartagena.
*Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, and I may earn from purchases made after clicking those links. Disclosure Policy.
Cartagena to Bogotá – Contents
- Cartagena to Bogotá Quick Tips and Overview
- How Far is Bogotá from Cartagena?
- Tips for Getting the Best Cartagena to Bogotá Flight
- Tips for Taking the Bus to Bogotá from Cartagena
- Can You Drive from Cartagena to Bogotá?
How to Get to Bogotá from Cartagena Quick Tips
There’s not a lot of beating around the bush to do here.
For most travelers, especially if you’re going directly to Bogotá from Cartagena, taking a Cartagena to Bogotá flight is by far the best option.
It’s much easier, quicker, and probably won’t be much more expensive once you factor in the amount of time going over land will take.
Especially since Bogotá is the main air traffic hub in the country, there are lots of options for Cartagena-Bogotá flights, and the Cartagena to Bogotá flight time is just over an hour.
If you’re planning to go to other, more remote places, such as the amazing Rainbow River of Caño Cristales, the Amazon city of Leticia, or the rugged San José del Guaviare, there’s a good chance you’ll also want to route through Bogotá from Cartagena.
Compare that Cartagena to Bogotá flight time to the 20-24 hours a bus from Cartagena to Bogotá will take, and your’e talking about gaining a whole day to actually enjoy yourself seeing things in either city or elsewhere.
Speaking of seeing things in Cartagena and Bogotá, please do check out my suggestions for what to do in Cartagena as well as things to do in Bogotá!
You can also check out the top rated tours in Cartagena on Viator and GetYourGuide as well as the top tours in Bogotá on Viator and GetYourGuide.
If you like having a travel agent to help you out planning, please do fill out this form and get in touch with my partner travel agency BnB Colombia. They have a great group of agents that will work with you to construct a perfect trip that includes every aspect of your trip, starting with airport pickup. They’ll even give you a discount for getting in touch with them via this site!
They also have a variety of day tours you can get a discount on with the code ExploreColombia10.
But I’ve digressed.
Honestly, the easiest, fastest, and most convenient way to get to Bogotá from Cartagena is to just book a flight from Cartagena to Bogotá.
We have always traveled by flights to Bogotá from Cartagena, and unless we were planning to slow travel and make a few stops along the way, it’s how we would always choose to travel from Cartagena to Bogotá.
Be sure to check out sites like CheapOair and Expedia to check prices on flights from Cartagena to Bogotá.
Sometimes, they aren’t even that much more expensive than busing!
If you do want to take a bus from Cartagena to Bogotá, it is doable. I think it’s really only worth it if you can afford to an have the time to slow travel and make some stops along the way.
I’ll go over some ideas for stops in the section on Cartagena to Bogotá buses below.
However, if you want to get an idea of what bus options are available and how they might compare to the cost of flying, you can see some options book online at BusBud and Bookaway.
Finally, yes, it is possible to rent a car and drive from Cartagena to Bogotá, but it’s a long route and I wouldn’t recommend it to most people without experience driving in Colombia and also planning to make multiple stops along the way.
If you do want to do this, check out prices at RentalCars.com.
Regardless of which way you choose to get from Cartagena to Bogotá, if you need to make reservations for where to stay, do check out my guides for where to stay in Cartagena as well as where to stay in Bogotá.
If you’re looking for high end options in Cartagena, you could also check out my picks for the best luxury hotels in Cartagena and best luxury hotels in Bogotá. For cheaper options, check out my picks for the best Cartagena hostels.
If you want to learn more about the pros and cons of each of these options and more tips on which is the best way to get from Cartagena to Bogotá read on as I cover them in more detail in the sections below.
How Far is Bogotá from Cartagena?
Bogotá is approximately 1,000 km, or around 620 miles, from Cartagena by road.
It is almost certainly less distance as the pelican flies.
That’s why Cartagena to Bogotá flights don’t take too long, clocking in at just over an hour. The Cartagena to Bogotá flight time isn’t very long because planes don’t have to worry about the mountainous terrain of the roots of the Andes in Colombia’s interior.
That mountainous terrain is what makes travel times overland between Cartagena and Bogotá longer than you might anticipate by just a glance at the map.
Buses form Cartagena to Bogotá take approximately 20-24 hours.
Driving takes 18-20 hours with favorable traffic conditions.
Tips for Getting a Cartagena to Bogotá Flight
These long travel times overland are why I recommend most travelers take a Cartagena to Bogotá flight.
Since the Cartagena to Bogotá flight time is so short, you’ll gain nearly an entire 24 hours to enjoy either or both cities or wherever else you’re headed afterwars.
You’ll also just be less worn out by being on a bus all that time!
So, if you’re simply looking to travel from Cartagena to Bogotá, do yourself a favor and just fly.
If you look around you can probably even get a flight to Bogotá from Cartagena that isn’t all that much more expensive than taking a bus, especially if you’re traveling relatively light and don’t need to check bags.
For example, while writing this, I took a quick glance.
I found one way flights from Cartagena to Bogotá for $64 USD. Meanwhile, the cheapest bus I found was $33. In my opinion, the $30 dollars are well worth an extra 20+ hours to enjoy yourself.
It’s worth pointing out that the cheapest flight isn’t always the most convenient, but given how inconvenient the bus is, we’re really picking nits here.
I suggest you look on comparison sites like CheapOair and Expedia, but also be sure to check out airline websites. Avianca and LATAM, in particular, often run flash sales with cheap one way flights from Cartagena to Bogotá as well as elsewhere. The budget carrier Wingo is also a good option to find flights to Bogotá from Cartagena for cheap.
So check those to see if you can get an even better price.
If you do take my advice and take a flight from Cartagena to Bogotá, be sure to check out my guide to the Cartagena airport. You can also check out the Bogotá airport Wikipedia page here.
