Pearl Cays

The Pearl Cays are a group of about eighteen small islands lying some thirty kilometres off the Caribbean coast, most of them little more than a patch of white sand with a few coconut palms and a fringing reef, and they are the picture-postcard Caribbean that the Nicaraguan mainland coast is not. Boats run from Pearl Lagoon for day trips with snorkelling and a fish lunch cooked on the sand. The cays are also a hawksbill turtle nesting site and are under a conservation programme; several have been the subject of disputed private claims and building, which is a live issue locally. There is no accommodation and no facilities, so trips are day trips with everything carried.

What you actually see

• White-sand cays - small islands with palms and clear shallow water.
• Fringing reef - snorkelling off the sand.
• Turtle nesting beaches - hawksbill sites under community protection.
• Boat day trips - departures from Pearl Lagoon with lunch on the sand.

When to go

February to April is the driest and calmest window on this coast; the Caribbean side is wet for much of the year and seas are often too rough for the crossing. Trips cancel frequently in wind.

Honest expectations

The crossing is an hour or more in an open boat and cancels often. Boats are hired whole, so cost falls hard on small groups. There is no shade beyond palms and no facilities of any kind. Ownership disputes over some cays mean access can change.

Nearby

Pearl Lagoon is the departure point; Bluefields lies south.