Cartagena Reports

[YippieKayay]

Cartagena sucks for paid sex. Unless you're willing through the nose. I was quoted 250000 for an hour in a casa in a ghettoish part of the city. WTF? I can get top chicas in Medellin for less than that with the room included. Same in Bogota. WTF is wrong with Cartagena? Seriously.

Don't visit the city itself or its brothels. They are over priced.

Better off going to the old city at night and enjoying the night life. Tons of chicas for 200 k or less.

[World Travel 69]

The reason the prices are high is because it is a port City.

Sailors don't care what they pay, sort of.

And lots of Tourists.

Cartagena sucks for paid sex. Unless you're willing through the nose. I was quoted 250000 for an hour in a casa in a ghettoish part of the city. WTF?
I can get top chicas in Medellin for less than that with the room included. Same in Bogota. WTF is wrong with Cartagena? Seriously.

[Questner]

Cartagena sucks for paid sex. Unless you're willing through the nose. I was quoted 250000 for an hour in a casa in a ghettoish part of the city. WTF? I can get top chicas in Medellin for less than that with the room included. Same in Bogota. WTF is wrong with Cartagena? Seriously.

Please let us know the name and the address of the establishment.

[LandedFlush]

Cartagena sucks for paid sex. Unless you're willing through the nose. I was quoted 250000 for an hour in a casa in a ghettoish part of the city. WTF? I can get top chicas in Medellin for less than that with the room included. Same in Bogota. WTF is wrong with Cartagena? Seriously.

[YippieKayay]

Based on my experience with other Palmetto buildings (there are several in Bocagrande & El Laguito) but not this Sunset building you've referenced, you can have up to a certain number (5 or 6 depending on the number of bedrooms in the unit and how many people it is supposed to accommodate) of guests who are issued a 'wrist band' essentially allowing them any time access to the apt. It is assumed they reside with you. If you "register" any more than this permitted number of people and you incur a fee. These guests IDs are checked and they register them on the official list along with the principal renter / tenant's name. On the other hand, the chicas who visit you for a few hours are not officially registered. The front desk checks their IDs and then calls up to the unit and asks if they can be allowed upstairs. Thus far I have not seen building management / security object to the number of chicas who visit you and / or penalize / charge for them. My buddy and I had several chicas over a 3 day period and two additional registered girlfriends for whom we requested wrist bands. Warning: if someone is issued wrist bands they have un-announced access to the unit and can just take the elevator up; be careful of compromising situations where the GF comes and finds you shacked up with a chica.

Some background on how this registration system works. It's computerized, comes with a finger print reader and webcam, and is used in other buildings as well in and around Cartagena. If you visit enough you probably bumped into this.

The registration system lets a fixed number of people into the apartment at any time. Every registered guest will occupy a slot indefinitely (even if they leave). If you are allowed 4 total, then you take up one slot, and you can have 3 visitors at any time. Visitors leaving will free up the slot they took. Registered guests do not. These places will typically have curfews so visitors can come by between certain hours.

If you register anyone they take up a slot indefinitely until the booking ends. If you register a chica, in a 4 person apartment, then you can have only two additional visitors at any time. If you fuckup like I did when I registered 3 chicas across 3 nights then all four slots are taken up. The only way to free up the slots is to have the person who owns the apartment (or company) come by and recreate the booking by deleting the old one.

Not all buildings have this system but the newer ones are using it.

Fees vary. Some places will charge for registration, others will charge for visitors. Some security guards will try to fuck with you. The only way around this is to talk to the person and company to explain it to you and even then at 2 AM in the morning the security guard might want to get some money off you so it's not much help. That said, I frequent the same buildings and mostly figured out how to keep them honest.

The only way around all this bullshit is to use love hotels exclusively which isn't convenient.

[TadaiMaybe]

What's up fellow gents. Me and a buddy will be heading to Ctg this weekend. I am trying to get the details on the spot. Its a new spot I'm trying in el Luguito area. The Palmetto sunset building. Has anyone stayed there. If so are there any problems bringing chicas back. The host said up to 5 guest can be in the apartment kinda confused about that part. Here is what he sent me.

Hey, hope everything is OK, regarding your questions:

1. yes it is and is connected with Bocagrande.

2. yes the building has a visitor policy to use the 2 pools and is till 7 pm and for the apartment I think we can arrange if the number doesn't exceed the 5 persons permitted.

3. It is very easy to have a taxi and due the Hilton hotel is near it won't be a problem at any time.

Hope to have the pleasure to host you.

Regards,

If you have any details on this building please let me know I appreciate it.

Based on my experience with other Palmetto buildings (there are several in Bocagrande & El Laguito) but not this Sunset building you've referenced, you can have up to a certain number (5 or 6 depending on the number of bedrooms in the unit and how many people it is supposed to accommodate) of guests who are issued a 'wrist band' essentially allowing them any time access to the apt. It is assumed they reside with you. If you "register" any more than this permitted number of people and you incur a fee. These guests IDs are checked and they register them on the official list along with the principal renter / tenant's name. On the other hand, the chicas who visit you for a few hours are not officially registered. The front desk checks their IDs and then calls up to the unit and asks if they can be allowed upstairs. Thus far I have not seen building management / security object to the number of chicas who visit you and / or penalize / charge for them. My buddy and I had several chicas over a 3 day period and two additional registered girlfriends for whom we requested wrist bands. Warning: if someone is issued wrist bands they have un-announced access to the unit and can just take the elevator up; be careful of compromising situations where the GF comes and finds you shacked up with a chica.

