Imagine that you are in the lead going into final Jeopardy! It is a close game ... and the category is ''Islands of the World''. Here's your clue:
''After flying over 500 miles from Medellín, you find that you are still in Colombia when you land on this island in the Caribbean Sea that is located closer to Nicaragua than it is to Colombia.''
You have 30 seconds ... Good luck!
The music begins 🎶 The other contestants look stumped 🤔 You are a little worried 😯 but then you think back to a past blog of your crazy travel buddies. You smile and breathe a quick sigh of relief 😅 as you write ...
What is San Andrés Island?
Just like that ... You are the new Jeopardy! champion!!! 🎉🎉🎉🎉
Well, maybe this blog won't help you become a Jeopardy! champion, but hopefully it will fill you in on why San Andrés Island is Colombia's favorite ''local'' tourist destination.
It has been our goal this year to spread our wings and discover more of the hidden treasures of Colombia. When our Colombian friends made travel suggestions, San Andrés Island frequently topped the list. Little did we know that this island paradise was more than just a short plane ride away ... it was in the middle of the Caribbean Sea, closer to Nicaragua then to Colombia. We've come to realize that flying between cities in Colombia can be quite inexpensive. But what if reaching that ''city'' involves a two hour flight over the Caribbean Sea? Much to our delight, we found that for a the cost of a $55 round trip ticket and an additional $30 for a ''visitor's permit'', we could be on our way to explore yet another beautiful part of Colombia.
A part of Colombia that boasts of ...
colorful sunrises and sunsets over the sea of seven colors,
long stretches of white sandy beaches,
coral reefs and clear water to delight any scuba diver or snorkeler,
and huge Caribbean lobster dinners to fulfill any seafood lover's dream ...
but sorry, Doug ... Keep dreaming.
The culture of San Andrés was shaped by both Spanish and English influences. After centuries of challenges and changes in leadership, it officially became a part of Colombia in 1928. San Andrés is a part of an archipelago (an extensive group of small islands) in the Caribbean Sea. This paradise also includes Providencia and Santa Catalina Islands and numerous small cays. With year-round average temperatures of 24-30 degrees C (75-86 F), this UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserve has become a popular vacation destination. On the northern side of the largest island of San Andrés, El Centro is this department's capital, and it is also the main tourist and commercial center. When we landed there to spend four days enjoying ''island life'', we quickly came to realize that there are lots of tourists in the popular areas of El Centro but also plenty quiet ''piña colada sipping'' areas in the more secluded parts of the island.
When looking for lodging, we found that our choice was to stay in El Centro, the noisy, tourist center of the island, or travel a little further out to the local neighborhoods that we hoped would be a bit more tranquil. We chose an Airbnb apartment about twenty minutes southeast of the action in a small neighborhood near San Luis beach. There we could be lulled to sleep by the ocean waves from our beachfront apartment and glory in the colorful sunrises just outside our bedroom window.
Our apartment's neighborhood was an area that definitely needed a little TLC. Without easy access to building materials and trash service, many homes were in a state of disrepair. Waste disposal must also be a big problem on this little island as many otherwise beautiful areas were littered with garbage. There were very few restaurants or grocery stores in the neighborhood, and the couple that we found were closed once the sun set at 6:30 pm. In order to get to and from the airport and to all the restaurants, services, and attractions in El Centro, we needed to take a very crowded bus ride or an expensive (by Colombian standards) taxi ride.
But almost immediately, we were happy that we chose to make this neighborhood our ''home'' for a few days.
It was an area where we were able to experience an ''authentic'' taste of the island. We watched local children play on beach, unaware of how lucky they were to be able to experience this incredible natural beauty every day. We shared ''holas'' and ''buenas tardes'' with the elderly neighbors who sat outside their homes so that the ocean breeze could cool them off. Sadly, most of our neighbors' homes didn't have air conditioning ... and it tended to stay warm and humid at night. But, despite these struggles, there seemed to be a sense of peace and contentment with their quiet, tranquil island life.
The nearby beaches of San Luis and Rocky Cay were a lot less crowded than the main beach of Spratt Bight in El Centro. It was a perfect place to take a beach walk or enjoy a cool beverage while listening to the mesmerizing melody of the ocean waves lapping against the shore.
While the dining choices near our apartment were limited, we discovered an authentic island treasure at Miss Elien's, a small seaside restaurant.
There we enjoyed delicious afternoon meals of local shrimp and fish, along with homemade soup, salad, patacones, coconut rice, and a cold cerveza all for about $10 a person and ... they threw in the refreshing ocean breezes and amazing views for free! Needless to say, the waitress quickly came to recognize us and greeted us with her warm Caribbean smile.
