There are two main Caribbean beaches around Cartagena; Playa Blanca and Islas del Rosario. Playa Blanca is really famous, but being famous and heavily publicized brought a down fall to this slice of heaven; the place becomes too crowded to be enjoyable.
If you are seeking a tranquil private beach you’d better go to Islas del Rosario/Rosario Island, and that’s what we did. Rosario Islands is a tiny archipelago composed of 27 small coral islands, located about 2 hours from Cartagena. This area is a protected natural park due to its magnificent coral reefs and its amazing water ecosystem that inhabit them.
When we arrived, we were greeted by super friendly staff, a glass of fresh beverage, and a clean towel, and without any further fuss nor hassle, the resort was ours the second we got off the boat. How awesome!!
I went right to the beach and impersonated a stranded whale on the shore without any hesitation: laying there on the white sand beach and not moving, contemplating about life. I think this might have been one of my fav part of our entire trip in Colombia – just relaxing on a private beach.
All-you-can-eat buffet lunch was provided by the hotel. The menu was a classic Cartagena coastal meal; coconut rice, deep fried fish, fried plantain, salad and fish soup. Although it was a classic, I found that they served the best coconut rice we had in Cartagena.
The sky was clear and blue, the palm trees provided shades from the bright sun, breezy wind and the sound of the wave hit the shore gently lulled me to sleep. The water was pristine and fresh, the tide was enjoyable. We even went for an hour of snorkeling. The resort’s boat took us to the snorkeling spot and one of the boat crew boat with us, guided us where to look for the best places to see colorful fishes and magical form of corals on the sea bottom. Everything was perfect for an ultimate beach day. Moments like this are my thing; my reward for myself after a year of hard work
