Cayo Largo del Sur
Encyclopedia
Cayo Largo del Sur, also known simply as Cayo Largo, cayo largo means largo island, is a small resort island
belonging to Cuba
, in the Caribbean Sea
no more than 25 kilometres (15.5 mi) long and 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) wide. It is the second-biggest island in Cuba
's Canarreos Archipelago
.
Christopher Columbus
is said to have visited the island on his second expedition in 1494, and Sir Francis Drake
may have also stopped on the island during his circumnavigation of the globe. Pirates also likely used the island as a base. Today, pristine beach
, scuba diving
, and wildlife draw tourists to the island, but no people live there permanently; locals who work in the hotels stay for about 20 days, then return to their families on nearby islands. There are five all-inclusive resort hotels on the island. Flights from Argentina, Italy, and Canada service the island. A large catamaran style ferry provides surface transportation.
Travellers to Cayo Largo should be advised nudism is legal in Cayo Largo and is practiced on the periphery of the resorts in designated areas, and on the many desolate stretches of beaches (20km) on this island. Typically, the fine white sand is packed hard on the surf's edge and allows easy walking.
A major tourist attraction of cayo largo are the west beaches, Playa Sirena, and Playo Paraiso. These beaches are a kilometre apart, and one may easily walk between them when the tide is not full. Playa Paraiso offers more privacy for the nudist, while Sirena offers full service facilities for tourists. A shuttle "train" service takes tourists from the resorts to these beaches. Sirena offers one of the finest under-developed beaches in the world. Activities on the beach may be curtailed during turtle egg laying season. The beach has water sports related to the hotels, a restaurant, dolphin attraction, docks for catamaran trips. The lee side of the beach features tidal flats where many very large starfish congregate and other tropical fish are easily viewed.
Cayo Largo is a limestone
island, formed over millions of years from the remains of marine organisms, such as the ones that build coral reef
s. Living coral reefs form one more attraction for tourists on this island, although coral bleaching
has stressed some reef communities in the Caribbean
. The northern coast of Cayo Largo consists largely of mangrove
s and salt pan
s. While the water south of the island appears clear enough to reveal the underlying ocean floor, the water on the north side of the island is cloudy. This cloudy water indicates that sediment is washing off the land surface and into the water or is being stirred up from the shallow sea floor.
Vilo Acuña Airport
(IATA: CYO, ICAO: MUCL) is an international airport on the island.
In November 2001, the entire island was covered by storm surge in Hurricane Michelle
.
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
belonging to Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, in the Caribbean Sea
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
no more than 25 kilometres (15.5 mi) long and 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) wide. It is the second-biggest island in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
's Canarreos Archipelago
Canarreos Archipelago
Canarreos Archipelago is an archipelago of Cuba.It is located south of the main island of Cuba, in the Caribbean Sea, at . It is bordered to the east by the Gulf of Cazones, to the north by the Gulf of Batabano and to the west by the Los Indios Channel....
.
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus was an explorer, colonizer, and navigator, born in the Republic of Genoa, in northwestern Italy. Under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean that led to general European awareness of the American continents in the...
is said to have visited the island on his second expedition in 1494, and Sir Francis Drake
Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Elizabeth I of England awarded Drake a knighthood in 1581. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the...
may have also stopped on the island during his circumnavigation of the globe. Pirates also likely used the island as a base. Today, pristine beach
Beach
A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...
, scuba diving
Scuba diving
Scuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater....
, and wildlife draw tourists to the island, but no people live there permanently; locals who work in the hotels stay for about 20 days, then return to their families on nearby islands. There are five all-inclusive resort hotels on the island. Flights from Argentina, Italy, and Canada service the island. A large catamaran style ferry provides surface transportation.
Travellers to Cayo Largo should be advised nudism is legal in Cayo Largo and is practiced on the periphery of the resorts in designated areas, and on the many desolate stretches of beaches (20km) on this island. Typically, the fine white sand is packed hard on the surf's edge and allows easy walking.
A major tourist attraction of cayo largo are the west beaches, Playa Sirena, and Playo Paraiso. These beaches are a kilometre apart, and one may easily walk between them when the tide is not full. Playa Paraiso offers more privacy for the nudist, while Sirena offers full service facilities for tourists. A shuttle "train" service takes tourists from the resorts to these beaches. Sirena offers one of the finest under-developed beaches in the world. Activities on the beach may be curtailed during turtle egg laying season. The beach has water sports related to the hotels, a restaurant, dolphin attraction, docks for catamaran trips. The lee side of the beach features tidal flats where many very large starfish congregate and other tropical fish are easily viewed.
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
island, formed over millions of years from the remains of marine organisms, such as the ones that build coral reef
Coral reef
Coral reefs are underwater structures made from calcium carbonate secreted by corals. Coral reefs are colonies of tiny living animals found in marine waters that contain few nutrients. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, which in turn consist of polyps that cluster in groups. The polyps...
s. Living coral reefs form one more attraction for tourists on this island, although coral bleaching
Coral bleaching
Coral bleaching is the loss of intracellular endosymbionts through either expulsion or loss of algal pigmentation.The corals that form the structure of the great reef ecosystems of tropical seas depend upon a symbiotic relationship with unicellular flagellate protozoa, called zooxanthellae, that...
has stressed some reef communities in the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
. The northern coast of Cayo Largo consists largely of mangrove
Mangrove
Mangroves are various kinds of trees up to medium height and shrubs that grow in saline coastal sediment habitats in the tropics and subtropics – mainly between latitudes N and S...
s and salt pan
Dry lake
Dry lakes are ephemeral lakebeds, or a remnant of an endorheic lake. Such flats consist of fine-grained sediments infused with alkali salts. Dry lakes are also referred to as alkali flats, sabkhas, playas or mud flats...
s. While the water south of the island appears clear enough to reveal the underlying ocean floor, the water on the north side of the island is cloudy. This cloudy water indicates that sediment is washing off the land surface and into the water or is being stirred up from the shallow sea floor.
Vilo Acuña Airport
Vilo Acuña Airport
Vilo Acuña Airport or Juan Vitalio Acuña Airport is an international airport serving Cayo Largo del Sur, a small coral island in Cuba. It is located within the special municipality of Isla de la Juventud.-Facilities:...
(IATA: CYO, ICAO: MUCL) is an international airport on the island.
In November 2001, the entire island was covered by storm surge in Hurricane Michelle
Hurricane Michelle
Hurricane Michelle was the thirteenth named storm and the strongest tropical cyclone of the 2001 Atlantic hurricane season. Michelle developed from a tropical wave that moved across the Atlantic, and formed into Tropical Depression Fifteen on the October 29. The depression slowly intensified as...
.
Climate
| Month | Avrg | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| Temp (C) | 26 | 23 | 23 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 24 |