Guanaroca Lagoon
Guanaroca Lagoon
4.5
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
4.5
250 reviews
Excellent
144
Very good
77
Average
18
Poor
8
Terrible
3
richardnim
Haarlem, The Netherlands207 contributions
Jan 2020 • Couples
This was really a top excursion, what a lovely place with diving Pelicans and lots of beautiful Flamingos.
After a short stroll with English speaking guide we boarded a small rowing boat.
The rowing guide was a Cuban Spanish speaking fellow, with was lots of fun trying to have conversations.
It was a truly beautiful place which should not be missed at Cuba.
After a short stroll with English speaking guide we boarded a small rowing boat.
The rowing guide was a Cuban Spanish speaking fellow, with was lots of fun trying to have conversations.
It was a truly beautiful place which should not be missed at Cuba.
Written February 12, 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.
Joost N
Groningen, The Netherlands287 contributions
Jul 2014 • Family
Go there very early and you'll be suprised by nature. First you take a walk with guide and see birds and crabs and other things. Then there is a beautiful lagoon where you can spot flamingo's and you go by boat through the mangrove. Amazing :) Also take your musquito repelliant because there are so much....
Written August 12, 2014
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.
mysticsyren
Mississauga, Canada1,083 contributions
Dec 2014 • Solo
Lagoon De las Salinas is on the road to the Rancho Luna Hotel.
Best time to visit is in the morning.
I found this excursion on the internet for the Cienfuegos area but no one in Trinidad knew of it and we asked everyone. For those traveling from Trinidad, if you want to do a day trip- I suggest you take the Viazul bus- (cost 6 CUC each way)– to Cienfuegos. From there, hire a taxi to take you the 20 minute ride. We paid our taxi 20 cuc to take us there and back- he waited for us at the canteen. (Cost to enter is 10 Cuc, and there is a small canteen for drinks and a light snack-use the bathroom here as there is not another one until you return from your excursion! This is a protected area for flora and fauna- quite a beautiful little walk for nature lovers.
There is a very knowledgeable guide that takes you on a short 10 minute walk to see all of the various trees and many of the birds. You will see termite colonies, big ant colonies and the orange crabs here. Near the end there is a lookout tower- not too high to climb and you can take a few great photos of the surrounding area. You continue on to the canoes-where you have another guide. We chose the younger of the women in the boats and are glad we did- we were told by the other travelers later that we saw so much more than they did. Our guide rowed across the lagoon, changing direction when he saw the flamingos in the distance heading to a new spot and followed them there. The trip across the water to the flamingos only took about 1 hour- but can take much longer if you can’t find where they are.
The water here is shallow- only 30 centimeters deep he said. No life jackets were provided- nor were they needed. You can’t see in the water as it is a very dirty brown-but the water is actually clean. It travels down from the mountains into the river and then the lagoon where the mangrove tree roots tint the water with their red die – and it ends up looking murky brown- but actually very safe if you were to fall in- you could still stand up- even though the whole thing looks really deep! They used to have a motor boat they used, but with the water so shallow, it filled with sediment and the motor broke. We traveled off to see the flamingos – got about 10 meters close to them before they started to move. There were only about 300- 400 hundred at this time of the year- they are just migrating in now. At the end of December they say there will be a few thousand of them!
We saw really cute babies in the mix and watched them in fight a few times- it was a spectacular sight to see! On the way back across the lagoon, we spotted the snake bird- easy to see why they named it that. When it is in the water with just the head showing, it truly looks like a water snake! We also saw white and blue egrets on the way- as well as a few oysters that were clinging to the roots of the mangrove trees. My friend at first did not want to go with me but in the end was glad she did- she said she has never seen the flamingos so close up and so many at one time. Also- as I told her – it was a good business move- which is why I wanted her to come! No one in Trinidad knew about it- so since she is now independent as a tour guide- she can offer a day trip to see the flamingos and a city tour of Cienfuegos. It would be the first known tour of its kind for the hotels in Trinidad! I highly recommend this excursion!
Make a day of it- Have the taxi driver take you on to the Thomas Acena cemetery on the way back to the city then drop you in the square to have lunch and shop. For those traveling from Trinidad- you can make your way back to the Viazul bus and return for 6 Cuc.
Best time to visit is in the morning.
I found this excursion on the internet for the Cienfuegos area but no one in Trinidad knew of it and we asked everyone. For those traveling from Trinidad, if you want to do a day trip- I suggest you take the Viazul bus- (cost 6 CUC each way)– to Cienfuegos. From there, hire a taxi to take you the 20 minute ride. We paid our taxi 20 cuc to take us there and back- he waited for us at the canteen. (Cost to enter is 10 Cuc, and there is a small canteen for drinks and a light snack-use the bathroom here as there is not another one until you return from your excursion! This is a protected area for flora and fauna- quite a beautiful little walk for nature lovers.
