Taganga is a small fishing village 5km north of Santa Marta at the Caribbean coast in Colombia .

Understand

This not the idyllic fishing village it once was, but local authorities tried to improve the infrastructure and realized some tourism implementation on the front beach. It still has its charm and might be a nicer place to explore the surrounding attractions or do some diving than Santa Marta.

• Taganga Tourism Information office, e-mail: infotur.taganga@gmail.com, tel: +57-5 421 92 17, Calle 11 no 3-05 next to Casa Divanga. This office offers free information in English, Spanish and French. It promote local operators for short treks, fishing, diving and ecolodges around Tayrona park. The office represents the local indigenous community Wiwas agency which organizes the Lost City trek with an indigenous guide explaining the culture, the Lost City story and the nature of Sierra Nevada. Also a good source of practical Taganga information such as accommodation, restaurants, bars, events and transportation.

Getting there

• Frequent minibuses(collectivos) go from Carrera 5 in Santa Marta to Carrera 2 o 3 Taganga for C$ 1,200 per person (April 2009). It's about 15 minutes. Beautiful ride. You can get off at the Mirador and walk down to town.

• TAXI fare from bus terminal of Santa Marta to Taganga starts from $8,000, but drivers usually charge more for foreigners. Be sure to negotiate before you take. The fare from the main beach of Santa Marta(Carrera 1) to Taganga starts from $5,000.

• For cruise ship passengers arriving in Santa Marta there are plenty of taxis and mini-buses waiting in a gated police controlled area to take you.

Things to do

• Main beach is shared with the harbor of Taganga. It's tiny and simple but good for swimming. It will be very crowded on weekends by Colombian tourists. Be careful for thieving - never put something valuable on the beach.

• A 40 minute walk north of town lies Playa Grande, beautiful and less crowded. It is also possible to take a boat to get there (2,500 COP) or one of the more remote beaches like Concha, Chengue, Neguanje - real unspoiled paradise. There are no people but just some fishermen.

• A longer walk goes to Bonito Gordo and from there to Bahia Concha. Reserve a full day for this and ask around to decide if you need to contract a local guide. You can spend the night at Bahia Concha, but you may need to take your own hammock.

• Taganga Film Night, Hotel Oso Perezoso/Tsunami Bar (Calle 17 2-36), Every Tuesday Oso Perezoso shows a movie (generally English language) projected on their rooftop bar. Free popcorn, one drink minimum if you're not a hotel guest, otherwise free. 8pm on Tuesdays. Come early if you want dinner first. Very cool event!

Scuba diving

Taganga turned in to a popular scuba diving center with one of the lowest prices in the world. Diving spots are usually near the small island "Aguja", a part of Tayrona National Park. The underwater of Taganga has a big diversity of marine life. There are a dozen diving schools in town, but be careful where you do your courses. There are many reports of travelers doing their courses, paying and never receiving any certificate. Be careful for your safety: some diving centers have pretty old equipment, never follow safety rules such as safety-stop and even skip important skills/exams during the course. For more information check padi alerts .

• A personal instructor: Peter Green contact: casa@divanga.com Cel: (57)312 673 25 93 or (57)316 651 52 03. Peter Green is a 5 years experienced PADI Instructor, having been certifying hundreds of people, in many exotic locations that include Thailand, Malaysia, Australia and Belize, Peter Green is now training travelers in Taganga in conjunction with Divanga and Poseidon. Full range of PADI certifications, from open water to Divemaster include basic training in Divanga's swimming pool ,that ensures hugely increased safety, considerably lower stress and adheres to worldwide standards for PADI, diving with PADI 5 Stars Center Poseidon and all your required PADI materials, safety, insurance and certification, with professional standard. Peter Green is promoted by Divanga B&B and Casa Divanga, you can get discounts on accomodation and food when having diving course.

• Aquantis Bed Breakfast & Diving, Calle 18 No 1-39 Taganga, (divecenteraquantis@gmail.com), Highly recommended : organized and honest, classroom with AC, long dives. Includes coffee, towels, books and warm shower after diving; and you do not have to carry or wash your equipment. Also deal packages including diving and accommodation are available in low season. Great people, amazing service, you can stay in the dive center for hours meet each other before and after the dives.[]. C$ 550.000 for OW course, two fundives C$100.000 and underwater pictures for free. .

