Aura Hotel Barú

Colombia , Cartagena
CARTAGENA, Ensenada del Cholón Km. 26
Show on Google | Website | Map

50 reviews shown

10/10

Exceptional

27 Feb 2026

Robbert

Staff is very friendly and helpful

Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

26 Dec 2025

BEN

The hotel is perfect for a tropical beach getaway. There are no shops or restaurants nearby. So it really is stay on site location. However the hotel offers boat trips & water sports like canoeing. The setting really is paradise. I would go again

Leisure Self

4/10

Poor

25 Nov 2025

Onu-Johnson

I wouldn't go back, considering customer service in columbia they did all right but from the mosquitoes and lack of options for activities and really mediocre beach and overpriced food and services there's just isn't any reasons to be in such a remote overpriced place where it's almost impossible to get an Uber driver or a taxi driving to give you a price less than $150 each way and there is also no hotel service that could take you to local activities for reasonable price less than $100 AKA you're stuck there the whole time. Personal experience all of us were sick at the end before we left so I can't even say any of the food was all right.

Leisure Family_with_children

6/10

Pleasant

02 Sep 2025

Justine

he hotel is very beautiful, very well maintained facilities, the spectacular pool, very nice decoration, the service of the staff is extraordinary, all very friendly and very attentive to make your stay pleasant, the two things that for me were negative is that the food is expensive for the little they serve and the access by car is terrible, it is an uncovered road and with tremendous gaps that no taxi gets there, I had to walk about a mile with suitcases to the hotel, it was quite frustrating ....

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

25 Jul 2025

Liliana

Was great

10/10

Exceptional

21 Jan 2025

Cindy

The experience was awesome! I would recommend again this hotel. Perfect to relaxed with family. It has a new wonderful swimming pool! Staff service was excellent!

8/10

Excellent

15 Jan 2025

Raquel

I went to disconnect and I did. Small property however it was all I needed. The staff made sure we felt welcome, however I did not enjoy the food.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

06 Jan 2025

Luisa

Great place for a relaxing weekend!

Leisure

10/10

Exceptional

21 Dec 2024

Johnny

This was a wonderful experience the staff was top tier and everything was excellent. I would definitely recommend this place to anyone who is looking for a quite vacation

Business_and_leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

02 Sep 2024

William

The location was beautiful and relaxing (except music drifting over from Cholon during midday) for a family vacation with children. The staff were very friendly and good at their jobs. The food was good. The location can be hard to reach by car after a heavy rain.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

16 May 2024

Miguel

Oasis of tranquility

A great place to disconnect.... & oasis of tranquility.. super nice little beach... everything you need to relax.

Partner

6/10

Pleasant

07 Mar 2024

Paul

A basic place, there are much better in Baru

The rooms are very basic and the breakfast is not that good

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

04 Feb 2024

Heather

Good deal, excellent staff & food.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

20 Jan 2024

Soyinka

Super exceptional place, stuff 10 .

Leisure Partner

6/10

Pleasant

19 Jan 2024

Luis

First the food is amazing, go for lunch or better dinner. Unfortunately this hotel faces the dreaded Cholon party scene. And its every day from 10-4. Thumping non stop. This is not the place to relax, during peak season it goes beyond unbearable. The rooms are fine, nothing unique about them, good enough. The facilities and \"beach\" is fine too. Again great great food even better than Islas Hotel but the music is unbearable

Business Self

10/10

Exceptional

24 Nov 2023

Cristian

Quiet and right on the beach

8/10

Excellent

21 Aug 2023

Carlos

It is a nice place to relax, there is no TV. Only one menu option and nothing really nearby to have a bit so the hotel's menu is basically your only choice. Prices are high in my opinion, the food is good. Staff friendly, although not like in other destinations we have been to, particularly in Mexico. The little beach of the hotel is very nice. I would not recommend anyone to stay more than 3 days, at least I wouldn't normally do that.

