Jardines de la Reina · Cuba · Pinnacle · Cave & cavern
Farallón
Four sunlit tunnels bored through a coral mountain
Area photo: Alex Chernikh · CC BY 2.5
Farallón is a coral mountain rising from sand at 30 m to a summit at 15 m, cut through by four tunnels that open to the light above. Grunts, jacks and silver tarpon school around the structure, and Caribbean reef sharks and silky sharks work the water alongside it. The name translates as 'The Cliff', and the whole site fits inside one recreational profile.
Where it is and how deep
No published position for this site — the map shows Jardines de la Reina and its other sites; operators know the mooring.
The dive
Dives start on the top of the mountain at about 15 m, with the sand around its base at 30 m, so the structure can be worked top to bottom on a single dive. Drop down one flank first while you have the depth to spare, past schools of grunts held tight against the coral and creole wrasse streaming past in loose ribbons.
The four tunnels are what set the site apart. Each runs about 30 m through the coral, roughly 3 m wide and 10 m deep, and each has openings cut through the top so shafts of daylight drop onto the reef below as you pass. Swim them one at a time and keep your fins still; the passages are tight enough that a careless kick reaches both walls.
Back outside, hang off the mountain and watch the blue. The site is a magnet for pelagics, with large schools of grunts, jacks and silver tarpon working the structure, and black grouper and cero mackerel among the species divers pick out. Turtles, rays, Caribbean reef sharks and silky sharks add to what comes past. Finish on the summit at 15 m, where the safety stop is easy to hold.
Marine life and season
- Reef sharks
- Sea turtles
- Trevally & jacks
- Groupers
- Reef fish swarms
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Off-season | Off-season | Good | Prime |
Season follows Jardines de la Reina: Best conditions run November–May; summer stays diveable but hot, and September–October carries the peak hurricane risk.
Know before you go
- The tunnels are genuine overhead sections about 30 m long; go through one diver at a time and keep off the walls, which are living coral on both sides.
Questions divers ask
How deep is Farallón?+
The top of the coral mountain sits at about 15 m and the sand around its base at 30 m, so a normal dive works the structure between those two depths.
Sources
- Cuba Diving, Jardines de la Reina Dive Sites — Dive The World
In The Logbook
- How long should a surface interval be?Body & health · 8 min read
More dive sites in Jardines de la Reina
The reserve's signature reef shark dive, at 25 to 30 m
Seamount
A seamount topping out at 6 m with current-fed pelagics
Reef
Tarpon and jack schools over a drop-off at 25 m
A vertical wall plated with black coral and tube sponges
Similar dives elsewhere
A needle-thin pillar rising to 27 m, dived with Third Encounter
Dived day and night, with sharks working the coral
A 4 m coral top, soft coral at 15–25 m and almost no current
A narrow swim-through and mantas on a current-split point