Colombia (Lonely Planet, 5th Edition) - Jens Porup [157]
There are one national and three regional parks in the archipelago. These are Parque Nacional Old Providence McBean Lagoon; Johnny Cay Natural Regional Park, a small cay in San Andrés Bay that is the archipelago’s most visited tourist site; Old Point Mangrove Regional Park, the largest mangrove forest in San Andrés; and El Pico Natural Regional Park in Providencia, the archipelago’s highest point, known locally as the Peak.
SAN ANDRÉS
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8 / pop 66,000
Just 150km east of Nicaragua and some 800km northwest of Colombia, the seahorse-shaped island of San Andrés counts 27 sq km of cultural tug-of-war as both its asset and its handicap. Covered in coconut palms, San Andrés, the largest island in the archipelago, is indeed paradisiacal Caribbean, but not everything here is quite so crystal clear.
Take the downtown area, for instance, at the northern end of the island. Colombians call it El Centro, but the island’s English-speaking Raizal people refer to it as North End. The cultural elbowing escalates from there. What’s not up for debate, however, is that the commercialized area of town won’t be splashed across any postcards anytime soon – it’s a monstrosity of ferro-concrete blocks housing one duty-free shop after another, only broken up by the occasional hotel or restaurant.
All is not lost on San Andrés, however. A perfectly charming brick promenade lines the waterfront here, hugging the floury sands and pristine waters of the coast and making for a lovely spot to enjoy a drink or take an evening stroll. And paradise is just slightly more than a canoe paddle away: the endlessly idyllic Johnny Cay sits off in the distance, just 1.5km from shore. In high season, it can feel as crowded as the Mediterranean, but otherwise Johnny Cay is the archipelago’s finest moment.
San Andrés is best appreciated outside of the downtown hubbub. A 30km scenic paved road circles the island, and several minor roads cross inland, providing sufficient infrastructure to get around. There are two other small towns: La Loma (The Hill) in the central hilly region and San Luis on the eastern coast, both far less tourist-oriented than San Andrés Town and boasting some fine English-Caribbean wooden architecture. Excellent scuba diving and snorkeling opportunities abound all around the island – visibility and temperature here are nearly unrivaled in the Caribbean.
It only takes a day or two to suss out the Raizal from the Colombians. At just one third of the island’s population, Raizals are now an ethnic minority, but their fading Creole culture – descended from English settlers, African slaves and West Indians from other islands – is what gives San Andrés its unique character, different from that of mainland Colombia.
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Information
Banco de Bogotá (Map; 512 4195; Av Colón No 2-86, San Andrés Town) ATM.
Bistronet (Map; 512 6627; Centro Comercial San Andrés, San Andrés Town; per hr COP$3000; 8:30am-9pm) Internet.
Costa Rican consulate ( 512 6684; Av Juan 23, San Andrés Town; 8am-noon & 2-5pm)
Deprisa (Map; 512 3307; Av Colón, San Andrés Town; 8am-noon & 2-6pm Mon-Fri, 8am-noon Sat) Post office.
Honduran consulate ( 512 8481; Oficina Pesquera King Crab, 2nd fl, Zona Portuara; 8am-noon & 2-5pm)
Metro Style (Map; 513 1279; Hotel Hernando Henry, Av Américas; per hr COP$2000; 8am-9pm Mon-Sat) Internet.
Tourist office (Secretaría de Turismo; Map; 512 5058; www.sanandres.gov.co; Av Newball, San Andrés Town; 8am-noon & 2-6pm Mon-Fri) Across from Restaurante La Regatta. It has a tourist information booth at the corner of Avs Colombia and 20 de Julio.
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Sights
CUEVA DE MORGAN
This is the cave where Welsh pirate Henry Morgan is said to have buried some of his treasure. The cave (Map; admission COP$5000) is 120m long, but it’s filled