Segunda Ensenada
Coveñas, Sucre, Colombia
Segunda Ensenada is a stretch of beach in Coveñas, Colombia, on the sheltered Gulf of Morrosquillo, calmer water than the open Caribbean thanks to the bay's shape. It's one of the few beaches in the country to hold Blue Flag certification for water quality, and the town leans into it with amphibious beach chairs for visitors who need them and a noticeably tidier stretch of sand than most.
The calm, clean water is a genuine draw for families, but it's a fairly built up beach town stretch rather than anything remote or dramatic, solid rather than spectacular.
How we score beachesThe gulf's calm water makes this a better swimming beach for kids than the rougher open coast further north, worth the detour if the surf at other Sucre beaches has anyone nervous.
Coveñas sits about twenty kilometers south of Tolú on a paved road, roughly a thirty minute drive, with easy street and lot parking near the beachfront hotels.
Access from the road to the sand is flat and short, no stairs or long walk involved, and the beach chairs available here make it one of the more workable stretches of sand for visitors with mobility needs.
December through April is the dry season on this coast, with calmer gulf water and less rain than the rest of the year. Water temperatures stay warm year round.
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