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Ocean Calling

Ocean Atlas · Caribbean

Caribbean

Trinidad and Tobago

Tobago's green drift dives, with manta rays, a giant brain coral and leatherback turtles nesting on quiet beaches.

Palm fringed curve of Englishman's Bay on the Tobago coast
Englishman's Bay, Tobago · Photo: Colin Watts on Unsplash
Exploring

Ethics pass, with care. We found a way to visit this country that meets our animal-welfare standard, as long as we work with the right local operator. Checked by Ocean Calling on 26 Sep 2026. Sources: Turtle watching in Tobago, Tobago House of Assembly tourism site; Buccoo Reef, Wikipedia.

🧭 Travel advice, checked 30 Sep 2026. The UK FCDO travel advice for Trinidad and Tobago was updated after a state of emergency was declared in response to gang violence, and also notes a yellow fever detection reported in March 2026. Sources: UK FCDO travel advice, Trinidad and Tobago Advice differs by passport: check your own government before you plan.

ScubaSnorkellingMantasTurtlesDolphins

Why Trinidad and Tobago

Whales and dolphins are protected here and we do not plan any swim with them.

Conservation-led. Ocean Calling guests never chase, touch or bait animals.

United States of AmericaHaitiDominican Rep.BahamasMexicoBrazilPeruColombiaPanamaCosta RicaNicaraguaHondurasEl SalvadorGuatemalaBelizeVenezuelaGuyanaSurinameFranceEcuadorPuerto RicoJamaicaCubaTrinidad and TobagoSpeyside and Little Tobago, Trinidad and TobagoBuccoo Reef, Trinidad and TobagoTurtle Beach, Tobago, Trinidad and TobagoGrande Riviere, Trinidad, Trinidad and Tobago

When to go

Jan-May. Timing changes by place and by animal, so check each place below.

We have researched this place and keep learning about it. There is no trip here yet.

Our ethics check

Can we travel here ethically?

Ethics pass, with care

Good with the right operator. Here is how we choose.

Tobago has clear rules for turtle nights: go only with a permit or registered guide, no flashlights, no loud noise and a safe distance from the laying turtle. Buccoo Reef has been a marine park since 1973, but most visitors to Tobago go there and scientists call the reef at risk. We skip the busy Buccoo tours, choose quiet reef and drift dives, and watch leatherbacks only with the local patrol.

Checked 26 Sep 2026. Places change, so we look again every year.

Sources for this check
Places we are exploring

Where in Trinidad and Tobago

Short notes from our research. Wildlife is never guaranteed.

Speyside and Little Tobago

Exploring

Fast drift dives over rich reef in plankton-green water, with manta rays some days.

🤿 In the water: Manta rays (some days, never sure), A giant brain coral about 5 m wide (look, never touch), Hawksbill and green turtles, Spotted eagle rays and southern stingrays, Nurse sharks resting under ledges

⛵ From the boat or shore, never in the water: Dolphins (sometimes, from the boat)

When: Jan-May. Diving runs all year. January to May is drier and often gives the best chance of mantas. Currents are strong, so this is for experienced divers.

Buccoo Reef

Exploring

A shallow reef and lagoon marine park in the southwest of Tobago, busy with tour boats.

🤿 In the water: Shallow reef and seagrass, Reef fish, Turtles (sometimes)

When: Jan-May. Calm most days in the dry season. Boats need a park permit, and the reef can be crowded. Never stand on the coral.

Turtle Beach, Tobago

Exploring

A beach on the Caribbean side of Tobago where leatherbacks nest at night, with local patrols.

⛵ From the boat or shore, never in the water: Leatherback turtles nesting (with the local patrol, no lights), Hawksbill and green turtles nesting (fewer), Hatchlings going to the sea (later in the season)

When: Mar-Aug. Nesting runs from March to August. Hatchlings go to the sea until about September.

Grande Riviere, Trinidad

Exploring

A remote beach on Trinidad's north coast, one of the most important leatherback nesting beaches in the world.

⛵ From the boat or shore, never in the water: Leatherback turtles nesting (permit and local guide needed), Hatchlings going to the sea (later in the season)

When: Mar-Aug. The beach is protected from 1 March to 31 August, and visits at night need a permit and a guide. The road from Port of Spain is long and slow.

Animals

Animals recorded in Trinidad and Tobago

Tap an animal to learn how it lives, where it travels and how to meet it respectfully.