On our first island day, we hopped on a very crowded bus headed to El Centro. Once there, it was no problem finding a number of very motivated tour guides willing to sell us any island excursion that we wanted. San Andrés has numerous ''cays'' (small coral reefs and sand islands) scattered off-shore the main island, and these are favorite places for tourists to spend the day snorkeling and soaking up the sun. A visit to Johnny Cay came highly recommended, so after paying our boat fee of 75,000 pesos ($19) each, we were promised that our boat would be leaving ''muy pronto''. After waiting another forty-five minutes for another group that never showed up, we were on our way. We have come to realize that there is a lot of ''hurry up and wait'' involved when you are operating on Colombian time.
Flying over the waves in our half-empty boat, we quickly arrived on Johnny Cay. There we found a beautiful white sand beach filled with people enjoying a glorious Caribbean day. We were introduced to Julian, our guide, who made sure that we had as many coco locos and piña coladas as we wanted to buy. He tried to entice Doug into ordering the fresh-from-the-ocean, still-wiggling-around Caribbean lobster lunch. Alas ... no Visa or MasterCard accepted here, so the 220,000 Colombian peso ($55 usd) Johnny Cay lobster lunch will have to wait for another time.
Salud!
While Johnny Cay was a bit too touristy for us, there is definitely no better place to enjoy a coco loco (rum and coconut milk) served in an elegant ''natural'' container.
The main beach area was crowded, but just a short distance away, we found beauty and solitude under the canopy of coconut palms.
The fifteen minute walk around the perimeter of the cay revealed a treasure of coral formations and snorkeling spots (note to self ... next time bring or rent snorkel gear),
... as well as places to chill while admiring the many beautiful shades of blue-green water or taking a siesta.
Catching our boat back to the mainland proved to be a bit of a challenge even though we supposedly had purchased a ''round trip'' ticket. Good thing we had our guide, Julian, looking out for us, as we were a bit perplexed. Not sure if Doug's not-quite-perfect Spanish could have gotten us through that situation. Eventually Julian convinced another boat company to take us, and over the waves we flew as we raced back to San Andrés. As we bounced up and dipped down over big waves, squeals of delight turned to laughter when I told the teens next to me (in my even-less-than perfect Spanish) that ''esto es más divertido que Disney'' (this is more fun than Disney). We made it back to the main island in time to see the colors of the setting sun reflected in the clouds over the eastern Caribbean.
Red at night ... Islanders delight!
The next day we did the other ''gotta do'' activity on San Andrés ... explore the 19-mile perimeter of the island. Time to rent one of the many motos and/or golf carts that we saw zipping around on the narrow streets. Motos are all the rage on San Andrés where gas is expensive, the roads are crowded, and helmet rules are non-existent. While renting a moto sounded quite adventuresome to me, Doug didn't think that it was in our best interest to compete with the other ''motos locos''. We settled for a very old, very loud, very slow, and a bit pricey ATV. For $75 dollars we were able pick it up and return it near our apartment (instead of going into El Centro) and explore the island for the day. By this time we were getting used to the fact that ''island prices'' were higher than what we have grown accustomed to on the mainland. And it was worth it to be able to explore all that San Andrés has to offer.
Hop aboard as we show you more of the island's beauty!
On the east side of San Andrés, palm trees and sandy beaches line the shore.
On the west side, coral reefs and formations take over
... forming swimming coves that provide a cool respite from the hot sun.
Doug's Caribbean lobster search proved successful when he found the ''catch of the day'' being served up at another small beachside restaurant.
The Piscinita and West View swimming areas are popular with scuba divers, snorkelers, and swimmers alike. All were enjoying the clear ocean water filled with colorful fish, coral, and an occasional crab ... be careful where you step!
There is so much to love about this Caribbean paradise!
Our last full day on the island consisted of what should be listed as the #1 best island activity ... relaxing with a piña colada and coco loco on San Luis beach,
... while watching friendly iguanas ''wave'' at us.
While hanging out there for the afternoon, we struck up a conversation with a Colombian family there on vacation. I was just as thrilled to get an impromptu Spanish lesson as the girls were to hear a native speaker pronounce some of the difficult English words that they are learning in school.
Have we convinced you why you need to put San Andrés Island in your trivia memory bank??
Whether you want enjoy the beauty of this island paradise, or you have aspirations to be a Jeopardy! champion,
... there are many reasons to remember Colombia's favorite local tourist destination located in the middle of the Caribbean Sea,
San Andrés Island!
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