There is a very knowledgeable guide that takes you on a short 10 minute walk to see all of the various trees and many of the birds. You will see termite colonies, big ant colonies and the orange crabs here. Near the end there is a lookout tower- not too high to climb and you can take a few great photos of the surrounding area. You continue on to the canoes-where you have another guide. We chose the younger of the women in the boats and are glad we did- we were told by the other travelers later that we saw so much more than they did. Our guide rowed across the lagoon, changing direction when he saw the flamingos in the distance heading to a new spot and followed them there. The trip across the water to the flamingos only took about 1 hour- but can take much longer if you can’t find where they are.
The water here is shallow- only 30 centimeters deep he said. No life jackets were provided- nor were they needed. You can’t see in the water as it is a very dirty brown-but the water is actually clean. It travels down from the mountains into the river and then the lagoon where the mangrove tree roots tint the water with their red die – and it ends up looking murky brown- but actually very safe if you were to fall in- you could still stand up- even though the whole thing looks really deep! They used to have a motor boat they used, but with the water so shallow, it filled with sediment and the motor broke. We traveled off to see the flamingos – got about 10 meters close to them before they started to move. There were only about 300- 400 hundred at this time of the year- they are just migrating in now. At the end of December they say there will be a few thousand of them!
We saw really cute babies in the mix and watched them in fight a few times- it was a spectacular sight to see! On the way back across the lagoon, we spotted the snake bird- easy to see why they named it that. When it is in the water with just the head showing, it truly looks like a water snake! We also saw white and blue egrets on the way- as well as a few oysters that were clinging to the roots of the mangrove trees. My friend at first did not want to go with me but in the end was glad she did- she said she has never seen the flamingos so close up and so many at one time. Also- as I told her – it was a good business move- which is why I wanted her to come! No one in Trinidad knew about it- so since she is now independent as a tour guide- she can offer a day trip to see the flamingos and a city tour of Cienfuegos. It would be the first known tour of its kind for the hotels in Trinidad! I highly recommend this excursion!
Make a day of it- Have the taxi driver take you on to the Thomas Acena cemetery on the way back to the city then drop you in the square to have lunch and shop. For those traveling from Trinidad- you can make your way back to the Viazul bus and return for 6 Cuc.
Written December 13, 2014
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.
RitaBarany
London, UK45 contributions
Jan 2017 • Couples
As they changed their policies in 2017 (but forget to let people know as of 4 Jan), it's not enough to get their early, ie: 7.30 am, but you also need to have an advanced bought voucher, otherwise you might miss the tour. There are about 4 hours a day only, each with about 14 people max, and if you don't have a voucher you can only get into the tour if less than 14 people with vouchers arrive.
Written January 29, 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.
HeidiSiefkas
Nashville, TN302 contributions
Mar 2020
One of the best out in nature activities in Cienfuegos. I definitely would recommend doing the boat ride to get closer to the flamingos. Amazing experience for all ages.
Written March 7, 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.
Galince
Moscow, Russia156 contributions
Feb 2019 • Solo
It's very quiet and nice place near the city Cienfuegos . Here you can come by taxi that will wait for you about 1,5 hour. Tours starts at 8:00 and at 10:00. Here you can see a variety of cuban birds, but most I loved flamingo. You'll be able to come closer to them and take nice photos and video from the boat. Also there is a very knowledgeable guide Alejandro who even can catch a crab. It was very excited!
Written February 24, 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.
Erik M
Stockholm, Sweden42 contributions
Jul 2018 • Friends
So we mistakenly booked our Cienfuegos casa for 3 nights, and were therefore looking for things to do there. We heard that the Lagoon may be nice, and that while the flamingos were elsewhere due to the rain (e.g. the water was not salty enough), it would still be worth it. Well, it was not. In all fairness, the tour guide also told us in advance that the flamingos would not be there, but that other birds would make up for it. The lagoon is completely empty and we were indeed very disappointed in the tour itself. Oh well, let's hope they use the 10 CUC pp to preserve the nature!
Written July 23, 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.
ForoniF
Milan, Italy27 contributions
May 2016 • Friends
This excursion is not to be missed if passing for Cienfuegos. With just 10 CUC per person you're guided through a quite and pristine lagoon by a local guide that will bring you to admire flamingos and many other animals in the park.
The guide was very knowledgable about the flora and fauna of the area.
The guide was very knowledgable about the flora and fauna of the area.
Written May 13, 2016
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.
monaHungary
Piliscsaba, Hungary961 contributions
Apr 2015 • Couples
Go early in the morning. Take sunglasses, a lot of sunscreen and a hat. You will spend cca. 1 hour on the lake without any shade.
You will get the the lakes through a little forest (some 5-10 minutes walk) full of mosquitos so don't forget to bring mosquito repellent either.
We spotted some nice birds in the forest and saw lots of crabs close to the shore. Our guide was very informative and spoke English very well. Unfortunately she didn't come with us on the lake and our boatman didn't speak a word in English.
The whole lake is quite shallow. One can get out of the boat and walk around in the water. Just as we did after some 20 minutes boatride. It was fun.
