Playa Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz is a wide sandy bay on the leeward coast with fishing boats and a beach bar, and most people come to it as a departure point rather than a destination: the small boats that run to the Blue Room cave and to Playa Jeremi leave from here, and kayaks are hired on the sand for the same trip under your own power. The bay itself is calm, shallow at the edge, and backed by hills.

The landscape

• The boat trips - the small craft running to the Blue Room cave and Jeremi.
• The kayak hire - paddling the same coast under your own power.
• The bay - a broad sandy curve with fishing boats and a bar.
• The hills behind - the country rising steeply back from the shore.

When to go

Year round; boats run in the morning and early afternoon. Swell can cancel the cave trips. Weekends are busiest.

What to expect

Swell cancels the Blue Room trips with little notice. The beach itself is unremarkable compared with those nearby. Boat operators vary in quality and safety kit.

Nearby

The Blue Room Cave is along the coast, and Playa Jeremi is northwest.

Key facts