🌴 Tayrona National Park: Honest Review & Tips

Tayrona National Park is one of Colombia’s most iconic destinations, known for its pristine beaches, lush rainforests, and several hiking paths. Using a clear rating system, I share my honest review of visiting it, along with firsthand tips.

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🍀 Lukiih’s Verdict

I highly recommend spending a day (or two) in Tayrona National Park because it’s easily one of the highlights of Colombia’s Caribbean coast.

• The park features several pristine beaches and hiking paths. No cars are allowed past a certain point, so everyone must get to the beaches by hiking, boat, or horseback, making it a more rewarding experience.
• The experience is affordable even after accounting for transportation and entrance fees.
• Minimal preparation is required, as you only need to figure out transportation, pack accordingly, and be willing to hike (or pay for a horse or boat).

Planning a trip? Here’s what to know about Colombia.

🏆 Where Does It Rank?

A day trip to Tayrona National Park ranks as the #3 experience I had in Colombia. Here’s how it compares to other things I did on my trip:

	Experience	Location	Overall Rating
1	🌴 Cocora Valley	Salento	8.4
2	🪨 Guatapé & Piedra del Peñol	Medellín	7.4
3	🏝️ Tayrona National Park	Santa Marta	7.2
4	🐒 Amazon Rainforest	Leticia	7.0
5	🎨 Salento	Salento	7.0
6	💧 Minca Day Trip	Santa Marta	6.9
7	☕️ Salento Coffee Farms	Salento	6.8
8	🚡 Monserrate	Bogotá	6.7
9	🏰 Walled City & Getsemani	Cartagena	6.4
10	🎶 Comuna 13	Medellín	6.0
11	🤿 Grande Beach, Taganga	Santa Marta	5.5
12	🚲 Ciclovía	Bogotá	5.2

My Colombia itinerary features the above experiences.

✈️ About My Trip

For context on my review, here’s what to know about my trip:

• I finance my trips and don’t receive sponsorship; this review reflects my honest opinions.
• I visited Tayrona National Park in 2025.
• My Colombia trip was in January when it was more crowded and expensive.

• A day trip to Tayrona is a very memorable experience because of the number of beaches the hiking trail passes through. If you’re willing to add another 10 to 20 minutes to the typical hike, you can reach beaches with soft sands and barely any crowds.

• Tayrona National Park is not a particularly rare experience. There are many national parks with hiking paths and beautiful beaches, including Costa Rica’s Manuel Antonio National Park and Dominican Republic’s Los Haitises National Park.

• The main hike (between Zaino and Cabo San Juan Beach) is touristy, but can be a bit interesting. The terrain varies, there are a few stream crossings, and you get to see monkeys up close.

• What made Tayrona more enjoyable for me was the secondary hike (between Cabo San Juan and the Calabazo entrance). This portion of the park passes two uncrowded but beautiful beaches and feels more like a real hike, which makes it more rewarding.

• There are a few vendors close to Arrecifes Beach. I bought mango juice and guava bread from Panaderia Bere and was surprised at how good the bread and juice was.

• When it rains, the 10-minute hike between the popular Cabo San Juan Beach and the quieter Nudist Beach turns into mud that reaches past your ankles. It was surprisingly fun and adventurous.

• The most popular swimmable beaches in Tayrona, such as Cabo San Juan Beach, are extremely crowded to the point that it’s hard to find a place to sit in the shade.

You can avoid this by hiking even further away to beaches like the beautiful Nudist Beach (despite the name, there were barely any nudists when I visited).

• The primary hike (between the Zaibo entrance and Cabo San Juan Beach) does not feel like a real hike. The path is narrow and crowded, and there are a lot of wooden planks. If you get stuck behind a large tour group, you’re out of luck; it’ll be hard to pass them.

Tayrona National Park has an entrance fee of about $22 during the high season (it’s a few dollars cheaper in the low season.)

At the entrance, the park and some locals will encourage you to buy “seguro” (aka travel insurance), which costs around $2, but it’s not required.

Aside from the entrance fee, I also paid the “bus colectivo” less than $2 to skip around 3 miles of the initial hike. I tend to like to walk but I highly recommend taking this bus. The portion it skips is not pretty (it’s paved roads with no scenery) and you’ll want to beat the crowd to the beaches as much as possible, so the bus is worth it.

If you’re a less experienced hiker and prefer a hassle-free experience that requires less preparation, consider hiring a Tayrona hiking guide.

See my Colombia trip expenses.

• I hiked the full loop in Tayrona which took me from the Zaino entrance to the Calabazo entrance.
  • The primary hike between the Zaino entrance and popular Cabo San Juan beach is easy (i.e., it’s well-paved and has many wooden planks), but takes about two hours.
  • The secondary hike (between Cabo San Juan and Calabazo entrance) is moderate. There are steep portions and resembles a real hike with only one vendor along the way. This portion takes 2-4 hours depending on a few factors.
• Tayrona has four entrances, with the Zaino entrance being the main popular one and the Calabazo entrance being the quieter one. These two entrances are connected by a loop that passes through many of the popular beaches. The other two entrances are for other specific access. The easiest way to get to these entrances is to take an Uber from Santa Marta, the gateway to the national park.
• Make sure to figure out transportation early in the morning as the entrances close by 4 or 5 pm, so you need to budget time for hiking and enjoying the beaches. Bring swimsuits, either sandals or hiking shoes (I wore the latter, but one of my friends wore Chacos), sun protection, and a quick-dry towel.

For more detailed tips on my experience, check out my trip planner below.