Providencia – Travel Guide At Wikivoyage

See & do

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Providencia's appeal lies in its beautiful unspoilt volcanic scenery, white sand beaches, crystal clear waters, scuba diving, snorkelling and fishing.

Bahia Aguadulce is the main tourist area of Providencia, there are 5-6 small hotels, a few restaurants and a supermarket - all of which are walking distance to the beach.

Isabel Village is the main town in Providencia, it has an internet cafe, a cafe, a few supermarkets and a few miscellaneous shops. There is also a footbridge to Santa Catalina.

Santa Catalina is a smaller island connected to Providencia, and is considerably less developed. It has one shop, a few beautiful beaches and a couple of restaurants. On Santa Catalina, Morgans Head is a large rock formation that resembles a head. It is named after the pirate Henry Morgan, who used Providencia and Santa Catalina as a base for raiding the Spanish colonial empire many centuries ago. There are also the remains of an unexcavated fort that dates from the days of piracy on the island.

Bahia Suroeste has a long calm beach with a handful of simple restaurants and bars.

Bahia Manzanillo is a beautiful beach with the "Roland Roots Reggae Bar", featuring beach-parties and live acoustic music on the weekends.

Crab Caye is a beautiful small island off the East coast of the island. The snorkelling here is excellent, and the sea an amazing shade of turquoise. Along with the other small, beautiful islands named the Three Brothers Cayes, Crab Caye forms part of the McBean Lagoon National Park.

"The Peak" is the highest point on the island - and offers beautiful panoramic views towards the distant barrier reef, which runs along the East coast of the island. Excursions can be arranged by most hotels.

Scuba diving around Providencia is excellent - here one finds the 3rd largest barrier reef in the world.

15 km to the north of Providencia, at the top of the barrier reef, lies the remote little island called Low Caye, which can be visited on fishing trips. Even further north and east lie other even more remote islands such as Roncador, and idyllic atolls such as Serrana and Serranilla. Such remote islands aren't marked on most maps and are almost never visited by tourists.

One gets a better grasp of the island by seeing it from the sea. As such, boat tours are highly recommended.