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Claudia Vidal - Private Tour Guide

Claudia Vidal - Private Tour Guide

Claudia Vidal - Private Tour Guide
4.5

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles91 reviews
Excellent
81
Very good
2
Average
4
Poor
1
Terrible
3

Erica G
New York City, NY23 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020
We should have gone to Claudia first as she came highly recommended by a friend. After spending our first day with a different tour guide, who took us around the walled city and to La Boquilla, we booked Claudia for a city tour. She was extremely knowledgable and had strong English with a subtle accent (making it easier for my son to understand than our previous guide who had a heavy accent). We were hoping to gain an understanding of the history of the area and its development and we absolutely did. One thing to note is that she did not take us through the Castillo de san Felipe fort. This surprised our conscierge but we think it was fine because it was indeed hot and we spent over 3 hours with her touring other things. She gave us the history of the fort from inside our air conditioned car and we will return on our own one morning to enjoy climbing it. Note that her price was higher than our other guide but we think she was well worth it and extremely educational! If you are deciding between a walled old city our and this city tour, we would recommend doing this first and if you can only do one or the other, do this city tour and you'll get a taste of the walled city and can continue to explore it on your own.
Written 20 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Deborah F
Anchorage, AK6 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2023
I contacted Claudia before arriving on a cruise ship and was so glad I did. My mother (82) and I were met by a wonderful individual who gave us an amazing tour of Cartagena. We were able to escape the madness of the crowded excursions organized by the ship, and get a much more comprehensive look at the city. From the colorful streets, to the emerald museum, the fortresses, and the monestary overlooking the city (La Popa). The day was well spent. I would HIGHLY recommend a private tour with this company. Cost is comparable and time spent so much more valuable and educational.
Written 16 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

jpd43
Atwater, CA97 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2022
I booked the tour with Claudia and she emailed a few days before our cruise left that she had injured herself and arranged a substitute guide. Martin' was very good and gave a good tour. Be aware there are a lot of vendors that you have to work your way through to get where you are going. All in all it was a colorful tour. We saw San Felipe Fort and the La Popa Monastery as well as an Emerald Museum/Store and then spent some time walking around Old Town.
Written 30 December 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

