Snorkel· Islas del Rosario· Other Caribbean

Islas del Rosario National Park

10° 10.5′ N · 75° 45.0′ W

About 28–30 low coral islands and the widest coral platform on Colombia's Caribbean mainland coast, protected since 1988 in a 120,000-hectare national park that runs from Barú's Punta Gigante to the San Bernardo islands - turquoise shallows, mangrove lagoons and reef walls 20–25 nm from Cartagena.

Belize Barrier Reef

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Archipelago position from Wikipedia. Park facts (Parques Nacionales): 120,000 ha down to the 50 m contour, coral platform of about 420 km², starts 23 km south of Cartagena at Punta Gigante. Wikipedia counts 28 known dive sites. Reef banks that are navigation hazards but rich dive sites (Spanish Wikipedia): Tumba Brazo (north), Casimba (central), Rosario (far west) and Tortugas (southwest). Rules for visitors: register and receive the park induction talk before entering protected areas; do not anchor on, stand on or touch coral; no collecting shells, starfish or coral; don't eat mero guasa, turtle or queen conch; no single-use plastics; no loud music; no fires; carry ID and health insurance; yellow-fever vaccination recommended. Park contact: ecoturismo.coralesdelrosario@parquesnacionales.gov.co (confirm fees, capacity and requirements). Day-visitor park fee is paid at La Bodeguita dock; Wikivoyage noted COP 16,500 including harbor tax in 2018 (verify locally - yachts should ask their agent whether a fee applies). Your agent must authorize the trip (the Port Captain wants to know where you are going); the Coast Guard has a station in the Rosarios and asks for a voluntary float plan. Navigation: 20.5 nm from Cartagena to Isla Grande (national guide). Isla Palma in San Bernardo is outside the park; everything else in both archipelagos is inside.

Islas del Rosario National Park

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