Cabo de la Vela has several beaches, and the tours divide them between the afternoon you arrive and the next morning. This guide brings together the four beaches included in the itineraries: Playa Arcoíris, Ojo de Agua, the beach at Pilón de Azúcar and Playa Dorada, with which tour visits each one and what to do there.
Playa Arcoíris
Playa Arcoíris is in Cabo de la Vela and, together with Pilón de Azúcar, it is the only one of the four beaches included on all three tours: you see it whichever route you choose. On the 2-day Cabo de la Vela tour, it is the last beach before the return to Riohacha. It is a stop for walking along the shore, looking at the coast and taking photos.
Ojo de Agua
Ojo de Agua beach is only on the 2-day tour itinerary, between Pilón de Azúcar and Playa Arcoíris. The 3- and 4-day tours to Punta Gallinas do not include it. If this is one of the beaches you want to see, the Cabo de la Vela tour is the route that stops there.
Playa del Pilón (Pilón de Azúcar)
Pilón de Azúcar is a rocky hill beside the green-toned sea, and the beach at Pilón is at its foot. From the beach, you climb the hill on a wooden staircase, with an enramada (open-sided shelter) beside it, and from the top you see the desert and the Caribbean Sea. For the climb, wear closed shoes or sturdy sandals and bring sunscreen and water.
Playa Dorada
Playa Dorada is included on the 2- and 3-day tours, on the afternoon of day 1, just before the Cabo de la Vela lighthouse, the viewpoint where all three tours watch the sunset. The 4-day tour does not include it in its itinerary.
How to visit them (and which ones are included in the tour)
Cabo de la Vela is reached by 4×4: from Riohacha, the route goes by road to Uribia and then along desert tracks, because there is no paved road. You also travel by vehicle between beaches. On the town beach in Cabo de la Vela there are palm enramadas (open-sided shelters).
Before going into the water, ask the driver-guide what the waves are like that day: at these beaches, swimming is decided at each stop. Bring swimwear and a towel or sarong, which are on the tour packing list.
Itinerary details as of October 5, 2026. Source: Punta Gallinas Tours.
Beach | Cabo de la Vela tour 2 days | Punta Gallinas tour 3 days | Punta Gallinas tour 4 days |
|---|---|---|---|
Playa Arcoíris | Day 2 | Day 1 | Day 1 |
Ojo de Agua | Day 2 | Not in the itinerary | Not in the itinerary |
Pilón de Azúcar and its beach | Day 2, in the morning | Day 1 | Day 1 |
Playa Dorada | Day 1 | Day 1 | Not in the itinerary |
Scroll the table sideways to see every column.
If you want to see all four beaches, the 2-day tour is the route that visits them all: it leaves Riohacha at 8:30 a.m., includes one night in a chinchorro hammock in a Wayuu ranchería (settlement), and costs from COP 409,500 per person in groups of 6 or more, or COP 803,250 per person for 2 travelers. Bring cash: there are no ATMs or digital payments on the route.
Responsible tourism
The Cabo de la Vela beaches are in Wayuu territory. Ask permission before photographing someone and do not enter a home or an enramada without an invitation. Do not take stones, shells or sand. Carry out your trash in the trash bag included on the tour packing list, and do not leave bottles or wrappers on the beach.
Visit these beaches on the 2-day Cabo de la Vela tour: it is the only tour that visits all four.
