San Andres is an island of 80.000 people, and 50 sq km of land. While
being officially a part of Colombia the island has very distinct roots. The
people are mostly decendents of escaped/ freed slaves and they speak
there own type of carib/english, although they all speak Spanish as a
requisite for the tourist industry. The major industries are tourism, fishing
and a waypoint for drug-traficking. Many of the major hotels were once
properties of major Colombian drug lords. The island receives a
hundred or two thousand tourists a year, the majority being Colombian.
In the past there have been direct charter flights from Germany. In the
peak months of January/ February several charter flights a
day arriver from Canada. At most times of the year the island can feel
rather empty which can be good. The Government is making major
efforts to increase the tourism numbers into the country, this
is one of the reasons why San Andres is a tax free destination. The
islands tourism boom ended nearly twenty years ago and many building
and houses reflect that past glory. Its an interesting place
to visit for several days and escape the city.
Towards the end of January, 2006 I flew to San Andres island for the
second time. Instead of going with a good friend I went with my girlfriend,
Yadira. It's a lot better place to go with a girlfriend than a friend that
would be the major revelation of the trip I would say.
I booked a package with Sunrise Vacations for four nights and five days
including accommodation and flights. It cost 1.650.000 pesos or around
US$750 for the two of us. Not to bad. I did not want to get a package
including food and drinks, as the majority do, because I did not want to
feel
the obligation to have to stay in the hotel all the time. The last time I
went two years back we bought an all-inclusive holiday in the Decameron,
which was a mistake because we hardly left the place the whole week we
were there.
riding the golf cart around the island
So this time I had the opportunity to explore a lot more of the island
than I did last time. We hired little golf
cars on two occasions. That is a great thing to do. Look for Millenium Car
Rentals. They have a lot of the
little cars available and five hours or travel with unlimited petrol will cost
you 50.000 pesos. A bargain really.
This enables you to see the whole island and to stop when you want and
have a swim or take some lunch.
Also you can stop every few metres and buy a beer at the local shop.
Only if you're in the passenger's seat
though of course. On your trip around the island there is much to see.
The most beautiful beach on the island is that of San Luis located
on the eastern part of San Andres. Powdery white sand and
crashing waves. On parts there is a lot of coral around where the
waves break so be careful. Bordering the beach are several
hotels and restaurants, but it is always easy to find a bit of space
to lay out your towel and take a swim.
Further south of San Luis beach and nearing the southern most point of
the island is this beach. Its a popular place for local families and their
children as the coral reef has created a pool like swimming area which is
extremely calm and warm.
At the southern most tip there is an unusual formation in the rocks which
causes a blow hole. Its pretty hilarious. Ok so it is a bit of a Colombian
tourist trap, but it is worth a visit. There is also a simple restaurant
there serving food, mostly fish of course and they do some pretty mean
cocktails.
This little gem of a place is called 'La Piscinita" and is around the southern
most tip of the island and on the rocky western side. It has the
advantage of beautiful sunsets and much calmer waters.
This particular spot is called 'La Piscinita' and its a great spot to stop and
have lunch or a few beers or go for a swim and feed the fish.
This place on the right is the ultimate in Colombian tourist traps. Every
day several dozen lanchas (boats) packed with up to thirty people arrive
at its few shores. One is deposited on this island for the all too long
time of ninety minutes. The idea is that one spends as much money as
possible in as short a time as
possible on goggles and snorkels, the obligatory pina coladas and coco
locos... etc. Waste of time going
there unless you are writing a book on tourist traps. One thing you can
do is wade the two hundred metres to the neighbouring island and back
again until your boat leaves. Don't bother coming here. It's not
pleasant!
One of the pleasures of actually paying for your meals rather having
them all included in some cheap
package is that you can try out some of the best/ most spectacularly
situated restaurants on the island. Two
of these are: La Franceska and El Rincon de la Langosta. The former is
located on the northern tip of the
beautiful beach of San Luis. There are several cabanas each with a few
tables. The owner will prepare
spectacular seafood dishes, the specialty. I had the seafood platter which
at 40.000 pesos was good value I
thought. It was exquisite. Lobster, octopus, prawn, fish, conch. The
juices are also very nice. Afterwards you
can relax on there great little beach and take a dip. Altogether a great
place.
Where to Stay
6.000 pesos
Where to Eat
Surely the most romantic restaurant on the island is El Rincon de la
Langosta, or lobster corner. This
restaurant prepares lobster in over forty different styles. I payed 60.000
pesos, granted a lot of money, for
three small lobster tales. But they were absolutely divine and worth every
peso. The misses had prawns
which were I'm told equally rico. The prices may be steep, but the view
and ambience more than make up
for it. Arrive early and drink a few beers while watching the sun go down.
