Location
Playa Blanca is an insanely beautiful beach a boat ride from Cartagena. (link to getting the boat from Cartagena). This is probably one of the most beautiful locations and beaches we have come across. Any Hostel is located towards far the left of the beach as you alight from the boat.
Keep walking to the left and as you start to reach the last few cabanas you will come across Hostel Any.
To lay your head
Down the beach there are a bunch of options for hammocks and cabanas, all extremely rustic with no electricity or running water. Hostel Any is run by a lovely guy David and his auntie and uncle. They have a few cabanas of different sizes with single mattresses or doubles. All of the cabanas had mosquito nets.
This was the most rustic accommodation we have had in 9 months of travel. But to open our eyes 5 metres from the crystal turquoise water it was worth it.
Eating
Food is reasonable considering the location, breakfast of eggs, patacones, coffee or tea will cost you $6-8,000 COP, a giant fruit platter $5,000 COP, lunches and dinners of meat, fish, lobster or prawns plus rice, salad and patacones is $10,000-$15,000 COP.
Walk down the beach for a variety of seafood or wait for the fruit ladies in morning who will prepare a fruit platter from your seat. There are also a variety of other options that will be on offer during the day including fresh cooked crabs, prawns and the “coco loco” wheelbarrows with drinks in a coconut $10,000 COP.
Special orders of seafood can be arranged, just be sure to let them know early so they can go fishing!
Bottled drinks, alcoholic drinks, chocolate and snacks are also available from the little shop that they family offers.
Wifi
There is no wifi that we are aware of, perhaps on a dongle if you had one. Other than your camera, leave all your electronics in Cartagena, you will not want them!
We say
We bargained with David and paid $10 a night for a cabana. There are a few kinds of spots, some of the areas looked better for a party and drinking closer to the middle of the options. But we wanted something secluded and quiet and Hostel Any was perfect for that. After 3 there were often only 8 people on the beach at that end.
We planned to stay for 2 nights and stayed for 3. We would have stayed a few days longer, but it was nice to be able to have a proper shower once we got back to the mainland! This is a very special place if you are willing to rough it. Probably the most rustic, stunning and relaxing place we have stayed in our travels.
If you plan to stay on Playa Blanca, leave the majority of your stuff in Cartagena. Just bring your swimming togs, a towel, camera, torch, sunscreen, kindle or books, money and a sarong or something to lay on your bed. We used our towels for pillows, like I said – rustic!
The facts
Accommodation type: Rustic cabana’s
Price: $5-10 per person for cabanas
Web Address: none
Phone Number: unknown
Email: none
Want more on Playa Blanca?
- Getting the boat to Playa Blanca, Cartagena
- Where to stay on Playa Blanca
- Video Review: Mamallena Hostel – Cartagena
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hi, i didnt find the link to know how to get to playa blanca by boat, the one that you said lasts 30minutes,i dont want to do a tour
thank you
Hi Victoria,
thanks for stopping by 🙂 here is the link https://fivepointfive.org/getting-the-boat-to-playa-blanca-cartagena-colombia/
Enjoy your time there 🙂
Hi are there any volunteer opportunities at a hostel in Playa Blanca? I am looking for something ASAP. I speak Spanish and English fluently, ThankS!
Hi Lindsey, I doubt it very much, they are tiny tiny family operated hostels. But there may be some in Cartagena if you ask around. You can email the ones in Cartagena. Good luck with finding something!
This might be silly, but is there any way to reserve a cabana ahead of time? Is it just first-come, first-serve since there’s no email/phone/web address to contact Hostel Any?
Also, do you have any links / google map directions/links that would point me to the correct place for catching a speed boat to the islands (not a tour boat)?
Thanks!
Hey Kiki, I don’t think there is a way to reserve ahead sorry. I am sure there will always be somewhere to sleep as it is not a very busy place (except for the day visitors). Worst case scenario, you could get a boat back later that day if you couldn’t find a place – but I doubt that would happen. I don’t have Google maps as we travelled offline, but we have more directions in our post here https://fivepointfive.org/getting-the-boat-to-playa-blanca-cartagena-colombia/
Hi Serena, I just heard that now there is a bridge to Isla Baru, and no need for ferry. Shuttle can take us there and back for 40000.00 Colombian pesos per person. Is this correct?
There is now a bridge snd you can get there by bus or shuttle, probably about the same price as a boat. Hostel Mamallena in Getsemane section is a favored way to get a van. It is about an hour trip or a bit less. Cost is 50k COP. You can get packages for lot more but probably not worth it. Sometimes the Mamallena trip will include beach chairs at a particular hostel. If you haven’t been to Playa Blanca in a couple of years, you are in for a big surprise. There are MANY more people, especially on weekends and holidays-more hostels too. Standard hostel price is around 70.000 COP, about $23.00 USD. But price at any hostel may vary by 50%+ depending on which employee you ask so dicker a bit.
There are no more 10.000-15.000 COP complete lobster dinners. Or much of any other dinner. Expect to pay what you pay at restaurants in Cartagena. And maybe eat your main meal around lunchtime-the restaurants serving at night after the day tourists leave can be few in number. Writer mentioned this was his most rustic stay and that likelihood has not changed in the ensuing years. Any electricity is by generator and likely not 7/24. There is no running water I know of. Toilets flush by pouring from buckets of seawater into the tank or bowl. Rooms are as described, and I believe generally acceptable backpacker quality.
Entertainment is cheap. The infernal noisy, stinking, intrusive jet skiis can be had for $15 USD and a boat ride to good snorkeling for the same. A night boat ride to swim in a luminescent bay is about 8 dollars. You may be able to bargain these prices further.
The beach is nice, white sand. The water not the beautiful Bahamian blue shown in the photo but more greenish-nice enough though. I suspect writer might now be slightly less enamoured with the beach today. As said, they can be crowded and the hostels are built fairly close to the surf making for a beach in some area with not much depth. Swimming safe with very warm water. Like in Cartagena beaches, vendors roam everywhere. And like Cartagena beaches, vendors at PB are not at all obnoxious or aggressive although the massage ladies can be a bit forward.
I think you can find calmer and more relaxing beaches elsewhere in Colombia. I prefer Playa Blanca to Boca Grande in Cartagena although the 2 beaches themselves are more similar than not in many ways. The telling part is whether you can tolerate the lack of running water and the attending issues in Playa Blanca.
TIP: When you get off the boat, keep walking left on the beach (right if you arrive by land) which is generally north. Keep going until you reach an area with a relative lack of people. Also, keep in mind many hostels have a variety of rooms, up/down/front/back/even hammocks under roofs or in hallways.