Unfortunately flamingos were shy enough and flew away every time when we get closer to them. If you intend to make some good and clear images take at least 350mm lenses or more.
You will get the the lakes through a little forest (some 5-10 minutes walk) full of mosquitos so don't forget to bring mosquito repellent either.
We spotted some nice birds in the forest and saw lots of crabs close to the shore. Our guide was very informative and spoke English very well. Unfortunately she didn't come with us on the lake and our boatman didn't speak a word in English.
The whole lake is quite shallow. One can get out of the boat and walk around in the water. Just as we did after some 20 minutes boatride. It was fun.
Unfortunately flamingos were shy enough and flew away every time when we get closer to them. If you intend to make some good and clear images take at least 350mm lenses or more.
Written December 25, 2015
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.
Dindiosk
Basel, Switzerland139 contributions
Aug 2015 • Friends
In order to get there, one needs to arrange a taxi from Cienfuegos, but it's definitely worth it! It may be good to combine it with a visit to a local beach. We were welcomed by a guide and paid 10 CUC for the visit. As groups enter at specific times, we waited some twenty minutes at their bar area where cold beverages are available. Then, a first guide takes you on a short and easy walk - we saw older people as well as children - through the region until the place where the boats leave from. He was friendly and spoke Spanish with us and good English to another group. From there we made the transfer to the boat. Our guide was great! He showed us a lot of the lagoon and we also spent a long time talking about life in Cuba, in Brasil and singing! He was also patient enough to teach me how to row and let me do it for a while - and believe me, it is such a difficult job they make seem effortless! In August there were not that many flamingos, but still it is great to see them so at ease.
Written September 27, 2015
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.
Natalia
1 contribution
Where and when can we buy the tickets in advance? And is it open everyday? I'm going to Cienfuegos in april (easter vacation).
SiuSiu J
New York City, NY2 contributions
Hi,
We'll spend 2 days in Cienfuegos later this month, would like to do a combination tour of El Nicho Waterfall and Guanaroca Lagoon. Any recommendation of the daily tour? Thx.
Albert
George Town, Malaysia63 contributions
To visit Guanaroca Lagoon, try to arrive there before 7:45am or earlier. I was there at 8:00am, waited in line for an hour and then was told that the 30 visitor-quota a day had already been filled up. They only allow 30 visitors each day as they have to row you out by paddling boat to see the flamingos. We hired a taxi from city and the cost was 20 CUC. Entrance fee is 10 CUC pp.
Benji B
3 contributions
Buenas tardes,
Hasta qué hora se puede realizar la visita guiada??
Se puede acceder a la zona sin contratar ningún tipo de visita??
Hasta que hora está abierto para turistas??
Muchas gracias
saludos desde Ibiza :D
clpayne
Missouri City, TX1,531 contributions
How far is this attraction from the cruise ship terminal?
Could you get there via a bicycle taxi? If so, approximate cost?
How many people per boat?
Is there any hiking?
agafilipo
Wroclaw, Poland139 contributions
I don't know where the cruise ship terminal is - we were travelling with backpacks from city to city. We took a standard taxi to get there from Cienfuegos.
3 people per boat or max 4 if one is a child or a tiny person :) This is why if you're travelling with a larger group of people it's better to be at 8.00 in the morning to make sure you have boats available at the same time. From the entrance there is a 10 min walk to the boat.
jokemans
Westerlo, Belgium42 contributions
Where can you buy vouchers to be sure you can take a boat in the mornig? We're only 1 night in Cienfuegos.
Is it still possible to book the excursion only 1 day before?
Susie and John J
Whitethorn25 contributions
We went to the government natural resources office in Cienfuegos (don't remember the address, but it was not too far from the plaza) the day before and bought our vouchers. The next morning we left early and arrived there around 7:45. We were first in line, and got in with the first group. Others who arrived before 8, but didn't have vouchers, had to wait until the second group. I think if you got there by 7:30 and got right into line you could probably get by with getting your vouchers at the lagoon. The day we were there there were five boats, three passengers in each, so 15 per group. Most boat rowers take you to the first group of flamingoes. We had a fantastic rower who was willing to take us across to the far side of the lagoon, where we saw many other birds. We were out almost twice as long as the other four boats. If you're interested and have the time, be sure and ask your rower! (Then tip well.)
Joy_g79
Reggio Emilia, Italy22 contributions
Ciao a tutti, qualcuno sa darmi un sito di riferimento per vedere orari e alter informazioni sul tour della Laguna? Può essere adatto a bambino di 4 anni e bambina di 2 anni?
Grazie mille
Paul1983NL
Druten, The Netherlands
How much time Will this trip take? Like a half day (including transfer from en to Cienfuegos)?
We're not staying very long in Cienfuegos, but i would love to go!
Our bus leaves at 14:30. Is it possible to visit early in the morning for example?
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Frequently Asked Questions about Guanaroca Lagoon
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Guanaroca Lagoon Information
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