• Calipso Dive Center, Calle 12 No 1-40, ☎ 421 91 46 (robertdive@calipsodivecenter.com). Good experience with tour in Tayrona park called Safari. Only center doing this trip. Spend one night on a wild beach and good diving. Kind people. Not a PADI member.

• Centro de Buceo Nautilus, Primera Calle Taganga, ☎ 0057 5 4219007 Nice people to hang out with, they've got a cabana where you can stay for a night for free, the sunset over there is incredible, very calm. Not a PADI member. Be careful cause they sell Aguja Island and then take you to dive locally and the boats are not safe. PADI open-water C$ 530.000, PADI advance C$ 520.000 +, two fundives C$ 120.000.

• Centro de Buceo Octupus, calle 15 No 1b-14 taganga (octopusdivingcenter@gmail.com), ☎ 4219279 Calle 15 No1B-14, turn up by Supermercado Taganga. Very friendly staff, family atmosphere and very professional at their job. Cheap prices for a fun and safe experience. C$ 550.000 for PADI courses, bit cheaper for NAUI, two fundives C$120.000, Discover Scuba Experience also available.

• Centro de Buceo Poseidon, ☎ (57-5)-421-9224 (poseidon@atgc.net.com), Well recommended, German-owned diving center. Is the most professional diving center in Taganga, headed by a PADI course Director. Has a swimming pool inside and well-maintained equipments. PADI open-water C$ 580.000, PADI advance C$ 550.000 +, two fundives C$ 130.000 (probably more).

• Oceano Scuba Dive Center, Cra 2a, No 17-46, ☎ (57-5)-421-9004 (oceano@oceanoscuba.com.co), The first diving center in Taganga, working for more than 20 years. Experienced and friendly staff. They have a cabin in the taroyna park, where you can have a lunch and relax. It's free of charge to stay there for a night. C$ 550.000 for PADI courses, Two fundives C$ 120.000, Snorkeling C$ 40.000 (lunch and boat transportation included).

From Taganga you can get to many area attractions including some of the nicest beaches in the world like Arrecifes and Cabo San Juan. You can also be in the Minca, a small town in the Sierra Nevada Santa Marta in less than an hour. You can get there by bus or taxi. A taxi should not cost from 35.000 to 40.000 pesos.

Spanish course

• Academia Latina, the only professional language school in Taganga. Learn Spanish with excellent skilled teachers in a inspiring environment. Good prices for private classes! Volunteering programs available and family stay. Free grammar list and after school activities, like salsa lessons. See

• Casa Divanga Language Center, Spanish courses, had basic course for one week with a really professional teacher. she built up her own method, helps you to learn fast, also got special rate for acccomodation in Casa Divanga, a very nice homely place.

• Hotel Oso Perezoso arranges private tutor lessons for 10,000 COP per hour. My tutor was excellent, went to right where I needed to learn, we studied on their rooftop, on the beach, and at cafe's making it more interesting. Ask them.

Volunteering

• Fundación Más , the place to be when you're interested in volunteering programs for Taganga and Santa Marta. Fundación Más is a legal Colombian foundation. Minimum two weeks. Come and help the children of Taganga and Santa Marta.

• UNILOT is Divanga's foundation in tourism research (Unilot means "Unidad de Investigacion-Accion Local en Turismo"). B.A. graduates travellers can participate in sustainable tourism research, the foundation is linked with the local public University Universidad del Magdalena. You can ask for free accomodation and food against research work, may be on the field, surveys or secondary research directed by Master degree graduates. Write to infotur.taganga@gmail.com Tel: (57-5)421 92 17

Eat

Overpriced, mid-quality restaurants are clustered on the beach. Mainly specialized in fish dishes. But it's worthful to go up straight two blocks.