Land animals
Atlantic manta ray gliding over a school of small fish off Holbox, MexicoAtlantic manta rayMobula yaraeSeen in 5 countries in the AtlasNot EvaluatedLeatherback hatchling crossing the sand toward the seaLeatherback turtleDermochelys coriaceaSeen in 76 countries in the AtlasVulnerableHawksbill turtle swimming, pointed beak in profileHawksbill turtleEretmochelys imbricataSeen in 88 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredGreen turtle resting on the reef, shell and head pattern in sharp detailGreen turtleChelonia mydasSeen in 103 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernWhitespotted eagle ray gliding over reef and sand in BelizeWhitespotted eagle rayAetobatus narinariSeen in 58 countries in the AtlasEndangeredSouthern stingray resting on white sand, St John, US Virgin IslandsSouthern stingrayHypanus americanusSeen in 33 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedNurse shark swimming over a reef at Fernando de Noronha, BrazilAtlantic nurse sharkGinglymostoma cirratumSeen in 38 countries in the AtlasVulnerableGreat barracuda cruising in open blue water, showing jagged teethGreat barracudaSphyraena barracudaSeen in 84 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernRed lionfish with spread fins over sand in Dauin, PhilippinesLionfish (red and common lionfish)Pterois volitans and Pterois milesSeen in 80 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernHeavily spotted adult Atlantic spotted dolphin with young, AzoresAtlantic spotted dolphinStenella frontalisSeen in 22 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernOrcas surfacing close together in calm Arctic Norwegian watersOrca (killer whale)Orcinus orcaSeen in 55 countries in the AtlasData DeficientWhite-spotted eagle rays gliding over coral at Heron Island, Great Barrier ReefSpotted eagle ray (ocellated eagle ray)Aetobatus ocellatusSeen in 28 countries in the AtlasEndangeredHumpback whale swimming close with long pectoral finHumpback whaleMegaptera novaeangliaeSeen in 87 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernCommon bottlenose dolphin swimming over a seagrass bedCommon bottlenose dolphinTursiops truncatusSeen in 89 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernScalloped hammerhead shark cruising in deep blue Red Sea waterScalloped hammerheadSphyrna lewiniSeen in 57 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredMale magnificent frigatebird perched on a mangrove branchMagnificent frigatebirdFregata magnificensSeen in 52 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernSilky shark swimming near the surface in blue waterSilky sharkCarcharhinus falciformisSeen in 48 countries in the AtlasVulnerablePortuguese man o' war floating with purple crest off Pico, AzoresPortuguese man o' warPhysalia physalisSeen in 36 countries in the AtlasNot EvaluatedMasked booby on Ascension IslandMasked boobySula dactylatraSeen in 80 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernQueen conch with a reddish spiny shell resting on seagrass over sandy seabedQueen conchAliger gigasSeen in 32 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedAdult brown booby standing on a rock with its bill open against blue sky, PrincipeBrown boobySula leucogasterSeen in 104 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernScarlet ibis in flight against a pale blue sky, photographed in Georgetown, GuyanaScarlet ibisEudocimus ruberSeen in 22 countries in the AtlasLives on landLeast ConcernClose view of a red-footed booby head with blue, pink and red bill and throat skin among green leavesRed-footed boobySula sulaSeen in 91 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernTarpon swimming in open blue water with a dense school of small fish behind it, off St John in the US Virgin IslandsAtlantic tarponMegalops atlanticusSeen in 24 countries in the AtlasVulnerableCrowd of brown pelicans packed together on a coastal roost, one adult with a pale head and coloured bill facing the cameraBrown pelicanPelecanus occidentalisSeen in 48 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernAmerican flamingo wading in shallow water with its head lowered toward the surface, Yucatán, MexicoAmerican flamingoPhoenicopterus ruberSeen in 47 countries in the AtlasLives on landLeast ConcernCaribbean spiny lobster at the edge of a reef overhang with long antennae trailing across sandCaribbean spiny lobsterPanulirus argusSeen in 30 countries in the AtlasData DeficientLeach's storm-petrel in flight over water, wings spread, with a pale patch at the base of the tailLeach's storm-petrelHydrobates leucorhousSeen in 35 countries in the AtlasVulnerableNeotropic cormorant perched among willow branches beside the waterNeotropic cormorantNannopterum brasilianumSeen in 29 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernSargasso shearwater gliding over a grey sea, dark above and pale belowSargasso shearwater (Audubon's shearwater)Puffinus lherminieriSeen in 27 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernAnhinga holding a fish in its long, pointed billAnhinga (American darter)Anhinga anhingaSeen in 24 countries in the AtlasLeast Concern
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Also in Caribbean
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