Anguilla Island Information

The following activities are available in Anguilla most of the year

Scuba Diving

See our diving shops in Anguilla or our detailed scuba diving guide.

Golf

An 18 hole PGA standard course designed by Greg Norman.

Weddings ! Get Married in Anguilla !

Anguilla is an ideal place for anyone planning a wedding in a romantic beach front setting. You can choose to get married in one of the local churches, on an offshore cay, at the court house or on a sail boat, anywhere that appeals within reason. Getting married on the island is fairly straightforward and most hotels have their own wedding and honeymoon packages. The larger villas such as Cerulean and Temenos will tailor make your wedding and are great as an Anguilla honeymoon villa. The management and staff will ensure that everything is organised in advance, from start to finish. They can provide anything you need, from catering services to procuring the marriage licence, sorting out entertainment and photography, and providing a decorating service.

Deep sea fishing

From 700 USD per day you can go out fishing for tuna wahoo, dolphin fish (mahe mahe not dolphins) swordfish and marlin to name a few.

Sailing trips

There are a few day sails around at best or the odd sunset cruise.

Para-sailing, Windsurfing, Water-skiing

Organisable on the beach. windsurfers will find good winds off the northeast of the island at Captains Bay. Kitesurfing has not yet come to Anguilla
Take a course from Tennis to Cookery instruction and Pottery and Sculpture lessons.
A full program of Spa Treatments at your resort or find a Spa.

Sightseeing

There isn't anything so specific to see you can enjoy many walks of your own creation on the beach and inland however.

Hiking / Walking

Try Sandy Ground Area and its Salt Pond.
Take a historic tour of The Valley the Capital, available every Tuesday and Thursday, and also enjoy a guided rainforest tour.

Birdwatching

Art Gallery Tours Explore more than a dozen galleries of local artists.

Swimming With the Dolphins

If Anguilla had some drawbacks you might note that you cant go on an extended land trip into a rainforest (though it does have Katouche Bay a reasonable hike) that you could find in some Caribbean Islands. It is a specialist Island. But there are some trails for walking and hiking of note the Sandy Ground area and salt pond.

Anguilla’s Special Events

The Summer Festival, boat racing fireworks and calypso music in the streets as Anguilla does its Carnival ting !

There are many sunken wrecks and underwater parks that attract schools of fish around Anguilla. Check them all out by scuba diving in one of the seven marine parks that Anguilla offers: Little Bay, a calm, sheltered site suitable for training and night dives; Prickly Pear, a beautiful canyon characterised by ledges and caverns, where nurse sharks can be seen; Shoal Bay Harbour Reef System; Stoney Bay; Dog Island; Seal Island Reef System and Sandy Island click here for more on The Dive Sites of Anguilla. >>

For scuba diving the water visibility is highest in the summer but the high season for tourists on the island is from mid December until mid April. Its quite a dry island. Water temperatures are not as high as they are in the south Caribbean.

Anguilla Wreck Diving

MV Oosterdiep, which sits upright in 75ft in Road Bay
MV Meppel and MV Lady Vie, which are also both upright in 80ft at Sail Reef
MV Commerce and the MV Sarah, both of which sit in 80ft
MV Ida Marie which is shallower in 60ft.

Anguilla’s most famous wreck is actually far older than these. El Buen Consejo, which sank in 1772 has been designated an Underwater Archaeological Preserve, set aside by the Government of Anguilla for its protection and for public enjoyment.

Diving Safety
You probably wouldn't come to Anguilla for the scuba diving. That's not to say it isn't at all pleasurable or good. Just that its an expensive island and it isn't about scuba ! If you are here on vacation then doing a few dives might be just perfect. There is no Hyperbaric Chamber on Anguilla the nearest being neighbouring St Martin.

Organise Diving
There are 2 main dive shops if you don't organise this through your resort - The Dive Shops of Anguilla >>

If you just want to snorkel then get some gear from the dive shops and try in Shoal Bay east of little bay (via boat from crocus bay).

The Beaches of Anguilla

Anguilla has 33 beaches all open to the public but some of them can only be accessed by walking via hotels. There are a great variety of these beaches so decide which suits for your mood. Bars and restaurants dorn some like the 2 mile long Shoal Bay East.You really can't go wrong anywhere on Anguilla. You can swim go windsurfing or find a wild shore to explore, you can find a suitable beach on any part of the island for what you are looking for. Anguilla is a welcoming destination and exploring the beaches via Kayak should be viewed as a wonderful way to keep fit and detox from the work life.

Only on a few beaches are there waves and undertows that can be considered dangerous. This is especially true near Anguilla's northernmost tip, though rough spots are scattered here and there around the island. But they're still excellent places for picnicking, hiking, or watching the boats go by.

Turtles come and nest on some beaches, if you work in turtle conservation please contact us as we are keen to promote your story here on CD.

