The Dive Sites Snorkeling

Puerto Rico offers many Scuba Diving and snorkel Adventures for both experienced and novice divers. Desecheo Island, 15 miles west of Puerto Rico offers many diving opportunities; from Reef Diving to Underwater Cave Diving. With 100 ft. visibility, this part of Puerto Rico offers spectacular underwater views of marine life and natural reef formations.

The islands of Mona, Monito and Desecheo are located off Puerto Rico’s western coast. Three world-class destinations to visit on your diving vacation. Mona is a cavernous Caribbean “Tipui” rising from 22,000 feet underwater to a flat plateau atop 200-foot cliffs. A few white-powder beaches enhance the otherwise dry cacti terrain. Considered by many to be the Galapagos of the Caribbean, Mona stands alone in its wildlife complexity, both above as well as underwater. Large iguanas roam freely while red-footed boobies and whitetailled tropic birds fly overhead.
Underwater, fallen boulders create arches, crevices and tunnels, and vertical walls plummet 90 degrees into the abysmal depths of the Mona passage, the second deepest channel in the world. There are no rivers or runoffs and, apart from the small manned natural resources station and lighthouse, there is no human development. Visibility easily exceeds 150 feet. On the other hand, seas and winds can be higher than normal and the currents strong, but for the experienced diver, these minor inconveniences should not distract from exploring this beautiful side of the Spanish Caribbean.

Puerto Rico’s tropical waters are a diver’s paradise. The average ocean temperature is 81ºF and underwater visibility averages from 60 to 75 feet near the beach. Offshore it is easily 100 feet or more! While experienced divers may prefer boat diving, there are countless sites – especially on the northeast coast near Aguadilla and Isabela – for equally impressive shore diving.

The most exciting dives are made near Desecheo Island off Rincón, off Mona Island, 50 miles west of Mayaguez, and off Culebra and Vieques. For snorkeling, the shallow reefs near San Juan, Dorado, Mayaguez and Humacao are perfect. If you are a beginner, most major hotels and many dive shops offer SCUBA classes and snorkeling instruction.

Wherever you go underwater you are likely to find tropical flora and fauna that easily eclipse the most beautiful aquarium you have ever seen. Dive Puerto Rico and you may get “up close and personal� with sea horses that look like chess set knights, unusual arrow crabs, colorful parrot fish, and octopus, among the endless schools of sergeant majors and other colorful reef fish.

With the continental shelf surrounding it on three sides, Puerto Rico has an abundance of coral reefs, caves, sea walls, and trenches for divers of all experience levels to explore.

The Dive Sites

Metropolitan San Juan: This easy beach dive off the Condado district in San Juan is not as spectacular as other dives mentioned here, but it’s certainly more convenient. Lava reefs sculptured with caverns, tunnels, and overhangs provide hiding areas for schools of snapper, grunts, and copper sweepers. In the active breeding grounds of the inner and outer reefs, divers of all levels can mingle with an impressive array of small tropical fish-French angels, jacks, bluehead wrasse, butterfly fish, sergeant majors, and more-along with sea horses, arrow crabs, coral shrimp, octopuses, batfish, and flying gunards. Visibility is about 10 feet to 20 feet (3m-6m). The Condado reef is also ideal for resort courses, certification courses, and night dives.

Mona Island: Mona Island, 40 miles (64km) west of the city of Mayagüez in western Puerto Rico, is the Caribbean version of the Galápagos Islands. Renowned for its pirate tales, cave-pocked cliffs, 3-foot-long (.9m) iguanas, and other natural wonders, its waters are among the cleanest in Puerto Rico, with horizontal visibility at times exceeding 200 feet (60m). More than 270 species of fish have been found in Mona waters, including more than 60 reef-dwelling species. Larger marine animals, such as sea turtles, whales, dolphins, and marlins, visit the region during migrations. Various types of coral reefs, underwater caverns, drop-offs, and deep vertical walls ring the island. The most accessible reef dives are along the southern and western shores. Getting there is a pain, however. You must brave a 5-hour boat ride across the often rough Mona Passage.

