Santa Marta

Private car transfer
from Cartagena to Santa Marta

Door-to-door
in 4 h 20 min
From ...
per seat
Comfortable
car
One way
Cancel for free 24 hours before departure
Tripadvisor Travelers' Choice 2024
Excellent
trustpilot-stars

Trip Information

Pick-up

Your driver will meet you at your address in Cartagena.

  • Door-to-door service
  • Help with your luggage

Trip

You’ll travel in comfort for 4 h 20 min.

  • Optional sight-seeing
  • Clean, comfortable car
  • Professional driver
  • Bottled water
  • Child seats
  • Prepared for handicapped
  • Smoke-free
  • Pet friendly

Drop-off

Your driver will drop you off at your address in Santa Marta .

  • Door-to-door service
  • Help with your luggage
In total
  • 235 km
  • 4 h 20 min

Questions & Answers about Traveling from Cartagena to Santa Marta

It is fastest to take a private transfer from Cartagena to Santa Marta, which will take around 4 hours and 20 minutes from door to door. While the bus takes only 4.5 hours, additional time will be spent on transport to and from the bus station in either city.
The best way to handle the Cartagena to Santa Marta transfer is with a convenient and comfortable Daytrip private car service. This service offers swift door-to-door transfers and allows you to add optional sightseeing stops en route to elevate your travel experience.
The Daytrip private transfer starts at $58 per person, an incredible value for the elevated door-to-door service provided. A friendly, professional driver will guide you from Cartagena to Santa Marta in unmatched safety and comfort while allowing you to visit sites along the way.
The shuttle bus trip from Cartagena to the Santa Marta bus station costs around $8-$23. However, travelers should be advised that a bus ticket will tend to be cheaper when booked in advance online than when purchased directly at the bus terminal. 
Santa Marta is absolutely worth visiting for its incredible historic center and proximity to fascinating sites such as Colombia's lost city, Cabo San Juan, Santa Marta Public Market, and Tayrona National Park. The city center itself is one of the most charming on the Caribbean coast.
The shuttle bus trip from Cartagena Berlinas bus terminal to Santa Marta bus terminal takes around 4.5 hours and costs about $8-$23, but the travel time and the cost of a bus ticket can vary slightly across bus companies.

Visit these sights on the way

El Totumo Mud Volcano

El Totumo Mud Volcano

The naturally-heated and mineral-rich mud in this volcano makes for a unique spa day. Hot, Dirty Sweats 

Barranquilla

Barranquilla

Every year the streets of Gabriel Garcia Marquez' former hangout are filled with hundreds of thousands of revellers for a UNESCO-listed carnival. The Party Port 

Cienaga

Cienaga

This port city’s banana industry inspired Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and bestowed it with some beautiful belle poque bananera buildings. The Banana Belle 

Minca

Minca

Surrounded by a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, this little village is the place to go to immerse yourself in Colombian ecology. The Birds and the Beans 

Why people love Daytrip

Tripadvisor logo
4,800+ reviews
  • 1,011 travelers took this route with us
Nov 9, 2024

Great communication with an actual person! They will take you ANYWHERE, No pre-set routes to choose from!

Last minute plan change and Daytrip was our last resort so I chatted with them and had an immediate response from a real person, best situation ever. Never used Daytrip before but the reviews were incredible so we took the chance and booked a driver at like 11-12pm and by 7am the next morning when we woke, they found us a driver and the driver had already texed us making contact! Very impressed and will definitely use them again. We went from Dubrovnik, Croatia to Tivat, Montenegro.

Reviewed by Tripadvisor traveler James B
Review author image

James B

Nov 9, 2024
Nov 1, 2024

Perfect Transport

Andreas did a great job picking us up from Pireaus Cruise Port and taking us to our rental in Spata. The three of us had been on a long cruise and had 9 pieces of luggage. He arrived in an appropriate vehicle and loaded and unloaded all of it. We are very happy with out decision to book with Daytrip.

Reviewed by Tripadvisor traveler LuckyTraveler01
Review author image

LuckyTraveler01

Nov 1, 2024
Oct 5, 2024

Great day

The ride was fantastic. The diver was great, he was on time, very informative, and could not have been nicer. Definitely would do again

Reviewed by Tripadvisor traveler Steve N
Review author image

Steve N

Oct 5, 2024
Sep 30, 2024

Exactly what they promised

We used Daytrip.com for 4 trips within Italy. This door-to-door service is not inexpensive. That said: All 4 drivers arrived on time. All spoke fluent English. All were excellent drivers, and all were kind and considerate. Lots of other things went wrong on this trip, but Daytrip.com did exactly what they promised.

Reviewed by Tripadvisor traveler Curious51658572354
Review author image

Curious51658572354

Sep 30, 2024

Vehicle options for this trip

Most popular

sedan

Sedan

Comparable to aVolkswagen Passat
Passengers and luggage
  • 1-3
  • 3x
  • 3x
  • Clean
  • Comfortable
  • Air conditioned
  • Handicapped accessible
  • Child seats
  • Pet friendly
  • Smoke-free
From ... per seatSelect

More options

mpv

Compact MPV

Comparable to aVolkswagen Touran
Passengers and luggage
  • 4
  • 4x
  • 4x
From ... per seatSelect
van

Van

Comparable to aMercedes Vito
Passengers and luggage
  • 5-7
  • 7x
  • 7x
From ... per seatSelect

The Daytrip driver advantage

Daytrip driver
  • Local knowledge about the route from Cartagena to Santa Marta
    Including available sights:
  • English speaking*

    All Daytrip drivers speak English* as well as their native language (and sometimes additional languages too!). They'll be happy to discuss local history and culture with you, as well as answer any questions you may have. And because they speak the language, they're able to provide you with a unique opportunity to connect with local culture. *Drivers for Lite service aren't required to speak English but must meet all other standards.

  • Safety first!

    We screen all our drivers for criminal and traffic records, and personally interview each one. We also inspect their cars for safety, comfort, and reliability. All cars must be less than ten years old, in excellent operating condition, and insured as required by local law. And because our drivers are locals, they're familiar with the rules and customs of the road.

World-class customer support

  • Available 24/7
  • Close relationship with drivers
  • Experts on the route from Cartagena to Santa Marta

Flexible cancellation policy

  • Cancellations: 100% refund up to 24 hours before the trip!
  • Changes: Free up to 24 hours before the trip!

Good to know

Children

If you’re traveling with children, make sure to let us know in the booking so we can get the appropriate child seats ready!

Pets

Pets are allowed (and loved)! We just need to know beforehand. You can tell us about them in the next phase of the booking.

Tips

Gratuity isn’t included or required, but if you really enjoyed your trip, you can show your driver your appreciation with an optional tip (10% is sufficient).

Luggage

  • Big luggage
  • 29x21x11 inches
  • 74x53x28 cm
  • Small luggage
  • 22x14x9 inches
  • 56x36x23 cm

Each passenger is allowed to have one checked bag and one carry on. If you’re traveling with more bags or oversized luggage, you can adjust this while booking.

Payment methods

Pay by credit card online, or in cash directly to your driver!

Daytrip is the most convenient way to experience 13,700+ cities around the world.

Every traveler deserves real insight into the cultures of the countries they’re visiting. And every amazing place on Earth deserves to be visited and appreciated. We believe unique local knowledge and real human connection are irreplaceable when it comes to truly comprehending another culture.

We have been featured in

usa-travel logo
forbes logo
huffpost logo
monocle logo
wanderlust logo
aileen logo
World dotted map
Drive with Daytrip
I am a travel agent