Rosario Islands from Cartagena: Private Boat vs Shared, and What the Day Costs
Updated: 21 September 2026 · Written by Marta Fernández, founder of CABÚ Viajes, local operator in Cartagena de Indias (RNT 215668). We charter directly with the owners and captains — no agency fee.
In short: the Rosario Islands are a protected coral archipelago about 45 minutes by fast boat from a marina that sits ten minutes from the walled city. Going privately costs 850 to 3,800 USD for the boat for the day, not per person, plus a national park entry tax paid separately at the marina, per person. Going on a shared boat costs a fraction of that and buys a completely different day. This page is about which of the two you actually want.
What the Rosario Islands are
An archipelago of small islands and cays off the Colombian Caribbean coast, inside a national park created to protect the coral. That last part matters in practice: there is an entry tax, anchoring is restricted, and the water is clearer than anywhere you can reach from the city in under an hour. The islands themselves are low, green and mostly private — a mix of small hotels, day clubs and houses — with a few public beaches.
What you are buying with the trip is water. Cartagena's own beaches are brown, because a river meets the sea nearby. Forty-five minutes out, the colour changes completely. Almost every group that spends three nights or more in Cartagena gives one full day to this, and it is usually the day people remember.
Rosario or Cholón? They are not the same day
| Rosario Islands | Cholón | |
| What it is | Protected archipelago, clearer water, quieter anchorages, beach clubs and small hotels | A sheltered bay on Barú where boats raft up together; floating bars come to you |
| The day | A long lunch somewhere, swimming, snorkelling, a slower rhythm | Social, loud, everyone in the water between the boats |
| Distance from the marina | About 45 minutes by fast boat | About 35 minutes |
| Busiest | Holiday weeks | Every weekend, heavily |
| Who it suits | Groups with a range of ages, couples, anyone who wants the water more than the party | A group whose whole point is the party on the water |
A full day can include both, and for most groups that is the right answer: Cholón for a couple of hours in the middle of the day, the islands for lunch and the swim. Ask for it when you book — it changes the route, not the price.
Private boat or shared boat
This is the real decision, and the honest version is that the shared boat is the better choice for some groups.
- Shared boat. You buy seats on a scheduled departure. Cheap per person, fixed schedule, a fixed stop, and you go where the boat goes. For two to four people, or for a group on a tight budget, it is sensible and we will say so rather than sell you a charter.
- Private charter. You take the whole boat: your departure time, your route, your music, your stops, and you leave when you decide. 850 to 3,800 USD for the boat depending on size — 850–1,500 for a 36–40ft speedboat comfortable for up to about twelve, 1,500–2,500 for a 45–50ft for fifteen to twenty, 2,500–3,800 above that.
Because the charter is billed per boat, the arithmetic flips with group size: that same 36–40ft boat is 250 USD each across six people and 125 each across twelve. From around eight people a private boat usually costs little more than the shared seats and buys a day that is yours. Below that, it does not.
The full charter page has the prices by boat size, what is included, and — importantly — what a "yacht" actually means in Cartagena, because most of the fleet advertised that way is a 36 to 48-foot speedboat.
What the day costs, beyond the boat
| Item | How it is charged |
| National park entry tax | Per person, paid at the marina on the day. It is not ours to include, and any quote that hides it inside the boat price is hiding something |
| Private charter | 850–3,800 USD per boat, by size, for a full day of about eight to nine hours |
| Beach club | A minimum spend per person, separate from the charter. Worth knowing the number before you arrive rather than at the table |
| Food and drink on board | Quoted separately, or brought with you |
| Snorkelling gear, water toys | Where the boat carries them; not every boat does |
When to go, and what moves the day
December to April is the dry season and the most reliable weather. January and February bring a steady breeze that makes the heat easier on land and the sea choppier on the way out — a 36ft boat feels that, a 50ft boat much less. May to November is the rainy season: afternoon showers, lower prices, and the occasional day when the port refuses clearance.
That last point is the one that catches groups out. If the captaincy refuses the port clearance for sea conditions, the day moves. It is not negotiable and it is a good thing — it is the mechanism that keeps boats from going out when they should not. The practical consequence is simple: put the island day early in the trip, never on the last morning, so there is a spare day to move it to.