Leisure Family_with_children

8/10

Excellent

14 Aug 2023

Myriam

The place was nice but disappointed to be in the mangrove for swimming
You have to go to others island to be on the carribean and have to pay even to reach the island at 5 minutes from the hotel
Expensive for what you have
Kind staff

Partner

6/10

Pleasant

08 Aug 2023

Myra

Nice people that wanted to be helpful but the place was not that nice. On the older side and upkeep could be improved. Bare amenities. No gym. No tv. Service at dinner and breakfast was slow and needs improvement. Beach/water left a lot to be desired

Leisure Partner

8/10

Excellent

25 Jul 2023

Shauna

Really nice hotel. A little disappointed that, while our check in was delayed 30 minutes, we had to be out immediately at noon. Also, it was crowded.

Leisure Partner

8/10

Excellent

07 May 2023

Patrick

Ok, so you come to this place for three things...the food, the level of service and the solitude. Those 3 things can't be beat. The food is out of this world!
The rooms need some TLC, and a pool would be nice. That being said, I would return here in a heartbeat. In fact, I plan on it.
In all transparency, Im not an animal person so would do away with the pet-friendly part, but have to say I was not personally hindered by the small dogs that were present. I can just see somebody thinking it appropriate to bring large or aggressive dogs.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

01 Mar 2023

Yvette

Glad we decided to stay at Hotel Aura while visiting Barù. The grounds were perfect for 5 days and 4 nights of relaxation and water activities. When not laying out on the comfy beachside beds, we booked a tour and visited islands, participated in the yoga class, and kayaked. Service in general was slower-paced than we are used to in the states, but that is a good thing. Staff were really fun and accommodating of our group. Looking forward to returning.

Leisure Family

6/10

Pleasant

19 Feb 2023

Cicily

Beautiful location; Mediocre hotel

There was a strange vibe at this hotel amongst the staff. The receptionists and manager were extremely friendly, but the rest of the staff were outwardly disgruntled and unfriendly. I’m not sure what was going on behind the scenes there.

The rooms I stayed in were both over the kitchen. There was a constant humming and strong vibration that you could feel and hear constantly. I don’t think they should put anyone in these rooms as they are so un peaceful!

Be advised that if you book private transport, the hotel is gauging the transportation company! They forgot to pack all of my belongings into the car (though they told me they had), and then when we had to turn around, they changed the driver of the car for the extra time! This was a harsh thing to do, considering that drivers in Colombia make next to nothing!

Self

10/10

Exceptional

05 Aug 2022

Oscar

Great staff!!
Very relaxing atmosphere!!
Loved Aura and her family!!!
Highly Recommend this resort.

Leisure Family

8/10

Excellent

10 Mar 2022

Diana

Beautiful location and great staff.

Leisure Friends

6/10

Pleasant

23 Jan 2022

JOHANNA

The hotel was ok. Unfortunately the manager was very unhelpful. They Offered no solution to exchange money. No transportation out of the hotel unless it through their overpriced tour company. The is 1 hour away from the airport and 20 minutes from playa blanca beach. You would think they would have car or taxi service to get you to the beach but the wasn’t a taxi in sight. The restaurant food was ok- the menu is the same every day. There is no variety

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

13 Jan 2022

Clay

Beach beauty

We loved the beach front property and the cleanliness. Everything was relaxing and amazing.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

08 Mar 2021

Santiago

Excelente lugar

Excelente hotel y atención recibida por todos sus trabajadores, el hotel es tranquilo, ideal para descansar, se pueden realizar actividades náuticas, se pueden utilizar dos playas pequeñas y la comida por ser a la carta me pareció costosa

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

19 Jan 2021

Verified traveler

The staff was nice, the facility was clean and desinfected. The best part is that it wasn't too crowded, allowing guests to have enough space and practice social distance. Overall a good experience.

Leisure Family_with_children

6/10

Pleasant

17 Jan 2021

Verified traveler

The property is very nice and the staff were friendly and helpful. The private beach is nice but the water isn’t as clean as you’d expect from the pictures and it’s only about waist deep at the deepest part of the marked parameter. The food in the restaurant was good and the cocktails were delicious ... but the prices are so high it is difficult to enjoy. Me and my girlfriend tried to eat lightly because I’d the prices and the total was still more than 500,000 pesos per day. Since the hotel is secluded you have no other options. After paying 400,000 for the room the bill from at the restaurant was a little disappointing.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

04 Dec 2020

Francisco

Espectacular, vamos a volver!