Some of the best beaches of Anguilla (the others you can discover for yourself)

Prickly Pear Cay - Uninhabited cay  day trippers snorkelling - 15 minute ride from Sandy Ground. Couple of beach bars.

Shoal Bay East -2 miles of sand beach home to Ku resort Shoal Bay scuba and the closest dive spots on the island. The restaurants and bars are on the beach. Check out this link for undiscovered treasures in the area http://www.anguilla-beaches.com/caribbean-beaches.html

Sandy Ground - Here the yachts drop anchor there is a pier and its the most happening beach perhaps. So if you want some energy give it a try. You can get boats to Prickly Pear Cay. Home of the August boat races this is a big party time. Check out Johnno's for perhaps the most trendy bar on the island. This is the centre of the night-life of Anguilla.

Shoal Bay West - Another Crescent shaped beach with views of St Martin. Great swimming.

Maundays bay - The home of Cap Juluca and its twin domes. To access this public beach enter through the resort. A very fine beach.

Rendezvous Bay - With powder soft sand with calm and clear water, its the longest beach in Anguilla. There are nice views across to the hills of St Martin though this makes it feel less remote ! It is home to some resorts and hotels, villas, restaurants and bars.

Meads Bay - A long north coast beach with well spaced out resorts means its nice to walk.

Barnes Bay - for some seclusion and perfect white sands. Its not secluded but you might be the only one here.

Blowing Point Ferry Terminal on the south side of the island is for ferries to and from St Martin and St Maarten and St Barths.

Thanks to Shoal Bay Scuba Anguilla, British West Indies

Sea Fan

This reef is what we consider the safest dive site in Anguilla. The boat is anchored on a Sandy bottom in 7 to 8 feet of water. It is protected by three reef structures which means that is always calm with very little water movement.

However once you hit the start of the reef in 15 feet of water you are surrounded by all types of soft coral and a forest of sea fans; max depth is 40 feet. This dive is great for snorkelers and novice divers alike and offers a great chance of seeing Southern Stingrays, Eagle Rays and Turtles.

Beginners Reef

At this reef, the boat is anchored in 10 to 15 feet of water and you swim along the edge of the reef structure that will take you down as deep as 60 feet at which point the reef curves to your left/west and heads another 60 feet. We see Tarpon, Southern Stingrays and Atlantic Spadefish on this dive.

Angel Reef

What a great dive this is! One of our personal staff favorites for both snorkeling and diving, its name is due to the large number of Angel fish seen at this dive site. This site has 10-12 feet high sea whip and huge sea fans. We anchor in 22 feet of water at the edge of the reef which goes anywhere from 1ft to 65 ft deep. Lots of Stingrays and Turtles also seen here.

Lobster Reef

This reef takes its name from the Caribbean lobster that can be found moving about over this hard coral reef. Most reef sites in Anguilla are made up of Soft coral however this is a huge horseshoe shaped plateau that starts in 25ft and goes to a drop off at 45 ft, from there we hit a sandy bottom in 85-100 ft of water. On the edge of the drop-off we are able to see Nurse Sharks under the ledgers.

Shoal Bay Reef

This reef is famous on Anguilla for offering great snorkeling. Its reputation in not unfounded. The plateau is in 15 to 18ft of water and goes down towards a 45 degree drop-off at 25ft after that point it drops off anywhere from 30 feet at its Eastern end to 85 ft on its Western end. At the base of the reef is a sandy bottom where we often see Southern String Rays, Lobster, Crayfish and Eels in the overhangs and holes within the reef itself.

Crystal Reef

A dive favorite for those who like to see eels, arrow crabs, cleaner shrimp, red claw shrimp and lobster. This site offers good safe diving with only a short boat ride. We anchor in 15-20 ft of water on the top on the reef where large Elkhorn coral formations can be found; these are seen on the edge of the drop-off at 25 ft where it drops off to an 80ft sandy bottom.

Frenchman’s Reef

We named this reef after Michel, simply because he was French and it sounded better than Michel. That said it is an interesting reef with a large flat area at 8 to 30ft with a steep drop-off to 83ft where the reef then goes out flat to about 100ft. Most of our dive sites have sandy bottoms but this site has coral heads and sandy circles that are great for Southern stingrays and Lobster that are quite often caught in the open running between holes.

Beacon Reef

This site it situated with steep cliffs and caves as a backdrop to the reef site. The caves only go back about twenty feet so they are not diveable. What we have here though is a very wide plateau at about 22 feet; it has trenches that run at 90 degrees to the shoreline until they meet the drop-off about twenty feet apart. You can follow these to the drop-off and slide down the reef to about 70 ft. The trenches are the perfect place for searching for those critters that love to hide.

