Cenote Angelita - Yucatán Cenotes
Gem Stone Bay, tucked into the Hahei Marine Reserve, feels like stepping back in time to how New Zealand’s coast used to be. For a site with a maximum depth of just nine metres, it’s remarkably lively. We love drifting through the kelp, watching big snapper eye us up; they’re bold here, sometimes nipping at anything shiny. It’s a gentle dive, perfect for photographers or anyone who just wants to soak in the incredible recovery of a protected area. We’ve seen massive red rock lobster tucked into crevices and schools of triplefins flitting between the fronds. Keep an eye out for a Southern reef squid darting past. Visibility averages eight metres, which is decent for a shallow bay, but we always try to hit it on a calm day for the best experience. It’s a no-take zone, of course, and the marine life here really shows what a difference that makes.
- Location
- Yucatán Cenotes, Mexico, North America
- Coordinates
- 20.137500, -87.577800
- Type
- cenote
Marine Protected Area: Arrecifes de Sian Ka'an
Nearby Dive Sites in Yucatán Cenotes
- Acuario (reef)
- Acuario (reef)
- Akumal Reef (reef)
- Akumal Reef (wreck)
- Angelita Cenote - 30-60m (cenote)
- Bahia Príncipe (reef)
- Bahia Príncipe (wreck)
- Blue Ha Reef (reef)
- Casa Cenote (reef)
- Cenote Angelita (reef)
- Cenote Angelita (cenote)
- Cenote Azul - 5-15m (cenote)
- Cenote Calavera (cenote)
- Cenote Carwash (cenote)
- Cenote Car Wash (Aktun Ha) (cave)
Nearest Dive Centres to Cenote Angelita
- Dive Life SCUBA
- MAR ADENTRO DIVING - PADI, SSI
Marine Life in Yucatán Cenotes
Home to 425 recorded species including 340 reef fish, 30 hard corals, 14 other, 13 sharks & rays, 6 crabs & lobsters, 4 sea snails & nudibranchs.
Notable Species
- loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta)
- Hawksbill Turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata)
- Green Turtle (Chelonia mydas)
- Blue Doctor (Acanthurus coeruleus) - Reef Fish
- Great star coral (Montastraea cavernosa) - Hard Corals
- Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) - Hard Corals
- French grunt (Haemulon flavolineatum) - Reef Fish
- Barber (Acanthurus bahianus) - Reef Fish
- Sheephead (Microspathodon chrysurus) - Reef Fish
- Cowfish (Tursiops truncatus) - Whales & Dolphins
- Dark Green Parrotfish (Sparisoma viride) - Reef Fish
- Massive Starlet Coral (Siderastrea siderea) - Hard Corals
- Gutong (Sparisoma aurofrenatum) - Reef Fish
- Bluestriped Grunt (Haemulon sciurus) - Reef Fish
- Mustard hill coral (Porites astreoides) - Hard Corals
- Coney (Cephalopholis fulva) - Reef Fish
- Cola (Ocyurus chrysurus) - Reef Fish
- Doctorfish (Acanthurus chirurgus) - Reef Fish
- Gutong (Scarus iseri) - Reef Fish
- Spiny Brittle Star (Ophiocoma echinata)