Cartagena is about to get easier to reach from Florida. Frontier Airlines is launching weekly nonstop service between Orlando International and Rafael Núñez International Airport starting December 19, 2026 — the airline's first toe-hold in South America, announced alongside new Orlando routes to Medellín and Bogotá. Of the three, Cartagena is the beach-and-history pick: a hot-and-humid coastal city on Colombia's Caribbean coast.
The route runs once a week, which shapes how you plan. Before booking a hotel, lock in flights both ways — miss the Saturday (or whichever day it lands on) and there's no daily fallback. The schedule was listed as pending government approval when released, so a quick sanity check on current status is worth doing. Frontier opened sales with one-way fares from $129 for select departures January 14 to April 5, 2027, but that deal required purchase by September 16 and has since closed; expect normal pricing now.
What you get at the other end is a different flavour of Caribbean trip. Instead of all-inclusive beach resorts, the draw is the Walled City: a 16th-century colonial core of flower-covered balconies, shaded plazas, rooftop pools and small hotels converted from old mansions. You can spend the morning in the historic centre and the afternoon by a pool.
Where to stay? Three properties keep coming up. The Nácar Hotel Cartagena, a Curio Collection by Hilton, is the former Tcherassi Hotel + Spa — 49 rooms in restored historic architecture with a terrace bar, and a rare chance to earn Hilton Honors points in a boutique setting. Casa Carolina is smaller still: 15 rooms inside a restored 16th-century mansion, an Ayurvedic spa, and a rooftop pool with cocktails run in partnership with local favourite El Barón. And Casa San Agustín spans three historic houses in the old quarter, with the well-regarded Alma restaurant on site — a pick if you want the colonial-core experience to be the whole trip.
Who is this for? East-coast and Florida-based travellers who want the Caribbean without committing to a resort island — think long weekends built around plazas, ceviche and rooftop sunsets, or a city break tagged onto a coastal Colombia trip. Once-weekly service suits flexible schedules better than tight itineraries, and winter is a smart time to go: it's Cartagena's dry, breezy season, while Orlando escapes the coldest months. Just build your plans around the single weekly flight rather than the other way round.