The restaurants balcony
overhangs the sea. It is a roughly 8000 peso taxi ride from the centre of
the island. Alternatively the taxi can
wait for you but I would not recommend it, you'll most likely stay longer
than expected. Take some insect
repellent if going at dusk.
What to do
Lan and river
San Andres is rightly famous for its duty-free shopping. In particular,
alcohol and perfume are half price or less when compared to
mainland Colombian prices. I bought two bottles of Casillero del Diablo
wine at 14.500 pesos each, retailing here in Medellin for over 30.000. Also
bought a 100ml bottle of Bvulgari for men. It cost only 70.000 pesos
which has got to be less than a third of the price in comparison to
Colombia.
Also in abundance are American/ Canadian sweats like Hersheys, Nips etc.
being officially a part of Colombia the island has very distinct roots. The
people are mostly decendents of escaped/ freed slaves and they speak
there own type of carib/english, although they all speak Spanish as a
requisite for the tourist industry. The major industries are tourism, fishing
and a waypoint for drug-traficking. Many of the major hotels were once
properties of major Colombian drug lords. The island receives a
hundred or two thousand tourists a year, the majority being Colombian.
In the past there have been direct charter flights from Germany. In the
peak months of January/ February several charter flights a
day arriver from Canada. At most times of the year the island can feel
rather empty which can be good. The Government is making major
efforts to increase the tourism numbers into the country, this
is one of the reasons why San Andres is a tax free destination. The
islands tourism boom ended nearly twenty years ago and many building
and houses reflect that past glory. Its an interesting place
to visit for several days and escape the city.
Towards the end of January, 2006 I flew to San Andres island for the
second time. Instead of going with a good friend I went with my girlfriend,
Yadira. It's a lot better place to go with a girlfriend than a friend that
would be the major revelation of the trip I would say.
I booked a package with Sunrise Vacations for four nights and five days
including accommodation and flights. It cost 1.650.000 pesos or around
US$750 for the two of us. Not to bad. I did not want to get a package
including food and drinks, as the majority do, because I did not want to
feel
the obligation to have to stay in the hotel all the time. The last time I
went two years back we bought an all-inclusive holiday in the Decameron,
which was a mistake because we hardly left the place the whole week we
were there.
riding the golf cart around the island
So this time I had the opportunity to explore a lot more of the island
than I did last time. We hired little golf
cars on two occasions. That is a great thing to do. Look for Millenium Car
Rentals. They have a lot of the
little cars available and five hours or travel with unlimited petrol will cost
you 50.000 pesos. A bargain really.
This enables you to see the whole island and to stop when you want and
have a swim or take some lunch.
Also you can stop every few metres and buy a beer at the local shop.
Only if you're in the passenger's seat
though of course. On your trip around the island there is much to see.
The most beautiful beach on the island is that of San Luis located
on the eastern part of San Andres. Powdery white sand and
crashing waves. On parts there is a lot of coral around where the
waves break so be careful. Bordering the beach are several
hotels and restaurants, but it is always easy to find a bit of space
to lay out your towel and take a swim.
Further south of San Luis beach and nearing the southern most point of
the island is this beach. Its a popular place for local families and their
children as the coral reef has created a pool like swimming area which is
extremely calm and warm.
At the southern most tip there is an unusual formation in the rocks which
causes a blow hole. Its pretty hilarious. Ok so it is a bit of a Colombian
tourist trap, but it is worth a visit. There is also a simple restaurant
there serving food, mostly fish of course and they do some pretty mean
cocktails.
This little gem of a place is called 'La Piscinita" and is around the southern
most tip of the island and on the rocky western side. It has the
advantage of beautiful sunsets and much calmer waters.
This particular spot is called 'La Piscinita' and its a great spot to stop and
have lunch or a few beers or go for a swim and feed the fish.
This place on the right is the ultimate in Colombian tourist traps. Every
day several dozen lanchas (boats) packed with up to thirty people arrive
at its few shores. One is deposited on this island for the all too long
time of ninety minutes. The idea is that one spends as much money as
possible in as short a time as
possible on goggles and snorkels, the obligatory pina coladas and coco
locos... etc. Waste of time going
there unless you are writing a book on tourist traps. One thing you can
do is wade the two hundred metres to the neighbouring island and back
again until your boat leaves. Don't bother coming here. It's not
pleasant!
One of the pleasures of actually paying for your meals rather having
them all included in some cheap
package is that you can try out some of the best/ most spectacularly
situated restaurants on the island. Two
of these are: La Franceska and El Rincon de la Langosta. The former is
located on the northern tip of the
beautiful beach of San Luis. There are several cabanas each with a few
tables. The owner will prepare
spectacular seafood dishes, the specialty. I had the seafood platter which
at 40.000 pesos was good value I
thought. It was exquisite. Lobster, octopus, prawn, fish, conch. The
juices are also very nice. Afterwards you
can relax on there great little beach and take a dip. Altogether a great
place.
