From Wikitravel

Taganga is a small fishing village 5 kilometres north of Santa Marta at the Caribbean coast in Colombia. With a dirty beach and noisy restaurants it is not the idyllic fishing village you expect. But has its charm and might be a nicer place to explore the surrounding attractions or do some diving than Santa Marta.

[edit] Get in

• Frequent minibuses(collectivos) go from Carrera 1 in Santa Marta to Carrera 2 o 3 Taganga for C$ 1,000 per person. 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.

[edit][add listing] See

[edit][add listing] Do

• Main beach is shared with the harbor of Taganga. It's tiny and simple but good for swimming. It will be very crowded in 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 or one of the more remote beaches like Concha, Chengue, Neguanje - real unspoiled paradise. There are no people but just some fishermen.

[edit] 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 national park Tayrona. 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 travellers doing their courses, paying and never receiving any certificate. Be careful for your safety - Some diving centers have pretty old equipments, never follow safety rules such as Safety-Stop, even skip important skills/exams during the course.

• Oceano Scuba Dive Center, Cra 2a, No 17-46 Esquina, (57-5)-421-9004 (oceano@oceanoscuba.com.co) [1]. The first diving center in Taganga, working for more than 20 years. Experienced and friendly staff. C$ 550.000 for PADI courses, Two fundives C$ 120.000, Snorkeling C$ 40.000. Prices are including lunch and boat transportation. Has bigger and faster boat, so can go to isla Aguja in any water condition. Offers more diving than other shops - 8 dives for Open water, 7 dives for Advanced Course. 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.

• Centro de Buceo Poseidon, Calle 18 No 1-69, (57-5)-421-9224 (poseidon@atgc.net.com) [2]. Well recommended, German-owned diving center. Could be the most professional diving center in TAGANGA. 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)

• Aquantis Bed Breakfast & Diving, Calle 18 No1-39, Professional, honest and very friendly staff. The best equipments in taganga, everything is new. A belgian instructor and a colombian biologist (owners) give the best service you can imagine, including coffee, towels, books and warm shower after diving and the best.. you do not have to carry or wash your equipment. C$ 540.000 for OW course, two fundives C$120.000 and underwater pictures for free, Also deal packages including diving and accommodation are available in low season.

• Centro de Buceo Nautilus, Primera Calle PADI open-water C$ 530.000, PADI advance C$ 520.000 +, two fundives C$ 120.000, nice people to hang out with but maybe not the most trustworthy if you ve got problems underwater, the equipment seems to be quite old they ve got a cabanna where you can stay for a night for free, the sunset over there is incredible, very calm...

• Centro de Buceo Octupus, 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$ 540.000 for PADI courses, bit cheaper for NAUI, two fundives C$120.000, Discover Scuba Experience also available. Seems like that they prefer nearest place from Taganga for courses, those are not the best sites for diving.

[edit][add listing] Buy

[edit][add listing] 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.

• Geoffrey's:new French restaurant attented by Geoffrey himself, shy and charming humble but real Chef. Delicious French food and snack with affordables prices from 5.000 to 14.000 pesos. Located in DIVANGA nice hostel with swimmingpool calle 12 with 4 in front of the bay.

• Tsunami Hotel and Restaurant Mirador del Macondo, Calle 17 (between 2nd and 3rd one-half block up from Pelikan Hotel), ☎ (57-5) 423-3276. Ocean-view restaurants emphasizes fresh local ingredients. Local fish, seafood and steaks along with cream soups, coconut rice and other Creole dishes. edit

• Che Luis, usually very crowded with locals/Islaelis, they have more than 100 different plates but the food is not very popular. Mostly an Israli place, very loud Well, they have some local tourist information about Santa Marta and it's a meeting place with onother tourist

[edit][add listing] Drink

• El Garaje is a popular gringo Saturday night hang-out. In weekday going out is limited to drinking a beer at your hostel, unless you can pass the sniff test and visit "Mirador del Macondo".

