Taganga

I started my vacation this week with a flight to Santa Marta, in the northwest portion of Colombia. I was undecided about whether to stay in Santa Marta or Taganga, a small fishing village not too far from Santa Marta. I actually decided once I got in a cab at the airport to Taganga I went. The choice turned out to be an excellent decision. My buddies Adam and Charlotte had come a week earlier and we were able to meet up Sunday night before they went to Tayrona National Park. They were able to give me the lay of the land, which didn’t take to long. Taganga is a small fishing village of about 6,000 people, but it actually feels like a town of only 1,000. It’s so small that there isn’t even an ATM/bank n the city. There’s a small beach where many fishing boats are docked and all of the commerce is centered on or around the beach on a block that’s about 200 yards long. Most of the commerce consists of restaurants and scuba diving shops. Taganga is know for its accessibility to great coral reefs.

If you make it to this part of the country I would recommend paying the extra cab fare to get to Taganga. The laid back nature of the place gives you a feeling of being productive even though you haven’t done anything. There aren’t many proper hotels. Most of the places are hostels and low cost hotels. I stayed at Bayview Hostel (www.bayviewhostel.com) in a single room with a private bath for 28 mil pesos (about $17)! That included breakfast. The place was great. They had wi-fi and a supply of beer for only 1.5 mil pesos ($.90). And the lady of the house was freaking amazing, not that I was paying any attention or anything.

Taganga is a great place to just relax. It’s not for everyone though. Tourism isn’t huge – most of the tourists settle for Santa Marta, the larger city with more restaurants, clubs, etc. There’s no shopping here either. You have to go to Santa Marta for that as well. Also, outside of the main road, there's only 2 other paved roads. There really is nothing to do in Taganga outside of taking scuba lessons and visiting Tayrona National Park. If you are looking for action and things to see, you might not even want to visit this part of the country. But if you really want nothing to do, then Taganga is a great place to do just that!