An independent guide to Cartagena, Colombia
Photo: Richardaemix, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Islands
The near island
Tierra Bomba is the long island at the mouth of the bay, across the water from Castillogrande. The boat ride is short. What decides your day is which side you land on, and what kind of place is waiting there.
I crossed to Tierra Bomba on my trip to Cartagena in October 2023. Rainer Lang, editor
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1The short version
Tierra Bomba is the island across the bay from Bocagrande in Cartagena, Colombia, 6.4 km in a straight line from the Clock Tower to Punta Arena. The crossing to the north shore and Punta Arena takes 7 to 20 minutes, depending on the landing; Blue Apple at Bocachica gives about 25 minutes on its own site. It is enough for a beach day if you want a lounger, a pool and lunch close to town, or a public beach with sand restaurants, and are happy to see the city skyline across the water. For a club, pick by pier and pass; for the public beach, land at Punta Arena; for the forts, Bocachica. Boats from Muelle de la Bodeguita add the dock fee, 18,000 COP, unless the ticket includes it. It is not the trip for coral reefs and pale sand far from the city: that is the Rosario Islands or Barú.
The island19.8 km² inside its coastline, 7.1 km from north to south, with 11,728 people in four villages (who lives here).
Which islandAll five island groups side by side: Cartagena islands. Every beach by distance: Cartagena beaches.
2The chart
Everything is drawn: four landings, four places to leave from, the clubs and the forts.
The village at the north tip, nearest to Castillogrande. Along the north shore to the east are Playa Dorada and Playa Linda, with Palmarito and other small hotels. More below.
In a straight line: from Castillogrande beach, 2.3 km.
Suits: pool and service, with children.
The public beach facing Castillogrande, with sand restaurants, Fenix and a row of small hotels. More below.
In a straight line: from Castillogrande beach, 3.3 km; from El Laguito beach, 3.8 km; from Muelle de la Bodeguita, 6.0 km.
Suits: pool and service, public beach, with children.
A village on the bay side of the island. More below.
Suits: a place to live, not a day out.
The largest village, the forts on the channel, and the clubs on the south shore. More below.
In a straight line: from Castillogrande beach, 8.4 km (across the island; boats go round it); from Muelle de la Bodeguita, 11.4 km (across the island; boats go round it).
Suits: pool and service, forts and history.
Behind the Bocagrande hospital. Boats for Palmarito, Playa Linda and Club Kabanna, and the kayak tours.
In a straight line: to Tierra Bomba village, 2.3 km; to Punta Arena, 3.3 km; to Bocachica, 8.4 km (across the island; boats go round it).
Suits: pool and service, public beach, with children.
Speedboats for the public-beach day at Punta Arena, from 9:00.
In a straight line: to Punta Arena, 3.8 km.
Suits: public beach, with children.
In front of the Las Gaviotas building in Castillogrande: the boat for Vista Mare.
Suits: pool and service.
The tourist dock by the walled city, north of this chart. Fenix, Makani, Blue Apple, Playa Morena and the boats to the Bocachica forts.
In a straight line: to Punta Arena, 6.0 km; to Bocachica, 11.4 km (across the island; boats go round it).
Suits: pool and service, forts and history.
How to read it. Numbers 1 to 4 are the island’s landings, one for each side. The squares, 5 to 8, are where the boats leave on the city side. Diamonds are beach clubs, placed where each club’s Booking.com page or own site puts it; castle marks are the forts. The dashed lines are straight lines from the city to the landing, so the boat goes a little farther. Pick a kind of day above the chart and the places that do not suit it fade.
On a phone map: Punta Arena, Bocachica, Caño del Oro.
3Getting across
There is no bridge or ferry line to Tierra Bomba. On a club day pass or a beach-day tour the boat is part of the ticket, and where it leaves depends on who runs it.
| From | To | Stated times |
|---|---|---|
| Castillogrande beach, behind the Bocagrande hospital | Palmarito, Playa Linda, Club Kabanna, the kayak tours | Playa Linda: out at 9:00, 10:00 or 11:00, back at 15:00 or 16:00. Palmarito: 8:00. Kayaks: 8:00 |
| El Laguito beach | The public beach at Punta Arena | From 9:00; about 10 minutes by speedboat; last boat back at 16:00 |
| Las Gaviotas building, Castillogrande | Vista Mare | 8:00, the boat waits in front |
| Muelle de la Bodeguita, by the walled city | Fenix, Makani, Blue Apple, Playa Morena, the Bocachica forts | Playa Morena meets at 8:30 at gate 1 (Puerta 1); Makani’s own day pass has three slots, 9:00 to 16:00, 10:00 to 17:00 and 11:00 to 18:00 |
How long the ride is. The day-tour listings give 7 minutes to Punta Arena at the short end and 15 to 20 minutes to Makani at the long end; Fenix gives 15 minutes from La Bodeguita. Blue Apple, at Bocachica on the southern shore, gives about 25 minutes on its own site.
What you pay at La Bodeguita. Boats from the tourist dock charge the dock fee, 18,000 COP per person in 2026, unless your ticket includes it; several Tierra Bomba listings name it under “not included”. The gates and the morning routine at the dock are on the Rosario page: at the dock.
