Journey to the Beautiful Rosario Islands: An Honest Review

One of the best activities near Cartagena is booking a day-trip to the Rosario Islands. Cartagena is hot and the city beaches are nothing to write home about. If you spend the day on a city beach you will be pestered by vendors selling their goods or massages. (Don’t half-heartedly say yes to a free massage, as they will start going until you pull yourself away. I learned this the hard way! 😳) If you want a relaxing day, escape the hustle and bustle of the city and cool off at an island resort!

Beach Options Outside Cartagena

There are quite few different options for beaches outside of the city. The 3 main locations are Tierra Bomba, the Baru Peninsula, and the Rosario Islands. Tierra Bomba is the closest to the city. The Baru Peninsula has some public beaches and some private resorts. Lastly, the Rosario Islands are the furthest from the city. Our local guidebook on Cartagena goes through the highlights of these locations and recommendations on places to stay. 

Ultimately, we opted for the Rosario Islands because so many people talked it up. We wanted a chance to check it out for ourselves. The archipelago of the Rosario Islands or Islas del Rosario consists of about 27 separate islands or islets located approximately one hour by boat from Cartagena. 

The Rosario Islands

The majority of the beaches on the Rosario Islands are privately owned by either individuals (We heard Shakira has a house there!) or by hotels and resorts. In order to go, most visitors book a tour or an overnight stay. For our tour, we found a travel agency, La Costeña, right in Boca Grande. The best way to communicate with them is through Whatsapp: +573235778707. With so many different resort options, it was nice to talk to them about which location would be best for a family. 

The very friendly travel agent showed us all of the options and, honestly, it was a bit overwhelming. She helped us narrow it down to Mangata and Isla del Encanto. The difference between them being that Mangata was a little more luxurious and Isla del Encanto had a pool and a splash area for the kids.  We opted for Isla del Encanto, mostly for the pool! 

If you know which resort you want to visit, in most cases you can book directly with the resort via their website.

What to Expect on a Trip to the Rosario Islands

On the day of the trip, the bus picked our family up from our Airbnb and took us to the dock. We got on a nice speed boat and after a short safety talk, headed on our way. After about an hour, we disembarked onto a long private dock to the resort and got a quick tour.

We were one of the first groups to arrive, so we had some choice on where we wanted to relax all day, but the other boats started arriving shortly afterwards. I didn’t really enjoy having to choose a spot and never moving all day, but it ended up not being a big deal. Because we knew the kids would want to spend a lot of time at the pool, we chose some lounge chairs there. It also had some shade, which was nice. 

Activities Included on a Day-Trip to the Rosario Islands

The resort has a good mix of activities to choose from. Some of the activities are included in the price and others are not. 

• The pool – It is a really nice pool with shallow and deep end and even a small waterfall. It’s not too busy and in the sun. You will need to bring your own towel. You can order drinks from the bar and they will deliver them right to your chair. 
  
• The kid’s pool and splash area (Not included, resort guests only)- So disappointing because the travel agent told us that we could use it, and it was a selling point. Since our kids are older and can swim, it didn’t disrupt the day too much, but something to be aware of if you are planning this with younger kids. 

• The beach – There are many lounge chairs and outdoor beds on the beach for visitors to use. Some have shade and some do not. The beach is nice, but actually not as nice as I expected. It isn’t a very big of a beach, so it can feel crowded. There is also not much space to walk down it. 

• Snorkeling – Snorkeling was available for an extra cost. You had to sign up for it right when you arrived and go at a specific time because it isn’t located directly at the resort.

• Kayaks – There are a few that you can use for free. 

• Lunch – A buffet style lunch is included. There were a few different options, and even my picky eaters were happy! Nothing luxurious but good overall. 

• The bar – Drinks and snacks are an additional cost and delivered right to your chair! Everything we ordered from the bar was quite delicious!

• The spa – There was a spa available. All treatments were an additional cost. 

Cost of a Trip to Isla del Encanto

This day trip includes being picked up at your hotel, transportation to and from the islands and lunch. You will need to find your way back to your hotel from the dock on your own.

The cost for this excursion is 275,000 Colombian Pesos (COP) per “adult” (11 years old and up), 150,000 COP for kids between 5 and 10 years old and 100,000 for kids 2 to 4 years old. Additionally, you pay a dock tax of 23,000 COP (approximately $5) per person when you get on the bus.

Conversions can definitely change, but as of October 2023, these prices amount to about $64 dollars for adults, $35 dollars for kids 5-10 years old and $23 dollars for 2-4 year olds. Dock tax is about $5 dollars. 

Pluses and Minuses of the Rosario Islands

Overall we enjoyed our visit to the Rosario Islands. The positives are that you can enjoy a relaxing day out without worrying about vendors and logistics and the kids had a blast!

The negatives are that many people are taking these tours, and it can feel a little too touristy for my taste. Since there are so many other resorts, this might not be the case for all of them.

I think that if I were to visit again, I would book a private boat and island hop. This way if you don’t like the first place you visit, you can find another place to go or just relax on the boat!