Santa Marta is a famous resort on the Caribbean Sea and a great base for coastal beaches and the Tayrona National Park. In addition to the traditional neighborhoods in the city, there is the somewhat remote resort of Rodadero with numerous hotels and a large sandy beach.
The city was founded by the Spaniards in the first half of the 16th century and is one of the oldest centers in Colombia. However, there are not too many valuable monuments. The most important of them is the baroque Santa Marta Cathedral and a small old town with colonial buildings. There are many restaurants and bars here. In the center of Santa Marta, you can also visit the Tairona Gold Museum and the Bolivarian Museum of Contemporary Art.
However, the most important attractions of Sanata Marta are waiting for tourists away from the center. This is the Rodadero district with hotels and holiday apartments and a large beach. The Santa Marta beach near the center and the Port of Santa Marina is not very big and very crowded, therefore Rodadero enjoys much better opinions from tourists. Many people also choose to go to beaches outside the city. Here are the famous, sandy and surrounded by hills Plaza Grande and the White Beach.
The city is a good base for exploring the Tayrona National Park. It covers a large part of the beautiful coast with numerous bays, beaches and wonderful tropical vegetation. It can be visited both from the land and from the sea.
