Colombia: Cartagena and the Mystery of the Missing Cheap Guesthouse

Back in March I predicted that Colombia would garner more attention among travel industry forecasters over the following months. The November issue of Budget Travel, which arrived today in my mailbox, would seem to support my hunch. The issue sports a gorgeous feature on Cartagena by Liz Ozaist that makes a great case for a visit. The article's blurb on the magazine cover even touts Cartagena as "The Next Buenos Aires!"

Nonetheless, I'm disappointed to note that the cheapest hotel profiled in the article costs $165 per night, with two other hotels listed in the article running $189 and $279 per night. These rates are annoyingly dear for inclusion in a feature in a budget travel magazine. I wondered if Cartagena might be a place with particularly expensive hotels and immediately got down to some cursory research. It would appear, in fact, that Cartagena is not such a place. With minimal research effort I came across a beautiful guesthouse that charges $81 for a double room from mid-December through mid-January and $66 at all other times.

I haven't visited this guesthouse. It might be far less charming than it looks. But times are tough, and people throughout the US are all very likely cancelling their vacations right now because they're not sure they can afford them. The last thing that budget travelers need to see in a magazine feature ostensibly tailored to a pennypinching demographic is hotel recommendations that begin at twice the nightly rate of charming local accommodation alternatives.

None of this is to suggest that hotel splurges are not worth writing about in budget travel magazines. Indeed, a well-placed hotel splurge can make an otherwise shoestring vacation extra special. But splurges shouldn't form the backbone of a budget travel feature. In my book, $165 isn't cheap—and $279 certainly ain't budget.

Comments

[Patsy Farblondget]

Thank you, Alex. I'm a huge fan of Budget Travel -- and reading between the lines, I suspect you are too -- but honestly, what were they thinking? Budget travelers aren't going to spend $165/night on a hotel when there's a perfectly decent option available for less than half that much. I have a good salary and I travel at least six times a year -- and I would NEVER spend that much on a hotel unless it were a very special occasion indeed.

As for $279/night? That may be Donald Trump's budget, but it's not mine. At this rate, the term budget will soon signify nothing at all.

Keep up the good work!

[Suzanne Russo]

I couldn't agree more Alex. I too love Budget Travel, and I'm also a huge proponent of a great, worthwhile splurge, but $165 is pretty much a splurge in my book, especially in a country like Columbia. One of the reasons Columbia is a great destination for Americans now should be that it's so much less expensive than other popular destinations. Still, the article was gorgeous and it really made me want to go to Cartagena (only to stay in much cheaper accommodations).

[poetloverrebelspy]

Amen, Alex!

But I suppose that "budget" is like the word "diet" -- it has come to mean something more narrow or restrictive than it actually is.

They had a budget -- it was simply 5 times your own!