What we check before a boat goes in a quote
US travel advice for Colombia warns specifically about small tourist boats to the islands, and the warning is fair: the fleet is large and not all of it is compliant. Four things, in writing, every time:
- The captain's licence, valid and in his own name.
- Passenger liability insurance on the vessel, not just hull cover.
- The port clearance (zarpe) for that day.
- Maximum legal capacity, with your group fitting inside it and the crew counted.
We send all four with the quote. If another operator will not, that answer is the information you needed.
Frequently asked questions
How far are the Rosario Islands from Cartagena?
About 45 minutes by fast boat from a marina in the city, and that marina is about ten minutes by car from a house inside the walled city. Cholón, the sheltered bay on Barú, is closer at around 35 minutes. There is no long road transfer to reach the boat, which is a real advantage over Caribbean destinations where the charter fleet sits an hour from where you sleep.
How much does a day trip to the Rosario Islands cost?
On a shared boat you buy seats on a scheduled departure and it is cheap per person. Privately, the boat is 850 to 3,800 USD for the day depending on size — 850–1,500 for a 36–40ft up to about twelve people, 1,500–2,500 for a 45–50ft for fifteen to twenty, 2,500–3,800 above that — billed per boat rather than per person. The national park entry tax is paid separately at the marina, per person, in both cases.
Is a private boat worth it, or should we take a shared one?
From around eight people a private charter usually costs little more than the shared seats and buys your own departure time, route and stops. The same 36–40ft boat is 250 USD each across six people and 125 each across twelve. For two to four people, or on a tight budget, the shared boat is the sensible choice and we will tell you so rather than sell you a charter.
Rosario Islands or Cholón?
The Rosario Islands are the protected archipelago: clearer water, quieter anchorages, beach clubs and a long lunch. Cholón is the sheltered bay on Barú where boats raft up together and floating bars come to you — social and loud, and very busy at weekends. A full day can include both, and for most groups that is the right answer.
Is there an entrance fee to the Rosario Islands?
Yes. The islands sit inside a national park and there is an entry tax charged per person, paid at the marina on the day of departure. It is charged whether you go privately or on a shared boat, and it is not included in a charter price. Be careful with any quote that gives one number and does not say the park tax is separate.
What happens if the weather is bad on our island day?
If the captaincy refuses the port clearance for sea conditions, the day moves rather than going ahead. That is the mechanism that stops boats going out when they should not. It is why we put the island day early in an itinerary and never on the last morning: it leaves a spare day to move it to. The rainy season runs May to November.
Planning the rest of the trip
- Private yacht and boat charter: real prices by size, and what a "yacht" actually is here.
- A staffed villa inside the walls: from about 600 USD a night for a house sleeping 16, with the staff itemised.
- A local host running the days, 200–300 USD per day as its own line.
- The 3, 4 and 5-night itinerary, and why the island day goes first.
- Who we are and how to verify any operator before paying a deposit.
Write to us now, and what happens next
Message us on WhatsApp → +1 754 201 9833 · answered the same day between 8:00 and 21:00 Colombia time (COT). Prefer email or a form? Ask for your quote here.
Send these five things and nothing else is needed: the dates or the month, how many nights, how many people, what is non-negotiable for this group, and the city everyone is flying from.
- Within 24 hours on a working day you get two or three houses or boats that actually fit those dates, with what we checked on each one, and an itemised quote: each line priced separately, what is included and what is not, and the payment calendar. No agency fee.
- You choose. Nothing is held or booked until you confirm in writing. If nothing fits, we say so instead of pushing a substitute.
- Deposit against a company invoice — never 100% upfront, never to a personal account — and each traveller can pay her own share and receive her own receipt.
- One named contact on WhatsApp before, during and after the trip, who answers at eleven at night on the 31st. RNT 215668, verifiable in the public Colombian registry.
December and the first week of January are quoted on the actual house, in writing, because those two weeks sell out first.
Tell us what you need and get it back in 24 hours
The date, how many people, and whether the day is Cholón, the islands or both. Within 24 hours you get a written quote with the boat named and its length, what the charter includes, what is paid at the marina, and the licence and insurance attached. No agency fee, and nothing is booked until you confirm.
Ask for your quote here · Local operator in Cartagena, RNT 215668.
See also: Private Rosario Islands and Cholón charters.
