The Island of San Andrés

There is a place technically in Colombia (but actually off the coast of Nicaragua) with a rich history involving ownership by various countries .. the raiding of Spanish vessels by pirates led by Henry Morgan .. and a recent 70 years of increased tourism spurred by the advent of air travel from Bogotá and coastal mainland Colombia.

Spanish is spoken in this place.  English too.  And Creole. 

Preservation laws have limited the permanent move of mainlanders to this place, preserving near-pristine Caribbean beaches. 

The population is under 100,000 but several hundreds of thousands of tourists are welcomed each year.  Year-round high temperatures average about 85 degrees Fahrenheit on a monthly basis (except a few degrees cooler during the North American winter).

This is the seahorse-shaped 10 square-mile island of San Andrés. 

The island's capital of the same name but known locally as "El Centro" is at the north end of the island.  San Andrés is the principal island of an archipelago that officially became part of Colombia in the early 20th century.

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Have you visited or lived on San Andrés island?  What part(s) of the island do you recommend?  What would draw you back to San Andrés?  Do you believe there is still buried treasure from the long-bygone era of the privateer Henry Morgan?

  -- cccmedia on the Colombian mainland


Portions of the above post sourced by Wiki web page on San Andrés.

Fun facts about flying into San Andrés...

1.  There are direct flights from Panama City, Panama .. and about half a dozen of Colombia's mainland cities.

2.  The international airport of San Andrés is located right in the town center.  The runway ends at the beach. :cool:

cccmedia

Source:  Lonely Planet