Es un hotel boutique convenientemente ubicado en la isla de Barú al frente de Cholón. El servicio es impecable, la comida es deliciosa y tienes la oportunidad de disfrutar la playa, la cual es pequeña pero muy hermosa. Con mi familia fui a hacer kayaking por la zona y lo pasmos super!

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

29 Feb 2020

Sandra

Best hotel in Baru

Every ody needs to stay here at least once. The food is UNBELIEVABLE. Kudos to Francia and Giacomo.

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

29 Feb 2020

Patricia

We loved everything about it - the location, staff, room, food. I highly recommend it!

Leisure Friends

2/10

Poor

07 Jan 2020

Verified traveler

The service was truly shocking and ruined our stay. Thank goodness we only booked for 3 nights. The staff are clueless and inattentive but worst of all, they just blame each other for the chaos. We spoke to the General Manager who explained they all need retraining. This guy should be sacked immediately for taking no responsibility and doing nothing to sort things in the present moment. Truly awful. Do not stay here.

Friends_and_family Family_with_children

8/10

Excellent

28 Dec 2019

Lilia

Nice stay, a bit overpriced for this type of hotel

Staff was very friendly and the overall common areas as well as the room were clean and confortable. The vegetarian menu is very limited, breakfast was yummy and plenty though. The food and additional services such as body massages are a bit overpriced. They take long to get you the final total itemized receipt.

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

07 Jun 2019

Stephane

Hotel location very far from airport, beach very small, at least have a ferry to Aguna Azul

Partner

6/10

Pleasant

30 May 2019

Verified traveler

Algo que es muy importante es el agua, y ellos lo unico que tenian era botellas de 250 ml, por el cual se hacia muy cansador y costoso estar comprando a cada rato muchas botellas para llenar una grande.
El desayuno tiene mucho por mejorar, no hay tantas opciones y la cantidad es muy pequeña

Leisure Partner

8/10

Excellent

23 Feb 2019

Verified traveler

Beautiful rooms with big, comfortable beds. Trees and flowers on the property. Lovely staff. The food could have been better, particularly the shrimp cocktail and desserts. The best part was the day trip out to Playa Azul. Though prices were high there and people were pushy, I still would have liked longer there (more than 2 hours).

Leisure Family_with_children

6/10

Pleasant

16 Feb 2019

Macy

Glorified hostel rather than resort

I’ll start with the good things: Mitchell the bar tender is excellent (great mojitos and margaritas!). The restaurant was good (ceviche is excellent) and common areas were nice, especially the bathrooms by the restaurant/bar/beach which were nice and large. The beach is pretty big with decent lounge chairs and games everywhere (still not sure if that’s a plus or minus). Overall service was good.

However, the room was more like a large empty closet with a window and bed. There were no night stands and no blankets on the bed other than sheets! The bathroom is tiny and there was no hot water. There was a mini fridge but no water bottles in the rooms even for purchase. The check-in and check-out process took way too long, but the receptionist was kind enough to help us arrange transportation from her cell phone.

Overall this hotel felt more like a glorified hostel, but is a decent stay for one night in Baru especially for the price.

Partner

2/10

Poor

11 Jun 2018

Nelson

Changed price

I booked 2 rooms for my family with accomodation for 2 adults and one kid in each room.
When I went to do the check out. They increased the price and charged me 50% more of what I was booked and what it was my original payment. I spoke over the phone with the lady on charge and she was rude and unprofessional. They also do not say that the hotel doesn’t have a nice beach and you need to take a boat every morning. To get to the hotel you need to rent a boat, because the road is impossible for a car. That happened to us. BAD EXPERIENCE and a rip off.

8/10

Excellent

04 Jun 2018

Nice comfortable hotel

Staff was very helpful and hotel was clean. Breakfast could have had more options but overall good restaurant menu.

8/10

Excellent

27 Jan 2018

Verified traveler

Hotel on the beach

I stayed one night here and it was very pleasant and relaxing. I enjoyed playing beach volleyball with the other hotel guests. Able to lay out on the beach at night with very few people around just watching the stars. The ambience was peaceful and hotel staff were pleasant and accommodating.

