Hero · Regenerative Tourism

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WTM Award 2026 · Community Meetings

Where events create
lasting value.

Cartagena de Indias is an ISO 9001 certified destination — Quality Management System applied to tourism — and winner of the WTM Responsible Tourism Award 2026 for Community Meetings. Every event becomes an opportunity to strengthen local culture, support communities, and generate a measurable positive legacy.

Responsible Tourism Award · Community Meetings

Quality Management · Certified destination

Institutions in the sustainability network

Jobs generated per international event

Global Sustainable Tourism Council · in certification

National benchmark for tourism safety

Manifesto · Sostenibilidad

Red ISO 9001 / comunidades / patrimonio

ISO 9001 certified destination · Quality Management System

45+ public and private institutions · coordinated sustainability network

Beyond sustainability

Creating value for
people and place.

Cartagena embraces a regenerative approach to tourism and events — one that goes beyond minimizing impact to actively creating social, cultural, and economic value for local communities.

Rather than simply preserving the destination, regenerative tourism strengthens it: supporting cultural identity, empowering local businesses, and fostering authentic connections between visitors and communities.

In Cartagena, this vision is expressed through experiences that celebrate living heritage, local traditions, gastronomy, music, and community engagement — ensuring events contribute meaningfully to the destination.

"Here, impact is not an add-on to the experience — it is part of the experience itself."

Cartagena CVB · Regenerative Tourism Vision

Five pillars · Regenerative events in Cartagena

What regenerative tourism
looks like in practice.

Pilar 01

Community-based cultural experience in Cartagena

Living communities — authentic cultural connections

Cartagena's cultural richness is expressed through its communities, traditions, gastronomy, music, and everyday life. Community-based experiences create genuine interaction with the destination — transforming attendees from observers into active participants.

—Traditional cuisine workshops and artisan craft sessions — meaningful cultural exchange and local entrepreneurship.
—Heritage routes through Getsemaní, the Walled City and La Boquilla — living laboratories of Caribbean culture.
—Music experiences with Afro-descendant and Indigenous community artists — cumbia, gaita, champeta.
—Palenquera fruit experiences — a living encounter with San Basilio de Palenque, UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Culture is lived · Not staged · Shared authentically

Pilar 02

Drum ritual — Afro-Caribbean ancestral practice

The Silence of the Drum — rituals of connection

In Cartagena, the drum is not just an instrument — it is a guide. To play the drum, as Afro-descendant and Indigenous communities have done for generations, is an act of deep concentration and collective presence.

—Drum ritual workshops for event groups — mindfulness through ancestral practice, led by community artists.
—Opening session, wellbeing break or evening cultural program — adaptable to any group size.
—Combines individual mindfulness with collective community building.
—Proceeds support the musical communities who keep this tradition alive.

Events with purpose · Wellbeing through culture · Afro-Caribbean heritage

Pilar 03

Mangrove boat tour at dawn — La Boquilla

La Boquilla — mangroves and community at dawn

Located directly on the shores of the Ciénaga de la Virgen, Las Américas Convention Center is a neighbor of La Boquilla — a traditional fishing community. From the venue, delegates can embark at 5:30 am on a serene boat tour through the mangrove tunnels.

—Dawn mangrove boat tours from CICLA — 5:30 am, back by 7:00 am, conference-ready.
—La Boquilla community guides lead the tours — economic benefit flows directly to the fishing community.
—Fundación La Boquilla fosters leadership, soft skills and employability for community members.
—Hosting at Las Américas creates measurable impact on the surrounding natural and social environment.

Dawn experience · Community benefit · Biodiversity

Pilar 04

Sustainability and safety standards for meetings in Cartagena

Responsible venues — committed to sustainable practices

Cartagena's meetings ecosystem is increasingly aligned with responsible practices — energy efficiency, waste reduction, responsible sourcing, community engagement — paired with the city's compact urban layout, which minimizes transfers.

