Shark Hole

Shark Hole is a natural pool cut into the coral shelf on Barbados's southeastern coast, a basin filled and flushed by the sea that sits calm inside while the surf breaks on the reef beyond it, so at low tide it can be swum in like a pool. Despite the name there are no sharks in it. The scramble down from the clifftop is short but awkward and there is nothing built there.

The landscape

• The natural pool - a basin in the coral shelf holding calm water.
• The reef beyond - the surf breaking outside the pool.
• The clear water - the sea flushing the basin with each tide.
• The scramble down - the short awkward descent from the clifftop.

When to go

December to May is the dry season. Low tide with small swell is when the pool is usable. Big swell makes the shelf dangerous.

Things to know

The pool is only safe at low tide with small swell; in anything bigger the shelf is dangerous. The scramble down is awkward and slippery. There are no facilities.

Nearby

Harrismith is northeast, and Crane Beach is southwest.

Key facts