San Andrés · Things to do

A small islet about 1.5 km off the main beach, a regional protected park since 2002 and one of only four Blue Flag beaches in Colombia. Boats take roughly fifteen minutes from Sprat Bight and it is open 9am to 4pm daily, weather permitting; there are bars and small restaurants on the sand, and around a thousand people a day come, so do not expect it to yourself.

One ring road goes round the whole island, and hiring a golf cart, scooter or mule for a day is the standard way to see it — an hour without stopping, most of a day with. The Hoyo Soplador blowhole at the southern tip, the western swimming spots and the quieter San Luis side are all strung along it.

Two cliff-edge swimming spots on the quieter western coast, where you get in off a concrete platform straight into clear water over rock and coral, and the fish come for the bread the staff sell. There is a small entry fee at each; bring your own mask if you have one rather than renting.

The archipelago sits inside the Seaflower Biosphere Reserve, designated by UNESCO in 2000, and the reef is why most divers come — wall dives, wrecks and warm water all year. Dive shops cluster in the North End behind the main hotel strip, and most will take complete beginners.

Shallow sandbanks off the eastern side where the water stays waist-deep a long way out. Boats to Acuario and Haynes Cay run from the main beach area; Rocky Cay you can wade to from shore at low tide. Both are busy, both are easy, and both are why the water here is called the Sea of Seven Colours.