Parque Tayrona, Colombia

Parque Tayrona is on the Caribbean Coast of Colombia near the city of Santa Marta and the small fishing town of Taganga.

It is home to some of Colombia’s most beautiful coastline and has the most beautiful beaches that I have ever been to.

Getting to Parque Tayrona

There are buses from Santa Marta that take you to the entrance of the park, where you must pay an entrance fee. From there you can walk along the road to the trailhead which will take you to the coast, or you can pay a small additional fee to get dropped off directly at the trailhead.

The other option is to take a boat from the small town of Taganga and get dropped directly at one of the beaches, avoiding the park entrance fee.

However, beware; the boat ride is notorious for being brutally rough due to the large ocean waves. Not for the faint hearted.

Sleeping and eating

In Arrecifes, the least pleasing area of the park, there are lovely but more expensive cabanas to rent.

I would recommend skipping Arrecifes altogether and getting to Cabo as soon as possible.

In Cabo, you can rent a tent, pitch your own tent, or rent a hammock for the night.

There are public showers and a restaurant that serves food and cold beverages at a premium. It is better to bring as much food and water with you as you can because the restaurants in the park are mighty expensive by Colombian standards.

Leisure

Cabo is absolutely gorgeous and from there you can access two empty beaches and also take the hike up the mountain to El Pueblito, an archeological site definitely worth seeing. The stone path there is unbelievable.

A short walk from Cabo along the coast in the other direction is La Piscina, a naturally formed large swimming area in the ocean. La Piscina is another place to relax and the best place to swim of all the beaches.

I would highly recommend spending at least two nights in Parque Tayrona. It is absolutely spectacular.