xenabelle
Droitwich, UK48 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2016 • Friends
We booked a private tour directly with Claudia many months in advance of the date, and assumed the tour would be with her, however when we arrived at the dock, she briefly greeted us, not even able to look directly at us, and made a hurried introduction to our "tour guide" a very old man named Willie whose command of English was basic at best. First stop was to the fort, where we stayed about two minutes. He mumbled something about the history, but we actually learned more from another tour guide with a large group there. Then Willie took us to the 'craft market' but we didn't want to go inside, thinking we were going to get a tour. We followed him through some deserted streets, walking at the pace of a tortoise behind him, all the time he didn't say anything, other than to point out a wall painting of some slave, again mumbled so we couldn't understand. No water was provided in the van, so we asked to be able to buy some, and he did that for us, as well as taking us to fruit vendors and an empanada vendor.
At no time did we learn anything, never went in a building except when he tried to take us to the emerald"museum" which is just a jewellery store. That was it, 3 hours total waste of time and money. So much for the architectural custom tour of Cartegena!
Claudia Vidal's website is slick, but if you want her for a tour guide make sure you get it in writing. I would not recommend using her, very unprofessional outfit.
Written 9 January 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Love2CruiseToronto
Toronto, Canada94 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2017 • Couples
My husband and I were recently on a cruise that stopped in Cartagena overnight. We had been to Cartagena a few years back and had Claudia as our tour guide and knew we wanted her again. This time we were selfish and didn't go as a part of a larger group but had Claudia to ourselves both for the night tour and then the next day for the day tour. You will be hard pressed to find anyone who has more knowledge of this beautiful city and it's history than Claudia. She took us through the old walled city and it was like walking with a friend you had known forever. We even did a bit of shopping together and went into a church while a wedding was taking place. So much fun. We consider ourselves very fortunate to have had Claudia for both tours as she is sought after and very popular. It was the highlight of our trip. Ask her about a children's book she has written on the history of Cartagena. We went into one of the stores and found one. She was very gracious to sign it for us and we will share it with our grandchildren. I could tell you all of the places we saw but any tour guide will show you the same sights. It's the way you see the sights and the stories behind them that make the difference. Claudia, you were a gem and we enjoyed every minute. Thank you so very much.
Written 14 April 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Rufus405
Victoria, Canada6 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2014 • Friends
Because I have a disability we decided to look for a tour that would provide us with individualized service rather than competing with upwards of 50 other people on a typical cruise ship tour. Consequently I did some research and decided to give Claudia a try. Actually, I will confess that I wrote 3 people. Claudia was the first to reply (within a day), one other one didn't reply for almost two weeks and one didn't reply at all. I wasn't disappointed in our choice at all. There were 4 of us plus Claudia and her driver, and my small mobility scooter. I was a little hesitant about booking her as we had only dealt online but she was as good as her written word. She met us just at the edge of the cruise ship terminal and then lead us outside the gates to where her air conditioned van and driver waited. We had asked to see some of the historical sites, some new and older residential neighbourhoods, see where the people lived, worked and played etc. We wanted to visit the old town as well as a market but didn't want to visit the emerald museum etc. We loaded us all in and after folding up my Travelscoot we headed off. She took us to all the places we wanted, providing excellent commentary along the way. In each place the driver helped get out my Travelscoot so I could enjoy the venue as well. Since it was a holiday the roads, surprisingly, were quite quiet and so we finished her itinerary a bit early. Consequently she took us to the area where she lived and past the crowded beaches, stopping to honk at her husband, to give us a bit more flavour of the area. We then headed back to a small market where we could barter for coffee and souvenirs. She had us back to the cruise ship terminal in plenty of time, allowing us to explore the animals and birds that are housed there.
All in all a great day. I would not hesitate to recommend Claudia to anyone. She provides an excellent tour and truly does give value of your money.
Written 17 May 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Kingtino
indian wells2 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2012 • Couples
Beware, Claudia has a great site and is very engaging via email. However, she did not show up and sent a very poor substitute. The guide we had took us to 3 different stores to try to get us to purchase items. It was a terrible tour.
Written 3 February 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

oldtraveler711
Beverly Hills, FL2 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2014 • Family
We were booked with Claudia, at the time of the tour she came to us and told us she would not be able to do it and substituted another guide.
This guide did not speak English and we all had a very hard time understanding him.
Also, we learned nothing of the history, he was only concerned with who freed the slaves and who built what building, but not being able to understand him made even this information useless.
I would not book this and advise that you can do better just off the ship at dockside.
When we told Claudia of our concerns after the tour, she was defensive and dismissive.
On a scale of 1 to 10 , I would rate this a 2.
Written 13 May 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

mehorst
Denver, CO56 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2014 • Friends
Claudia provided a complete and entertaining tour of Cartegena in an air conditioned van with a skilled driver who managed quite well in the chaos that was Cartegena traffic. We visited La Popa Hill, the Old Walled City, the Emerald Museum, the modern affluent neighborhood, the beaches, and the fortress of San Filipe. Her English is excellent and she is very well informed about the sites we saw and taught us a lot about the history of Cartegena and Colombia. I woud book with her again if I return to Colombia.
Written 9 May 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Wfredmr
Berkeley, CA18 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2012 • Friends
After seeing so many positive reviews here, we decided to skip the pricier shore excursion offered by our cruise line and book a half-day tour with Claudia. Almost immediately we felt as if we'd been met at the gate by an old friend eager to show us her city. Claudia is personable and funny and well-informed on everything from current events to celebrity gossip. Her wealth of knowledge about history and local politics was impressive-- all told in an easy, ongoing banter as we made our way past the throngs of tour busses and sweaty tourists waiting in long lines.
And as others have said, she'll tailor the trip to your interests.
A+. A real highlight of our trip.
Written 21 April 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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CLAUDIA VIDAL - PRIVATE TOUR GUIDE (2025) All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos) - Tripadvisor

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