6/10

Pleasant

23 Jan 2018

nancy

Just ok

Firstly, it’s important to point out that luxury hotel accommodation on Baru/Rosario islands doesn’t really seem to exist. We paid almost £200 per night to stay at hotel sport which is far too much for the quality of the hotel, but it was high season at the start of jan. We paid extra for a superior room, but when we arrived we realised whilst it was more modern than the other rooms, it had no outside space. So we asked to move and were given a room with a balcony but was smaller and much more basic-we didn’t complain that we had paid for a superior room and now clearly it wasn’t as we simply couldn’t be bothered with the hassle.

We stayed 4 nights and barely moved from the hotel partly because there’s no one else to go. We tried to walk to the neighbouring hotel for dinner but it didn’t do external catering so we had all meals at hotel sport. Food is fine, but lunch & dinner is the same menu so gets a bit dull. Would benefit from a daily special and some more snacks / sandwiches / salads at lunch time. Lobster is not worth it.

Our final bill excluding accommodation was £500 which was lunches, dinners, couple of beers/wine, snorkelling and 2x massage. Again-too much for the quality of the hotel/food/services.

Massages were very basic. You are gently rubbed for a while and at the end I was subjected to about ten minutes of playing with my hair.

Snorkelling trip was good, but you go to an area full of boats so I was slightly worried about running over swimmers as we got c

8/10

Excellent

03 May 2017

Alicia

A nice break from Cartagena

It was a nice break from Cartagena, Martin and his team were wonderful to the three of us. The food and drinks were pretty good, and my only recommendation would be a pool because the beach is not that pretty. However, they do day trip to Playa Azul and that is a must see.

Thank you Martin, Wanda and there was one more person that were very good to us but I can’t recall his name.

Family

10/10

Exceptional

19 Apr 2017

Taryn Amy

VERY relaxing night! Very quiet and calm!

This hotel is perfect for a relaxing night! We LOVED it. There are plenty of awesome beach lounging chairs, beds, etc. There are two very small private beaches, but perfect for wading into the water. They also have 1 restaurant that served pretty good meals (seafood, pizza, lobster, AMAZING ceviche) for lunch, dinner, breakfast. Additionally, they have a small bar. This is a quiet place- not a night life scene, but perfect for relaxing! They also have a few kayaks, paddle boards, etc that you can take around. The rooms are really nice and comfortable- very large and clean. The staff is friendly and there are a few English speakers. If you take their transportation- which is much easier- you leave around 9:00am on the boat and return around 3:30pm. The boat ride back is VERY, VERY, VERY rough. Full of waves and was a bit scary at times. Rumor is you can take a taxi back, which might be better if you are scared of rough boat rides or have young children. You will get wet.

Family

4/10

Poor

12 Jul 2016

Jennifer

Sorely lacking

Poorly run, bad to mediocre food. The highlight is leaving the hotel to go to Playa Azul.

Partner

8/10

Excellent

18 Jan 2016

Rosie

great little place to rest and relax.

what a great two nights...it was so relaxing. All I can say is that I'm glad I didn't listen to the bad reviews. Alfredo the manager was awesome...

Partner

8/10

Excellent

25 Nov 2015

Jaime

Secluded comfortable getaway

Great stay here for 3 days/2 nights- very secluded spot tucked away in bay with super friendly and helpful staff (although make sure you can speak baseline-level Spanish). Room itself was basic but comfortable, and onsite amenities/trips/restaurant were great. Since it's tucked away amongst other private residences/hotels there wasn't a ton to do at night beyond the confines of the hotel, it made for a super relaxing getaway. Transportation was a fun adventure getting there (about an hour by cab, plus 20 minutes by mototaxi once we hit the water impassible by car) but you should be able to call up the hotel to book a direct trip from the Cartagena marina as we did on the way back.

Partner

6/10

Pleasant

08 Nov 2015

Verified traveler

Bad & limited food, and super slow service...

Nice hotel facilities with a must do 5 minute boat ride to Playa Azul in Baru (free of cost) where you spend 2 Hrs.

8/10

Excellent

09 Jan 2026

Fernando

Personal amable y siempre dispuesto atenderte. Hotel bonito y apto para descansar