¡Bienvenidos!
Welcome to our travel guide www.cayocruz.net, online since 2009. This year we are celebrating the 15th anniversary of our dedicated website to this little Cuban paradise
You will find here lots of information about Cayo Cruz, an island located off the northern coast of the main island of Cuba (Atlantic side), and is part of an archipelago called Jardines del Rey (King's Gardens), which itself belong to a larger archipelago called Sabana-Camaguey. The Jardines del Rey archipelago includes well-known resort islands, such as: Cayo Coco, Cayo Guillermo, Cayo Paredon, and further west: Cayo Santa Maria, Cayo Ensenachos and Cayo Las Brujas. The Spaniards named the archipelago Jardines del Rey in 1513 in honor of King Ferdinand the Catholic.
Cayo Cruz is a long and narrow key, about 25 km long with a total area of 32 sq.km (12.3 sq.mi), roughly the same size as Cayo Largo (another popular resort island south of Cuba). Cayo Cruz is connected to the west with its neighbor, Cayo Romano, by a 5-kilometer causeway (one bridge of 125m).
It’s also connected to the south with mainland Cuba by another causeway Pedraplen to Playa Jiguey in the Camaguey province. Several roads, bridges and causeways were built to connect Cayo Cruz with Cayo Coco and its international airport "Jardines del Rey Aeropuerto" (CCC), see image above.
Transfer time between the Cayo Coco Airport and Cayo Cruz hotels is about one hour.
The marine park surrounding Cayo Cruz is a prime destination for sport fishing, but since 2019, this pristine and isolated islet has become a tourist destination with several hotels and services. According to the Gaviota Tourism Group (the main Cuban organization in the tourism sector), the number of hotel rooms in Cayo Cruz is expected to reach around 8000, in addition to many other tourist services.
The first hotel opened in the late summer of 2019.
There is a small commercial center named Plaza Turística located at the entrance of the island, near the hotel La Marina Plaza & Spa.
The Cayo Cruz Beaches stretch along almost the entire lenght of the east coast of the island, while the western coast is mainly covered with mangroves. These gorgeous beaches are made of extremely fine white sand and are bathed by turquoise and crystalline waters... A little paradise to discover!
In September 2017,Irma a category 5 Hurricane swept through the Jardines del Rey archipelago, delaying the opening of the new tourist destination Cayo Cruz. This major hurricane even changed the configuration of the island by creating two new channels to the south of the hotel zone, thus separating the islet into three sections. Since then, one of the openings has been sealed and a canal has been built to connect the marina to the Atlantic Ocean. The fact remains that the southern sector of the island cannot be accessed by walking from the hotels, at least for the moment. It would be a walker's paradise, as there are kilometers of pristine beaches.
Click to learn more about hurricane Irma 2017 (from our main site cayocococuba.net)
Click the following links to view detailed maps
On CAYO COCO :
Location of all Hotels
Location of Attractions, Activities and Services
On CAYO GUILLERMO :
Location of all Hotels
Location of Attractions, Activities and Services
On CAYO PAREDON :
Location of all Hotels
Location of Attractions, Activities and Services
On CAYO CRUZ :
Location of all Hotels
Location of Attractions, Activities and Services
Aerial video tour of the cayos of Jardines del Rey (The location of everything!)
See here where all Plazas Gaviota (shopping & enternaiment centers) can be found in the Jardines del Rey tourist hub.
Our cayocruz.net website is updated regularly, and we humbly believe that it's the most complete and detailed source of information about this Cuban destination. Having no business relationship (or otherwise) with any hotel chain or the Cuban government, our websites are created simply and solely for the purpose of keeping you informed about this beautiful Caribbean island. Enjoy you visit!
Lily & Normand
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