vergrössern

As a recreational activity, scuba diving gives the opportunity of making the most of the sea: sailing aboard comfortable speedboats, plunging into the waves and gazing at the marine wildlife in its natural environment in the most absolute silence

The island nation is blessed with well-preserved coral reefs where crystal-clear waters let divers make out a huge array of fish, mollusks, shellfish, sponges and other species. For those who prefer to make their vacations a good diving experience, there are immersions in sites riddled with legends about pirates and corsairs, sea battles, shipwrecks, terrible storms and human drama.
The Maria la Gorda Diving Center, in the Guanahacabibes Peninsula (World Biosphere Reserve) in the Pinar del Rio province, is a quiet cove away from the big city life that’s characterized by plentiful of marine life, shipwrecks and the passage of pirates and buccaneers.
In Santa Lucia, a diving site is perched on both sides of the Nuevitas Bay’s channel, north of the Camaguey province. Divers who swim around the nearby coral reef can find an assortment of sea beds and several shipwrecks from the 19th century. Yet the biggest attraction of all is the chance to swim near bull sharks and watch the guides feed these incredible creatures of over 10 feet long.
Jardines de la Reina is a cluster of keys and islets off the south coast of central Cuba. Virtually the whole zone is dotted with protected, uninhabited areas where fishing regulations stand. Turtles drag all the way to these beaches during their spawning season.
The diving area off Santiago de Cuba is vast and features balmy, crystal-clear waters where visitors can have a chance to dive into history as well. The biggest highlights are a vertical wall –it can be reached by just swimming off the shoreline- and the chance to gaze at sunken ships that once belonged to the fleet commanded by Admiral Pascual de Cervera y Topete. 

In this scene, some immersions are simply spectacular
Diving near sharks in Santa Lucia: You jump into the water, swim down the vertical wall to some 32 meters devep and adult bull sharks start approaching as the guide begins to feed them with his own hands.
The flooded caves of Bay of Pigs are both unique and tough to reach.
Diving near coral sharks and big fish off Jardines de la Reina is a one-of-a-kind experience given the abundance of sharks and other marine life species.
The Cristóbal Colón battleship near Chibirico, in Santiago de Cuba, features a 100-plus-meter-long vessel that lies in the bottom of a beach peppered with  rocks known locally as chinas pelonas.
The vertical walls off Maria la Gorda, El Colony, Bay of Pigs, Cienfuegos and Santiago de Cuba are awesome.
The antisubmarine frigate in Varadero is a large boat that used to give goose bumps during the Cold War. Today, it lies peacefully on the coral-laden white sands.