Does Cayo Coco & Cayo Guillermo Get Sargassum?

Jardines del Rey (Ciego de Ávila) · Cuba

Sargassum in Cayo Coco & Cayo Guillermo by month

What to know before you book

• •Sargassum on these cays is not new: Cuban marine scientists were studying arrivals at Playa Larga on Cayo Coco in the 1990s, before the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt formed. Older Cuban research describes north-coast arrivals as typical of the winter dry season, while recent belt-era data puts most arrivals in May to October, so neither season is guaranteed clean.
• •Ciego de Ávila is one of two Cuban provinces chosen for CIRAD's French-funded CARIBS sargassum project, launched in June 2026 to monitor arrivals and turn the biomass into biogas. Its selection suggests the cays' arrivals are significant enough to study, though no public tonnage figures exist.
• •Several big resorts here were shut in February 2026 to save fuel, including Iberostar Origin Playa Pilar, Gran Muthu Imperial Cayo Guillermo, Iberostar Origin Daiquiri, Tryp Cayo Coco and Hotel Mojito. Confirm your hotel is actually operating before booking; guests at closed hotels were relocated.
• •Sunwing and WestJet Vacations suspended Cuba services from June 20 to October 9, 2026, with Cayo Coco among the first destinations restored on October 10.

Last checked October 2, 2026 · Sources: Directorio Cubano, Jun 2026 (Varadero, Cayo Coco and Cayo Santa María among most affected), Revista Cubana de Meteorología, 2024 (sargassum arrivals in Cuba, Jul 2021 - Jun 2023), Revista de Investigaciones Marinas, 2013 (Moreira & Alfonso, sargassum on Cuba's south-central coast), CIRAD, Jun 2026 (CARIBS sargassum project in Matanzas and Ciego de Ávila), Havana Times / elTOQUE, Feb 2026 (hotel closures by destination)

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