arnos vale reef

Hard to review the reef without mentioning whats around it. The reef lies just off a heavem sheltered beach the reef itself is pristine. You can dive here but snorkeling from the beach is just heaven. The reef is beautiful so many fish rays even turtles. But the beach is great and served by a hotel for great lunch and drinks use of sun loungers and pool.Arnon vale house serves afternoon tea wirh hummingbirds on feeders its hard to be subjective because the whole island is paradise but this little spot is magical

Just returned from Tobago and would just like to say what a wonderful trip we had on the cocomotion, this is a must if you visit tobago. We booked the half day charter which was very reasonably priced. We visited various spots to snorkel as well as the nylon pool. Marlon is very knowlagable about the island and great fun.we even had a pod of around 50 dolphins swimming along with the boat which was great. We took our 3 year old daughter with us and she loved it too.I thoughly reccomend this trip.Thanks Marlon

We stayed at Coco Reef Hotel in February and went with our daughter , her boyfriend and a couple of other friends for a really great trip on this speedboat. Very interesting snorkeling, visiting the "nylon pool" and general tour of the coastline. Marlon is great fun and very competent and knowledgeable. He has an obviously genuine passion for his island and it's sea and bird life. Very reasonable cost for such a super experience. Highly recommended. We may well return to the island next year and if so we shall try to book with him again.

The reviews should be heeded, as the beach is very secluded. The Arnos Vale Hotel does not operate, and we were not eager to go through the path next to it. We asked a local, who was in a car next to the entrance of the Hotel, the best way to get to the beach. He said "Follow Me." It was wonderful to have an escort. These are the directions I recommend following to get to the beach.From Mt. Irvine Beach, drive north along the Caribbean coast. When you come to the sign to Plymouth (left), follow it. Watch for Arnos Vale Road before you come into Plymouth. It will be on the right. Take that road until you come to a corner where there is a tall Coca Cola sign next to a green shed (store) on the left. (On the right is the Bethesda Primary School, but it is up on a hill, not at eye level of a driver.) Turn left at that CocaCola sign. You will see a 4 foot cement wall that is painted white with wide black stripes that remind me of the mathematical “greater than” sign. Turn right at that wall. Take the first left and follow that all the way up the hill and right down the hill to the end of the road. (I think this is Bethesda Trail, but street signs are rare.)The street ends at a parking area. Walk to the water.I will post a picture of the green shed and the cement wall in hopes it will help you find it.We went on a day when the water was churning the sand too much, but we did return on a calm day. I saw a turtle while snorkeling as well as other fish and coral. Glad I went back.

finding this beach was very difficult when we drove down from the side of englishman's bay but extremely easy when coming from the opposite direction. the gate to the hotel, which is now closed, was padlocked so we parked on the other side on the road/dead end. the snorkelling was great here especially when the weather was nice...nice drop offs, fish, squi and coral life. we heard that reef sharks and lobsters are also visible from time to time.there was a guy at the hotel who identified himself as the security who was extremely friendly and knowledgeable about the beach but we went with a group of 6....the area is very lonely and there is the start of the forest right where we parked so i would exercise extreme care when going here...on our second day, around 5:30 when we were leaving a police jeep pulled up to us and gently advised that we leave since the area is not safe. unlike the other reviews, there was no entry fee demanded and no food available.security concerns aside, this is a beach that i would put on my "to visit" list again and again.

i did this reef scuba diving plenty of fish life the surge made taking photo's interesting the only downside was the vis the other side of the island was much better

