Check into Four Seasons Cartagena, Colombia’s newest luxury landmark

Vibrant, colourful and intoxicatingly charming, Cartagena attracts throngs of romance seekers and holidaygoers looking for a good time. To date, the city’s hotel scene, with few exceptions, has been marked by boutique boîtes, with a mysterious magic that’s hidden behind imposing wood doors.

The debut of the 131-key Four Seasons Cartagena (among the most exciting new openings of April, nay the entire year) brings one of the world’s most well-established luxury hospitality brands to Colombia’s seductive Caribbean port – a move that will no doubt lure even more aesthetes and discerning travelers keen to pepper days with pampering spa sessions and refreshing dips in the pool in between coffee tastings, visits to local handicraft shops and cruising to the Rosario Islands.

Wallpaper* checks in at Four Seasons Hotel Cartagena

What’s on your doorstep?

Located in the lively Getsemaní neighbourhood, Four Seasons Cartagena is next door to Parque Centenario, which recently received a major facelift, and steps from the Walled City. Within its 16th-century stone walls travelers will find a warren of cobbled corridors, preserved Spanish colonial buildings splashed in shades of purple, yellow, red and blue, restaurants (if you want an unforgettable meal, book lunch or dinner at Rabo de Pez), artisan shops (Johanna Ortiz, AGUA by Agua Bendita and Mercedes Salazar are a few of my favorites), bustling plazas and cultural institutions, such as NH Galeria, which displays an impressive collection of contemporary Colombian art. If you’re not sure where to start, the hotel partners with Galavanta, a regional travel specialist, to curate bespoke experiences for guests, ranging from private outings to the city’s most emblematic residences to shopping excursions at the chromatic boutiques in Old Town.

Who is behind the design?

WATG took on the task of transforming a scattered collection of historic buildings in varying states of disrepair into a cohesive compound. Some structures were rebuilt from scratch, while significant time and investment went into restoring the most sacred spaces – notably the Cloister of Saint Francis, an almost biblical sight, with a quiet courtyard punctuated by four banyan trees estimated to be more than 100 years old, and the original Club Cartagena’s monumental split staircase, which now sits beneath a soaring, newly constructed glass roof.

The challenge wasn’t just conceptual but also spiritual. The question posed to all involved in the project was how to capture the seductive swagger and Caribbean charisma of Cartagena while also infusing a sense of serenity and resort-style amenities that give guests – whether weary from daily life or late-night dancing and drinking – a true reset. The answer? Acclaimed French designer François Catroux, in collaboration with Wimberly Interiors and AvroKO, shaped the interiors into a visual identity that embraces warmth and character. Intricate woodwork, sun-faded shades, and art, furnishings and textiles by Colombian artisans layer old-world charm and the creative expression of the current thriving art scene.

The room to book

Travellers staying at Four Seasons Cartagena can choose between colonial-style or contemporary rooms. The former, tucked inside old cloisters, shows off soaring ceilings, exposed brick, dark wood cabinetry and four-poster beds. Windowless bedrooms, cranked A/C and signature Four Seasons mattresses topped with fluffy pillows create the optimal sleep setup. The latter doesn’t skimp on character, but its style skews lighter and brighter with blond wood, striped area rugs, and a coastal palette of watery blues and sand. Framed artworks by Colombian artist Miguel Cárdenas hang in both categories. The duality of the accommodations isn’t just an aesthetic play (one that’s done exceptionally well, might I add) but also a nod to the past and present evolution of the destination and an acknowledgement of the weighty expectations of choosy Four Seasons loyalists.

For travellers who simply can’t decide which era speaks to them (or for whom privacy and space are the highest priority), the two-bedroom presidential suite, accessed by private elevator, expresses a modern interpretation of more traditional colonial elements, featuring high ceilings, historical arched windows overlooking the garden, plush furnishings, sleek marble bathrooms and a terrace with a plunge pool.

Staying for drinks and dinner?

The question isn’t whether you’re staying for dinner and drinks but rather which of the many outlets to patronise – all with a distinct point of view and a connective thread of tropical glamour, thanks to AvroKO and François Bompard, founder and creative director of SBM Interior Design and a protégé of Catroux, who carried out the late designer’s vision after he passed.

Start with sunset sips on the rooftop at El Palomar, a calm vantage point from which to look out over the city’s beautiful chaos. Once evening sets in, move on to pre-dinner drinks at Bar Lelarge, dedicated to architect Gastón Lelarge, which draws on 1940s Cuban influences with custom shelves for spirits and intricate woodwork, and serves signature cocktails made with premium spirits and local fruits like the sweet, citrus-y and spicy Dorado. If you prefer, it’s possible to imbibe in the atrium, where the moon casts a glow through the glass onto the marble floors as guests and locals clink glasses of mojitos and silver aperitivo carts roll through with fruit and cheese.

The Grand Grill, Major Food Group’s first foray into South America, is indeed grand in its design, but intimate in size, with tables underneath the soft, diffused glow of a pair of alabaster light fixtures and a lush, tropical ceiling by Eloín Rivera. Like the atmosphere – and as the name suggests – the menu leans on American grill classics, with crowd-pleasers like prawn cocktail, tableside crab Louis salad and prime cuts of meat.

Where to switch off

The hotel boasts the beautiful Umari Spa, built from the ground up within a structure monks used for food preparation and storage. Even within the frame of new construction, Wimberley imbues warmth and heritage with sun-faded terracotta tiles, large framed windows and high ceilings. A striking spiral staircase and gauzy relaxation lounge stocked with pitchers of refreshing hibiscus tea represent a contemporary counterpoint. The menu includes massages like the indulgent signature Amazonian nectar ritual and glow-boosting facials. You can also switch off at one of two rooftop pools, a halcyon perch above the thumping city.

The service

The service is exceptional. Four Seasons Cartagena doesn’t show any of the shakiness of a new opening; rather, the well-trained team approaches hospitality with warmth, friendliness, and attentiveness – the steady-handed mark of a long-running hotel that found its five-star footing years ago. If you need one example of that, while having a cocktail on the rooftop, I failed to realise the kitchen closed at 5 pm. The unflappable team brought me an in-room dining menu and had my order (ceviche) delivered right to my tucked-away corner booth.

The verdict

Four Seasons Cartagena isn’t just the best stay in the city from a design and service perspective; it’s an example of how to tell a story through hospitality. The soulful restoration and reinvention of the various buildings’ former lives shine throughout the property, offering a sanctuary of calm that cuts through the cacophony of honking horns and thumping bass, yet never leaves you wondering whether you’ve drifted entirely from the hum. Sophisticated always, serene in the cloister and spa, more convivial in the atrium and F&B spaces, it’s a destination designed to dazzle travellers who arrive with high expectations – and it delivers.

Four Seasons Hotel Cartagena is located at Cl de la Media Luna #8B #8B-44, Getsemaní, Cartagena de Indias, Bolívar, Colombia