Southern Puerto Rico: The continental shelf drops off precipitously several miles off the southern coast, producing a dramatic wall 20 miles (32km) long and teeming with marine life. Compared favorably to the wall in the Cayman Islands, this Puerto Rican version has become the Caribbean’s newest world-class dive destination. Paralleling the coast from the seaside village of La Parguera to the city of Ponce, the wall descends in slopes and sheer drops from 60 feet to 120 feet (18m-36m) before disappearing into 1,500 feet (450m) of sea. Scored with valleys and deep trenches, it is cloaked in immense gardens of staghorn and elkhorn coral, deep-water gorgonians, and other exquisite coral formations. Visibility can exceed 100 feet (30m). There are more than 50 dive sites around Parguera alone.

Fajardo: This coastal town in eastern Puerto Rico offers divers the opportunity to explore reefs, caverns, miniwalls, and channels near a string of palm-tufted islets. The reefs are decked in an array of corals ranging from delicate gorgonians to immense coral heads. Visibility usually exceeds 50 feet (15m). Divers can hand-feed many of the reef fish that inhabit the corals. Sand channels and a unique double-barrier reef surround Palomino Island, where bandtailed puffers and parrotfish harems are frequently sighted. Cayo Diablo, farther to the east, provides a treasure box of corals and marine animals, from green moray eels and barracudas to octopuses and occasional manatees.

Humacao Region: South of Fajardo are some 24 dive sites in a 5-mile (8km) radius off the shore. Overhangs, caves, and tunnels perch in 60 feet (18m) of water along mile-long (1.6km) Basslet Reef, where dolphins visit in spring. The Cracks, a jigsaw of caves, alleyways, and boulders, hosts an abundance of goby-cleaning stations and a number of lobsters. With visibility often exceeding 100 feet (30m), the Reserve offers a clear look at corals. At the Drift, divers float along with nurse sharks and angelfish into a valley of swim-throughs and ledges. For the experienced diver, Red Hog is the newest site in the area, with a p

anoramic wall that drops from 80 feet to 1,160 feet (24m-348m).

Monito lies just three miles from Mona. There are no beaches here, and diving is done close to shore beside huge fallen boulders. As in Mona, large schools of pelagics and mid-water fish darken the rays of the sun and during the winter months, humpback whales frequent the area. Sharks are scarce.

Snorkeling

Puerto Rico offers top-notch snorkeling even though freshwater run-offs from tropical outbursts feeding into the sea can momentarily cloud the ocean’s waters. In most places, where conditions are right, visibility extends 50 feet to 75 feet (15m-23m).

Mona Island: This remote island off the west coast of Puerto Rico offers the best snorkeling possibilities. The reefs here, the most pristine in Puerto Rico, are home to a variety of rainbow-hued fish, turtles, octopuses, moray eels, rays, puffers and clownfish: the single largest concentration of reef fish life in Puerto Rico. You must bring your snorkeling equipment to the island, however, as there are no rentals available once you are here.

Caja de Muertos: The best snorkeling off the coast of Ponce is on the uninhabited coast island of Caja de Muertos (”Coffin Island”). This isla got its name from an 18th-century French writer who noted that the island’s shape resembled a cadaver in a coffin. Over the years there have been fanciful legends about the island, including tales of necrophilia, star-crossed lovers and, of course, piracy. Island Adventures will take you to this remote spot for a full day’s outing with plenty of snorkeling.

Fajardo’s Playa Escondido & La Cordillera: On the eastern coast of Puerto Rico, the clear waters along the beachfront are the best snorkeling on mainland Puerto Rico. The best beach here for snorkeling is Playa Escondido, although the marine wildlife refuge known as La Cordillera right off the coast is even more alluring.

Vieques & Culebra: The best beach for snorkeling on Vieques is Playa Esperanza, especially that spot in front of the Tradewinds Guesthouse. This site gives you the best preview of dramatic (and living) antler coral. Nurse sharks and the occasional manatee also hang out here.

Desecheo: is the closest of the three to Puerto Rico’s mainland, just 20 miles away. A wildlife preserve, Desecheo has been left to follow its natural course. Undisturbed coral formations as well as a large variety of reef fish and pelagics reward those with a more adventurous spirit willing to make the one-hour boat ride out.