Johnny Cay

Rising just off Spratt Bight, a green cap of coconut palms on a ring of white sand, Johnny Cay is the postcard everyone photographs from the main beach - and the easiest boat trip on the island. The little coral islet, officially a regional natural park, sits about a kilometre and a half offshore and takes only ten or fifteen minutes to reach by launch.

What it's like

Johnny Cay is small - you can stroll around it in twenty minutes - but it packs in everything a Caribbean daydream needs: talcum sand, leaning palms, shallow water in every shade of blue, and a lively, friendly atmosphere run by native islanders. Arrive early in the morning and you may have the beach almost to yourself, with land crabs and iguanas going about their business in the undergrowth before the day boats arrive.

By late morning the cay fills up. Reggae and soca drift from beach bars, the smell of fried fish rises from grills under the palms, and the island's signature drink starts flowing: the coco loco, a potent rum cocktail served straight from a fresh green coconut. A cold coco loco in the shade, feet in the sand, is one of those simple San Andres pleasures people remember for years.

Practical tips

• Getting there: shared boats leave through the morning from the Spratt Bight dock; you buy a round-trip ticket and agree a pickup time. There is a small park entry fee that goes toward maintaining the cay.
• Go early: the cay is calmest and coolest before the mid-morning crowds; the light for photos is also better.
• Bring: reef-safe sunscreen, a hat, water and some cash for food and drinks. Shade is limited once the good palm spots are taken.
• Swimming: the water is shallow and clear, but currents can run on the exposed side - swim where the boats and locals are.

Respecting the cay

Johnny Cay is a protected regional park and a fragile scrap of land under heavy visitor pressure. Take all your rubbish back to the main island, don't disturb the crabs and iguanas or the nesting birds, avoid single-use plastic, and stick to the sand rather than trampling the vegetation that holds the islet together. The friendly welcome you get here depends on visitors treating the place with care.

Johnny Cay pairs naturally with a stop at El Acuario and Haynes Cay - many boat trips combine the two into a single island-hopping day. For the bigger, wilder version, see Cayo Bolivar, and browse all the options on our tours page.