[Black Page]

If you read what people have been saying about Charles Schwab cards then you would know that they reimburse you even for the ATM owners fee, once again for the one millionth time NO FEES WHATSOEVER with Schwab.

Ok ok, W CS! CS IS THE BEST.

However, if you too read what I have repeated more than once (just teasing), you would know that for most part of ISG members the hassle of getting a CS card is way heavier than the 3 USD fee per transaction.

As European, I can only imagine the ordeal of getting an US debit card. Even if I were residing in the USA, I would not opt to get a special CS card, besides that of my bank, just for saving the 15 USD that I may pay over 5-6 days in Cartagena (5 withdrawals?). Pennies compared to the overall expenditure, and however my time is more worth than 15 USD.

The important message we want to convey to be useful to new travellers is: use a debit card to withdraw money from ATMs! Avoid money changers. We agree on that.

[Manizales911]

Absolutely! Some local ATMs will apply that additional fee. We may negotiate a zero-fee debit card with our bank, but if the ATM's owner offers money with that additional fee, it's a take it or leave it.

If you read what people have been saying about Charles Schwab cards then you would know that they reimburse you even for the ATM owners fee, once again for the one millionth time NO FEES WHATSOEVER with Schwab.

[Black Page]

when I used my US debit cards before, I usually got hit with 2 charges, from the local ATM and from my own bank.

Absolutely! Some local ATMs will apply that additional fee. In particular, ATMs that are not of main banks in airports or at hotels are at risk.

In USA, all ATMs I have found in main hotels apply such a charge. Also in Colombia, I remember that at least Bancolombia applies that additional fee.

My understanding is that there is nothing to do against that. The owner of the ATM is saying: do you want cash FROM ME? Pay this fee TO ME (plus what you have to pay to your bank as specified in your contract with your bank). We may negotiate a zero-fee debit card with our bank, but if the ATM's owner offers money with that additional fee, it's a take it or leave it.

[Starlord1]

What's up fellow gents. Me and a buddy will be heading to Ctg this weekend. I am trying to get the details on the spot. Its a new spot I'm trying in el Luguito area. The Palmetto sunset building. Has anyone stayed there. If so are there any problems bringing chicas back. The host said up to 5 guest can be in the apartment kinda confused about that part. Here is what he sent me.

Hey, hope everything is OK, regarding your questions:

1. yes it is and is connected with Bocagrande.

2. yes the building has a visitor policy to use the 2 pools and is till 7 pm and for the apartment I think we can arrange if the number doesn't exceed the 5 persons permitted.

3. It is very easy to have a taxi and due the Hilton hotel is near it won't be a problem at any time.

Hope to have the pleasure to host you.

Regards,

If you have any details on this building please let me know I appreciate it.

[Xpartan]

YippieKayay, 52 Ggekko2009 and TadaiMaybe.

Thanks so much for your back-to-back reports. Very enjoyable! Hope to make it back to Cartagena in February.

[Xpartan]

You might try.

http://www.internationalsexguide.nl/...-Sosua-Reports

http://www.godominicanrepublic.com/

Second that. Sosua is very easy to get to from NYC, it's compact, has a nice beach, great food scene, and enough chicas to keep you busy. Of course, people end up loving it or hating it, which the enclosed link will illustrate, LOL.

[Xpartan]

That is true, but the fee I pay with my regular debit card from my bank, nothing special, just the plain Maestro card given to plain account holders, is only 3 USD (2.5 EUR), fixed fee at each withdrawal from a bank which is not mine, including all foreign banks. This is the standard fixed fee system at least in my country, if not in most European countries.

That's just 1. 5% of what I withdraw most commonly. I consider it acceptable, way more convenient that spending the time and hassle to get a special debit card from Charles Schwab (which is an American thing, BTW). Others may make a different balance of their own time vs. 3 USD per withdrawal.

That's pretty good. I'm in the US, and when I used my US debit cards before, I usually got hit with 2 charges, from the local ATM and from my own bank. I remember I once withdrew money from Santander in Spain with my US Santander debit card and then found 2 charges totaling I think $8-9. Tried to contest it with my bank home, but got nowhere. They are different entities, operate independently, blah, blah, blah.

[Black Page]

Yes, but with a reminder to get a Charles Schwab debit card to cover whatever ATM charges they can throw your way.

That is true, but the fee I pay with my regular debit card from my bank, nothing special, just the plain Maestro card given to plain account holders, is only 3 USD (2.5 EUR), fixed fee at each withdrawal from a bank which is not mine, including all foreign banks. This is the standard fixed fee system at least in my country, if not in most European countries.

That's just 1. 5% of what I withdraw most commonly. I consider it acceptable, way more convenient that spending the time and hassle to get a special debit card from Charles Schwab (which is an American thing, BTW). Others may make a different balance of their own time vs. 3 USD per withdrawal.

[Xpartan]

Use the credit cards to purchase goods (e.g. at restaurants) and use cash to pay mongering, but get your cash from ATMs using a DEBIT CARD. Avoid using a credit card to get advance cash from ATMs (in this case, you get the best rate as when you withdraw with the debit card, or when you pay with credit card purchasing a good, but you pay 4% fee for the advance cash withdrawal service, as basically they are lending you money).
Should we repeat this once a day?

Yes, but with a reminder to get a Charles Schwab debit card to cover whatever ATM charges they can throw your way.