Historical or contextual introduction
Don Miguel, a fisherman by trade since age 12, stood at the shore and pointed to an empty spot between the sea and the apartment building. "Right there, right there, there was a black rock about three meters high. They called it the Piedra de los Enamorados. Couples would go sit there to watch the sunset. It's gone now. They blew it up to build the hotel's breakwater." His finger wasn't pointing at a vague memory, but at a map that only he and a few older neighbors carry tattooed in their minds. The El Rodadero that tourists know today —with its craft shops, seafood restaurants, and nightclubs— is just the most recent layer of a place that has been erased and rewritten several times.
El Rodadero was not always the massive beach resort we see in May 2026. Forty years ago, it was a fishing cove with wattle-and-daub houses, a dirt road leading down from the Troncal del Caribe, and a beach that changed shape every winter. The official maps of the time —the ones sold at the bookstore in the Center— showed a coastline different from Google Maps. This is not cheap nostalgia: it is vanished cartography. This article is an attempt to reconstruct that lost map, with the help of those who lived it and watched it fade away brick by brick, wave by wave.
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What to do: tracing the footprints of what is no longer there
Visiting El Rodadero today involves an exercise in urban archaeology. It is not just about sunbathing and eating ceviche, but about walking with eyes trained to see what is missing. Here are some routes that follow the steps of the former inhabitants.
The oral memory route
Start at Carrera 1 with Calle 17, right in front of the old Police Station building. There, if you are lucky, you will find Doña Elena, who has been selling corozo juice from a cart since 1985. Ask her about "the wooden ramp." She will tell you that where the shopping center parking lot is today, there was a ramp made of mangrove logs that fishermen used to haul their boats up when the sea got rough. Not a single nail remains. But if you close your eyes and listen to her voice, you can hear the thud of wood against the keel.
The hand-drawn map vs. Google Maps
Get a copy of the 1982 cadastral map (sometimes sold at the photocopy shop on Calle 14). Compare it with the current satellite view. You will notice that the coastline has shifted up to 50 meters inland in some sections. Where the terrace of the restaurant "La Fragata" stands today, there used to be a sandy area they called "El Cocal," because neighbors planted coconut palms there. The sea swallowed that piece of land during the 1998 hurricane. On the current map, that spot appears as "swimming area." On the old map, it was an orchard.
Testimonies from three neighbors
Don Miguel (74, retired fisherman): "The main street was dirt. When it rained, it turned into a mud pit. Cars would sink up to their axles. People wore rubber boots. Now it's all asphalt and 15-story buildings. But I still see the dirt road when I close my eyes."
Doña Elena (68, juice vendor): "The Piedra de los Enamorados was the meeting point. Young people would sit there to chat. They blew it up in 2005, when they expanded the dock. They said it was in the way of the tourist boats. But it was in the way of business, not the boats."
Don José (81, former owner of a grocery store): "El Rodadero wasn't just beach. There was a mangrove swamp behind where the Irotama hotel is now. We used to catch blue crabs and hunt iguanas there. They filled it all in to build the tennis courts. Now that mangrove only exists in the photos I keep in a shoebox."
Where to eat or drink: flavors that survive change
Although many iconic places have disappeared, some businesses keep the taste of old El Rodadero alive. Do not expect luxury; expect authenticity.
Doña Elena's juice stand
At Carrera 1 with Calle 17, from 8:00 a.m. until the juice runs out. Try the corozo well chilled, or the níspero if it is in season. Doña Elena has not changed the recipe since she started: water, panela, and fruit. A large glass costs $4,000 COP (reference price as of May 2026). It has no social media or advertising. Just word-of-mouth among the locals.
La Cabaña del Pescador
On Calle 12, two blocks from the beach. This restaurant has been open since 1978, when the owner, Don Ramiro, started selling coconut rice and fried fish on a wooden table. Today the place has clay tiles and ceiling fans, but the menu remains the same: red snapper, mojarra, and the inevitable patacón. Dishes from $25,000 COP. Ask for the "sudado de pescado," which is the most popular dish among those who remember the old El Rodadero.