Where to Stay
6.000 pesos
Where to Eat
Surely the most romantic restaurant on the island is El Rincon de la
Langosta, or lobster corner. This
restaurant prepares lobster in over forty different styles. I payed 60.000
pesos, granted a lot of money, for
three small lobster tales. But they were absolutely divine and worth every
peso. The misses had prawns
which were I'm told equally rico. The prices may be steep, but the view
and ambience more than make up
for it. Arrive early and drink a few beers while watching the sun go down.
The restaurants balcony
overhangs the sea. It is a roughly 8000 peso taxi ride from the centre of
the island. Alternatively the taxi can
wait for you but I would not recommend it, you'll most likely stay longer
than expected. Take some insect
repellent if going at dusk.
What to do
Lan and river
San Andres is rightly famous for its duty-free shopping. In particular,
alcohol and perfume are half price or less when compared to
mainland Colombian prices. I bought two bottles of Casillero del Diablo
wine at 14.500 pesos each, retailing here in Medellin for over 30.000. Also
bought a 100ml bottle of Bvulgari for men. It cost only 70.000 pesos
which has got to be less than a third of the price in comparison to
Colombia.
Also in abundance are American/ Canadian sweats like Hersheys, Nips etc.
| San Andres Island |
Getting There and Away
Either because they don't know about the place or they think it's too far away, very very few tourists visit Mompox. It could
even be that less than five backpackers a week make the effort. Pretty sad.
Its actually not that hard to get to Mompox, it is getting easier at least. The first step is to get to Magangue, on the bank of
the river Magdalena.
from Baranquilla to Magangue : you need to go to Magangue(gateway to Mompox). Its a four hour bus trip. The cost will be
between 20.000 and 24.000 pesos. There are a couple of companies doing the route. There could also be taxi colectivos as
below which will make the trip faster.
from Cartagena to Magangue : there are buses also, a couple a day. It's a six hour trip, including the ferry ride. a better
option (one way at least) is to take a colectivo taxi which should cost 33.000 pesos and take three hours. There will be taxis
leaving from Cartagena to Magangue and vice versa every half an hour or so at least I would say.
from Magangue to Bodegas : there are colectivo fast boats leaving from the wharf (pier), whenevr they are full (should not
have to wait more than half an hour). It costs 6.000 pesos for the ride which takes less than thirty minutes. The second
option is the car/truck ferry which should cost about 2.000 or so and takes eighty minutes. The bus goes on this
ferry. NOTE : (do not leave after six in the evening or so)
from Bodegas to Mompox : There are taxi colectivos leaving whenever full, should be often for the cost of 7.000 pesos to
Mompox. A forty minute or so ride. Or you can take a motorbike for around 10.000 pesos
-so now you know. its pretty easy to do the whole lot. personally i would taxi in then get the colectivo taxi then boat and
take the direct bus back. so you experience both options.
Either because they don't know about the place or they think it's too far away, very very few tourists visit Mompox. It could
even be that less than five backpackers a week make the effort. Pretty sad.
Its actually not that hard to get to Mompox, it is getting easier at least. The first step is to get to Magangue, on the bank of
the river Magdalena.
from Baranquilla to Magangue : you need to go to Magangue(gateway to Mompox). Its a four hour bus trip. The cost will be
between 20.000 and 24.000 pesos. There are a couple of companies doing the route. There could also be taxi colectivos as
below which will make the trip faster.
from Cartagena to Magangue : there are buses also, a couple a day. It's a six hour trip, including the ferry ride. a better
option (one way at least) is to take a colectivo taxi which should cost 33.000 pesos and take three hours. There will be taxis
leaving from Cartagena to Magangue and vice versa every half an hour or so at least I would say.
from Magangue to Bodegas : there are colectivo fast boats leaving from the wharf (pier), whenevr they are full (should not
have to wait more than half an hour). It costs 6.000 pesos for the ride which takes less than thirty minutes. The second
option is the car/truck ferry which should cost about 2.000 or so and takes eighty minutes. The bus goes on this
ferry. NOTE : (do not leave after six in the evening or so)
from Bodegas to Mompox : There are taxi colectivos leaving whenever full, should be often for the cost of 7.000 pesos to
Mompox. A forty minute or so ride. Or you can take a motorbike for around 10.000 pesos
-so now you know. its pretty easy to do the whole lot. personally i would taxi in then get the colectivo taxi then boat and
take the direct bus back. so you experience both options.