To make sure you never miss out on your favourite NEW stories, we're happy to send you some reminders

Click 'OK' then 'Allow' to enable notifications

Not now
OK
Advert
Advert
Advert

Woman travels to Insta-famous pink sea only to discover what it actually looks like

Rhiannon Ingle

Published 
| Last updated 

Woman travels to Insta-famous pink sea only to discover what it actually looks like

Featured Image Credit: yup.shetravels/TikTok

We all dream of going on a magical holiday and capturing the perfect moment in the perfect picture.

But, for one disappointed traveller, this was far from the case.

Expecting an Insta-worthy vista, she was instead met with a total let-down which people are dubbing a 'travel fail'.

Advert

Loading…

Posted by the TikTok travel page Yup! She Travels, one adventurer clearly didn't get the memorable moment she was after.

Royal Williams made her way to a beach near Cartagena, Colombia which has become well-known on social media as the 'pink beach'.

However, upon arrival, she came to the quick realisation that this Instagram-famous beach was not quite how she remembered it.

Advert

In her TikTok video, Royal shares a picture of herself at the beach in 2019, with the water pink as advertised.

However, when she returned in 2021, Royal was welcomed by just a regular-coloured beach.

The solo traveller shared her disappointment with her thousands of followers, captioning the 13-second clip: "That one time in Colombia".

Royal Williams was let down by the beauty spot. Credit: yup.shetravels/TikTok
Royal Williams was let down by the beauty spot. Credit: yup.shetravels/TikTok
Advert

Local travel website, Cartagena Explorer, explains exactly why the beach has such a vivid colour.

Boiling it down to 'a combination of two factors,' the website briefly details the science behind the pink beach.

"The first [factor] is the high salt content of the water, which is why this area is also a sea salt mine," it reads.

The travel page adds: "The second is the presence of a micro-algae that thrives in the salty environment."

Advert

It is the mix of these two naturally occurring elements, alongside 'a brightly shining sun' that gives the Cartagena sea its distinctive rosy colour.

With 19.7k views and hundreds of likes, it's clear that the internet were eager to weigh in on Royal's findings.

Credit: yup.shetravels/TikTok
Credit: yup.shetravels/TikTok

One TikTok user couldn't even believe the two videos were of the same beach, commenting: "Is that even the same place?"

Advert

Others theorised as to why the sea water was no longer its Insta-famous bright pink.

"Could also be global warming?" suggested one person.

Another chimed in with: "Global warming at its finest."

Sharing the travel vlogger's frustration, a fourth wrote: "LOL I was there in March 2019 and this video is exactly our experience."

Several others also attempted to make sense of the stark contrast in water colour, wondering if it had anything to do with the 'time of year'.

However, Royal explained that while the videos shown in the TikTok video were two years apart, they were recorded at the same time of year.

Regardless, this will definitely make holiday-goers think twice before booking a flight just because of an Instagram post.

Topics: Community, Travel, Instagram, TikTok

Rhiannon Ingle
More like this
Advert
Advert
Advert

Chosen for YouChosen for You

Celebrity

Garth Brooks says his new bar will stock all beer amid Bud Light Controversy

3 hours ago

Most Read StoriesMost Read

Elon Musk questions whether Taylor Swift is just Napoleon Dynamite in drag

17 hours ago