What To Do On Vieques

This section introduces the tourist activities in Vieques, including the Best Beaches, Outdoor Activities (Water and Land based), Lighthouse and Fort Museums.  Please scroll down to learn more.

Best Beaches

Everybody has a favorite beach, and the choices are passionately defended. Perhaps the beach we love best depends at least partly on what we like to do there. Below, we offer some tempting suggestions.

A Quiet Picnic: Green Beach offers exotic scenery and stunning views of the main island as well as a popular weekend anchorage.  Enter via gate to Western Fish & Wildlife Preserve, next to the airport and proceed until the very Western tip of the island.  Snorkeling opportunities abound.	A Dip While Snacking and Shopping: Esperanza Beach, right off the Boardwalk (Malecon).  Cayo Afuera, an island in front of Esperanza has great snorkeling on the East side. Easy access from the staircase to the right of la Nasa, in front of Duffy's.
Snorkeling: There are lots of choices, but our favorite snorkel departs from Playa La Chiva (Blue Beach) and goes to the western side of Chiva island.  Enter via gate to the East Fish & Wildlife Preserve. Watch for turtles on the way out and for eagle rays once you’re in the corals. To get to Blue Beach, follow signs past Caracas (Red), cross bridge and look for Isla Chiva to your right.	Making New Friends: Sun Bay, enter via Sun Bay entrance: The old standby is still one of the loveliest beaches on the island. Convenient and popular with both visitors and locals.
Young Kids: Media Luna (enter via Sun Bay entrance and proceed East following signs) is protected and calm. Shallow water and a sandy bottom make a perfect spot for families.	White Sand and Crystalline Water: Playa Caracas (Red beach), enter via gate to the East Fish & Wildlife Preserve. This is the easiest to reach and most developed of the beaches in the eastern Fish and Wildlife Preserve.
Beachcombing: Playa Grande: On the south shore, this wild stretch of sand, below, is the perfect escape. Drive along the sand road to its end, cross the inlet and walk west forever.  From Esperanza, drive West toward La Hueca, turn left onto road 201 and follow the dirt road until the end.	Less Crowded: Playuela, enter via gate to the East Fish & Wildlife Preserve and follow the signs to Red Beach (Playa Caracas), then take last right before Red Beach.  Just around the corner from the busy Red Beach, Garcia Beach is smaller, facing a picturesque island.
Waves and Caves: Navio Beach (enter via Sun Bay entrance and proceed East, following signs) is a small beach ideal for body surfing.  There are two caves on the East side of the beach which can be explored when the tide is out.	A Taste of Undiscovered: Playa La Platita, Playa La Plata, Playa Escondida  These three are the most recently opened beaches in the East End. They consist of narrow stretches of sand between sea-splashed rocky outcrops. Views of expansive Ensenada Honda bay, rolling green hills with a lighthouse atop. Keep going straight after entering the East End, past La Chiva, follow the signs to the beach of your choice.

