SAN ANDRES
A slice of paradise in the Caribbean Sea close to the coast of Nicaragua and Costa Rica but belonging to Colombia. This island is a great place to relax on the beach, snorkel with Turtles and Manta Rays and has some of the best diving in South America. Loved by Colombians and tourists alike it can be a busy spot. If your budget can stretch just a little bit further, then it’s worth a visit.
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getting there
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The only way to get to San Andres is to fly. The boats no longer run. You can get cheap flights from the larger cities in Colombia like Medellin, Cartagena, Bogota and Santa Marta or you can fly from Nicaragua but these are more expensive.
From Medellin | We flew at the end of December from Medellín because we wanted to be there for New Years Eve and suffered the slightly inflated prices. We decided to fly back to Cartagena and we highly recommend doing this if you are finished with your departure destination. This does mean that you will need to pay for luggage, which significantly bumps up the price. If you are flying back to the same destination then take hand luggage, store your big back or ditch the unessentials and save on the cost. Latam, Avianca, Viva Air and Wingo all hit you with additional costs for just about everything. Make sure you read the small print.
We flew with Viva Air outbound and Wingo inbound and paid £150 each with baggage. A word of warning, we used VPNs and our outbound flight still went up £25 each within an hour of searching and deciding.
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Top Tip: Purchase your Tourist Card at the Checkin Desk to avoid the queue (and scramble to fill it out) at the gate.
Be aware of the Tourist Card. Everybody heading to San Andres has to purchase a tourist card before they leave. We were able to purchase ours at the check in desk but you can also purchase them at the gate. The price was 124,000Cop (£21.70) each as of December 2022.
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To Stay
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Blue Almond Hostel | You don’t have to spend a fortune to stay on the island, it’s actually quite affordable. There are a handful of budget options and we opted for Blue Almond Hostel because of the amazing reviews it had. Although it's a very basic hostel we were not disappointed. There is no air con and with it being incredibly hot the fan in the room doesn’t always help. The only real downside. The owner Juan goes above and beyond, there’s snorkel equipment to rent, he will give you a map and show you the best places to go, he will sort out a scooter rental, and he even bought every guest a bottle of champagne on New Years Eve. There’s a kitchen and small common area with good wifi. We paid £20 a night for a twin room with a shared bathroom.
If your budget stretches further then there are many luxury hotels along the beach and in the centre for you to choose from. There's great views from the balconies so take your pick.
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To do
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Go Diving | Diving is one of the most popular things to do on the Island, with the crystal clear waters it’s easy to see why. There are many dive shops around so do your research and pick one with good safety reviews. We went with Blue Life and we had a great experience with them. The instructors were professional and the equipment was the best we’ve seen. We chose to do a morning of fun dives for 240,000Cop (£42) which included 2 dives, all your equipment, coffee and snacks on the boat and marina entrance. If you want photos taken underwater it is an additional 60,000Cop (£10.50). We didn’t see tons of marine life but we did see a seahorse which was on our list. All of the dive sites are close to the island so some dive shops walk out and others take a boat but the journey isn’t long. We definitely recommend it and if you're not qualified you can have a taster to see if you want to be.
Visit a Cay | There are numerous sIslands surrounding San Andres and you will find a lot of companies offering tours to each one. There’s Johnny’s Cay, Haynes Cay, Acuario (The Aquarium) and Cotton Cay. Prices vary with some offering VIP tours, most are around 85,000Cop (£14.90) for a full day. Try to go direct with the company and avoid the men outside the Marina trying to tout.
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Hit the Beach | For those days where you want to do nothing and relax. The main beach at the North of the island is Spratt Bight Beach. This can get very busy but you’re surrounded by shops and cafes for a quick bite. To rent a chair it is 7000Cop (£1.20) for the day. Just look for one of the guys wearing a bum bag. If you stand next to a giant pile of plastic chairs they'll soon show up. The best beaches are along the East Coast, the West Coast is rocky. why not rent a scooter and beach hop. Rocky Cay is another popular beach with beach clubs but if you enter via Rocky Cay Restaurant parking and entry are free. Rocky Cay is known for Rocky island about 300 metres off shore with a huge shipwreck next to it. When we went we were told that you have to be a really strong swimmer to go all the way out but they do have boats which will take you for 15,000Cop (£2.60).
Go Snorkelling | Try West View and La Piscinita. West View is 7000Cop (£1.20) to enter for the day and you can use the loungers, rent snorkel equipment and use the lockers. There’s 2 diving boards, a slide and lots of fish. Go early as it can get busy but it will keep you occupied for a few hours. There’s a drinks and snack bar and a cafe across the road.
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Explore on Two or Four Wheels | Explore the island on a Scooter or in a buggy. There are lots of rental shops around the island, most have similar rates but check the vehicle before agreeing. We rented a scooter through our hostel and it got dropped off and picked up so we didn’t have to go around searching. It was 100,000Cop (£17.50) for 24 hours and 80,000Cop (£14) 9am - 6pm. If you are here for a longer period I recommend renting for a few days as you will get it cheaper. The island's easy to navigate, there's a single ring road which takes around two hours to complete. Petrol is also super cheap for half a tank we paid 8500Cop (£1.50).
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Mini Market Crawl | So, we found the cheapest way to drink on the island - A Mini Market Crawl. After the first night we realised that the walls along the beach are full in the evenings with people having a drink, playing music and partying. Drinking in the streets is allowed here and the mini markets sell a good selection of icd cold single beers. Buying one at time keeps them cold. It's 3000Cop (£0.50) for a small can of Club Colombia. So join the locals for an evening on the beach, avoid the inflated bar prices, get your hair braided by the ladies on the promenade, and when you've had enough of beer sip a Coco Loco from one of the many mobile bars.
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something else
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Duty Free | A note on Duty free, San Andres has a duty free shopping area. After searching for a saving we can say that it is no cheaper, and in most cases, more expensive than home. We compared alcohol, perfume & aftershave and sunglasses and couldn't strike a bargain anywhere.
NEXT STOP
With it's crooked colourful colonial streets, ancient history, assortment of accommodation, food and shopping for every budget, and sunsets to die for. Cartagena is no longer Medellin's poor neighbour.