I recently spent 4 days on San Andres Island. The island is located in the Caribbean off the east coast of Nicaragua, but it is controlled by Colombia. The flight from San Jose was only 40 minutes! I purchased an inexpensive package that included airfare, hotel, transfers, food, alcohol, just about everything. I'm not really a fan of all-inclusive hotels, but it was a good way to experience the island for a few days. San Andres is a very popular destination for South Americans. The vast majority of the people staying at the hotel were from Colombia and Argentina along with a few from Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Uruguay.

The hotel

A nice Pritcharda growing near my balcony

The beach across the street from the hotel

A painted Coconut trunk on the beach

More painted coconuts

One of the many bars on the property

One of the nice things about staying at this hotel chain is that they own a total of 5 hotels on the island and guests can go to any one of them to eat, swim, drink, or use any of their facilities. The first night I went into town to check out the Aquarium Hotel and I stayed to watch their show. Each of the hotels have live shows every night.

The beaches in town were lit up at night with different colored lights.

Some coconuts along the road. This island should have been named Coconut Island! I have never seen so many coconuts in one small place before. There were forests of them everywhere.

The road that circles the island

The second day I took a walk along the main road. You have to be careful where you are walking!

An old cemetary across the street from the beach

The beach across from the cemetary

Another beach shot from the side of the road

The main road heading into town

Where I stopped for lunch

View from restaurant

Aguila michelada - Columbian beer poured over lime juice and ice with a salted rim. Delicious on a hot day!

Free appetizer - patacones

The most delicious conch fritters I have ever tasted!

The main beach in town

Johnny Key - an island off the coast where you can spend the day. This island kind of looks familiar... "Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale..."

Beautiful clear water

Along the downtown area is a promenade that runs the length of the beach

More coconuts on the beach

Another shot of Johnny Key in the sunlight

The promenade

White-washed coconuts on the beach

I was sitting at a cafe having something to drink and all of sudden this parade came by

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Hi Jeff, I went to San Andres a hundred years ago when I was an exchange student in Colombia. Thanks for bringing back some fond memories. Peter

Last parade shot

The show at my hotel that night

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Another shot of the hotel courtyard area

The third day I rented a gas powered golf cart and drove all the way around the island. The carts don't go very fast and it took a couple hours to circle the island, but the scenery was spectacular. First stop was this beach club that is also owned by the hotel chain.

Off the beach is a small island and shipwreck that you can wade out to. The water is only waist deep.