Captain Turtle

This site was named 'Captain Turtle' for two reasons. The first reason being that we often see turtles here. The second reason in that the owner of Le-Bar the restaurant behind our shop loves to dive this site and people sometimes call him Captain Turtle because of his love of the sea. If you get a chance ask him about the medallions that where on his bar at Sandy Ground! This is one of the writer's favorite dives. The plateau has lots of places for Nurse Sharks to sleep so we always look for them when we are there. Soft coral fans lead the way to the drop-off. This dive can range anywhere from 20ft to 65ft. A nice easy dive that entertains the novice to the most experience diver.

Limestone Reef

One of Anguilla's few dives that can be done as a shore dive; this reef is one of the last shoreline reefs sites before the limestone cliffs that line our shores. This site ranges in depth from 15ft to 60 ft. Lots of southern stingrays can be found on the sandy bottoms.

Little Bay

Not really a dive site due to its shallow depth of 20ft maximum but worth a mention as a great place to snorkel. This area is very calm and protected from the winter storms. Even the most novice snorkelers can have a great time here. There are lots of small fish and lobsters here as the site is a nursery area for young fish.

Kathlee 'H' wreck

This is Anguilla's only steel freighter wrecks sites that was not sunk on purpose. It was in the process of being cleaned up when a fire on board got out of control and was left to burn its self out. However over night the wreck sunk in the sandy area outside of Road Bay and only the top of the mast could be seen. The mast this was cut off at 30ft so that it would not be a navigation hazard and it became a dive site. Even though there is no reef around it has still become a great attraction for the fish. The wreck sits intact and upright on the bottom and ranges in depth from 30 to 60 feet.

The Commerce Wreck

This wreck sits in 82ft of water by the stern. It is intact and upright but has received damage due to storms that have passed though over the last six years, however rather that detracting from the dive site it has added a strange eerie feel to this wreck. Some of the biggest lobsters to be found can be seen here with the largest lobster ranging anywhere from 20 to 30 pounds depending on who is telling the fisherman's tale. This wreck is located on a reef and has introduced the larger fish to this area. We often see hog fish, atlantic spadefish, goat fish, lobster and barracuda at 15 to 20 feet on the mooring line.

Sandy Deep

One of three of Sandy Island's dive sites. It is at the Southern edge of the horseshoe shaped plateau that surrounds Sandy Island. It goes from 15 to 60 feet at the edge. It offers a wide range of fish life as is a fun easy dive.

Sandy Shallow

This site is in fact the deepest at 70 feet (who said names had to be true to the site?). It is very similar to Sandy Deep and offers the same types of coral and fish. We are more likely to see stingrays here and slightly harder coral heads.

No Name

The third and the best of Sandy Island's dive sites. It got its name because we where fed up of Sandy 'this' and Sandy 'that' so we never gave it a name and people started to call it 'No Name' and it stuck. That aside, it's a very pretty soft coral reef that is anywhere from 20-65 feet.

Ida Marie Wreck

The most damaged of the wrecks it sits on the northwest side of Sandy Island. It is located on the reef in 60 ft of water and has had the bow twisted on its side from a storm. Both the wreck and reef offer a long bottom time at only 60 ft. There is a car, well what is left of it off to the right if you are facing the bow.

Osterdeep Wreck

This is a well preserved wreck that has a max depth of 80ft. The bow faces into Sandy ground and has the remains of a VW car off to its stern. We see garden eels, southern stingrays and a very playful turtle on this wreck.

Deep South

This flat reef is situated across from the Osterdeep wreck. It is a large flat reef that is at a depth of 60-80 ft. We find both soft and hard coral here. Southern stringrays are caught feeding on the sandy bottom at the edge of this reef.

The Sarah Wreck

By far the biggest of the wrecks, it sits out toward the 12 miles of reef that runs between Prickly Pear and Island Harbour. Like most of the wrecks, she was sunk intact and upright in the water. The cargo areas and the hull sit in 80ft of water but the top of the wheel house is only 30ft. There was a large Jew Fish in residence but it has not been seen in a while. The sheer size of this wreck makes it a worthwhile dive.

Frenchman's West

At the edge of limestone cliffs sits this shallow reef. The ledge that can be found at 30ft is a good site for Nurse Sharks to sleep and Lobsters to hide. An easy and fun shallow dive that runs parallel to shore.

Dog Island

This is thought of by most divers in Anguilla to be the second best reef dive. However due to its location, rough seas make it a dive that is conducted only when conditions allow. We have dived at three different places along this sheer 90ft wall dive. Due to currents, this is always a drift dive but it is home to, Black tip reef sharks, Tiger sharks. Lemon sharks and Nurse Sharks. The wall that is at the edge of some very deep water brings Tuna, Tarpon, Yellow tail snapper and grunts abound.

The Steps

Anguilla's number one dive. This dive is located at Little Scrub on the eastern end on Anguilla. It starts at 40 ft and takes you down to 90 ft through a system of ledgers that form steps. You see all types of sharks and big fish around. However that is not all that this site offers, you can swim under and between huge boulders, which line the site, that have been washed off the island during storms.