Tayrona National Park is a protected national park located along the carribbean coast in northern Colombia. The park is within the territory of Santa Marta and covers roughly 58 sq miles. Tayrona National Park is a beautiful national treasure filled with breathtaking views, amazing beaches and plenty of places to camp and explore. The best way to experience the park is to go for two days and one night. Here is everything you need to know about Tayrona National Park.
TAYRONA FEES, SCHEDULES AND RULES
Entrance fees
To enter the park for a day it costs: 53.500 COP for foreigners
To enter the park for more than one day it costs: 63.500 COP for foreigners.
If you have more questions about fees, you can click here: http://www.parquesnacionales.gov.co/portal/es/derechos-de-ingreso/
Schedule
Tayrona National Park is open from 8:00am – 5:00pm Monday – Friday.
Rules
- The daily capacity of the park is 6.900 tourists.
- There is an obligatory environmental education introductory talk.
- Please respect the shower schedule and use water efficiently.
- Only swim in permitted swimming areas.
- Guests can swim in the ocean until 6pm.
- Tayrona National park contains sacred land of 4 indigenous communities. This sacred land is off limits to tourists.
- The following activities are forbidden: building fires, throwing cigarette butts, burning trash, logging trees and capturing wild animals.
- Parking vehicles in the parking zones is forbidden. When the parking areas are occupied the entrance of vehicles will be restricted and only the entrance of visitors will be allowed.
- When using boats, make sure there are life vests on it.
- Entry of plastic bags and polystyrene objects, musical instruments, and pets are restricted.
- Entry of alcoholic drinks, psychoactive substances, surf boards and alcoholic beverages are forbidden.
- Please take the garbage you have produced during your stay with you (this includes peels, seeds or other vegetable or animal waste); not paying attention to this measure deteriorates the environment and can cause illnesses for the wildlife and flora.
If you have more questions about the rules of the park click here: http://www.parquesnacionales.gov.co/portal/en/
WHAT NOT TO MISS IN TAYRONA NATIONAL PARK
La Piscinita
La piscinita is the first beach you will encounter on the Tayrona Park trek. It is smaller than the others but still has beautiful crystal clear water and a great beach to relax on. If you are traveling with children this is a great beach to head for. The walk is the shortest and it still has a beautiful scenery to enjoy.
San Juan
San Juan beach is the second swimming beach that you will encounter on the Tayrona trek. It takes roughly 2 hours to reach from the point where the shuttle bus drops you off. The first hour of walking is all uphill. Do not forget to bring plenty of water and sunscreen.
The beach itself is beautiful. San Juan is the ideal beach to watch the sunset at if you are spending the night in the park. It is also close to the jungle campsites if that is where you are sleeping. There is a small restaurant right by the water as well where you can have a nice dinner or lunch.
La Piscina
La piscina is the third main swimming beach of Tayrona National Park. The water at this beach is calm and clear. To get to the beach from San Juan you need to walk 15 minutes. Once you are on the beach you can pick a spot to relax on the beach and enjoy the rest of the day in peace.
El Cabo
El Cabo is the last beach and the most popular. If you are just in the park for a day I recommend heading straight for this beach and then working your way back slowly.
From La piscina it takes roughly 1 hour to reach El Cabo on foot. This beach is also where the Don Pedro Beach front campsite is located. There are a couple of restaurants that are open all day as well as snacks shops, bathrooms and showers.
CAMPING IN TAYRONA
Don Pedro in the Jungle
If you want to spend the night in Tayrona National Park you can stay at Don Pedro Jungle Campsite. The campsite includes showers and bathrooms. There is a small store to buy basic necessities as well as a restaurant for lunch and or dinner. If you need wifi you can pay 5.000 mil for 1 hour.
At the campsite there are two options for sleeping:
Tents: To spend the night in a tent, which sleeps two, it costs
Hammocks: To stay the night in the hammocks it costs 25.000 mil/night.
Don Pedro at El Cabo
Located right on the beachfront of El Cabo beach, the Don Pedro beachfront site is the ideal place to spend the night in Tayrona. Because of its’ ideal location this campsite books up fast and first. Be sure to either book ahead of time online or arrive early to secure your spot.
At the campsite there are two options for sleeping:
Tents: To spend the night in a tent, which sleeps two, its costs
Hammocks: To spend the night in a hammocks it costs 25.000 mil/night
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Overall, Tayrona National Park is a must see when visiting Northern Colombia. It attracts hundreds of tourists from all over the world each year and don’t miss your chance to be one of them. Filled with memorable adventure, beautiful beaches and incredible views Tayrona National Park should be on every traveler’ bucket list.
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