Granma
Province Beaches |
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Marea
del Portillo Beach
Marea
del Portillo Beach is a dark-sand beach located on a spectacular cove,
with mountains as a backdrop. A peaceful place with tremendous natural
attractions, it is a part of the Sierra Maestra Natural Park. It has a
profusion of coconut palm trees and is an excellent place for scuba diving,
snorkling and other water sports. There are 17 scuba diving sites in the
area. The seabed has tall hillocks sepersted by narrow valleys covered
with beautiful invertebrate fossils, forming caves and tunnels where fish,
crustaceans and molluks hide. Its treasures include two very well preserved
ships of the Spanish fleet that where sunk by the US navy during the Battle
of Santiago de Cuba in 1898. |
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Further west,
towards Cruz Cape, there are coral formations, gorgonians, Common Sea
Fans (Gorgonia spp.) and colorfull fish-a tropicalparadise that's within
your reach from the Maria del Portillo Scuba Diving Center. The area also
has marine terraces which reach eight levels on some places of the coast
and extend underwater, as well. They are the best-preserved such terraces
in Cuba and make dives in this area even more interesting.
Location
& How to Get There
Marea
del Portillo Beach is linked to the other part of the Granma province,
in southeastern Cuba, by road. It is over 550 miles (900 km) east of Havana,
near Santiago de Cuba and Holguin. Bayamo, capital of the province,
has an airport for domestic flights, and Manzanillo-the closest city to
Marea del Portillo-has an international airport.
The province
also has road and rail
connections with the rest of the country. The Granma highway, which links
it to Santiago de Cuba Province, is 130 miles (210 km) in length and has
32 bridges-one of which is 2690 feet (820 meters) long- that span the
mouths of several rivers and offer some particularly stunning views.
What
to Do
Activities
include scuba diving and snorkling at the coral reef, fishing, other water
sports, going for all-day boat rides to nearby cays, hiking, exploring
the nearby mountains by jeep or on horseback (as you climb, you can note
changes in the lush tropical vegetaion and see towering peaks, valleys,
rivers and virgin forests) and drives along the coastal highway (with
scenes of great beauty). In addition, there is evening entertainment. |
