A One-Night Trip to Vieques’ Unique Bioluminescent Bay
Are you looking for a super unique experience during your Puerto Rico vacation? Look no further than the nearby island of Vieques to kayak in the brightest bioluminescent bay in the world. This adventure requires a minimum of one night on the island and a bit of effort to arrange. But don’t let that scare you away. In fact, we squeezed it into a five-night Puerto Rico trip. Was it worth it? We all thought so! I hope you have more time to explore the beautiful island of Vieques, but read on to see how a quick overnight visit to this island is worth the very unique Bio Bay experience.
The bioluminescent Mosquito Bay in Vieques is a natural phenomenon — one of the most beautiful marvels of nature I have ever seen. However, the weather, the moon, natural cycles, pollution, and more all have the potential to impact your experience. We had the most magical outing, and I hope you do too.
Note: I was originally interested in a Bio Bay Kayaking Tour from Fajardo, Puerto Rico one of the few bioluminescent bays in the world. However, GO BIG OR GO HOME!
These are my honest opinions and recommendations — I do not receive any compensation or discounts during our travel. This story does include some affiliate links for which I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Please click the links to support my blog.
Getting to Vieques
You can take a ferry or a hopper flight from Fajardo or a hopper flight from one of the two airports in San Juan. Price out the different airport options and remember to look at the total price: taxi, rental car, parking, etc. Time was a factor for us since we were on a short vacation.
Hopper flight to Vieques
What did we do? Well, we flew from San Juan to Vieques due to timing — and because it ended up within our budget (read below!). Bonus: so cool to have a birds-eye view of the hikes and beaches we visited earlier in the week! Research flight pricing and times from the various airports. The departure time out of Isla Verde Airport on Vieques Air and into San Juan International on Cape Air was perfect for our itinerary. Fortunately one of the flights was a discounted fare so that offset the price of the other flight.
I almost booked the ferry because it is super cheap and we had rented an SUV for the entire trip. Thus, it would be easy to get to the ferry dock on the east end of Puerto Rico. But I had concerns with 1) time lost on the 1.5-hour ferry ride each way, and 2) numerous reviews about problems with delays or getting bumped from the ferry. We did not have time for any of that on this trip! However, if you have time and flexibility, I would not overlook this transportation mode. Many folks even suggested flying into Vieques and taking the ferry back as the return ferry can be more predictable.
Savings from reducing the San Juan car rental to two days versus five days, the less expensive two-hour Mosquito Bio Bay Kayak Tour versus an all-day boat excursion and bio bay tour from Fajardo, added expense of hopper flights, and equivalent pricing for lodging on Vieques including a Jeep = close to a total wash in the overall budget.
FITZ BITS TIP: Always look at the total price.
Arriving at the Vieques Airport
The local taxi numbers are posted on the wall at the airport exit. You can call one of these companies, or we found that vehicles arrived pretty frequently. The fare is generally $5 per person. We coordinated with our first driver to also take us back to the airport in the morning so we did not have to deal with that later. Be sure to snap a photo of the taxi list in case you need it!
Accommodations
If you do not have a vehicle, I suggest you stay in Esperanza. Here you will have easy access to restaurants, beaches, and tours. It is easy to take a taxi from the ferry or airport for $5 per person.
We stayed at this simple budget-friendly Airbnb in the main town and within walking distance of the ferry. The bedding layout was perfect for a family of five. My main draw to this accommodation was that we were able to rent a Jeep through the host as well.
Bioluminescent Mosquito Bay Kayak Tour
Experiencing this magical natural phenomenon is why we came to the island. Wow. Wow. WOW! As you paddle in the dark you will see streams of natural light under the clear-bottom kayak and glowing silver-blue specs of light around your paddles. Dip your hand in the water to see tiny sparkles of light drip down your arm. Gaze out and see a glow of light as fish jump in the distance. Take mental photos because the glowing microscopic plankton do not show up in photos. Believe me, I tried!
There are several Bio Bay tour operators on Vieques, so ask your lodging for their recommendation.
Book a tour with a glass bottom kayak
We went on the 8 PM tour with Jax Water Sports. Their guides shared a wealth of information about the bay and these microorganisms, a species of dinoflagellates, that light up when agitated. We also got a great constellations lesson while out on the water + all sorts of information about Vieques while on the bus ride to and from the bay. Did you know the red street lights are to help reduce light pollution?
I highly suggest you go on a tour with clear bottom kayaks even if it is a little more expensive. Some tours even have fully clear kayaks, but I do not see the extra bang for the extra buck. I liked Jax Water Sports because of their clear bottom kayaks and the wealth of information provided. However, due to the size of the group it was not as personal as some of our other tour experiences.
When to go
Check your timing with the moon phase. Here is a quick link to a Lunar Phase Calendar. The darker the sky the better, but you are not limited to just the New Moon. We planned this outing at the end of our vacation to avoid the pre-full and Full Moon. We had concerns about going out three days after a Full Moon. However, the moon didn’t rise for Vieques until around 11 PM — a brighter moon did not matter! Any negative Trip Advisor reviews were because they could only see the glowing microorganisms from under a tarp to shield a Full Moon. I imagine this would be a total bummer. Do your research and ask questions ahead of time.
Exploring Vieques by day
You really should rent a Jeep and explore the island! There is a limited supply of vehicles, so make the reservation as early as possible. We saw folks on golf carts and this works too. But, golf carts are going to be slower and only fit four people.
If you are short on time I suggest: Snorkel at Mosquito Pier, drive to Playa La Plata at the end of the National Wildlife Refuge for its serenity and beauty, drive to Playa Negra for a little hike and unique black sand, and end your day at Sun Bay Beach to walk islet and jump off the Old Esperanza Pier. If you would rather just chill or do not have a vehicle, simply enjoy your day at Sun Bay Beach.
FITZ BITS TIP: Bring a magnet to Playa Negra and play with it in the sand.
Mosquito Pier
Visit this mile long pier for gorgeous views, snorkeling, and an interesting history. This site was to be a bridge connecting Vieques with the main island of Puerto Rico — in the 1940’s! We did some snorkeling near the structure at the end of the pier and saw a guide with a group here as well. Look for turtles and watch out for jellyfish. Playa Punta Arenas is further down the road if you have time to explore that as well.
The National Wildlife Refuge
This large protected natural reserve is packed full of beautiful Caribbean beaches to explore. Can you believe it used to be US military training space?! The beaches are well marked and many have various numbered turnoffs. Park your vehicle and take any of the short paths to the beach. We explored several beaches and be warned — they take longer to get to than you would think given the unpaved roads.
There is good snorkeling amongst many of the beaches. We saw the most marine life at Playa La Plata and Playa Caracas (out around the point on the right).
Sun Bay Beach
From the Esperanza Malecon, it is about a half-mile walk to this two-mile-long crescent-shaped beach. Enjoy the calm waters but leave your snorkeling equipment at home since there isn’t much to see underwater. On your way back to the Malecon, walk along the sand bar out to Cayo de Tierra which creates the western edge to Sun Bay Beach.
This is the only beach with showers and bathrooms in case you are looking to clean up before dinner and your Bio Bay Tour. Just watch out for the resident horses and fire ants!
Esperanza Old Pier
How good is your balance? It is fun, and a little intimidating, to walk out along the skeleton of this old pier near the Esperanza Malecon. Wear your swimsuit so you can have fun jumping into the water at the end of the pier. There is a ladder so you can do it over and over. What a great activity for teens.
The old pier is also a great place to watch the sunset — whether you walk to the end of the pier or not!
Visited November 2021