—TITAN Security Program — city-wide integrated system. National benchmark for tourism safety.
—Green Cotelco — hotels adopt internationally aligned sustainability practices.
—The Code — leading hotels signatories of ECPAT / UN Tourism / UNICEF child-protection framework.
—GSTC-aligned certifications and UN Tourism guidelines — active certification process.

TITAN · Green Cotelco · GSTC · The Code

Pilar 05

Measurable event legacy framework Cartagena

Our commitment — building a regenerative future

In partnership with the Secretariat of Finance, a measurable legacy model tracks the economic, social and cultural impact of every international event. Cartagena continues to strengthen its position as a destination where events generate meaningful and lasting value.

—Economic impact model with Secretariat of Finance — direct spending + multiplier projections per event.
—Social legacy metrics — jobs supported, cultural initiatives activated, community CSR projects engaged.
—Event Legacy Framework — every international event generates a legacy report.
—Estimated total economic impact at 2.5× direct spending — USD 5–6M per major international conference.

Legacy report · ESG reportable · Measurable impact

Drum Ritual

Tambor ancestral Afro-Caribe

Events with purpose · Meaningful experiences with impact

The silence
of the drum.

In Cartagena, the drum is not just an instrument. It is a guide — a bridge between what we feel and what we cannot yet name. When it sounds, it doesn't call for noise — it calls for center.

To play the drum — as our Afro-descendant and Indigenous communities have done for generations — is an act of deep concentration. The mind must align with the hand, the body with the rhythm, the heart with the group. Each beat has meaning. Each pause is sacred space.

For conference programs that seek something beyond a standard mindfulness session, the drum ritual offers a collective wellbeing experience rooted in centuries of community practice.

"The silence of the drum is not the absence of sound: it is full presence. It is being here, now. It is listening to something deeper than the noise of the world."

Cartagena's Unique Touch · Ancestral drum tradition

CSR & impact programs

Four organizations your
delegates can support.

Purpose-driven experiences integrate social impact, cultural immersion and regenerative practices into the attendee journey. Four verified partner organizations available for CSR activities, sponsorship and delegate engagement.

CSR Partner · Youth & Culture

El Colegio del Cuerpo

Empowers youth affected by violence through dance and music. Delegates can join movement workshops, sponsor scholarships, or attend youth performances.

CSR Partner · Environment

Fundación Bahía

Bay clean-up, environmental education and responsible waste management. Delegates can join guided clean-ups or sponsor mangrove restoration alongside La Boquilla.

CSR Partner · Food Security

Granitos de Paz

Transforms community backyards into urban gardens, improving food security and livelihoods. Workshops and community-kitchen support available.

CSR Partner · Social Mobility

Juanfe Foundation

Supports adolescent mothers in extreme vulnerability with education, healthcare and employment. Internationally recognized model of comprehensive support.

La Boquilla · Manglares

Ciénaga de la Virgen al amanecer

Ciénaga de la Virgen · Mangrove boat tours · From 5:30 am

Back by 7:00 am · Ready for the day

Las Américas Convention Center · Community neighbor

From the convention center
into the mangroves.

Located directly on the shores of the Ciénaga de la Virgen, Las Américas Convention Center (CICLA) is strongly committed to sustainable and regenerative tourism. As a neighbor of La Boquilla — a traditional fishing community — the venue actively contributes to inclusive development.

Delegates can embark as early as 5:30 am on a serene boat tour through the mangrove tunnels of the Ciénaga, where birdwatching reveals biodiversity. By 7:00 am they can be back at the hotel — ready for the day with a renewed spirit.

Through its Fundación La Boquilla, the venue supports community development — leadership, soft skills, employability. Hosting at Las Américas creates meaningful impact on the surrounding natural and social environment.

The dawn mangrove experience

5:30 am departure → mangrove tunnel boat tour → birdwatching in the Ciénaga → return by 7:00 am → conference ready. One hour delegates talk about for the rest of the event.

Health, safety & sustainability standards

Certified, monitored,
and committed.