Finally, you can also book a private transfer to or from the airport in Bogotá and in Cartagena with my partner travel agency (don’t forget the ExploreColombia10 discount code!).
Tips for Taking a Cartagena to Bogotá Bus
If you are thinking about taking the bus from Cartagena to Bogotá, I highly suggest you reconsider flying unless you want to make some stops along the way.
Now, if you have the time to slow travel or are backpacking across Colombia, taking a bus to Bogotá from Cartagena can be a good option.
As I mentioned above, direct buses from Cartagena to Bogotá can take 20-24 hours, depending on route, stops, and traffic.
This is why I think if you want to bus to Bogotá from Cartagena, it’s well worth stopping along the way. There are several possible routes and stops you could take if you do have the time to slow travel it a bit and break up that long bus ride.
Now, let me pause really quick, and say if you are also planning to visit Medellín and aren’t all that interested in any of the places I discuss below between Cartagena and Bogotá, I’d recommend busing from Cartagena to Medellín first.
There’s a great stop at the San Bernardo Islands along that route and times are similar. You can read more about that option at my Cartagena to Medellín post (use the search button top right).
From Cartagena to Bogotá there are also some good stops though.
The most common stop for backpackers taking a bus from Cartagena to Bogotá has long been San Gil. This city is somewhat centrally located distance wise (about 17 hours from Cartagena), and serves a nice hub for a few different things.
San Gil is well known for extreme sports, including paragliding and white water rafting as well as having a small hostel scene. By the way, you can check out some tours in San Gil on Viator or some hostels in San Gil on HostelWorld.
The pretty town of Barichara and the stunning Chicamocha Canyon are also accessible from San Gil.
Actually, unless you want to do extreme sports, I’d actually suggest a stop in Barichara instead of San Gil. It’s so much prettier.
I’d especially suggest this if you want a nicer place to stay or are traveling as a couple. You can read about Barichara and our experience there in my guide to Barichara.
Another worthy stop to break up the trip more is the hidden colonial gem of Mompox.
This town was an extremely important river port in colonial times and has some lovely churches and architecture. You can read about our experience in Mompox here.
If you don’t route through Mompox, it’s also possible to route farther to the north through Valledupar.
This is best to do if you also wanted to visit Santa Marta (see how to get from Cartagena to Santa Marta here), or some or all of the gorgeous Tayrona National Park, the pretty mountain town of Minca, the hip beach town of Palomino, or the amazing desert landscape of Punta Gallinas, the most northern point of South America.
You can do any or all of those places first and then route through Valledupar and then Bucaramanga to Bogotá (with a stop at San Gil or Barichara along the way to boot if you’d like!).
Speaking of Bucaramanga, it is also not a bad stop. There’s not a ton of tourist things to do, but it’s a nice small to medium sized city. I’d suggest it as a nice stop for digital nomads especially.
Beyond San Gil and Barichara, there are some other good stops in Boyacá on the way to Bogotá.
The most well known is Villa de Leyva, a gorgeous colonial town. Read about it here.
You can also choose to stop at El Cocuy, or do a terrific hike in the Paramo de Ocetá outside of Mongui, another pretty small town.
Finally, if you wanted to really take a roundabout way but amazing trip, you could route down from Boyacá to Yopal and Casanare and do a wildlife safari.
Of course, you could also just take a long bus ride from Cartagena to Bogotá and get some shut eye on the way while saving a chunk of pesos.
Whether you go direct or make one or several stops along the way, you can get an idea of prices, schedules, and even book online at BusBud and Bookaway. You will usually get lots more options at the terminal, including possibly cheaper ones, but booking at one of those sites in advance will make sure they don’t fill up.
Can I Rent a Car and Drive from Cartagena to Bogotá?
Yes, technically you can.
However, based on my many experiences traveling in Colombia, it’s not something I’d recommend to most people.
First, we are talking about a 20 hour drive.
Even though the bus ride is a bit longer, the truth is, even if you want to make some stops along the way, which is why I would consider this over flying in the first place, you can do that fairly easy by bus in this area of Colombia.
Also, Colombians generally tend to drive quite aggressively, including bus and truck drivers.
If you’ve driven here or in another place with that type of driving before and are comfortably with it, then by all means go for it. Just make sure you know what you are getting yourself into!
If you do want to rent a car and make the Cartagena to Bogotá drive, I recommend checking out prices at RentalCars.com.
Ready to plan your trip to Bogotá from Cartagena?
Now you’ve got a number of options to consider for how to get to Bogotá from Cartagena.
I really think Cartagena to Bogotá flights are the best option for most travelers, especially if you are going directly to Bogotá from Cartagena.
Still, a Cartagena to Bogotá bus can be a good option for those that want to save a few pesos on transportation and also have the time to slow travel and make a few worthy stops along the way.
Regardless of which way you choose to travel from Cartagena to Bogotá, I hope you found this guide useful in planning, and, most importantly, you have a safe trip and enjoy both destinations as well as everywhere else you go in Colombia to their fullest!
Please do check out all the other content on the site about Cartagena as well as elsewhere in Colombia in the Other Destinations section!
Cheers and Happy Exploring!
Did you like this post?
You might also want to check out my suggestions for how to spend a day in Bogotá, my picks for the best hotels near the airport in Bogotá, and my guide to visiting the gorgeous Lake Guatavita.
Planning a trip to Cartagena?
Be sure to check out the rest of the site to help you plan!
In particular, you might want to check out my complete guide to planning a trip to Cartagena, my guide to the best areas to stay, my list of over 75 things to do, my picks for the best Cartagena tours, the best day trips from Cartagena, my suggested packing list, my guide to the Rosario Islands, and my guide to all the beaches of Cartagena.