Dock fee, La Bodeguita18,000 COP“Uso de Muelle 2026”, per person, about USD 5. Not charged at the Castillogrande and El Laguito beach departures, as the listings describe them.
The boatsColombia’s maritime authority, DIMAR, requires two engines on boats to the Rosario Islands; a boat with one engine may run only to Tierra Bomba (DIMAR, 2018). Which boat suits which trip: boat rental.
AboardDIMAR asks visitors to book boats only with legally established companies leaving from authorised docks, and to wear the life jacket aboard (DIMAR). Safety in the city: is Cartagena safe.
4Beach clubs
A club day pass sells a lounger, a pool, a bar and a kitchen, with the boat included. Below is what each pass includes and leaves out, by side of the island. All the clubs near Cartagena compared: Cartagena beach clubs.
Sector Punta Arena · boat from La Bodeguita, about 15 minutes
On the GetYourGuide day trip, included: the boat both ways, a welcome drink, a beach bed in the second row, the pool and the beach, towels. Not included: the dock fee, lunch (an upgrade), a front-row bed and other food and drinks. The Viator full day pass includes lunch.
Fénix Beach Club day trip with boat transfer · Fenix full day pass with lunch
Sector Playa Dorada, north shore · boat from Castillogrande beach at 8:00
Included: a buffet lunch, a welcome cocktail, the facilities, a hammock area and a playground. Its hotel page lists two pools and puts Playa Linda a short walk away.
North shore, near Palmarito · boat from Castillogrande, out 9:00 to 11:00, back 15:00 or 16:00
Included: the boat both ways, a rest area at Playa Linda, the social areas and a Caribbean-style lunch. Not included: extra drinks, water activities and anything else you order. No outside food or drinks.
Boat from the port behind the Bocagrande hospital, Castillogrande
Included: the boat both ways, club entry with the private beach, pool, restaurant and lounge bar, beach beds, lunch and a welcome cocktail. Not included: a towel.
Sector la Coquera, west of Punta Arena · boat from Las Gaviotas, Castillogrande, at 8:00
Included: the boat both ways, a welcome drink, an à la carte lunch on a voucher and the use of a kiosk or a Balinese bed. Its hotel page lists a pool and a private beach area.
Bocachica area, by its Booking.com page · boat from La Bodeguita, about 20 minutes
Included: the boat both ways, a lounger on the sand, the pool and the beach, a non-alcoholic welcome drink, Wi-Fi and towel service. Not included: lunch (an option), the dock fee, the premium pool and lounge areas and the jacuzzi.
Day pass at Makani Luxury · Makani with boat transfer, drink and sunbed
Playa Mamón, Bocachica, on the southern shore · about 25 minutes by boat, then a 200 m sandy track
The club’s own site says it takes up to 150 day visitors. Its boat times and the rest of its rules: Cartagena beach clubs. Included on the day trip: the boat both ways, a lounger and towel, a welcome cocktail, a snack, a main course, ice cream and coffee, a short massage, filtered water, the pool. Not included: extra drinks. The listing calls the club wheelchair accessible; the club’s own site says it is not.
Beside Fuerte San Fernando, Bocachica · meet at La Bodeguita, gate 1, 8:30
Included: the boat both ways, a typical island lunch, the club’s facilities and a guided walk inside Fuerte San Fernando, 30 minutes with the entry ticket. Not included: snacks and bottled water. It pairs a beach day with the fort.
Before you bookCheck three lines on the listing: whether the dock fee is included, whether lunch is, and which pier the boat leaves from.
Not a day passTours that use the island without a club: the guided ATV tour of Tierra Bomba (boat transfers included) and the kayak tour to the island from Castillogrande beach at 8:00 (not for young children, as listed).
Farther outClubs in the Rosario Islands: Rosario Islands. A private boat for your group: boat rental.
5Punta Arena
Punta Arena is the village on the north-east corner, facing Castillogrande and El Laguito across the water: 3.3 km from Castillogrande beach and 3.8 km from El Laguito in a straight line. Its beach is public: restaurants on the sand rent chairs and tables and serve lunch, and you pay for what you use rather than for a pass.
The Punta Arena beach day with speedboat and lunch describes a small public beach with a local feel, where the sand and sea change from day to day and vendors walk past, and says it is not a private club. It leaves El Laguito from 9:00, about 10 minutes across, with a typical lunch of fried fish, rice, salad and patacón and a chair and table; extra drinks and water activities are not included. A second day, beach day on Tierra Bomba, Punta Arena, gives the ride as 7 minutes, with return boats from 14:00 to 17:00, and says it charges no boat or tourist taxes.
Pick Punta Arena for a day with local food where you pay for what you use, with children who want sand more than a pool, or for a half day. Pick a club instead if you want a pool and a lounger without vendors walking past.
On the sandAgree every price before you sit down or order: chair, table, fish, drinks. Scams and safety in the city: is Cartagena safe.
Off a cruise shipThe most common call this season is 7:30 to 18:00; plan your hours on the cruise port page.
