Reefs

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“Cades is worth the visit”

Apr 2024

... there is an abundant species of fish including turtles, rays and eels … definitely worth the trip out to the reef

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Top ways to experience Cades Reef and nearby attractions

Sail and Snorkel at Cades Reef
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

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4.0

36 reviews

Excellent

18

Very good

11

Average

4

Poor

2

Terrible

1

Sue D

Wickham, UK25 contributions

So much dead coral

Sept 2023 • Couples

We went out on a lovely boat trip to the reef and you can see what global warming has done. So much dead reef, but there is some signs of life coming back.
This reef attracts so many visitors and anyone can stand on something they shouldn’t and break some regrowing coral. This needs to be managed a little better.

Written 24 September 2023

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Haggis678

Toronto, Ontario502 contributions

Snorkelling Cades Reef off Antigua

July 2019 • Family

Firstly, Antigua is not known as a snorkeling destination. We walked in at Half Moon bay to snorkel at the Pineapple Beach Resort and saw only small sparse fish, a lone ray and that was it. We were hoping for more at this recommended reef and it delivered. We did not see sharks, sea turtles, octopus, eagle rays or other exotics, but we did see lots of medium to large colourful reef fish, interesting bleached coral formations, with lots of crevices and holes to explore. We did see a huge puffer fish. There is a strong current w a deep drop off on the other side of the reef, so potential for some larger fish, but not the day we were there. The water is warm and crystal clear.

Written 9 July 2019

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Phsykes

Canandaigua123 contributions

Good snorkeling

Jan 2019 • Family

We enjoyed snorkeling the reef. It is not off the beach, you will need to take a boat. I have not found good snorkeling off the beach in Antigua yet. Cades Reef was very good.

Written 17 February 2019

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

only_visiting

London, England54 contributions

Reef shoes are essential - sea urchins and coral

Jan 2020 • Couples

NOTE :- you cannot walk out to the reef without appropriate reef shoes.

There is NO sandy beach and you cannot swim without walking past the reef.

This is not a place to bring children as there are many sea urchins. There are much better beaches on the island.

There is a lot of sea grass and dead coral.

Written 7 January 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Matt

Ballwin, MO17 contributions

We were happy with this adventure

Oct 2017 • Couples

We booked this excursion with guest services at our resort. After paying the deposit with our resort, the rest was paid by credit card at the site. The trip included a ride to the location, kayaking and boat ride to the reef. The driver who took us to the site stopped at a few locations to point out some landmarks and fauna on Antigua. We were given snorkeling equipment and kayaked through the mangroves to the beach. There we took a short boat trip to the reef where we snorkeled for about 30 minutes. We then did the whole thing in reverse. Two things for improvement would be to upgrade the dock and point out the shower when we got back to the site.

The reef had plenty of fish. We saw a sting ray and lots of sea urchins.

We would definitely go again.

Written 16 October 2017

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Anaru M

London, UK318 contributions

2 Reefs 1 7 metres walk from beach the other 1/2 mile out

Feb 2020

I had to wear neoprene & rubber to walk from beach to get over the dead coral but then dropped into the shallow waters around the 1st reef. From the little I saw it was promising.. Locals told me which end to go to so I could see Octopus and Eels etc.

Written 29 February 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Julie L

Green Bay, WI40 contributions

Phenominal snorkeling adventure!!!

Mar 2017 • Solo

Best snorkeling experience in all of Antigua areas!!! Went 3 times in 2 weeks. Beautiful clear water, tremendous amount of marine life made it spectacular.

Written 1 February 2018

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Chipr1

Greater Manchester, UK35 contributions

Not much to see.

Nov 2017 • Couples

I'd spent 12 days in Antigua during which we visited the beaches recommended for snorkelling, some okay and some not so good. So, we booked on to the Cades Reef trip hoping to see much more than we had snorkelling off beaches such as Half Moon Bay, where we saw rays and several species of fish. Unfortunately that was not the case. The boat trip as a whole was fun, but the snorkelling at the reef a big disappointment, as we saw more from the beach. A lot of dead coral and hardly any fish!

Written 18 November 2017

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Lorraine O

London, UK8 contributions

Great area for snorkelling

Dec 2019

We found this to be a quiet area in terms of tourists (although Jolly Harbour is 15 minutes up the road, with everything you could need) and it's pretty and GREAT for snorkellers as there is a reef right there in the bay. I miss it!!

Written 15 February 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

nancysP8452YJ

Mobile, AL10 contributions

Great snorkeling adventure

June 2018

You have to take a cab then hire a boat to get to this reef. Very nice with larger fish. We saw huge schools of fish and a huge barracuda. No sharks this trip but the locals say there are plenty with no attacks on snorkelers.

Written 12 February 2019

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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