Explora Journeys in Santa Marta

Santa Marta is the oldest surviving Spanish city in Colombia, a Caribbean port wedged between the sea and the snow-capped Sierra Nevada. The cruise terminal sits right at the edge of the colonial center, so the cathedral, the gold museum, and the seafront promenade are all on foot, while the beaches of Tayrona and the coffee-country waterfalls of Minca are within day-trip reach inland.

What to do on a day in Santa Marta

• Cathedral Basilica of Santa Marta, the oldest cathedral in Colombia, about a 10-minute walk from the terminal
• Museo del Oro Tairona (Gold Museum), free and roughly 1 km from the dock, with goldwork and artifacts of the Tairona culture
• Parque de los Novios, the cafe-ringed central plaza in the pedestrian quarter
• The Camellon and Bahia de Santa Marta waterfront promenade running alongside the terminal
• Tayrona National Park beaches (Playa Cristal, Cabo San Juan), about an hour's drive plus a walk in, as a full-day excursion
• Minca, a Sierra Nevada foothill village with coffee farms and waterfalls, about 45 minutes inland

Getting ashore

Ships berth directly at the Terminal de Cruceros de Santa Marta, no tender, with the cathedral and pedestrian streets 10 to 15 minutes away on foot. One day handles the walkable old town comfortably, or you can trade the town for one inland trip (Tayrona or Minca), but not both well.

When to book the ship's excursion vs your own →

Weather and when to visit

• December to April (dry season). Typically hot and breezy with the clearest skies of the year, highs around 31 to 32 C and very little rain, February the driest month.
• May to mid-November (wet season). Typically hot and more humid with overcast afternoons and heavier rain, October the wettest; still warm but greener and stickier.