Hello from Colombia

[chillyinCanada]

Thanks very much, just got back from Providencia and can share another vid of that too, these are very fun to shoot and make.

That looks like some nice diving! Thank you! I don't think that I have ever seen more than 2 French Angels together at the same time before, so that footage was stunning. Nice to see a shark too, generally indicative of a healthy reef environment.

 

[DiveProKoko]

Thank you very much. I live inland very close to Bogota actually. Let me know if you decide to tack on a few days in March and head out to do some diving!

In the unlikely event that happens (I'm a bodyguard travelling with clients), I will definitely hit you up on that! Thank you!

 

[EssA]

Hi guys ! I'm headed to Colombia in the spring and I'm desesperately looking for some feedback on Providencia vs San Andres. We are travelling with toddlers, which makes it a bit more complicated and expensive to get to Providencia than to just stop at San Andres. What kind of diving does San Andres offer ? Is it any good or is Providencia the place to go ? Any chances of seeing sharks/turtles/rays/macro in San Andres ? Does it compare to Roatan ? Any recommandation for dive clubs ?

Thanks much !

 

[TMHeimer]

Welcome to the Board. I too would like to hear of particularly some shore dive sites in Columbia. I have not had much success googling the Pacific Coast there (Ecuador, etc.).

 

[Jafo19D]

Welcome to the Board. I too would like to hear of particularly some shore dive sites in Columbia. I have not had much success googling the Pacific Coast there (Ecuador, etc.).

Well first of all it's ColOmbia, no "U". I can only speak of the Caribbean side but I hope to go to Malpelo and Gongora soon.

I got my certification in Taganga which is near Santa Marta. Average diving but very cheap. I'd stay away from Santa Marta where I've been once. Very polluted and especially El Rodadero, sewage water pouring into the sea there. A friend of mine who got me into diving told me a gross story about that place. She volunteered for a cleanup in Santa Marta and they split up into different groups. Her friend was assigned the Rodadero area and ended up covered in ****. Not at all interested in diving there again with the exception of going to the nearby Parque de Tayrona which is a sanctuary. If you're interested in Parque de Tayrona ensure that it's open; they normally close it for a month in January/February. BTW, Santa Marta is the only place I have ever dived in where I have seen debris, came across nets on each dive.

I used to not like San Andres too much until I switched to another dive center. The first dive center is co-located with one of the largest hotels and near the airport and downtown. I went out with those guys about 3-4 times and it was ok; about the same as Roatan. The last time I was in San Andres I decided to switch dive centers and chose one on the other end of the island. That was a much better experience and I would love to dive there again.

I've also dived Baru and Islas del Rosario off the coast of Cartagena. Hardly anything to see in Baru, the only reason I dive there is to compromise with my GF so that we can go somewhere where the only thing to do is not only diving. I though Islas del Rosario would be much better but no. Yes it's better than Baru but not a whole lot. I found it to be kind cloudy and the guide said it was because of recent storms but someone else told me that it's like that a lot because of silt coming from the Magdalena river. Another thing to note about to Cartagena; it's the most expensive diving in the Colombian Caribbean.

Providencia is a blast. Much better than Roatan. It's also very cheap. In Providencia you can get by speaking 100% English. The only downside is getting there. Satena which is actually run by the Colombian air force and a couple of other charter airlines fly there but you have to go thru San Andres - about a 15 min flight. You can also take a large
catamaran which depending on how rough the seas are can take 3-6 hours. When I took that trip I was the only one out of about 20 passengers to not get nauseous; it can get pretty crazy on that boat but very comfortable and they give you pills for sea sickness. When you go there you will see lots of sharks; go with a dive center that doesn't feed them. I did my AOW there and booked with an operator but switched to Sonnys when I learned that the former fed sharks. The sharks are getting more aggressive because of the irresponsible DCs and in fact a few weeks before I got there a diver was bit when she went out with the operator who fed the sharks.

Hit me up if you have any questions.

 

[chillyinCanada]

Well first of all it's ColOmbia, no "U". I can only speak of the Caribbean side but I hope to go to Malpelo and Gongora soon.

I got my certification in Taganga which is near Santa Marta. Average diving but very cheap. I'd stay away from Santa Marta where I've been once. Very polluted and especially El Rodadero, sewage water pouring into the sea there. A friend of mine who got me into diving told me a gross story about that place. She volunteered for a cleanup in Santa Marta and they split up into different groups. Her friend was assigned the Rodadero area and ended up covered in ****. Not at all interested in diving there again with the exception of going to the nearby Parque de Tayrona which is a sanctuary. If you're interested in Parque de Tayrona ensure that it's open; they normally close it for a month in January/February. BTW, Santa Marta is the only place I have ever dived in where I have seen debris, came across nets on each dive.

I used to not like San Andres too much until I switched to another dive center. The first dive center is co-located with one of the largest hotels and near the airport and downtown. I went out with those guys about 3-4 times and it was ok; about the same as Roatan. The last time I was in San Andres I decided to switch dive centers and chose one on the other end of the island. That was a much better experience and I would love to dive there again.

I've also dived Baru and Islas del Rosario off the coast of Cartagena. Hardly anything to see in Baru, the only reason I dive there is to compromise with my GF so that we can go somewhere where the only thing to do is not only diving. I though Islas del Rosario would be much better but no. Yes it's better than Baru but not a whole lot. I found it to be kind cloudy and the guide said it was because of recent storms but someone else told me that it's like that a lot because of silt coming from the Magdalena river. Another thing to note about to Cartagena; it's the most expensive diving in the Colombian Caribbean.

Providencia is a blast. Much better than Roatan. It's also very cheap. In Providencia you can get by speaking 100% English. The only downside is getting there. Satena which is actually run by the Colombian air force and a couple of other charter airlines fly there but you have to go thru San Andres - about a 15 min flight. You can also take a large
catamaran which depending on how rough the seas are can take 3-6 hours. When I took that trip I was the only one out of about 20 passengers to not get nauseous; it can get pretty crazy on that boat but very comfortable and they give you pills for sea sickness. When you go there you will see lots of sharks; go with a dive center that doesn't feed them. I did my AOW there and booked with an operator but switched to Sonnys when I learned that the former fed sharks. The sharks are getting more aggressive because of the irresponsible DCs and in fact a few weeks before I got there a diver was bit when she went out with the operator who fed the sharks.

Hit me up if you have any questions.

Hey, welcome! I always wanted to dive Providencia. I managed at Rosarios and got the same story you did and yikes, expensive.

So this catamaran, does it sell beer?

 

[dhpd]

I've heard Providencia is great, but has recently been hit by a hurricane. Add to the itinerary a flight to San Andres to get back to the mainland, and you essentially lose one day of diving, unfortunately.

 

[Jafo19D]

I've heard Providencia is great, but has recently been hit by a hurricane. Add to the itinerary a flight to San Andres to get back to the mainland, and you essentially lose one day of diving, unfortunately.

I don’t understand that logic of having to lose a day because of a connection. It’s a 20 minute flight from Providencia to San Andres. You should be able to fly out of San Andrés the same day. And there’s always the option to take the high speed catamaran to/from San Andrés