Cayo Coco Cuba Attractions

Pilar Beach in Cayo Coco

Attractions in Cayo Coco Cuba

Cayo Coco is the better known of the two cays, probably due to its earlier development. The best-known Cayo Coco beaches are Playa Larga and Playa Colorada; Playa Los Flamencos, a few kilometers west, is a slightly more isolated and quieter beach, and beyond this is Playa Prohibida. Together, they're among the most stellar beaches to be found in all of Cuba. In the interior of the cay are lagoons and marshlands, havens for the local bird and animal populations Cayo Guillermo is connected to Cayo Coco by a 15km (9-mil e) pedraplén. Cayo Guillermo beaches (Playa El Paso, Playa del Medio, and Playa Larga) are every bit as spectacular as those on Cayo Coco; in fact, at low tide, the crystal-clear waters are so shallow that you can comfortably wade out several hundred meters, making them preferable to the beaches on Cayo Coco for many guests. The landscape is very similar to Cayo Coco, but Guillermo boasts the most spectacular beach of either cay, and perhaps the entire northern coastline: Playa Pilar, long ago explored by Ernest Hemingway and today a popular day trip for hotel guests on both cays.

BEST CUBA DIVING SITES

CUBA DIVING INFO

La Jaula Depth: 30 meters

Description: Enormously attractive, this site combines big gorgonians, sponges in variegated shapes and colors, large snappers (Lutjanus sp.), groupers (Epinephelus sp.), stingrays (Dasyatis sp.) and eagle rays (Aetobatus narinari). Quite often, reef sharks (Carcharhinus sp.) and nurse sharks (Ginglymostoma cirratum) roam the area.

Las Coloradas Depth: 12 meters

Description: This zone has a very irregular bottom, with small caves, crevices and tunnels, large gorgonians and sea fans forming a massive boulder populated by schools of curious tarpon (Megalops atlantica), big parrot fish (Scarus sp.), queen angelfish (Holocanthus ciliaris),angelfish (Pomacanthus sp.) and a great variety of tiny coral fish.

Casasa Depth: 5 meters

Description: The coral bottom here is interrupted by sandy stretches. The biggest attraction is the presence of great barracudas (Sphyraena barracuda), several species of turtles, stingrays (Dasyatis sp.), and schools of grunts (Haemulon sp.), schoolmaster (Lutjanus apodus) and other coral fish species.

Los Tiburones Depth: 16 meters

Description: A zone formed by large rocks of coral origin communicating through narrow passages at their base in which reef sharks (Carcharhinus sp.) make their way. There are also numerous groupers (Ephinephelus sp.), snappers (Lutianus sp.), several species of barjacks (Caranx ruber), horse-eyejacks (Caranx latus) and many medium-size coral fish.

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