La Reina (Cerralvo Island)
Depth is the range from the top of the site to its usual maximum; "recommended cert" is the mainstream-agency level operators usually ask for, not a legal rule. Currents and visibility change daily, so treat everything here as planning ranges.
La Reina is the little lighthouse rock off Cerralvo Island, a long panga ride from La Paz that regulars guard like a secret. A small resident sea lion colony works the shallows, boulder fields below hold green morays, big grouper, and clouds of Cortez reef fish, and the site's aging claim to fame - visits from giant mantas - has flickered back to life in recent seasons, with oceanic mantas reappearing here after years of absence. Nothing is promised: mantas are occasional, conditions are exposed, and the crossing is committing. But on the right late-summer day, sea lions below, mantas overhead, and blue water all around, La Reina outclasses sites with ten times its fame.
The moment you come for: Occasional returning mantas, quieter sea lions, big morays in the boulders
Topography: Rock reef and boulders around a small lighthouse islet off Cerralvo
Know before you splash
Hazards: Exposed crossing and site; current around the islet; long way from the dock.
Who you'll meet
California Sea Lion
Green Sea Turtle
Oceanic Manta Ray
"Charted here" species were listed by our editors from the sources on this page. Counts are GBIF occurrence records: observations logged within about 5 km of the charted position since 1990, matched only against the species in our catalogue. They show what has been seen there, not a promise of what you will see.
For photographers
Wide angle: ★★★★☆ · Macro: ★★☆☆☆ (editors' 1–5 rating of what this site gives each style of shooting)