Don’t-Miss Dives

Finca de Pepe

Grouper, grouper and more grouper. A 250-pound goliath grouper rules here; smaller goliaths, large black grouper, Nassau grouper and Caribbean reef sharks are present as well.

Los Mogotes

With arrow blennies, black coral shrimp and spinyhead blennies happily at home at this site, Los Mogotes resembles Disney’s It’s a Small World waterbased ride. Big animals, such as Caribbean reef sharks, giant green morays and tarpon, are regulars too.

Mangle Alto Key

The Caribbean has lost 90 to 95 percent of its elkhorn coral, but this species thrives in Gardens of the Queen in 15 feet of water off Mangle Alto Key. Bluestriped grunts, French grunts, yellow goatfish and schoolmasters seek shelter amid the coral. You can dive or snorkel this one, but be sure not to let the surge push you into the fragile coral.

Diving Options

Avalon Cuban Diving Centers offers guests a wide variety of accommodations, such as the liveaboards Avalon 1, Avalon II and Georgiana, and the floating hotel Tortuga. Aggressor Fleet's new Jardines Aggressor began operation in April. U.S. citizens can book charters on Jardines Aggressor through the Oceans for Youth Foundation’s People-to-People educational program.

Read Johnson's extended feature on scuba diving in Cuba's Gardens of the Queen