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Curacao is a small island just north of the Venezuelan coast. With its 2 sister islands Aruba and Bonaire and 3 more islands near Puerto Rico, St. Eustatius, Saba and St. Martin, it is the tropical side of The Netherlands with which it forms the Dutch Kingdom. |
Curacao has a lot to offer for the diving tourist. Most of the dive sites can be reached from shore without a boat. Its secluded beaches invite you to a long lazy day at the beach, pleasantly interrupted by one or two dives. Here is a list of some of the famous diving spots in Curacao;
1: Playa Kalki/Alice in Wonderland
One of the nicest dive spots on Curacao, Playa Kalki, also called Alice in Wonderland, is a perfect spot for a day at the beach for divers, snorkelers and sun lovers.The name "Kalki" refers to the limestone in the surrounding cliffs. This small cove is situated in Westpunt below Kadushi Cliffs Resort. There are no amenities on the beach, but divers are welcome to climb the steps leading up from the beach and visit the resort for lunch or drinks. This is one of the top 10 dive spots on the island, so you will often meet up with other divers underwater or at the beach. Sand and coral rubble cover the bottom at the entry. Enter directly in line with the buoy. Visibility averages 30 meters (100 ft) and the distance to swim from shore is about three minutes to the wall which drops to below 18 mtrs (60 ft). Wave action is generally calm with little current, although occasionally the current can be strong and unpredictable. Beware of jetski's overhead. Look for green moray eels, lobsters, and mushroom shaped star coral formations, as well as a wide array of colorful reef fish. Below 30 mts (100 ft) are large areas of sheet or plate coral.
2: Mushroom Forrest & the Cave
The area of San Nicolas offers a number of excellent sites, several days could easily be spent in this area just diving and exploring. A four wheel drive is strongly recommended, especially in the rainy season. These sites are for the adventurous, as they are well "off the beaten path". The scenery is nothing short of spectacular. Entering the water is difficult, due to the high cliffs, so contacting one of the local dive operators for a boat dive is an option. The site is called Mushroom Forrest because the large number of mountainous star coral growing vertical on a sandy plateau for a "Forrest of mushrooms". The mushroom shapes occurred because the coral heads have been bio-eroded at their base to narrow columns by boring clams and sponges. They make great hiding places for tiny sea creatures. The Forrest can be disorientating so a compass can come in very handy. There is a large cave along the cliff side where you will often spot schools of fingerlings, and from time to time a nurse shark can be found sleeping under the ledge. Visibility averages 26 m (85 ft), wave action is calm and sometimes the current can be strong; the depth is from 12 m (40 ft) to 18 m (60 ft). Numerous species of fish and coral can be spotted here; flower corals, giant brain corals, anemones, turtles, porcupine fish, smooth trunkfish, yellowtail snapper, parrotfish, grouper, spotted drums, spotted morays, green morays, lobster and conch.
3: Diving at Tugboat, Superior Producer or The Valley
Porto Marie (The Valley)
Unique and diverse, the Valley site is one of the most popular sites on the island for good reason. Two parallel reefs with a "valley" between are home to a wide variety of reef life. Often you will see fish here that are rare at other sites on the island, such as pairs of cornetfish, and nurse sharks. Located at Porto Marie Beach, it is about eight minute drives from Willibrordus church. Enter over a sandy bottom with some coral rubble; it is about a five minutes swim to the first reef. A mooring buoy has been placed in the centre of the bay for boat dives; this is a good reference point to begin shore dives from.
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Minimal current or wave action is present; visibility is usually very good, over 30m (100 ft). At the buoy the depth is about 9 m (30 ft) sloping to the nearby first reef, which is at 15 m (50 ft). Swimming straight out will take you over the first reef, then to a sandy bottom, and finally to the second reef starting at about 18 m (60 ft). |
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The Valley is home to lots of colorful reef life: angelfish, parrotfish, groupers, brown chromis, yellowtail snapper triggerfish trumpetfish, cornetfish, sea turtles, lobsters and sting rays. Coral coverage is abundant and healthy.