Outdoor Activities

On the Water

	Bio Bay Tours    The jewel of Vieques’ extraordinary natural attractions is certainly the bioluminescent bay. It is highly recommended that any visitor to the island does not leave without undertaking this magical nighttime trip to Mosquito Bay.  The bay is filled with one-celled organisms (dinoflagellates) which light up when disturbed and create a spell-binding, under-water fireworks display.  Access to the bay is strictly regulated, as its ecology is highly sensitive. It is inadvisable to visit the Bay without a licensed guide (four of the trained and licensed guides are listed below).       You have two options when it comes to this after-sunset trip: go in a large boat or in a kayak.  Island Adventures (787-741-0720) take you on the bio bay in an electric pontoon boat, which fits up to 34 people.  You will get an educational nature ride with a nighttime sky lecture and an opportunity for a swim.  Daily trips after sunset, except on full moon nights and for four or five days prior to full moon.       For a tour of the bay in a kayak, call Abe and April at Abe's Snorkeling & Bio Bay Tours (787-436-2686 or 787-741-2134) who offer either a two-hour nighttime bio bay tour or a six-hour trip in the afternoon which includes kayaking through the mangroves, snorkeling at a secluded beach, sunset meal and culminates in a nighttime bio bay tour.  For an environmentally conscious kayak tour, call Nestor from Travesías Isleñas Yaureibo (939-630-1267).  Nestor, a Vieques native, has a great passion for conservation of the island's flora and fauna.  Blue Caribe Kayaks (787-741-2522), conveniently located on Malecón in Esperanza, do two bio bay trips most nights. Snorkeling & Kayaking For most of us, swimming, snorkeling and boating are the first things we think of when we think of a Caribbean island. Vieques offers a full range of water activities, whether you're in a group or alone and whether you have equipment or not.  Kayaking is one of the most popular ways to go out on the water. You can arrange a snorkeling tour by kayak or from shore with Abe of Abe's Snorkeling & Bio Bay Tours (787-436-2686) or Nestor of Travesías Isleñas Yaureibo (939-630-1267). Either of them can do a kayak trip through the mangroves. At the Blue Caribe Kayaks (787-741-2522) in Esperanza you take a kayak trip to Cayo Afuera (the little island right in front of Esperanza), which you can then snorkel around. Organized daily trips to Cayo Afuera leave Blue Caribe at 10am and 12pm, but a custom trip can be arranged any time between 9:30am-3pm. You can also rent snorkel gear or kayak to explore on your own. For a mobile kayak and snorkeling tour, call Dondy at Expediciones en Bieke (787-435-0073), who can take you to any of a number of snorkeling spots and beaches that are only accessible by kayak. At Black Beard Sports in Isabel II (787-741-1892), you can also rent snorkel gear.
Scuba Diving If you want to arrange a scuba trip call Black Beard Sports (787-741-1892) who organize everything from shore dives and off-shore reefs to open water certification courses. A PADI Dive Center, Black Beard's offers scuba courses, as well as dive equipment sales and rental. Fishing & Sailing Anglers will want to contact one of the professional guides for flats fly fishing or perhaps a day of deep-sea trawling. Call Capt. J. at Amity Charters (787-502-3839). Of course, nothing beats a day out sailing. On the north side, Cap’n Bill of Vieques Sailing and Snorkeling sails out of the harbor of Isabel II: 787-508-7245. On Dry Land Visitors who have been inspired to ride by the ubiquitous presence of horses in Vieques and want to experience their gentle gait, can go riding with Dondy of Excursiones Bieke (787-435-0073). Dondy, a proud owner of eighteen horses, offers an hour and a half long trip around Esperanza, which includes a walk through the unspoiled lands above the village and a sunset stroll on the beach. Cyclists can rent mountain bikes at Black Beard Sports in Isabel II. Perhaps the simplest way to encounter the nature of Vieques is hiking. Trails abound in the National Wildlife Refuge lands on both the western and eastern ends of the island with flora, fauna and ruins to explore. Also, the boardwalk at Kiani Lagoon on the way to Green Beach is an easy way to discover the mangrove ecosystem.

Museum Time and Island Tours

	Three cultural centers offer glimpses into the human and natural history of the island. Lighthouse, Fort and Trust are each well worth a visit.  Any and all of them can be seen as part of a cultural and historical tour of the island with certified guide Letty Perez of Kianí Tours, 787-556-6003 or Nestor from Travesias Isleñas Yaureibo, 939-630-1267.
The Punta Mulas Lighthouse near the public ferry dock was built in 1895. It is currently closed for renovations, but the grounds provide spectacular perspective on the port.
	Fort Count Mirasol is one of the last forts built by the Spanish in the New World. Constructed around 1845, it was intended as a bulwark against Danish and British incursions but was used primarily as a prison. Today the fort is a museum of Vieques art and history. Wonderful views of Vieques, Puerto Rico, Culebra and St Thomas are afforded by its hilltop location. Open Wed-Fri 9:30am to 5:20pm, Sat-Sun 8:30am-4:20pm. 787-741-1717
The Vieques Conservation & Historical Trust is headquartered on the Malecón in Esperanza. Exhibits include everything from preserved insects and birds’ nests to pre-Columbian artifacts. Also there you can find “the world’s smallest aquarium.” Internet access and a giftshop are other highlights of a visit to the Trust. Open daily, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. 787-741-8850.