We had mixed feelings about the beach at Arnos Vale. For snorkelling it is incredible, with fantastic corals just seconds from the beach and lovely rocky walls dropping away to sand at 10 m or so, where we saw rays, turtle and many fish species. It was the best snorkelling we experienced on Tobago and the visibility (mid-April) was amazing.However, for swimming the beach is more limited as it is rocky and shallow at low tide, with many sea urchins. At high tide it's fine, but not for long.Our main concern was security. The Arnos Vale Hotel, which is semi-defunct, charges T$20 for beach access but provides no security or facilities. It's just to park in their grounds and walk to the beach (there appeared to be a separate public beach access with no charge just to the west but we couldn't locate the entrance). We were almost robbed by a young man who loitered brazenly around us as we relaxed and tried to grab a dry-bag, and minutes later he tried again with an elderly couple further along and got away with a bag containing snorkelling gear and a Kindle. A half-hearted effort was made by the staff to assist but we got the feeling this was a frequent occurrence. In fact when we returned 2 days later to ask for news on the missing bag, the hotel gateman said that he used to live next to the beach himself but was attacked with a machete once and had moved in to one of the hotel structures further back.In summary, the snorkelling is amazing, but probably best experienced from a boat rather than the land. If you do snorkel from the beach, make sure someone stays with your belongings at all times. Where possible, lock your stuff in a car!

Spent one day here, group of 4....lots of fish and coral in the reef. We drove here, some people came on boats. The beach is very private here as the resort has been neglected the last few years, and there is no one staying there. The other couple on the beach...yes, there were only 6 of us most of the time, went up to the restaurant to check it out. Apparently, the tables were all set with linen and china, the woman working said she would expect people from the beach to come for dinner ??? Such a shame that it is in disrepair, as it looked like it had been very nice at one time....almost a little creepy...but beach, and snorkeling was oh so nice :) At this time, there is nothing to buy here for food or drinks, so be sure to take your own. Good shade here for those that can't handle the tropical sun.

Snorkeled and dived it.Lots of things going on and the visibility got better as you went out to sea. there is a local road that get you close to the beach with out going through the hotel, but that was interesting too.

Snorkelled here one morning as well as Nylon Pool and Buccoo Reef. This was my favourite spot. Healthier coral and reef, great amount of sea life. Location coukd be very appealling as you can swim and snorkel right from the beach.

Very good location for a shore dive or snorkelling. Healthy and colourful coral specimens with numerous fish. Even saw a few squid/cuttlefish close to shore.

We went on a snorkelling trip with Cocomotion and had a great time. We saw an array of fish and even beautiful reef squid. Going out it was glorious sunshine and we felt very Bondlike lounging on the speedboat with our sunnies on. Rain on the way back was not so much fun! Highly recommend and Marlon? from Cocomotion was very professional and helpful at assisting with recognising fish.

Access to the beach used to be through the Arnos Vale Hotel. The gates are opened sometimes these days to allow visitors to park. The 20.00tt parking fee has been cancelled since the new paving of the public access road that runs along side the hotel straight to the beach. Despite this, the beach itself is regularly quiet. You'll get some villagers with kids coming by on evenings during the weekend or during school holidays. But mid morning to midday you have the beach for yourself! The reef itself packs the most variety of and beauty by just entering the water. It's immediate as you push out, making it great for anyone learning to snorkel. As you further out there are large underwater mountains of coral creating trenches. When the water is very calm, it's such a pleasure to cruise around, you can easily be out there for an hour or more! The right side of the beach packs more variety than the left, however it's easier to launch from the left and then work your way around. All in all it's a great reef and the best one that's nearest to CrownPoint/Scarborough, without having to go all the way to Speyside/Charlotteville.

Tobago offers so many wonderful experiences - Arnos Vale is up there with the best. Located at the base of a run down hotel which requests $20(TT) per person entry, the beach is idyllic with a wonderful reef that most anyone can explore with snorkeling gear (bring with you). We did not avail ourselves of the kitchen facilities on site bringing our own piña coladas and chips with us. The water seemed warmer here than other places. Access is via dirt road off of Arnos Vale Road.

This is the place I dream of when the snows blow...a quiet cove with excellent snorkeling (my boys learned to snorkel here at age 4) largely undiscovered by the crowds. Frankly, I'm reluctant to post this review, I'm tempted to keep quiet about this little piece of paradise on earth. The somewhat decrepit hotel on site only seems to add to the charm of this place. There is hotel pool and bar on the beach; many warn against the over-priced food and drink at the bar, but we always get lunch there when we're snorkeling and don't care...nothing like a cheeseburger in paradise!