Last Updated on April 2, 2026
Image: Luxury Beach Club at the island’s south shore
Highlights
– Our experience in spending two days on Isla Grande, Rosario Islands, Colombia.
Time of Visit: March 2026
Duration of Visit: Two Nights
Description
The Rosario Islands is a group of 27 islands and islets located southwest of Cartagena. It is a protected national park and a popular tourist destination in Colombia. Not all the islands are inhabited and some are privately owned.
The popular islands visited by tourists are Isla Baru, Isla Grande, Isla Cholon and Tierra Bomba. Isla Baru is a popular destination because of Playa Blanca, a long stretch of white sand beach. Isla Grande is the largest of the islands and has several beach clubs. Isla Cholon is known for lively, high energy parties. Terra Bomba is the closest to Cartagena and is often chosen for its proximity.
We opted to spend a couple of nights on Isla Grande because that was a common recommendation from blogs we read. Many indicated that staying on the island allows visitors to truly unwind once the day tourists have left and calmness settles in.
We chose to spend our two nights at Luxury Beach Club on Isla Grande. Luxury and Manta are the two beach clubs on the island that we noticed have a stretch of white sand beach. The other beach clubs did not.
Activities
Luxury Beach Club
Our Overall Impression
There is nothing luxurious about Luxury Beach Club. Your average Holiday Inn feels more luxurious than our Tesoro room at the beach club.
We chose Luxury Beach Club because it and its neighbor Manta Beach Club (not shown on Google Map) has the only sandy beach real estate on the island.
Booking A Room
Luxury Beach Club is not available on aggregator sites like Booking.com or AirBnB. We booked directly on their website. There are not many pictures about their rooms on their website. The only available site reviews are what is posted on Google.
The Boat Transfer
The boat transfer from Cartagena to Isla Grande and back is not included with the beach club’s room rate. We had to purchase the boat transfer separately and a few days before our room reservation dates. We had to contact the company through WhatsUp to get a payment link which we paid by credit card.
We were instructed to be at the Cartagena Muelle de La Bodeguita at 7:30 AM. There was a long line to get inside the pier when we arrived. The line was to pay the pier tax. The process of paying the pier tax was slow and not streamlined.
Once inside the pier, we again had to fall in line to check-in with Luxury Beach Club to get our wristbands. It took an hour from arriving at the pier to getting our wristbands. Then we had to wait for about 15 minutes until we got called to get in the boat transfer.
It took about 45 minutes to get to Isla Grande from the Bodeguita pier.
Checking In To Our Rooms
We arrived at Isla Grande around 9:30 AM. Unfortunately, the room check-in time is at 2PM which is ironic as we were required to get to the island early but could not get into our room (this is due to the boat transfer schedule as they shuttle day trippers as early as possible). Fortunately, there was an available beach umbrella and lounge chairs that we could use to wait until we could check in (the umbrellas and chairs were reserved for day trippers).
The Room
We chose the Tesoro. The room was big, the air conditioner worked and the bed was firm and not sagging. Besides a couch, a chest cabinet to store our clothes, a small lamp table and a small safe, there was nothing else. No place to hang a wet towel, a chair to sit on or a table to keep our stuff off the floor. There was only one electrical outlet with two receptacles.
Tour Around Isla Grande
We signed up for a tour that included riding a boat around Isla Grande and making two stops. First stop was at the underwater wreckage site of Pablo Escobar’s plane (allegedly). The plane is about five meters deep but the water clarity was not great. We could not see the plane from the boat but became visible when we got into the water.
You need to have upper body strength to pull yourself into the boat from the water. There was a portable ladder hung on the side of the boat but it was not easy to get on the lowest rung as it is barely under water.
We cruised by Pablo Escobar’s abandoned mansion before making our second stop which was snorkeling over corals. The snorkeling area was located between Isla Grande and Isla Marina. It’s basically open water and far from either landmass. There was also a weak current. The corals were not colorful, mostly hard and gray. The fishes were not colorful either. There were jellyfish also.
Orika
Isla Grande has over 1,000 inhabitants and most live in the community called Orika. Not much to see in Orika but you can score beer and other drinks at the local store that would be a lot cheaper than the beach resorts. It took us about 15 minutes to reach Orika from Luxury Beach Club on foot.
Bioluminescent Plankton
Our tour guide said that he has evening bioluminescent plankton tours. We passed on it but thought we would mention it in case you are interested.
Where To Eat
Without a doubt, the best place to eat on the island is at the Majuaga Hotel located near the eastern end. The ambiance is nice and the prices are not much more than the menu offered at Luxury Beach Club. There are two separate seating areas, one for hotel guest and another for walk-ins if the guest area is full.
Its better to sit in the walk-in area than in the guest area in our opinion. The guest area has a fence to keep the wind at bay. But without a breeze, the flies linger around. We found ourselves swatting flies most of the time when we ate there on our second night. Unlike our first night when we were seated in the walk-in area, there was a slight breeze most of the time which kept the flies away.
How To Get There
Please refer to the Boat Transfer paragraph above.
Where To Stay
There are many accommodations on the island. Some are located in the island interior but most are by the water. If you do not mind not having a sandy beach, then there are plenty of choices. But if you prefer a sandy beach, then your choices are either Luxury or Manta Beach Clubs.
We did notice that the wind picks up in the late afternoon after the day trippers are gone. The water is no longer calm but the waves are nothing to be worried about. The wind mostly came from the northeast.
How To Get Around
Isla Grande is small so using your legs to get around is perfect. We reached Orika in about 15 minutes from Luxury Beach Club.
Our guide said that there is only one public beach on the island. The rest are private.
Expected Expenses
Luxury Beach Club – see website for nightly rates
Boat Transfer – 100,000 COP (27 USD) one way per person
Tour – 275,000 COP (75 USD) for two people. Lasted 2.5 hours
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Summary
The Rosario Islands are group of 27 islands near Cartagena. We only visited Isla Grande, the largest. We stayed in Luxury Beach Club which has fine light beige sandy beach with plenty of beach umbrellas, lounge chairs and shaded “camas”. Their staff is friendly, helpful and attentive.
The water around Isla Grande was not that impressive. It was not as clear as other Caribbean islands and definitely not in the same league as popular beach destinations in Indonesia or the Philippines.
But if your intent is to enjoy your favorite drink in a tropical setting with the chance to cool off in the Caribbean water at any time, then doing a day trip to Isla Grande may interest you. Upbeat music is constantly played and the staff is happy to get your drink and food at any time.
If you are not a party goer but dig the island vibe, Isla Grande may be tempting if you are already in Cartagena. Before the day trippers arrive (around 9AM) and after they leave (around 3PM), the island is quiet and peaceful. You may not have a long beach to take a stroll but the water is especially calm in the morning.
For us, one trip to this part of Colombia is enough.