CUBA: Jardines de la Reina
Liveaboard Expedition
Sharks, Crocodiles, and Cuba's pristine Coral Garden
Jardines de la Reina is a chain of remote pristine islands located off Cuba’s southeastern coast. Amazing encounters with different species of sharks, American saltwater crocodiles, huge schools of fish, and incredibly healthy reef and soft corals full of marine life.
Location
Duration
CUBA
8 days
from 2800 USD
Available dates
OPEN DATES UNTIL THE END OF 2024, contact us
About this Trip
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Duration: 8 days, 7 nights
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Boat: 180ft/55m boat with huge dive deck and camera tables
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Number of dives: 18 (number of days in the water: 6)
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Food: Food and drinks are all included during the expedition on the boat
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Conditions: Outside temperature: 30°C, water temperature: 28°C, perfect visibility, mild currents
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Skill requirement: OWD
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Accommodation: luxurious Avalon IV liveaboard
Price includes:
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8 days/ 7 nights on luxurious Avalan IV liveaboard
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Spacious cabins for 2 with private bathroom
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Package of 3 dives/day, total of 17 + 1 night dive (contact us to add 4th dive/day)
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All mandatory fees (port fee, conservation fee)
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Breakfast, lunch and dinners + coffee, water and juices
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Tanks and weights
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6 special beverages / day (soft drinks, beer, wine, cocktails)
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Laundry service
Price doesn't include:
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Airfare. We will gladly assist with the flights.
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Nitrox (110 USD/week)
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Transfers to/from Jucaro port:
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From Havana: 110 USD/one-way
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From Camaguey, Santa Clara, Cayo Coco: 55 USD/one-way
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Expedition Highlights
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Encounters with different shark species: schools of silky sharks, caribbean reef, nurse, blacktip and other reef sharks, if lucky even the majestic whale shark. SHARKS ON EVERY DIVE!
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Swimming with American crocodiles
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Big populations of fish including snappers, tiger, and goliath groupers weighing up to 180 kgs
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Eagle rays and stingrays
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Loggerhead turtles, green turtles, and Hawksbill turtles
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One of the healthiest coral reefs in the world, with vibrant soft and hard corals, and big formations of colorful sponges
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Mangrove nursery areas with young fish populations
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Night dive on the reef pulsating with life
ITINERARY:
Day 1
Trip to Jucaro and boarding the boat
We recommend arriving in Havana at least one day in advance. On the day of the liveaboard expedition start, early morning around 7-8 am, you will make a trip from Havana to Jucaro. You will board the 180ft/55m Avalon IV boat around 3pm in Jucaro. Safety Briefing, Crew Introduction, Necessary Dive Paperwork, Cabin allocation, and ship orientation will take place during the cruise across the Gulf of Ana Maria to arrive in Jardines de la Reina by the evening. The boat has 20 fully-equipped cabins, each has its own en-suite bathroom, daily housekeeping, and individually controlled heating and cooling. The boat has large deck areas for relaxing, a big dive deck, and camera tables.
After dinner you can enjoy a refreshing mojito in the hot tub, ensuring a good night’s sleep to start your program of activities the next morning.
Accommodation: cabins for two, liveaboard vessel AVALON IV
Days 2 –7
Liveaboard Expedition in Jardines de la Reina
Each day, you will enjoy 3 dives on various dive sites plus one night dive during the trip. The day will begin with a wake-up call at 7:00 am, breakfast at 7:15 am. During the briefing at around 8 am, our experienced instructors will explain every detail of the dive sites, all about shark behavior, highlights of the area, special characteristics of the marine life present, and the importance of the fragile coral ecosystem. Fast diving boats are used to reach diving spots having the opportunity to explore different sites each day and enjoy the view of mangrove channels, virgin beaches, birds, and other exuberant fauna during the trips.
Jardines de la Reina is truly a paradise for divers. You can look forward to encounters with Caribbean reef, silky, nurse sharks and more. You will dive with gracious sea turtles and admire huge grouper fish. The variety of healthy marine life and the untouched walls full of corals and sponges are living proof of the importance of marine protected areas like this one.
Accommodation: cabins for two, liveaboard vessel AVALON IV
Day 8
End of the expedition
Return to the mainland for disembarkation at approximately 9 am.
GALLERY
What to look forward to?
Jardines de la Reina is considered one of the best managed marine reserves in the world. The number of divers is strictly limited to a few hundreds each year to protect the pristine marine ecosystems of these waters.
On this exclusive liveaboard expedition, you will have three dives each day to explore the amazing variety of marine life that call this place their home. This place is known for stunning shark encounters. As soon as you emerge your face in the crystal clear water you will start seeing Caribbean reef sharks coming to check you out and early in the morning, you can look forward to big groups of silky sharks in the open blue.
One of the main events in Jardines is without a doubt the encounter with American crocodiles. These ancient creatures silently swim within the maze of mangroves or wait motionless for their prey. If the conditions are good and the behaviour of the crocodiles is calm, we can jump to the water and snorkel with them in between our dives.
The Jardines’ pristine environment is a perfect place to spot Loggerhead turtles, Green turtles, Hawksbill turtles, spiny lobsters, green morays, southern stingrays, huge groupers, barracudas, and many more. The reefs around this area are untouched, covered with vibrant soft coral, colorful sponges, and extremely healthy hard coral full of reef fish. Our private instructor will be with you on each dive and explain to you everything about the shark behaviour, the fragile coral ecosystem, and its importance to our oceans. Jardines de la Reina is definitely the place to be for any adventurous diver.
Our mission is to protect the underwater world, educate people of all generations and explore the treasures the ocean hides in its depths. Our conservation activities are our top priority and we fund them through expeditions like this, and if you join us, you will help us move our vision one step further.