San Nicolas
Diving San Nicolas Plantation in Soto
The San Nicolas dive site, like Makos Mountain, is located next to Santa Martha in the area of Soto. These boat dives start shallow through a field of fleshy soft corals then finally emerging into a wonderful drop off full of hard corals that could hide the famous mako shark that was once spotted here.
Other shark varieties have also been found here such as Hammerheads. You will also see porcupinefish, rays, morays, lobsters and maybe tarpon. Can sometimes be a rough entry but the marine environment more than makes up for this.
History of San Nicolas Landhuis in Curacao
Built between the 18th and 19th Century, this Country estate is situated on a hilltop west of Santa Marthabaai. The main building consists of a rectangular floor plan that is laid out on elevated platform. It is a one story structure with a core area surrounded by galleries. A gabled roof covers the core area with adjoining slanted roofs over galleries with typical truncated gables on short ends. There are three dormers on both sides of roof and terraces surround the main building that consists of a kitchen, a cistern and a bathhouse.
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Dive Site Recommendations
- Dive Type: Boat
- Snorkel Site: No
- Experience Level: Open Water (Min)
- Depth: 0 -120ft (0 – 36m)
Special Notes
Due to recreational & commercial boat traffic, an inflated surface marker buoy is mandatory when shore diving. Consult a recommended Curaçao dive Operator for additional details & recommendations.
About the San Nicolas Area
Santa Martha Bay is such a beautiful spot on Curacao, it has a great view, and shows the island in a different way. It is quiet, because this place is not visited by tourists that much. The bay is near the village of Soto.
And a visit to the plantation house Landhuis Groot Santa Martha is one of the few houses built in a U-shape, it’s definitely worth to visit it. The plantation house now serves as a care facility for people with physical and/or mental disabilities and their products they make are sold in the shop.
Landhuis Klein Santa Martha is a large 480-hectare sugar cane and divi-divi plantation dating back to the 1700’s. Landhuis Klein Santa Martha was once one of the top three producers of salt on the island, along with Landhuis Groot Santa Martha and Landhuis San Nicolas, thanks to the large salt pans and nearby Santa Martha Bay being the most productive on the island.
Why Dive Curacao?
We like to think there is no place in the world offering such great shore dives, boat dives or opportunities to enjoy the beauty of sea’s nature while snorkeling. But honestly, as you could imagine, we are a little biased. So, we have compiled the Top 10 Reasons to Dive Curacao from an international list of travel writers, bloggers and media outlets to help us out and provide you with a fantastic overview of our beautiful island, located in the heart of the Dutch Caribbean.
Curacao Dive Travel Guide
