Charleston Santa Teresa Cartagena

Monasteries and convents make great hotels. For while their ultimate purposes — one otherworldly, the other earthly — could scarcely be more at odds, in terms of day-to-day operation they’re actually quite similar. Both require a room with a bit of peace and quiet, a setting that inspires contemplation, and some places to gather, whether in worship or simply over a meal. Cartagena’s Santa Teresa has followed more or less this exact formula from its seventeenth-century founding to the present day, in its incarnation as the Charleston Santa Teresa Cartagena.

The rooms are contemporary in style, if somewhat conservatively so, and there’s a decided focus on physical comfort, with 600-thread linens and marble-clad baths. The Santa Teresa is a luxury hotel through and through, and the architecture of the colonial and 20th-century wings only adds to the hotel’s personality. The city itself, of course, isn’t exactly short of personality either, and the old-town location doesn’t hurt the Santa Teresa’s case one bit — whether your room faces out to sea or back over the town, there isn’t a bad view in the house. The best view, though, takes in 360 degrees: it’s the dramatic, atmospheric rooftop pool that’s the Santa Teresa’s ace in the hole.

How to get there:
Charleston Santa Teresa Cartagena is located 1.5km (10-15 min) from the Cartagena Airport. Transfers can be organized for approximately USD20 for up to 3 guests, USD35 for 4-7 guests in a van, or USD42 for up to 2 guests in a Cadillac SUV, all prices per segment.