Sofitel Barú Calablanca Beach Resort

August 21st, 2022

Enroute:

Towards the end of the summer we visited a couple of friends in Medellin. Since we were already in Colombia, we figured we might as well check out Cartagena, which is a beach destination with some notoriety.

I came across this brand new looking Sofitel outside of Cartagena and decided to give it a go. The other hotel options in Cartagena proper honestly didn’t look too great, so I was glad to have found this property. We took an easy flight on Avianca from Medellin and were able to grab an Uber from the airport.

The drive, however, was not the most pleasant. Barú is a peninsula south of Cartagena, and the hotel was about 40kms away. While not far in terms of distance, we first had to drive through some sketchy areas near the airport, then the last 10 kms or so the road wasn’t paved. The hotel actually offered speedboat service from Cartagena, but it wasn’t conveniently timed for our arrival (or departure).

Check-in:

Upon arrival, things were looking up. The resort was situated in a massive complex, which also hosted multiple condo buildings. A bellman offered to take our bags and showed us to the reception.

You can tell the hotel was new based on the style. I particularly liked the open-air element to it.

Towards the far end of the lobby was the lobby bar, which looked nice enough.

Check-in was quick, and we were on our way to the room within minutes.

Unpack:

We booked the entry-level room for our stay, and that’s what we received. I’m not well-versed on Accor’s loyalty program, given that I don’t ever stay with them enough to even bother.

Upon entry, the bathroom was immediately to the right. It was a spacious enough bathroom for a base room, with L’Occitane toiletries in reusable containers.

Across from the bathroom was a closet.

Next to the closet was the coffee set-up, along with an empty fridge.

The décor wasn’t necessarily upscale, but it was at least bright and beachy. Frankly the interior very much reminded of the Alaia Belize I stayed at a year ago. I’m skeptical how it would hold up though with all that unvarnished wood.

Awaiting on the dining table were some madeleines and macaroons.

Outside the bedroom was a small but serviceable balcony.

All things considered I thought the room was decent. I did feel like this resort was one of those resorts whose public space was prettier than the rooms.

Unwind:

After dropping off our luggage, we walked around to explore. As I mentioned, the resort itself was quite nice, with winding paths and well-groomed lawns.

There were two pool areas at the resort - a tiered one adjacent to the spa and gym, and another one on the beach. We spent most of our time at the former. Since it’s farther from the beach, kids were few and far between.

The pool area by the beach might look tantalizing at night, but during the day it was more like a waterpark. Most of the guests I observed seemed to be Colombian families.

The beach was okay. The water was reasonably clear, though the pictures make it look better than reality. It won’t be what you’re used to in real Caribbean, but I swam in it one afternoon and enjoyed it.

You could see the Cartagena skyline in the far distance.

Like most newly built hotels, the gym was modern and sleek. I was surprised to see how much it was utilized - we walked down to the beach restaurant for dinner one night and saw 5 people still working out in there.

The spa was equipped with both a steam room and a sauna. We did get a massage here, but it was horrendous. My masseuse was so sick that she had to excuse herself from the room due to persistent coughing. Needless to say the treatment was cut short, and it was far from relaxing.

Refuel:

The food and beverage offerings at the hotel ranged from meh to superb. I’ll review the meh ones first and save the best for last.

The biggest meh was breakfast, which was served at the Calablanca Restaurant. It was understandably overrun with all the families and kids, and there simply weren’t enough hot dishes. The below plate was the best I could scavenge.

The second meh was the Bahía Restaurant dinner. It was a beautiful space. Really everything besides the fish was not bad, but the fish was fishy and did not taste fresh. You can find the menu here.

We were first offered some plantain chips with, um, mayo. I love mayo so no judgement from me, but my partner would beg to differ.

For starters we shared pork shoulder tacos and grilled sausage and starfruit with cassava mash, which was quite unique and delicious.

Then the fish.

Now we’re moving out of the “meh” category. Humo was the hotel’s Japanese fusion restaurant. While the food was decent at best, it was a relatively fun dining experience.

An amuse-bouche and bread, in this case steamed buns were brought out prior to dinner.

We ordered the tuna tataki with puffed rice, which was thoughtfully presented.

We shared a bunch of different things, including the charcoal lobster bao bun, wagyu and shrimp tempura sushi roll, as well as bone marrow.

For dessert, we ordered the cheeky fruit sushi just for the gimmick of it.

The alcoholic beverages at the Sofitel were fabulous. You can tell based on how much we drank, especially we weren’t there for very long. The main pool bar also opened at 9am, a blessing for those of us who like to start the day early😉.

The food at the pool was equally fantastic - just basic dishes but perfect execution. We had ceviche, pork belly, pizza and steak sandwich. All were outstanding.

Last but most certainly not least, the La Pergola rooftop bar. Not only was the setting gorgeous, the food and drinks were to rival.

Obviously this venue was designed for sunset cocktails. You were treated to a view of the lush jungle and blue ocean.

After the sun vanished from the horizon, the sky was infused with cotton candy colors.

While the pool drinks were more classics, the rooftop bar definitely served innovative handcrafted cocktails. Service here was the best on property. Our waiter Emerson was friendly and paid attention to details. Like he would regularly come around to wipe the condensation off the table.

To accompany the drinks was a selection of small bites. We tried the chicharrón in ají amarillo sauce with chargrilled avocado, the tuna tartare wrapped in rice paper and the fried calamari. For a random beach resort outside Cartagena, I thought the quality of the dishes was obscenely top-notch.

Depart:

We had a largely pleasant stay at the Sofitel Barú Calablanca Beach Resort. It’s always great to stay at a new hotel where everything was still clean and shiny. Personally I wouldn’t make a trip just to come here. But if you’re already in the region, it’s a solid alternative to the Cartagena hotels.