• Tsunami Hotel and Restaurant Mirador del Macondo, Calle 17 NO 2-36 between 2nd and 3rd one-half block up from Pelikan Hotel. ^Private Rooms, Private Bath, Water-View, Breakfast FREE, Opening Ocean-View Discotek and Bar Thursday through Sunday from 6PM on. House Specialties include diverse International Wine List. Specialty Cocktails including blended specialties, Black and White Russians, Mint Juleps, Mojitos, Specialty Fruit Daquiris, Frozen Banana Frappe, Frozen Ice Coffee, Hurricanes, Slippery Nipples, Martinis, Gin and Tonic, Cuba Libres, Planter's Punch, and a diverse collection of the worlds fine spirits.

[edit][add listing] Sleep

• Best hostel in Taganga:Divanga for the atmosphere and overall the friendly attention, calle 12 with 4 +5754219092. Located in the center of the bay, Divanga is a fabulous hostel/bed and breakfast. Offers a great swimmingpool, yes you've read it well! a huge beautyful swimmingpool!. The rooms are comfortable and come with both private and shared baths. The view from the roof is fantastic, especially at sunset. Wonderful Breakfasts are also included. A private room with a private bath is C$27.000 per person with breakfast included in dorm only 22.000 pesos with breakfast too. There is a cable tv and dvd player, free internet ADSL access, and a library. Member of Hostelling International, special discount! Full information and more on the website www.divanga.com Should better book by e-mail: divangacolombia@yahoo.fr New!! Divanga includes Geoffrey's restaurant French cuisine at affordable prices.

• "Tsunami" and "Mirador de Macondo", Calle 17 Numero 2-36 (1.3 block to beach) (57-5) 423-3276, (1504)2081575 skype Reservations E-mail: elmiramar_santamarta@yahoo.

• El Miramar Hotels Santa Marta and Taganga (Including El Miramar´s new Tsunami Hotel, tele 311-4149162 CALLE 17 Numero 2-36, 20,000-30,000 private room, with private bath and waterview with Breakfast included. They have Original El Miramar Tours Lost City Dive Center, Tours to Lost City and Ciudad Perdida Taganga, Parque Tyrona and Vista del Macondo Cafe Bar. Super breakfasts!!!

This is your best bet for finding honest, no bullshit, Tsunami tours including Padi Gold Palm Resort Diving, Diving Courses, Dive Master Courses, Tours to National Park Tyrona, Private Beaches, Snorkeling, Fishing, "Lost City" Ciudad Perdida, Minca, Airline and Bus Tickets etc. E-mail: elmiramar_santamarta@yahoo (57-5) 423-3276, Calle 17 between Carrera 2nd and 3rd [3]. Close to everything, very private and exclusive. Tsunami Hotel is the latest offering from El Miramar Hotels, Santa Marta and Taganga. One block to beaches. Very Private and Selective Hotel. Small - Eight Rooms total. All rooms are private and have private bath. Rooms are $15000-25000. Hammocks available for $10,000. Upstairs rooms include nice breakfast, cafe, juice, eggs and toast, french toast, or fruit salad. All second floor rooms have ocean and mountain views, balconies. Third floor has two levels with shady views of Taganga Bay. All Rooms have private baths and are nicely appointed Doubles. Tours to the Lost City "Ciudad Perdida" Tyrona National Park, Fishing, Snorkeling and more!! Welcome to Taganga hiking diving and relaxation paradise!!

• La Casa de Felipe, Carrera 5A 19-13 (behind the football field), (57-5)-421-9101, info@lacasadefelipe [4]. Popular hostel. Often Full. Several apartments some with kitchen, dormitory and hammocks if everything else is full. There is a communal kitchen, internet facilities, laundry service, nice terraces and a friendly staff. Always crowded by backpackers. Mosquito can be problem here. Far from the beach - 15 minutes by walking. Discount for Hostelling International-members. Prices between C$15.000 and C$45.000. Breakfast C$4.000.

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

• Casa Blanca, (Email:casablanca@hosteltrail.com), [5]. 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 2,000Peso single supplement. Double rooms are 40,000 Pesos. Heavy Drug Influence on Beach in Front - be careful at night.

• Moramar Backpackers International, +5754219202 (email:moramar@telecom.com), [6]. In front of the football field. New. Good atmosphere, great service, prices from C$15.000 pesos for a single room to C$8.000 for a hammock, nice view of the sea and of the Sierra.

• 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) 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 thie 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.

[edit] Get out

See Santa Marta for activities in the area.

This is a usable article. It has information for getting in as well as some complete entries for restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please plunge forward and help it grow!