Colombia - The Rough Guide to South America on a Budget - page 524

PARQUE NACIONAL TAYRONA
Colombia's most unspoilt tropical area,
PARQUE NACIONAL TAYRONA ,
a 45-minute drive east of Santa Marta,
is a wilderness of beaches, with lush
jungle running right down to the sand.
Silhouettes of swaying palm trees set
against sunsets complete the cinematic
image. The laidback attitude of the place
makes it feel like a paradisiacal summer
camp, though it does get overcrowded
during the holidays.
The park gets its name from the
Tayrona Indians, one of South America's
greatest pre-Columbian civilizations.
This area was a major trading centre for
the Tayrona, whose population once
exceeded a million. With the arrival of
the Spanish, however, their peaceful
existence came to an end. The Spanish
governor ordered their annihilation in
1599 on the trumped-up charge that
the Tayrona men practised sodomy; the
brutal massacre that followed forced
the remaining Tayronas to seek refuge
high in the Sierra Nevada de Santa
Marta, whose foothills flank the park to
the south. Rising from sea level, these
snowcapped sierras reach their apex just
42km from the coast, at the 5775m-high
Cristóbal Colón , Colombia's tallest peak.
Tayrona stretches over 120 square
kilometres on land, with an additional
30 square kilometres of marine reserve,
but since much of the park isn't easily
accessible, visitors find themselves
sticking largely to the string of beaches
that stretch for around 8km from the
entrance of the park, bounded by
Cañaveral to the east and ending with
Cabo San Juan to the west.

5

Hostel Divanga B&B C 12 No. 4-07 T 5 421 9092,
W divanga.com. This French-run hostel has a small pool lined
with hammocks, an upstairs bar, a sociable vibe and wonder-
fully friendly staff. Rooms are compact but spotless and the
restaurant on the premises is one of the best in town. There's
another branch a bl ock away, aim ed squa rely at the ba ck-
packer crowd. Dorms COP$30,000 , doubles COP100,000
Hostal Techos Azules Sector Dunkarinca, cabaña
No. 1-100 T 5 421 9141, W techosazules.com. Sitting high
above Taganga, just off the main road to Santa Marta, this
rambling blue-roofed guesthouse offers a plethora of rooms
for individuals and groups and great views of the town.
Some rooms have kitchenettes, some share bathrooms, and
all have access to the airy, hammock-festooned patio. The
road leads steeply down to the b each. More ex pensive with
a/c. Dorms COP$25,000 , doubles COP$58,000

EATING, DRINKING AND NIGHTLIFE
The waterfront is lined with fresh fruit juice and fried
snack sellers, as well as palapas specializing in fish-heavy
lunches. The menus ( ceviche , fried fish, arroz de coco ) are
comparable, but Estrella del Mar #3 stands out.
Baba Ganoush Cra 1 No. 18-22. Huge diner overlooking
the sea featuring the culinary creations of chef Patrick,
who whips up everything from Thai green curries to
Mediterranean-inspired dishes. Daily 6-11pm.
Los Baguettes de María C 18 No. 3-47. Stuff yourself
with giant 30cm-long chicken, tuna or beef baguettes
(COP$10,000) and thirst-quenching giant fruit juices before
stumbling into one of the hammocks at this backpacker treat.
Sun-Thurs 10am-10pm, Fri 10am-6pm, Sat 6-10pm.
Ì Café Bonsai C 13 No. 1-7 W cafebonsai.com. This
cool Swedish-run café serves delicious home-made treats
(around COP$2500), including brownies in chocolate sauce,
fresh sandwiches on crusty home-baked bread, healthy
muesli breakfasts with yogurt and blackberry jam (from
COP$10,000), organic local coffee and an array of over
twenty teas. Happy-hour cocktails (5-8pm) and mains are
around COP$17,000. Mon-Sat 9am-9.30pm.
Estrella del Mar #3 On the waterfront. The best of the
palapas , this one does great daily specials for COP$10,000
and the fish is always wonderfully fresh. Daily 11.30am-5pm.
El Miradór Cra 1 No. 18-117. The frisson sparked by the
mix of locals and backpackers that fill this club favourite
makes this place taxi-worthy even if you're staying in
Santa Marta. A disco with a great view, this spot throbs
with mainstream pop. Wed-Sat 8.30pm-3am.
Ì Pachamama C 16 No. 1C-18. Off a quiet backstreet,
this Tiki bar-cum-tapas bar serves some of the most
imaginative offerings in town. The dishes (COP$8000-
10,000) are small, so you can have quite a few. Choose
from the likes of kefta (spiced lamb meatballs), prawns
wrapped in bacon, fish in passion-fruit sauce, scallop
tartare and grilled camembert. Mon-Sat 6-11pm.

Beaches
Tayrona's beaches and the jungle that
edges them are the irrefutable stars of
the park. If arriving by boat, you'll get
dropped off at Cabo San Juan , an
attractive palm-fringed beach where
many budget visitors stay; further west
into the park from here are two more
beaches, the second being a nudist
beach (30min). Twenty minutes' walk
east of Cabo San Juan brings you to
La Piscina , a beach good for swimming