• Divanga's French Restaurant/Bar/Swimming pool: young Colombian skilled cook trained by a French Chef prepares a delicious typical local food with a French touch and original snack of her specialities with affordables prices from 6.000 to 15.000 pesos. Located in DIVANGA nice hostel with swimming pool 2 blocks straight from Delfin Hostel on the beach. good value in Taganga eat and drink for 15.000 pesos and you get access to the pool (splash is highly appreciated considering the heat in the village), spend the afternoon playing around. good vibes.(57-5)421 90 92

• Hotel Oso Perezoso -- Tsunami Bar, Calle 17 (between 2nd and 3rd one-half block up from Pelikan Hotel), ☎ (57-5)421-8041 Ocean-view, roof-top restaurant emphasizes fresh local ingredients. Lots of vegetarian options, seafood and steaks with touches of Creole, Mexican, Italian, and Asian cuisine. Amazing, cheap breakfast too 0 best in Taganga!

• Casa Holanda / Restaurant, new restaurant in the heart of Taganga, opposite of the church. Great food for a good price. Local and international dishes, fresh vegetables, great whole wheat sandwiches, natural juices and nice homemade cakes. Friendly staff and great terrace. Daily promotions on the main courses.

• Che Luis, usually very crowded with locals/Israelis, they have more than 100 different plates but the food is very good. Mostly an Israeli place and very loud as well. They have some local tourist information about Santa Marta. The place serves as a meeting place with other tourists.

• Casa de Felipe (March 2009) Patrick, a Dutch chef, serves amazing dinners which cost between C$13.000 - C$17.000.

Drink

It would be good idea to take a couple of "Stubbie Coolers" (Australian vernacular for an item which keeps the beer in your bottle cooler or longer) as the heat in Taganga will have you drinking warm beer by the time you are at the end of your drink.

• Divanga Bar rooftop nice view to the sea, chill out bar, local guy great attention!! they make good cocktail, this place is really cool

• El Garaje is a popular gringo Saturday night hang-out. Meet everybody in town from Wednesday crazy night possible with unforgettable Angela at the garage bar...

• Casa Holanda / Bar, nice little bar. Check out their cocktails. The best in Taganga! So many to try....! Happy hour daily from 9-10 PM. Free salsa lessons on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at 7.00 PM.

• Madame Tagangué, not Sundays. Amazing new Argentinian style Parilla restaurant, serves mouth watering steaks for 18000, incredible seafood salad for 12, hamburgers, thai wok style veg and things. Pricey but amazingly not good food, and the guy that runs it is really nice. *best pizza in south america!! A La Vista is only open in the evenings, and hosts a menu that includes pizza, lasagna, crepes, etc. el mejor!!

• Tsunami Bar (at Hotel Oso Perezoso), Calle 17 (up from Pelican) (1.5 blocks from beach on second street after entering the town), ☎ 301-421-8041 usually until midnight. Awesome SUNSET from a cool, breezy, shady roof!!! Cold beers served wih 'coozies', delicious juices, creative cocktails, awesome music, great friendly place, chill vibe. cheap.

• Café Bonsai, Calle 13 # 1-07 (down from Calipso Dive Ctr, by the beach), ☎ 4219495- 316 620 0669 9AM-11PM. Cozy and tastefully designed coffee and tea house owned by a nice Colombian-Swedish couple. Serves fresh sandwiches, salads, cold drinks (the bonsai juice), excellent coffee in all shapes from a creamy double espresso to a tall latte, and great blends of tea, from Moroccan, Darjeeling, classic Earl Grey to fresh tasty blends of herbs. Doubles up as a nicely lit bar at nights with great prices on wine, beer and cocktails. Do not miss out on the specials and the homemade ice tea or the ice coffee with a hint of vanilla. Air con and wifi. Cheap.

Sleep

• Casa Blanca, ☎ 5-421 9232 / 300 805 4968 (casablanca@hosteltrail.com). Opened in 1998 by Colombian/Swiss team Carlos Botache and Bernard Gusten, Casa Blanca has become a favorite amongst beach-loving travelers and provides an excellent base for those taking dive courses in town or those wanting to make the most of their time by the sea. Prices are 18,000 Pesos pp with a 2,000 Pesos single supplement. Double rooms are 40,000 Pesos. Heavy Drug Influence on Beach in Front - ''be careful at night''.

• Casa Divanga, (divanga@hotmail.com). Divanga's little sister at one block down. You get access to divanga's pool. Shady patio and communal kitchen. Spanish courses available. Includes a tourism information point with Taganga's map and full information about Tayrona park... Dorm : from 19,000 COP.