Don José's grocery store (now closed, but still remembered)
Don José sold panela, coffee beans, and canned sardines from a wooden counter on Calle 15. It closed in 2019, when the building it was in was demolished to build a hotel. But the neighbors still gather on the corner and tell stories while drinking tinto from a thermos. The exact spot is now a glass and steel facade, but the smell of coffee and dried fish still lingers in the air, they say.
How to get there and transportation
Getting to El Rodadero is easy from anywhere in Santa Marta. But if you want to take the memory tour, I suggest you avoid taxis and use traditional public transport.
By bus from the Center
Take any bus on the "Rodadero" route at Carrera 5 with Calle 22. The fare is $2,800 COP (reference price as of May 2026). Get off at the Calle 14 stop, right in front of the old gas station. From there, walk towards the beach. The trip takes about 25 minutes during off-peak hours.
By mototaxi (recommended for the memory route)
Mototaxis are more expensive ($5,000 COP per short trip), but the driver can stop wherever you ask. Ask him to take you along the old road, parallel to the Troncal, which passes through the fishermen's neighborhood. You will see wooden houses that still retain the style of the 1970s. Not all have been replaced by buildings.
On foot from the airport
If you are coming from Simón Bolívar Airport, you can walk to El Rodadero in 40 minutes if you take the route along the beach. It is a pleasant walk, but keep in mind that the stretch between the airport and the bay has been modified by coastal erosion. Wear comfortable shoes and bring water.
Local tips
Here are tips that only a local would give you, and that will help you see beyond the postcard.
- Don't trust Google Maps for the coastline: the app shows a beach that has been altered by breakwaters and construction. If you want to see the original shape, search online for "mapa catastral Rodadero 1982" or ask at the library in the Center.
- Talk to the old folks: the fishermen who sit on the benches on Carrera 1 after 4:00 p.m. are a walking library. Ask them about "la playa de los muertos" (a stretch that no longer exists, south of the dock). They will tell you stories that don't appear in any guidebook.
- Bring a notebook and pencil: oral testimonies are fragile. If someone points out a place that is no longer there, write it down. In ten years, there may be no one left to remember it.
- Avoid organized "history" tours: most repeat generic information about the founding of Santa Marta. What you are looking for is in the small details: the name of a street that changed, the location of a freshwater well that no longer exists.
- Visit during the low season (April-June): El Rodadero is less crowded and it is easier to find neighbors willing to talk. In December and January, the noise of tourists drowns out the voices of the old-timers.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I find old photos of El Rodadero?
Most photos are in private family albums. However, the Historical Archive of Santa Marta (at Calle 14 with Carrera 4) has a digitized collection of images from the 1960s and 1970s. You can also ask at the photocopy shop on Calle 14, where they sometimes sell copies of photos donated by neighbors. On social media, the Facebook group "Rodadero Antiguo" is a good starting point: members share images and stories.
What happened to the Piedra de los Enamorados?
It was dynamited in 2005 during the expansion of the tourist dock. According to neighbors' testimonies, the rock was a block of black granite about three meters high that jutted out at the shore. Couples used it as a bench. Today, in its place, there is a concrete platform where tour boats dock. There is no official record of its demolition; the information is only preserved in oral memory.
Will El Rodadero keep changing in the future?
Yes. Coastal erosion is a phenomenon accelerated by climate change and the construction of breakwaters. According to a 2023 study by the Universidad del Magdalena, the coastline could retreat another 20 meters in the next 15 years. Several buildings built on the sand already show cracks. The El Rodadero we know today —with its hotels and restaurants— will likely be unrecognizable to the grandchildren of the current residents. The only things that will remain, if someone takes the trouble to record them, will be the hand-drawn maps and the fishermen's stories.
Do you have an old photo of El Rodadero? Share it in the comments or send it via DM and we will add it to the collaborative map.