4: Superior Producer
At the water plant in Otrabanda, take the road which leads straight to the shore. Directly ahead you will find the Double reef. Be very careful at the entrance, it is rock and very slippery, so booties are a must. Swim out through rough wave action and current for about five minutes. Visibility is good, about 30 m (100 ft). Look for good coral coverage and plenty of deep water fish. The Superior Producer is one of the finest wrecks in the Caribbean. The ship was outward bound with a shipment of clothing when its cargo shifted in rough weather. It sank just west of the harbor entrance. The ship is upright, with her wheelhouse at 24m (80 ft) and her hull resting in over 30 m (100 ft). Dive with a local dive operator the first time, it can be difficult to locate and those are not waters you want to be bobbing about in. Early morning is the best time to explore the Superior Producer; it’s a deep dive, the sea has not yet had a chance to build, and the visibility is at its best. A strong current of at least 1 knot is usually running. It is deep, monitor your time carefully. Look for grouper, barracuda, coral and anemones.
5: Tugboat
There's one word that really describes the tugboat, cute. This site is very popular, and is a diverse area with good snorkeling, great photo ops and lots of diving choices -- wall, wreck, deep. Located on the protected southeast side of Caracas Bay, the Tugboat site is accessible only by boat. The wreck rests at 5 m (17 ft) after sinking 25 years ago. It is covered with coral and well preserved. Although tempting, please do not rest or stand on it. A steep wall is located nearby (southeast), about a three-minute swim away, which drops to about 30 m (100 ft). The wall is lush with hard and soft corals along the top near the shallow ledge. Wave action is minimal, although at times there is a slight swell. There is usually no current at the tugboat itself, but as you head around the corner along the wall you may encounter a current that may become quite strong. Monitor its direction carefully; it can change rapidly at the point. At the tugboat look for morays, trumpet fish, angelfish and tube coral. Along the wall, look for morays, scorpion fish and lobsters in the numerous crevices and shallow caverns.
6: Diving in Little Curacao
Divers, snorkelers and sunbathers who have always dreamed about being marooned on an uninhibited, desert island will really enjoy the daytrip dive operators and boat charters offer to Klein Curaçao. This tiny, rugged, desolate island of volcanic rock is located off the southeast coast of Curaçao; about one-and-a-half hours by boat. Around it thrives one of the most magnificent underwater worlds you are likely to find anywhere. Inhabited by fishermen who use it as a temporary base when fishing the area, the only sign of men is several fishing shacks, a rickety wooden pier and the long forgotten lighthouse.
The beaches are covered in a thick layer of powdery, crystalline white sand and brilliant turquoise water laps against the sheltered leeward side. While visitors relax on the beach they can often watch schools of dolphins, feeding tuna, and pilot whales swimming by. The island is completely without shade, so don't forget your sunscreen on this all-day outing, or the reflection from the sand and sea will make even the memories of your worst sunburn seem like nothing.
There are four sites on the island, suitable for different levels of divers. On the northeast and northwest sides of the island seas can be very rough with unpredictable currents. Visibility is excellent everywhere, over 46 m (150 feet). On the northeast side of the island the dive boat will drop divers off in rough seas fir a spectacular drift dive. Here you will descent to undoubtedly one of the prettiest walls in the Caribbean. For intermediate and advanced divers only, divers will drift with the strong current around the point of the island to the leeward side. Keep an eye on your depth - the currents can bring you deeper than planned.
On the leeward side (southeast) of the island, the water is fairly calm with some swell and current. Suitable for all levels, these dives are accessible by shore or by boat. Adventurous cave divers will want to check out the northwest corner of the island where, in 30 m (100 feet), a large cave can be found near the bottom of a steep wall.
7: Seaquarium, Blue Bay
The Wall & Blue Bay
At this site you can drift along an almost vertical wall in places. Seldom dived because of the difficult access, the end by the point is the best. Healthy soft and hard corals grow almost right from the cliffs. Spend some time here before heading along the wall.
Blue bay, although less dramatic, is excellent. Protected on both sides by cliffs, this site offers good diving and snorkeling. The beach is private so the site is accessible only by boat. The bay is sandy with some wave action and normally very good visibility, over 30 m (100 feet).
The Seaquarium, southeast of Willemstad, just beyond the Lions Dive Hotel, has a collection of undersea creatures and plants found around the island, which live in channeled sea water to keep them as close as possible to their natural environment. The Seaquarium was built in 1984; the lagoons and marina being excavated so as to leave the original coastline untouched and do minimal damage to the reef offshore.