• Casa Holanda, Amazing guesthouse near the beach (40 mts) and opposite of the church in the heart of Taganga. Clean and fresh. 12 private rooms with private bathroom. Some with AC. Rooms for 2,3,4,5 or 6 persons. Excellent value! Great breakfast (5 options) included!!! Free salsa lessons, free wifi, free storage, free lockers. Every night happy hour. Laundry service. Bookexchange and much more....

• Divanga, Calle 12 with 4, ☎ +57 5 421 90 92 (divangacolombia@yahoo.fr), Amazing backpackers bed and breakfast. Includes a beautiful swimming pool that creates a great social area. The staff is so friendly , they make you really feel home. Comfortable and clean rooms with shower/toilet at only C$34.000 per person, in dorm 29.000 pesos including internet and a generous breakfast. The view from the roof is fantastic, especially at sunset and a roof top bar plays excellent music. There is also a comfy TV room with cable TV and DVD player, an internet room with free high speed internet and WiFi access and a restaurant inside serving excellent food. Free luggage storage. Discount for [[Hostelling International members.

• Hotel Oso Perezoso, Calle 17 # 2-36, ☎ (57-5)421-8041 (hotelosoperezoso@yahoo.com), Hotel Oso Perezoso is a three-story structure, perfectly designed to catch the cool breezes of Taganga and enjoy a chill atmosphere amid an amazing 360 degree view. The first floor has three rooms and a travelers store, free bag storage, and a book exchange. The second floor has four bright, lovely guest rooms with views of the ocean that open onto a breezy open-air corridor. The third floor is a gorgeous rooftop Tsunami bar and cafe with WiFi internet, a 800GB jukebox, plenty of room for hammock chillin' and a sassy parrot. From here you can watch the sun rise over the mountains, watch the sun melt into the Caribbean, sip on a cold beer, and order something from the full-service restaurant. Restaurant and bar are open to everyone. Room prices range from 14,000COP a night per person (hammocks), to 20,000COP a night per person (first floor), to 28,000COP per person per night (on the second floor). All rooms have private baths, excluding hammocks. Amazing, big breakfast is included with each room rate. Come on Tuesday nights for big-screen movie night on the roof, too!

• La Casa de Felipe, Carrera 5A 19-13 (behind the football field), ☎ (57-5)-421-9101 (info@lacasadefelipe.com), Popular hostel. Several apartments some with kitchen, dormitory and hammocks if everything else is full. There is a communal kitchen, internet facilities, free wifi, laundry service, nice terraces and a friendly staff. Always crowded by backpackers. 15 minutes by walking from the beach. Prices between C$15.000 and C$45.000. Breakfast C$6.000.Discount for [[Hostelling International-members..

• Moramar Backpackers International, ☎ +5754219202 (moramar@telecom.com), New. Good atmosphere, great service, nice views of the sea and the Sierra. C$15.000 pesos for a single room to C$8.000 for a hammock, .

• ReyMARIn (used to stand for Miramar backwards when it was a Miramar hotel, now, it is the sea king), Manager Chichi has 50 years of fishing experience. Family serves nice food next door.

• Techos Azules, Sector Dunkarinka Cabaña 1-100, ☎ (57) (5) 421 91 41, Cel. 316 648 0731 (contacto@techosazules.com, cacabelofreddy@yahoo.com.mx), Nicely placed at the entrance of the town, it has hammocks, private rooms with bathroom, "cabañas" (two rooms, sitting room with kitchen, shower with toilet). Beautiful views on Taganga and the bay. Around 20,000 COP per person, discounts can be contracted if you are in a group or staying for a longer period..

• Another option is to ask around for an apartment to rent. There are gringo shacks and guest houses all over the town. Usually, most places to stay that are geared towards foreign backpackers will have all the creature comforts (read: running water). Taganga has a long history of people's belongings disappearing as everyone in town often have keys and people lose stuff the day they are scheduled to leave. There is always the option of find a person who's renting a room in their house, or seeing who's out of town and turned their home into a temporary guest house. It's a great way of meeting people and really getting to know a town as interesting as Taganga. If you do this, be sure you trust where you are staying, and bring your own locks as a precaution. Also, Taganga has no water due to political issues, so there are times where water can be an issue.

Get out

See Santa Marta for activities in the area.