Getting off the plane at Santa Marta airport right on the coast, I immediately felt like I was in the Caribbean. Sunshine, blue skies, over 30 degrees heat and a distinctly Carribbean vibe.
The drive from Santa Marta airport to our hotel Villa Maria Tayrona in Los Naranjos was over an hour but is just 10 minutes away from the El Zaino gate of Tayrona National Park. You seem to get more bang for your buck if you stay outside… Inside the park itself, you get beach cabins (such as Ecohabs) or campsites which are beautiful but we opted for a very comfortable duplex with strong AC and modern en suite! I’m not usually a big AC fan but was thankful as it keeps the bugs at bay.
Villa Maria Tayrona is a nice spot for lunch (the fish and produce is so fresh and we discovered their refreshing natural lemonade is just like Indian ‘nimbu pani’) and hummingbird watching (they attract them with hanging bird feeders) and an afternoon down by the beach. It was not crowded at all and there were some young boys playing football at the water’s edge. The villa’s 2 for 1 happy hour cocktails are strong!
The next morning, it is off to Tayrona National Park. I was asking the question before my trip “Is is worth visiting for just a day or even half a day?” I did my lonely planet and online research that gave me mixed opinions. Now my own answer is yes (and even easier if you stay near the park rather than Santa Marta)!
The park is open from 8am to 5pm and whilst you have to watch an information video in Spanish before entering, it is then easy to grab a minibus (they go roughly every 15 minutes or until they fill up with passengers) to take you to Canaveral. This costs COP 3000 per person per journey. From Canaveral, there is ~3.2km trail to Arrecifes. I was impressed at how well marked it was with wooden pathways and stairs with handrails for the steep parts (which are numerous…some people with flip flops were struggling!)
The scenic jungle trail offers views of the golden sandy beaches and boulders on the coast. We encountered plenty of tourists but the trail is by no means crowded. We turned back after a couple of hours as I’d made my dad sweat it out climbing the stairs in the heat! You could continue on from Arrecifes to La Aranilla, then La Piscina and El Cabo San Juan del Guia to make it a full day or stay the night.
Beware that many of the beaches in the park itself are not for swimming given the strong undercurrents in coast around Arrecifes. There are some warning signs so wait for the swimmable sections… and a beware of crocodiles sign that terrified me given there were no other people around on that part of the beach.
neontraveller.com 