Cartagena has a lot of options for nice, luxury boutique style hotels, many in former colonial buildings. We spent a couple nights at the Casona del Colegio Cartagena, and really liked just about everything about it, and it’s relatively speaking a decent value. In this review of the Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio, I’ll share what we liked and some of our photos so you can decide if it’s a good choice for you.
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Casona del Colegio Cartagena Review – Introduction
Susana and I decided to spend a few nights at one of the nicer hotels in Cartagena after moving out of our apartment. We considered several properties, and ended up settling on Casona del Colegio. We were not the least bit disappointed, and thought the hotel had a lot to offer and while on the pricier end, was a good value compared to some of the other top end places we considered.
By no means was it cheap, but it’s not the most expensive either. I don’t doubt that the handful of more expensive places are wonderful as well, but we thought this was more than luxurious and up there with Isla del Encanto in Barú (a great luxury beach option) for one of the nicest hotels we have every stayed in.
In this review of the Hotel Casona del Colegio, I’ll be sharing what we liked, what we didn’t like, how you can book your own stay, and some other alternatives for luxury style boutique hotels in Cartagena.
What We Liked About Casona del Colegio
The truth is we liked just about everything. Here, though I’ll go into some detail and share some photos of the things we liked about Casona del Colegio.
The Rooftop Pool
No upscale hotel in Cartagena is complete without a rooftop pool with a view. Casona del Colegio has a decent sized pool, and it has a privileged view of the Cathedral. The pool isn’t very large, and if there’s other people there, it would probably feel a little cramped, but it’s great to cool off with a dip here or just enjoy a couple drinks while enjoying the view.
The Restaurant (and all the food and drinks)
We were also really impressed with the food and drinks at Casona del Colegio. Breakfast was included in our room, and there were several options. These were fairly typical, eggs and bread, arepas de huevo, chicharrón, or waffles along with coffee or hot chocolate, and juice. It was nice being able to have breakfast up by the pool as well.
The downstairs restaurant, named Costa, was also very good for dinner. Prices are on the moderate-high end for Cartagena, but was overall reasonable for a gourmet style dinner. They have mostly typical Colombian-Latino dishes with some unique touches. We also sampled a few appetizers, including the seafood tacos and crunchy, peanut encrusted octopus for lunch by the pool one day.
The drinks were also terrific! They had a variety of unique cocktail combinations. They are also relatively reasonably priced for this type of place and fancy cocktails (I didn’t note prices but want to say in the $25-35,000 range). There were a couple good and unique mezcal and rum mixtures. They go great with the view at the pool as well, and you get a choice of one when arriving as well (it’s not the cheesy, cheap welcome “cocktail” lots of places give you, but a proper one you can choose from the menu).
Honestly, whether you stay here or not, it’s not a bad place to wander into for a meal, and is a great place for a couple fancy cocktails in the evening. It’s usually fairly quiet as well.
The Service
The service at Casona del Colegio was also spectacular. Cartagena isn’t always known for the best service in the world, but we thought the service here was top notch. The manager welcomed us, and all the staff was very friendly. The service at the restaurant was also great, as was the service for breakfast and drinks by the pool.
Our Room (and the rest of the hotel)
Ok, one of the few things we didn’t like was one particular aspect of our room (I’ll get to that in a minute), but overall, it was terrific. We stayed in the Magdalena Suite. All the rooms have a slightly different layout and design, based on different regions or aspects of Colombian culture, with different decorations and colors. Ours, based on the river, had a light blue decor and was long and skinny.
The bed was incredibly comfortable. The bathroom and shower were luxurious. There was a little kitchen sink and coffee maker, and a small sofa and sitting area.
The rest of the hotel was also gorgeous. The pool, as mentioned above is great, as is the restaurant, but really everything down to the hallways felt very well put together. It’s definitely a very pretty hotel.
What Didn’t We Like
Our Room’s Jacuzzi
Ok, as I mentioned above, there was one thing that wasn’t spectacular about our room, and that was the jacuzzi. It was located just off the room in a little fountain type area that I guess is a representation of the river. It is really pretty, in fact, it was the reason I asked for this room.
However, it isn’t quite as private as it looks, and because the sun hardly hits it, it just isn’t that comfortable to hang out in. The water level was also quite low. This certainly isn’t a deal breaker, and complaining about a room’s jacuzzi is perhaps the ultimate in privileged complaining, and that it was the only negative speaks to how nice the rest of the hotel was. However, if we were to stay here again, I would opt for one of the other suites on the corners, which have little sitting areas outside along with jacuzzis that are in the sun overlooking the street.
Not Much Else
I really can’t complain about anything else to be honest. As I mentioned the pool is on the small side, and there is limited seating, including just 2 really nice lounge chairs, so if there’s a few people already there it isn’t as nice, but then again, it’s perfect for just a couple.
Planning Your Stay at Hotel Boutique Casona del Colegio
If you’d like to plan your own stay here, I recommend booking a bit early as it is a smaller hotel and can get booked up. Again, I recommend one of the suites on the corners.
Alternatives
If Casona del Colegio is all booked up or you want to check out other upscale hotels in Cartagena, I highly recommend taking a look at the Casa San Agustín, Charleston Santa Teresa, or Santa Clara. These are all slightly pricier. For something nice that is a tad more affordable, check out Sophia Hotel, Casa Claver Loft, or Hotel Capellán. You may also want to check out my lists of the top boutique hotels and top luxury hotels in Cartagena for more ideas.
Casona del Colegio Cartagena Review Conclusion
In conclusion, I definitely recommend Casona del Colegio if you want to treat yourself to a nice stay in Cartagena for a slightly better value than the very highest end hotels. You can enjoy the unique decor, the terrific service, and the gorgeous view from the rooftop pool. If you do decide to stay yourself, I hope this review helped you and, more importantly, I hope you have a terrific stay! I would love to hear about it in the comments below.
Cheers and Happy Exploring!
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