CubaPLUS Magazine

The marine bottoms of the Cuban archipelago have exceptional characteristics, making them ideal tourist destinations to appreciate a rich submerged heritage where nature and history come together.

The Guanahacabibes Peninsula, at the westernmost tip of the island, is a true paradise for divers. The landscape stands out for its forests and virgin beaches, with exceptional marine bottoms that mix with the currents of the Gulf of Mexico to the north and the Caribbean Sea to the south.

Among the sandy areas, Las Tumbas, Playa Francés, Punta Colorada, and María la Gorda stand out, where the International Diving Center is located, offering over 50 dive sites.

The area boasts some of the best underwater landscapes in the Caribbean, with coral reefs, several caves (some dangerous), and a hundred floating wrecks, the latter in the area of Bajo de Zambo, where there is a true cemetery of ships.

These marine bottoms also house the largest black coral reserve in the Caribbean and are the most wellknown destinations in Cuba among professional divers, in addition to the Punta Francés Maritime National Park, located in the municipality of Isla de la Juventud.

The dive sites are known for their deep tunnels, underwater valleys, and channels, where there is a great variety of corals such as deer horn, black, and horned corals, among others.

To the south of Matanzas province, in western Cuba, lies the Ciénaga de Zapata, the largest wetland in the Caribbean and home to the largest crocodile breeding ground in Cuba.

This area is also an important reserve for migratory birds and an exceptional destination for diving enthusiasts.

The coastal landscape of the swamp is highlighted by the large number of caves, lakes, and flooded cenotes that connect with the sea through underground galleries, as well as by a great diversity of coral reefs.

The best dive sites in the area include El Octopus (Playa Larga),  Buceo Azul (Playa Girón), and El Pirata (Caleta Buena). In the waters of Bahía de Cochinos, it is also possible to find a great diversity of coral formations, sunken ships, and natural pools.

Meanwhile, in the waters of Santiago de Cuba Bay, in the eastern part of the country, there exists a submerged heritage that showcases part of national history and the wars of conquest and colonization between the hegemonic powers of the time.

It is also possible to see various Spanish ships, almost intact, that sank in 1898 during a naval battle with the United States for the conquest of this territory.

At the entrance-exit of Santiago de Cuba Bay, in an area known as Boca del Morro and at a depth of about 10 meters, there is an unusual sunken cemetery. There lie dozens of amphorae containing ashes of deceased individuals or thrown into the place after being scattered at sea.

According to Cuban professor and researcher José Luis Perelló, the marine bottoms of the Cuban archipelago contain a historic-cultural fortune with exceptional characteristics guaranteed by the traffic of Spanish fleets between the colonies and Europe, besieged by pirates and naval battles since the 16th century.