Cote des Arcadins

The Côte des Arcadins is the stretch of coast between Cabaret and Montrouis where most of Haiti's beach hotels are, facing a line of three small uninhabited cays, the Arcadins, and the reef that runs with them. It is where Port-au-Prince goes for a weekend. The water is calm and shallow inshore, the diving and snorkelling on the reef is the best within easy reach of the capital, and the hotels along the strip range from simple to substantial.

What you actually see

• The beach strip - a run of sand hotels along the coast road, each with its own stretch.
• The Arcadins cays - three small uninhabited islands offshore, visited by boat.
• The reef - a long coral bank along the cays, dived and snorkelled from the hotels.
• The gulf view - La Gonave across the water and the mountains behind the road.

When to go

November to March is the dry season and the best water clarity. Weekends and Haitian holidays fill the hotels; weekdays are quiet. Hurricane season runs from June to November.

Honest expectations

The beaches are hotel beaches and most charge a day rate for non-guests. Quality varies enormously from one property to the next along a few kilometres. The reef has suffered from overfishing and bleaching and is not what it was.

Nearby

La Gonave lies across the gulf, and Port-au-Prince is about ninety minutes south.