Trips to Venezuela

TRIPS TO VENEZUELA: NATURAL ARCHIPELAGO THE ROQUES

The Roques, a natural archipelago of Venezuela, was declared National Park in 1972 by its beauty and ecological importance. Located in the famous Caribbean Sea and by his transparent turkish waters, he is one of the most important reserves of marine fauna and internationally known by his coralline reefs.

General performances
State or dependancy: Federal dependancies

Temperature average: 27° C

Surface: 221,120 hectares

Location: In the Caribbean Sea, to the frank north of the central coast of Venezuela and to one it distances approximate of 166 km (84 nautical miles) of the port of the Guaira

The Archipelago the Roques
It owns great historical relevance by his pre-Columbian indigenous culture, besides being a place of indescribable natural beauty. The Roques is constituted by 42 small barren islands or keys, about 250 coralline sand banks, reefs and calcareous sediments, in whose interior, immersed in his crystalline waters of infinite blue and green tonalities, it lives of the most important reserves of marine species of the Atlantic Ocean.

For being the Roques a National Park has prevailed certain restrictions on the constructions. A great variety of inns are no great hotels of luxury but, from simplest to equipped yet the type of comforts.

Almost all the inns, very proud of their gastronomy, are located in the Great Roque, from where they leave boats to the different islands.

Festivals
• February and March: Carnivals and Easter
• November: Every year, in November, the season of the lobster is abre. During these months it is possible to be enjoyed one of the most delicious and appetizing lobsters of the world, inescapable complement of the stay in the Archipelago the Roques.
The season lasts 6 months, concluding at the beginning of April. In the other 6 months of the year it is not allowed to catch lobsters, contributing with this to the preservation of the species.

Nautical sports:
• Velerismo
• Windsurf and Kite Surf
• Buceo and Snorkeling
• Sport fishing
• Ski
• Kayac

Excursions
• Hiking by the footpaths
• Encamped
• Cycling
• Long walks

Luggage
* One advises light and fresh clothes, bathing suit, hats, comfortable glasses of sun, shoes. It is recommended not to take much luggage, since the weight by person is limited. He is advisable to also take kit of first aid.
* The park has designated zones to encamp, but the hiker must take his own encamped equipment of, including the store. On a daily basis and in certain hours they leave boats towards the keys.

Access
For the Great Roque they regularly divide to flights charter from Maiquetía (40 minutes) and Daisy Island (50 minutes) By sea, is possible to be arrived at the diverse keys through private or rented boats.
Tariffs and permissions: The Authority Unique cobra to national and international visitors a tariff when entering the park. The following activities in center require of permissions sent by INPARQUES of Attention the Visitor: to encamp, to search and/or to visit the Marine Primitive Zone, to practice the diving and the sport fishing.

Recommendations
It reads the following recommendations carefully, thus it will avoid any disadvantage or sanction by ignorance of the same:
• The chorales are alive beings, to break them, to extract them, to stop itself or to anchor envelope they can cause the death to him and thus we will destroy the landscape that to the nature has cost centuries to construct to him.
• The fishing with harpoon causes damages to the marine fauna and drives away to the fish, impoverishing the marine communities.
• The Marine Turtles and the Botuto or Guarura are species in extinction danger Please, helps to protect them. They also deserve to live.
• The beaches of the Archipelago are characterized to have very white sands. They blacken them to the bonfires and in addition the fire kills the organisms that live in her.
• The sands of the Archipelago are formed by calcium carbonate thanks to the disintegration of died chorales, shells of snails and other skeletons. Therefore, the subtraction of these rest alters the existing cycle. Please, it depends on us who this balance is not broken.
• The use of Jet-Ski, besides disturbing the tranquility of the place, causes damages to the microscopic organisms that serve as food the fish.
• The period of prohibition for the capture of the lobster is of the 01 of May to the 31 of October.
- The season of capture begins the 1 of November and culminates the 30 of April.
• For the following activities: to encamp, fishes sport and diving with independent apparatus of breathing, must ask for authorization.