Puerto Rico is strangely absent from some lists of dive destinations in the Caribbean, yet it has many of the same conditions that make places like the Bahamas and Curacao what they are. Puerto Rico is endowed with warm and clear waters, lovely coral, shipwrecks and rich sea life, including big pelagic fish and mammals. Perhaps most importantly, Puerto Rico is an American possession, so a scuba diving trip there is almost as hassle-free as flying to North Carolina or Florida.
Average water temperature on the top layer of Puerto Rico's seas is 85 degrees F in the summer and 75 degrees F in the winter. Most divers need only a shorty wetsuit in the summer, but a 2mm full wetsuit is needed in winter.
Visibility is in the 60- to 80-foot range in the waters around the main island. It is routinely above 100 feet around smaller islands such as Mona, Culebra and Desecheo. One wall dive site off Mona Island sometimes reaches an astounding 200-foot visibility.
As a Caribbean island, Puerto Rico offers a rich diversity of sea life. The reefs and sea walls are decorated with black tree, elkhorn, brain corals and a wide variety of sponges. Local fish sighted by divers include barracuda, dolphins, eels, jacks, flounders, nurse sharks, grouper, sardines and trumpetfish. Mona Island is known to attract big sea creatures, from various species of sharks to humpback whales.
Puerto Rico's waters are home to many shipwrecks. Vieques, once the home of a U.S. Navy bombing range, has the wreck of an old destroyer that was a practice target in about 40 feet of water. The Witt Power, a tugboat that sank in 1984, also rests in 40 feet of water off Culebra. Puerto Rico also has an airplane wreck in the form of a Piper Cherokee that went down in 50 feet of water.
No passport is required for Americans visiting Puerto Rico. The electrical outlets use the American standard of 110 volts, so you do not need a travel converter. The currency is the U.S. dollar, and the official languages are both English and Spanish. In many practical ways, Puerto Rico is essentially the United States in the Caribbean.
When To Go
Hurricane season runs from May to October in Puerto Rico, but according to "Sport Diver" magazine, the summer months are the best time to go. Unless there is a hurricane blowing, summer offers the best chance for calm sea conditions.
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