Cuba - Lonely Planet [161]
There’s no charge to visit Hotel María la Gorda and its adjoining 5km beach, both named after a voluptuous Venezuelan who was marooned here by pirates and turned to prostitution to survive. Divers are unanimous about the quality of the reefs here and it’s also one of Cuba’s prime yachting venues.
Activities
Península de Guanahacabibes is a paradise for eco-travelers, conservationists, divers and bird-watchers – or, at least, it ought to be. Feathered species on display here include parrots, tocororos, woodpeckers, owls, tody flycatchers, and zunzuncitos (bee hummingbirds) and, with no official settlements, the peninsula is one of Cuba’s most untouched. However, thanks to the rather draconian park rules (you can’t go anywhere without a guide), some travelers have complained that the experience is too limiting.
DIVING
Diving is María la Gorda’s raison d’être and the prime reason most people come here. Good visibility and sheltered offshore reefs are highlights, plus the proximity of the 50-plus dive sites to the shore. Couple this with the largest formation of black coral in the archipelago and you’ve got a recipe for arguably the best diving reefs outside the Isla de la Juventud.
The nerve center is the well-run Centro Internacional de Buceo ( 77-13-06) dive center based at the Marina Gaviota close to the eponymous hotel. A dive here costs a reasonable CUC$35 (night diving CUC$40), plus CUC$7.50 for equipment. The center offers a full CMAS (Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques; World Underwater Activities Federation) scuba certification course (CUC$365; four days) and snorkelers can hop on the dive boat for CUC$12. The dive center also offers four hours of deep-sea fishing for CUC$200 for up to four people and line fishing/trolling at CUC$30 per person, four maximum.
Among the 50 identified dive sites in the vicinity, divers are shown El Valle de Coral Negro, a 100m-long black-coral wall, and El Salón de María, a cave 20m deep containing feather stars and Technicolor corals. The concentrations of migratory fish can be incredible. The furthest entry is only 30 minutes by boat from shore.
Another option is Cuba’s most westerly located boat dock, the Marina Gaviota Cabo de San Antonio ( 75-01-18) on Playa Las Tumbas at the end of the Guanahacabibes Peninsula. The marina has fuel, boat mooring, a small restaurant, shop and easy access to 27 diving sites. The Villa Cabo San Antonio is nearby.
EXCURSIONS
The Estación Ecológica Guanahacabibes ( 82-75-03-66; www.ecovida.pinar.cu; 7:30am-3:30pm), opposite the meteorological station at La Bajada, can arrange guides, specialized visits and a five-hour tour to the park’s (and Cuba’s) western tip at Cabo de San Antonio. The responsibility is yours to supply transport, sufficient gas, water, sunscreen, insect repellent and food, which makes the task for independent travelers a little more difficult. During most of the 120km round-trip you’ll have dark, rough diente de perro (dog’s teeth) rock on one side and the brilliant blue sea on the other. Iguanas will lumber for cover as you approach and you might see small deer, jutías (edible tree rats) and lots of birds. Beyond the lighthouse is deserted Playa Las Tumbas where you’ll be given 30 minutes for a swim. Any hire car can make this trip though a 4WD is preferable. The five-hour excursion costs CUC$10 per person, plus the CUC$70 or so you’ll need to hire a car (there’s a Vía rental place at Hotel María la Gorda). There’s a possibility of other excursions to local communities in the area and at least four new hikes in the works; call ahead to check developments.
HIKING
The hike to Cueva las Perlas (Pearl Cave; CUC$8, three hours, 3km) traverses deciduous woodland replete with a wide variety of birds, including tocororos, zunzuncitos and woodpeckers. After 1.5km you come to the cave itself, a multi-gallery cavern of which 300m is accessible to hikers. The Del Bosque al Mar trail (CUC$6, 1½ hours, 1.5km) leaves