Buenos Aires vs Cartagena

Cartagena leads Buenos Aires by 2 points on the CIRA Index, 56 to 54. Buenos Aires grades better on 11 measures, Cartagena on 6; the same 35 measures from public sources for both.

Scores by each organisation's criteria

• CIRA Index: Buenos Aires 54, Cartagena 56
• OECD: Buenos Aires 55, Cartagena 55
• UN Tourism: Buenos Aires 53, Cartagena 64
• UNDRR: Buenos Aires 51, Cartagena 50

Theme by theme

• Demand and seasonality: Buenos Aires 60, Cartagena 69
• Economy and jobs: Buenos Aires 75, Cartagena 31
• Climate and hazards: Buenos Aires 45, Cartagena 40
• Water and environment: Buenos Aires 31, Cartagena 83
• Community and housing: Buenos Aires 50, Cartagena 50
• Access and continuity: Buenos Aires 71, Cartagena 50

Where Buenos Aires is stronger

• Domestic share of nights: 45 % of nights by residents of the same country (Secretaría de Turismo / INDEC, Encuesta de Ocupación Hotelera (EOH), November 2024). At or above 45: grade 4/4.
• Jobs in tourism industries: 3.4 % of employment in accommodation and food services (country figure) (World Economic Forum, TTDI 2026 (data: Travel & Tourism Economic Impact Research by World Travel & Tourism Council; Travel & Tourism by World Travel & Tourism Council), 2026). At or below 8: grade 4/4.
• Unemployment rate: 5.8 % of the labour force (Instituto de Estadística y Censos de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires (IDECBA), Encuesta Anual de Hogares (EAH), 2025). Between 5 and 8: grade 3/4.
• Income per head: 32,587 GDP per capita, USD PPP (country figure) (World Bank WDI, 2025). Between 30,000 and 45,000: grade 2/4.
• Economic diversity: 73.1 % of employment outside accommodation, food, retail and transport (Instituto de Estadística y Censos de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires (IDECBA), Situación del mercado laboral, Q2 2025). Between 72 and 80: grade 3/4.
• Tropical nights: 75 nights a year with a minimum at or above 20°C (last 5 full years) (ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 2021–2025). Between 60 and 100: grade 1/4.
• Country disaster risk: 3.9 INFORM Risk index, 0–10 (country figure) (INFORM Risk (European Commission JRC), INFORM Risk Mid 2026, 2026). Between 3.5 and 5: grade 2/4.
• Short-let density: 1.8 short-term rental listings per 100 dwellings (Inside Airbnb and INDEC (Censo Nacional de Población, Hogares y Viviendas 2022), 2024–2025). Between 1 and 2: grade 2/4.
• Access redundancy: 4 independent ways in: international airport, intercity rail, port, motorway (metro figure) (Organismo Regulador del Sistema Nacional de Aeropuertos (ORSNA), Trenes Argentinos, Administración General de Puertos (AGP), & Autopistas Urbanas S.A. (AUSA), 2026). At or above 4: grade 4/4.
• Government effectiveness: 60.4 World Bank WGI percentile rank, 0–100 (country figure) (World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025). Between 60 and 80: grade 3/4.
• Travel advisory: 1 stricter of the US and Canadian government advisory for the country, 1 (normal precautions) to 4 (do not travel) (country figure) (US State Department and Government of Canada travel advisories, 2026-09-29). At or below 1: grade 4/4.

Where Cartagena is stronger

• Hotel bed or room occupancy: 70 % average annual occupancy (Cotelco Capítulo Cartagena y Bolívar, 2023). Between 65 and 75: grade 3/4.
• Flood hazard: medium (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 2/4.
• Water scarcity: low (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 3/4.
• Wastewater safely treated: 100 % of domestic wastewater safely treated (Aguas de Cartagena / Cartagena Cómo Vamos (Informe de Calidad de Vida 2025), 2025). At or above 95: grade 4/4.
• Municipal waste per resident: 449 kg per resident per year (Alcaldía de Cartagena / Concejo Distrital de Cartagena (Citado en Sala Redacción AI), 2024). Between 350 and 450: grade 3/4.
• Rent growth: 5 % change in rents over the last 12 months (country figure) (DANE (Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadística), Boletín técnico IPC, August 2025 – August 2026). Between 3 and 6: grade 3/4.

Country context (World Economic Forum)

• Argentina: #48 of 110 in the WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026
• Colombia: #54 of 110 in the WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026

Buenos Aires in full · Cartagena in full

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