Swivel Your Hips at Some of Cartagena’s Best Salsatecas

Photo Credit: La Guia Cartagenera

Photo Credit: La Guia Cartagenera

Salsa’s rhythmic sound awakens a side of Cartagena you just have to see and experience for yourself. Try and stop your hips from moving once the salsa starts playing. I dare you.

This article may contain affiliate links. This means if you click a link on my blog and make a purchase, I may earn a commission at no additional cost to you.

Salsa courses through the veins of Cartagena locals. Head to any salsateca in the city on a Friday or Saturday night and you’ll spy couples intimately glued together in rhythmic step, eyes closed and moved by the music. It’s mesmerizing to watch and easy enough to learn. Once that irresistible salsa sound fills the air, your body will beg you to do something anyway .

The Story Behind Salsa in Colombia

While salsa’s true origins trace back to New York, legend has it that the dance first arrived on Colombian shores by way of record-toting Navy sailors docked at the port of Buenaventura in the 70’s. Sharing what they’d learned in the dance halls of New York, the rhythms spread from there, with some of the poorer and mainly Afro-descendant barrios of nearby Cali taking a particular liking to it and infusing their own ancestral African influences into the dance and rhythm. A new sub-genre of salsa was birthed and then amplified by way of Cali’s annual Carnavales (often bankrolled by some of Cali’s cartel capitans) and the DJs spinning salsa at nearly twice the original record’s speed. You might know it as Cali-style salsa, a version characterized by its intricate footwork, tight spins, athletic lifts, and a frighteningly fast tempo.

Make no mistake; Cali is the salsa capital of Colombia, but Cartageneros are no stranger to the sound or movement either, producing a few salsa stars themselves over the years. Have you heard of Joe Arroyo?

How To Experience Cartagena’s Salsa Scene

Go on a Salsa Crawl

Bounce from bar to bar to get a taste of the salsa scene in Cartagena and watch your moves improve from bar one to bar four. La Guia Cartagenera‘s salsa crawl experience is led by a Cartagena local who knows exactly where to find the best salsa-only clubs in the city center and further afield. Learn the steps from your trusted guide and then practice them all night long with locals and other first-timers, moving locations on the hour and being handed a fresh beer each time. Not that you’ll need the liquid courage anyway…

TOUR DETAILS
Recommended Local Tour Operator: La Guia Cartagenera
Duration: 4 hours, night starts at 8:30pm
What's Included?:
- Local and bilingual guide
- Dance lessons to learn the basic salsa steps
- A beer at each of the four salsatecas

The Do-It-Yourself-Option

Piece together a salsa crawl of your own by asking a few different locals their favorite spots. To get you started Donde Fidel, Vueltabajeros, and Crazy Salsa are all great options.

 

If you found this post helpful, one of the best ways to say thanks is by booking your hotels, transport, tours, and trip insurance through the links on my Travel Resources page or by clicking any of the trip-relevant links below. This sends a bit back my way at no additional cost to you and helps to keep this blog up and running. Thank you for your support!

Accommodations: Booking.com, HostelWorld, Trivago

Tours & Experiences: Viator, GetYourGuide, EatWith, TripAdvisor

Flights: Hopper, WayAway

Trains, Buses, & Transfers: Bookaway, 12Go, BusBud

Car Rentals: DiscoverCars.com

Trip Insurance: Squaremouth, WorldTrips

Learn Spanish: Rosetta Stone, Babbel, Pimsleur

 

What to Read Next

Previous
Previous

Assault Your Senses at Cartagena’s Maze-like Bazurto Market

Next
Next

Cartagena Cuisine: What to Eat When in Cartagena