Cartagena's hospitality industry is aligned with global best practices — four certified programs that give planners confidence to commit the destination to clients, boards and ESG frameworks.

TITAN Security Program

Integrated city-wide security system. National benchmark for tourism safety.

National benchmark · City-wide

Green Cotelco

Hotels adopt internationally aligned sustainability practices across energy, water, waste and community.

International alignment · Hotel-wide

The Code — Child Protection

Leading hotels are signatories of The Code — ECPAT, UN Tourism and UNICEF framework.

ECPAT · UN Tourism · UNICEF

GSTC-Aligned Certification

Properties align with GSTC standards. Cartagena is in process of obtaining international destination certification.

GSTC aligned · In process

Measurable impact · Event legacy framework

Impact your organization
can measure and report.

In partnership with the Secretariat of Finance, Cartagena has developed an event legacy measurement model. Every international meeting generates a legacy report — economic, social and cultural — for post-event reporting and ESG disclosures.

2,200

Avg. room nights per major congress

$2.5M

Direct spending · USD per event

2.5x

Economic multiplier on direct spend

$6M

Total economic impact · USD

$110K+

Local tax revenue per major event

400+

Jobs supported per major event

Reference indicators for congress proposals

Delegates500+ · 40+ countriesSITE RFP data

Average stay4 nights × 550 delegatesBureau calc.

Room nights generated~2,200 room nightsBureau calc.

Direct spendingUSD 2.0–2.5M (hotels, F&B, tours, transport)Benchmark

Total economic impactUSD 5.0–6.0M (2.5× multiplier)Secretariat

Local tax revenueUSD 110,000+Secretariat

Jobs supported400+ (= 12–15 FTE annual eq.)Bureau model

Where direct spending flows

Hotels & accommodation~45%

15,000+ rooms. International brands and boutique hotels absorb the largest share.

F&B · Restaurants & catering~20%

Author gastronomy, gala dinners, street food. Best International Destination 2026.

Local transport & logistics~15%

Transfers, inter-venue transport, catamaran charters. Compact layout maximizes efficiency.

Tours, activities & experiences~12%

20+ DMCs distribute spend across local guides, artisans and community operators.

Retail, crafts & miscellaneous~8%

Artisan crafts and Walled City boutique shopping — flows to small enterprises in the Historic Center.

Legacy · Where events become part of a larger story

Events that strengthen
identity and place.

Through regenerative tourism, community-based experiences and a living cultural heritage, the destination transforms meetings and incentives into opportunities to contribute, connect and create lasting value.

This dynamic exchange fosters belonging and pride in local communities. The result is the safeguarding of Cartagena's traditions and the generation of social cohesion, community wellbeing and new economic opportunities for artisans, musicians and cultural entrepreneurs.

"This approach transforms gatherings into experiences that inspire, connect and leave a meaningful legacy for both attendees and the destination."

Cartagena CVB · Regenerative Tourism Vision

Ancestral music revival

Young professionals launching creative ventures that breathe new life into cumbia, champeta and gaita.

Traditional dance preservation

Community dance initiatives reviving choreographies that encode Caribbean cultural memory.

Artisanal craft techniques

Workshops preserving basketry, pottery, jewelry and textile techniques of the Caribbean tradition.

Ancestral recipe preservation

Community kitchens preserving recipes passed down through centuries — food as living history.

Cultural entrepreneurship for youth

Small businesses founded by young professionals — active custodians of Cartagena's living archive.

Environmental regeneration

Mangrove restoration, bay clean-ups and biodiversity conservation initiatives.

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Design a regenerative event program

Bring purpose-driven
events to Cartagena.

Tell us about your event and sustainability objectives. We design a custom regenerative program with a measurable legacy report. At no cost.

Community workshopsMangrove dawn toursDrum ritualsCSR partner programsArtisan experiencesLegacy reportingESG documentation

WTM Award 2026 · Community Meetings ISO 9001 Certified · Quality Management System Measurable legacy for every event

Where events createlasting value.

Creating value forpeople and place.

What regenerative tourismlooks like in practice.