San Andrés y Providencia is an archipelago in the Caribbean, but belongs to Colombia.
Regions
This archipelago consists of two larger islands (San Andrés and Providencia) and a number of smaller islands. They are located about 775 km northwest of Colombia and 220 km off the coast of Nicaragua.
Other goals
Cayos de Albuquerque (Southwest Cays)
This atoll, 50 nautical miles southwest of San Andrés, has a diameter of 7 km and consists of the main islands Cayo del Norte and Cayo del Sur. Cayo del Norte protrudes up to 2 m from the sea, is overgrown with palm trees, the Colombian army has been operating a lighthouse there since 1980. Cayo del Sur is only overgrown with bushes and mangroves. The atoll is uninhabited and forms the westernmost tip of Colombia.
Cayos del Este Sudeste (Courtown Cays)
This atoll is located 22 km southeast of San Andrés and 35 km northeast of Cayos de Alburquerque. It is 14 km long and 4 km wide, the larger islands are Cayo del Este, Cayo Bolivar with a lighthouse, West Cay and Cayo Arena. The islands are regularly visited by fishermen.
background
From 1630 the island of Providence was settled by English Puritans. They preferred this tropical island to the cold North American New England province. However, they did not succeed in founding a colony similar to that in the north. They established slave farming. This led to a conquest by the Spaniards in 1641. In the following years the English government tried unsuccessfully to recapture it. But from 1670 to 1689, English pirates, led by Henry Morgan, controlled the island.
In 1803 Spain transferred the islands to the province of Veraguas and the viceroy of New Granada, the area was administered by the province of Cartagena.
In July 1818, the French pirate Louis-Michel Aury, sailing under the Argentine flag, managed to conquer the islands of Old Providence and St. Catherine with 400 men and 14 ships. There he found English-speaking Protestants with their slaves as a population. He used the islands as a base for supporting the freedom movement in Central America. His attempt to support Bolivar in Venezuela and Colombia's struggle for freedom failed.
After the Spanish colonies gained their independence, the islands of San Andrés and Providence fell to the Republic of Gran Columbia in 1822, which placed them under the administration of the Magdalena area. But the United Provinces of Central America also made territorial claims. In 1928 the countries of Colombia and Nicaragua signed the Treaty of Esguerra-Bárcenas, which gave Colombia control of the archipelago.
In the 1980s, when the Sandinistas were in power, this treaty was challenged by Nicaragua because it was believed to have come about under US pressure.
In 1999, Colombia and Honduras signed a treaty that defines the sea borders, in which the islands of Colombia were granted.
In 2001 Nicaragua sued the Caribbean Sea Borders, including San Andrés and Providencia, in the International Court of Justice. In response, Colombia increased its police and naval presence. In December 2007 the International Court of Justice ruled that the archipelago was part of Colombia.
American interference
As early as the 19th century, the USA claimed various uninhabited islands in the region, which are also claimed by Colombia: Bajo Nuevo Bank, Roncador Bank, Serrana Bank and Serranilla Bank. In 1903, the English-speaking population of the archipelago refused to detach from Colombia. On the other hand, Colombia encourages the resettlement of Spanish-speaking residents from the mainland.
language
The official language of Colombia is Spanish. But they also speak Palenque, Chibcha, Gualjiro and around 90 dialects. In some communities, however, the English and German language predominate. English is widely spoken in San Andres and Providencia.
getting there
There is an airfield on each of the two main islands.
Since September 2010 there has been no passenger air traffic from Panama, Ecuador or Costa Rica. All international travelers must enter mainland Colombia.
On August 16, 2010, a Boeing 737-700 coming from Aires Colombia from Bogota crashed on landing due to poor weather conditions and broke in three parts at the airfield in San Andrés. Of the 126 passengers, only 1 person was killed.
mobility
- There is a taxi rank at the airport, the fare to the hotels is US $ 8-10.
- Bike rental COP 20,000 / € 7 per day
- Motorcycle rental 60,000 COP / € 21 per day
- Car rental COP 220,000 / € 77 per day
Tourist Attractions
The sights are limited to nature above and below the water.
activities
- There are few hiking trails in the interior of the island on both islands.
- Boat tours
- water sports
kitchen
On the island of San Andrés the cuisine is more international, on Providencia it is more rural and local.
Restaurant prices 2011 (Hotel Restaurant)
- mixed salad - 13,000 COP / € 4.70
- Soup of the day - 9,000 COP / € 3.20
- Fish soup - 17,000 COP / € 6.00
- Spaghetti - 16,000 COP / € 5.60
- Fish - 28-32,000 COP / € 9.80 - € 11.20
- Fish, medium-sized, fried - 42,000 COP / € 14.70
- Fish, large, fried - 48,000 COP / € 16.80
- Lobster - COP 68,000 / € 24.00
- Chicken Breast - COP 26,000 / € 9.00
- Pepper steak - 33,000 COP / € 11.50
- Chop - 28,000 COP / € 9.80
- Club Sandwich - 19,000 COP / € 6.70
- Burger - 15,000 COP / € 5.25
- French fries - 4,000 COP / € 1.40
- Water - 2,500 COP / € 0.90
- Beer - 3-4,000 COP / € 1.05 - € 1.40
- Cocktail - 10,000 COP / € 3.50
- Milk coffee - 2,000 COP / € 0.70
- Cappuchino - 4,000 COP / € 1.40
nightlife
Providencia is a very quiet island with very little night life.
On San Andres, nightlife does not only take place in the hotels, there are also discos and live music outside.
security
Practical advice
currency
The national currency is the Colombian peso (COP), in spring 2011 the exchange rate was around 2,000 COP = 1.00 US dollars, or 1,000 cop around 0.36 euros.