6Bocachica
Bocachica is the village at the south tip, where the channel into the bay is narrowest. The Spanish built forts on both sides of it. UNESCO’s description of Cartagena’s World Heritage property names the forts at Bocachica, San Luis and San José, San Fernando, San Rafael and Santa Bárbara, among the defences of the bay (UNESCO, property 285).
Hours and entry. The operator, the Escuela Taller Cartagena de Indias, opens the forts every day from 8:00 to 17:00 (visitor page). Its visitor page calls entry free; its fee policy of June 2025 lists 10,000 COP for San Fernando, raised each January (fee policy). Carry pesos.
Getting there. The operator sends visitors by boat from Muelle de la Bodeguita by the walled city, where you pay the boat and the dock fee. The Playa Morena day includes a fort walk; other boat tours to the Rosario Islands pass the forts on the way out of the bay without stopping (Rosario Islands).
How long. The Playa Morena walk inside San Fernando takes 30 minutes. Go in the morning: the forts have little shade (the hour). For the bigger fortress in the city, see Castillo San Felipe.
The siege of 1741The forts at Bocachica fell to Vernon’s fleet before his attack on the city: the story at San Felipe.
World HeritageCartagena’s port, fortresses and monuments were inscribed in 1984 (UNESCO). The walled city itself: the walled city.
7The hour and the month
November On open sand, with the breeze, it typically feels like 33 °C (91 °F) or less until about 7:45, and it does not cool back to that before sunset at 17:37. From 10:00 to 15:30 the sun is too high for sand without a roof.
Sunrise 5:57Sunset 17:37Rain on about 9 days a monthSea typically calmer15 ship days
What the strip says. The boats go out between 8:00 and 11:00 and come back in the afternoon, so you are on the island through the hottest hours: the roof over your lounger matters more than the sand. The coral windows are the hours when open sand is bearable with the breeze, from hourly readings at the airport weather station. From December to April the sand typically cools again in the late afternoon, so the last boat gives you a cooler hour on the beach; from May to November it typically stays hot until sunset. See the forts when they open, not at noon.
These are typical values from a sea model for the open water off Cartagena; any day can differ. The crossings to the north shore and Punta Arena run inside the bay, and Blue Apple says it lies within the bay of Cartagena, so the rough afternoon seas do not affect it. Why the dry months are the rough ones, and the rain by month: the sea and the season and Cartagena weather.
SunsetThe sunset for your month is in the row above the strip. A club with a late boat lets you see it from the island; from the city side: Cartagena sunset.
ClosuresOn days with an adverse sea, the port captain can close the bay to small boats altogether (DIMAR). The operator calls the day.
When to goThe year in five bands: best time to visit.
8The island
Tierra Bomba is part of the city of Cartagena, and it is not only a place for clubs. The island is divided into four corregimientos, the city’s rural districts: Tierrabomba, Punta Arena, Caño del Oro and Bocachica (El Universal, 2020). In 2022 the city’s planning office counted 11,728 people in the four together, most of them in Bocachica (Cartagena Cómo Vamos).
Basic services are thin. In 2022 none of the four had a single user connected to piped water or to the sewer, according to the same report; a desalination plant opened in Bocachica in 2023. The clubs and hotels sit beside these villages.
In the villages, ask before you photograph people.
9Overnight
A night on the island gives you the beach before the first day boats arrive and after the last one leaves. These are places to stay on the island, by side, with what each page states.
How to choose. Punta Arena and the north shore for the short crossings and the view of the city, Bocachica for the forts. Ask each hotel how it brings guests across and from which pier. For the city instead: where to stay in Cartagena.
Other island nightsOn Barú: a night on Barú. In the Rosario Islands: day trip or overnight.
10Questions
Yes, if you want an easy beach day close to the city: a club with a pool and lunch, or the public beach at Punta Arena with sand restaurants. The boat ride is short and the city stays across the water. If you want coral, snorkeling and pale sand far from the city, go to the Rosario Islands or Barú instead, which take longer to reach.
By boat; there is no bridge. A club day pass includes the boat, from Muelle de la Bodeguita by the walled city, from the beach behind the Bocagrande hospital in Castillogrande, or from El Laguito, depending on the club. The tourist dock charges 18,000 COP per person unless your ticket includes it.
To the north shore and Punta Arena, 7 to 20 minutes, depending on the landing. Punta Arena and the north shore are the shortest crossings, from Castillogrande and El Laguito. Clubs at Bocachica take longer: Blue Apple, on the southern shore, gives about 25 minutes on its own site.
Yes. Fuerte San Fernando, the Batería de San José across the channel and the Batería del Ángel stand at Bocachica, open every day from 8:00 to 17:00. The operator says boats go from Muelle de la Bodeguita. The Playa Morena beach day includes a guided walk of about 30 minutes in the fort.
Yes. Booking.com lists about a dozen places on Tierra Bomba, from small hotels at Punta Arena to a resort at Bocachica, most with a pool and the beach in front. A night gives you the beach before the first day boats arrive and after the last one leaves. Ask the hotel how it brings guests across and from which pier.
