Cartagena's old city has few mosquitoes. Settle yellow fever before you fly.

Are there mosquitoes in Cartagena? Yes, though the walled city and Getsemaní are light on them by most accounts, and the bites visitors remember come from jejenes, tiny biting midges, on the beaches after sunset and from island nights near the mangroves. The day-biting Aedes mosquito still spreads dengue here, and yellow fever paperwork is the one item to settle before you fly.

Yellow fever: the advice, the entry rule and the islands

The CDC recommends yellow fever vaccine for most travelers to Colombia aged 9 months and older. Its Colombia page says, "Vaccine is generally not recommended for travel limited to the cities of Barranquilla, Cali, Cartagena, or Medellín." The entry rule is stricter. The same page lists Colombia's requirement as "Vaccine is required for all arriving travelers ≥1 year old," and notes that entry requirements can change.

The CDC's active Level 2 outbreak notice says most cases are being reported in Tolima, far inland, and doesn't mention Cartagena. If you need the vaccine, it says to get it at least 10 days before travel. The open question is the islands. The Rosario Islands and Barú belong to the Cartagena district, but the CDC's exception names only "the cities," so it doesn't say whether a boat trip there counts. Its malaria wording works the same way, with "No malaria transmission in the cities of Bogotá (the capital), Cartagena, or Medellín."

Dengue by day, jejenes at sunset

Dengue is endemic, and Cartagena started 2026 quietly. The local paper El Universal reported in late August, citing the district health department, that the city's count was about 40% below the same weeks of 2025. Then, in its October 20 update, the Pan American Health Organization listed Cartagena among the places where cases rose by more than 30% in late August and September, as Colombia's national count reached outbreak level. The CDC also lists an elevated chikungunya risk for Colombia.

Both viruses travel on the day-biting Aedes mosquito, so repellent goes on over sunscreen at breakfast, again after a swim and again in the late afternoon. Our dengue & Zika routine has the full schedule. December to March is the dry, breezy season, which usually means fewer mosquitoes. With dengue rising into the fall, check the CDC's Colombia page again shortly before you fly.

On the beaches the biters are jejenes, which come out after sunset in Bocagrande and on the islands. They are weak fliers that go for ankles and lower legs, so a breeze grounds them. Spray feet, ankles and calves before sunset and wear light trousers for dinner on the sand. Our Barbados sand fly guide explains how they behave.

A night on the Rosario Islands is a different trip. Reviews of lodgings beside the mangroves and lagoons on Isla Grande describe heavy mosquitoes at night, with one guest counting more than a hundred bites despite repellent. Choose a room with screens or an intact, tucked-in net and air conditioning, away from the mangroves.

Where you're staying

Here is how the parts of a Cartagena trip compare for a December–April visit.

The Colombia briefing covers the rest of the country, including the yellow fever rules Panama and Costa Rica apply to arrivals from Colombia.

What travelers report

Paraphrased from a forum thread and a review and linked so you can read them in full. Neither is dated to this season, and the wind and where you stay change how many bites you get.

• Cartagena (walled city, Getsemaní, Bocagrande)

  Replies said there are few or no mosquitoes in the old city, Getsemaní and Bocagrande, and that sand flies at the beach after sunset are the bigger nuisance. Posters said coastal pharmacies sell repellent, including a local DEET product, that picaridin also works on sand flies, and that bugs get worse heading east from Santa Marta. TripAdvisor ↗

• Playa Blanca, Isla Barú

  A reviewer titled a review of Playa Blanca 'Excellent beach, but beware of the mosquitos'. TripAdvisor ↗

One rule outlasts the trip. Any fever during or after your trip means a doctor visit, and you tell the doctor you were in Cartagena, and on the islands if you went. Dengue usually shows up within two weeks.

Traveler questions