Word is, Cuba’s underwater world offers some of the best – if not the best – diving in the Caribbean.
While our two-week Cuban itinerary doesn’t stretch to some of the island’s more remote diving destinations, we’re determined to get beneath the waves during our visit.
So we plot a route south, to a long, narrow bay made famous in the early 1960’s, when a failed military invasion stranded 1,400 US-trained Cuban exiles on the beaches of Cuba’s Bahia de Cochinos: the infamous Bay of Pigs.
This is Cuba’s most accessible diving area, and there are dozens of swim-out dive sites scattered the length of the bay.
Today, the military presence is gone but we pass plenty of roadside memorials and Revolution propaganda as we trundle out to our first dive site, Punta Perdiz, in a pre-loved yellow American school bus with holes in the rusty floor.
At the site, sun-seeking locals lounge about while we squirm with dozens of other tourists into faded, thread-bare wetsuits. Like much of Cuba, the dive gear has seen better days.
It works though and after equipment tests and buddy checks, we’re off, kicking away from shore with a divemaster and a handful of other divers. The water is crystal clear, the visibility stretching at least thirty metres.
Over the next two dives, the second at Cueva de los Peces, we explore thriving soft-coral gardens and several small boat wrecks on the white sandy sea floor.
A drop-off not far from shore travels the length of the bay and on both dives, we spend time searching out eels and tiny shrimp in the coral crevasses of the wall.
While we encounter small schools of tropical fish and some very big molluscs, the highlights of our dives are the unusual soft corals and the beautiful play of light in the translucent water.
If you’re looking for the excitement of big fish and pelagics, or the pristine beauty of more remote reefs, then make time to visit Cuba’s premier dive locations Jardines de la Reina or Isla de la Juventud.
If you’re after a day or two of cheap, easy access, fun diving though, put the Bay of Pigs on your itinerary.
Good to know
Getting there: The Bay of Pigs is on Cuba’s south coast. The main towns on the bay are Playa Larga and Playa Giron. Playa Larga is a two-and-a-half hour journey from Havana and ninety minutes from Cienfuegos.
We had heard that buses en route to Cienfuegos and Trinidad may stop at Playa Larga and Playa Giron on request, however the destinations are not listed on bus websites and we were unable to confirm whether it was possible.
The alternative is share taxi (collectivo). Our door-to-door collectivo from Viñales to Playa Larga was the same price as the bus to Cienfuegos, around CUC$35 (USD$35) per person.
When to go: Diving conditions are relatively consistent year-round in Cuba but the best time to dive is between December and April, during the dry season. We visited in January and had excellent visibility and water temps of 27 degrees Celsius. Rainy season (also hurricane season) runs from around June to November and can sometimes affect the quality of the diving.
Organising diving: We arranged diving through our hosts at the casa where we were staying in Playa Larga and ended up going with Octopus Club, along with a large number of other tourists. We were collected at our casa and returned to it afterwards. The company organised us into groups according to experience level (you must show your certification card). If you’re after a more personalised experience, or have particular dive sites in mind, we would suggest contacting a recommended dive centre directly.
Cost: For two dives, including transfers and all dive gear, we paid US$50 each.