In general, all Drake Bay Cano tour operators provide the same timelines and price. Cano Island has been rated amoung the top 10 best places for snorkeling and scuba diving. Funnily enough, it’s not rated so well on TripAdvisor. I’ll explain why in a moment.

The reason Cano Island is held in such high regard, stems from its biodiversity. This place simply has so much to offer. There are so many beautiful fish; some solitary, some in small groups, some in groups large enough for you to disappear inside of. Sometimes the fish are teeny tiny, and sometimes they’re bigger than you.

The tour is completely safe and allows people to experience the wonders of what it’s like to be in the water with creatures like stingrays, devil rays, manta rays, octopus, various eel species, turtles, whale sharks and so much more. You never know when something bigger than you will appear out of nowhere.

Roughly 90% of snorkelers will experience sharks, but there has never been an attack of any sort. Although dolphins never approach divers or snorkelers at Cano Island, they are regularly spotted on the way to or from the island. Two groups of humpbacks visit the area, so there is virtually always a chance to see them or one of the many other whale species found in this incredible paradise.

Cano Island’s high rating certainly did not derive from its colorful corals. Cano Island actually has lots of coral species, and the clarity of the water is much better than many of the surrounding areas. But it’s not the Red Sea, Hawaii, Belize, The “Good” Barrier Reef, or what Aruba once was. The species of corals found in these areas are vulnerable to being clogged by sediments and could not survive in the waters surrounding Cano Island. The corals that have evolved here are more resilient to the unique waters of the Eastern Pacific.

Having said this, Cano Island is situated far enough from the mainland to possess more clear water than other islands in the region. A current runs north between the mainland and Cano and acts as a filter for many of the sediments that are pushed from our rivers during rains.

Now, back to why TripAdvisor doesn’t rate Cano Island as highly as I would.

Because there are some sediments in the ocean here, there are also better and worse times for visibility. The best time to go snorkeling from the shore with regard to visibility would be high slack tide. This is the time when the high tide has ended and the low tide begins.

All Drake Bay tour operators leave at the same time and return at the same time, every day, all year. Some people get optimal conditions and you can read about those experiences on TripAdvisor. Some don’t and you can read about that on TripAdvisor as well.

In reality, there are two options for Cano Island reservations. There is an AM time slot and there is a PM time slot. The PM option is never utilized because it is difficult to get groups of people that are going off of the norm. We suggest that you check the tide charts for the dates that you have planned in Drake Bay and book your adventure based off whether AM or PM provides the best opportunity for your group.

If the tide is not as important to you, The PM tour would be the better option in all cases, because you will experience Cano Island without all of the other tourists. Having the island all to yourself is a different level of awesome!

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Of all the things faced by travelers planning a trip in Drake Bay, lack of time seems to be the one that causes the most frustration. Because of time constraints and an abundance of available activities, I see opportunity in the fact that just 2 hours of snorkeling at Cano Island is sufficient for visitors to understand how impressive the location is. Thus, I recommend combining your Cano Island snorkeling with a Whale and Dolphin Pelagic Tour.

The whale and dolphin tour by itself, passes by Cano Island, on the way to the Furuno Bank (30 miles offshore), but it doesn’t stop. If one were to add a Cano Island certified tour guide and entrance pass to the whale and dolphin tour then the group can also make the Cano Island stop, accomplishing the equivalent of both activities in just one day. In addition to saving time, this combo costs much less than doing the two activities separately.

Not only do you get more potential snorkeling time, but the tour allows for visiting Cano Island either in the late afternoon, when most tourist boats have already left. I personally prefer to have space when exploring nature and this is a non-issue when you are in the only boat in the vicinity.

You have probably done the math by now and realized that this combo tour is 8.5 hours long. It’s not for everyone! You will be tired when you return to Drake Bay but the experience gained from maximizing your opportunities definitely deem it worthy of the long nap afterwards! Most that visit Drake Bay are here for adventure, so if you think that you are ready, then this combo day should be on the top of your to do list.

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Nevertheless, travelers from around the world visit Drake Bay’s Isla del Caño based on the amazing tales of adventure and experience that are offered here. Most commonly, visitors talk about experiencing the thrill of swimming with marine species that are often larger than oneself!

Isla del Caño is located between 2 ocean currents that follow the Pacific coastline. Between the mainland and Isla del Caño the current flows north, and beyond the island a current flows south. Many migrating creatures use Isla del Caño as a “rest stop”- a place to enjoy the bounties and relax before continuing their impressive journeys.

For this reason, our island receives visitors such as: many varied whale species; dolphin species; sharks; whale sharks; Manta Rays; and enormous groups of reef fish in all sizes and shapes. I would estimate that 90% of snorkelers experience sharks and rays when visiting the island. 80% will swim with turtles and also witness dolphins on the way to or from Caño.

Bottom line from my perspective, Isla del Caño has been rated among the top 10 places to snorkel or SCUBA in the world. A bad day here should be better than a good day at most other locations. I personally have not experienced a bad day on any of my Isla del Caño visits. I normally snorkel and find friends to “babysit” my life jacket while I free-dive. I am new to free-diving so I cannot travel to impressive depths but this is not really necessary during the snorkeling tours. I simply dive down whenever it seems like I need more clarity.

Isla del Caño is still the amazing place that it was when I first experienced it 8 years ago. The main reason for this is likely due to the fact that all tourists enter the water from a boat. The benefit of this is not putting groups of people, of varied experience levels, in the shallow waters. I have seen the destructive effects of allowing tourists to walk into the snorkeling area during numerous visits to Caribbean Islands, particularly in Aruba. The organisms living in the shallows form part of an ecosystem that is necessary for sustaining life in deeper waters. The human impact is usually most destructive in areas where people are able to stand. Evidentially, keeping things beyond a reachable distance is preventative measure enough. This is why it is so important not to touch anything when experiencing the aquarium-like environment that is Isla del Caño.

Many ask whether they should do the snorkeling option or the SCUBA. I often tell divers to do both. Most frequently I have found that snorkelers experience more biodiversity and the divers experience more groups of larger creatures. They are both great for different reasons.

The visibility here may not always be crystal clear, but the life is always present. Of course, not having the ability to see when the water is cloudy will detract from experience. If you have oxygen tanks, then you can normally find clarity. Snorkeling is more susceptible to the 2 directions of oceanic currents previously mentioned. The 2nd most significant piece of data would probably be the timing of the day’s tide.

It could be said, if you enjoy staring at fish tanks, snorkeling is great, but if you need to actually be in the fish tank, definitely choose SCUBA.

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