Five oversized, colourful letters announce it as you approach the bend. L A G U N is emblazoned on a rock face overgrown with thicket and cacti on the road from Willemstad to Westpunt. About 50 metres after entering the fishing village, turn left onto the beach of the same name, Playa Lagun. The once sleepy village has now been developed for tourism.

The fishing boat under the letters symbolises the origin of the place.

We chose Lagun and the Whitehouse for our island adventure not least because of its convenient location between all the dream beaches in the southwest of the island.

Shortcut to the west

If you are just passing through, you can take the first road to the right in Lagun as a shortcut. You can’t really call this a bypass. It is more of a narrow, bumpy path. The advantage is that you always have right of way in both directions. The rule on Curacao is that through traffic always has the right of way at a T-junction if there is no road sign.

But we want to take you to Playa Lagun, so let’s go!

Turn left or right and you’re there

Sledge Hammer at Lagun

Basically, Curacao is more of a macro paradise with snails, seahorses and many smaller reef dwellers, but manta rays have also been spotted on the beaches and even whales off the coasts of Curacao.

Playa Lagun is known for turtle encounters, but hammerhead sightings with photos and videos have also gone viral on Curacao forums over the past year. Normally, hammerheads prefer deeper waters and rarely stray into narrow, shallow bays like Playa Lagun. Nevertheless, the sea is their habitat, so an encounter can happen.

Very inviting, not only for people

But I can reassure you. The hammerheads that visited Playa Lagun were peaceful: one swam leisurely alongside snorkellers deep into the bay.

According to the scientific director of the Carmabi Marine Research Institute, Mark Verweij, hammerhead sharks are generally very shy. And while the possibility of an attack cannot be completely ruled out, the likelihood is minimal. He describes it as very lucky to even catch a glimpse of a hammerhead in the wild. You can read more about this in a report in the Curacao Chronicle.

Fishing boats on the shore of Playa Lagun

Fishermen at Playa Lagun

Hotel resorts line both sides of the bay. They are perched on the high cliffs. Down on the beach, however, local fishermen launch their boats into the water and later sell freshly caught fish from brick stalls on the right-hand side of the beach. There are usually a number of fishing boats moored right on the shore. We went there to buy fresh fish for a barbecue after having no luck at Playa Grandi. Unfortunately, we came back again empty handed.

This side of the beach is dedicated to fishermen

Sunbathing under the trees

It costs $5 to rent a sun lounger on the beach. There are only two palapas at Playa Lagun. Of course they are quickly occupied. To protect yourself from the sun, you will probably have to resort to nature conditions, such as a spot near the rocks or under trees.

The shade of a Manzanilla tree is not a problem when the sun is shining. It is only when it is raining that you should not stay or seek shelter under one of these trees. This is because all parts of the tree are poisonous and the rain literally washes the toxins away. These can cause chemical burns to the skin. Also, please do not eat the apple-like fruit or walk barefoot on the fallen fruit.

Shady trees at Lagun Beach

Diving & snorkelling at Playa Lagun

Bahia Diving is located right on the beach. It’s part of the Bahia Apartments on the cliffs to the right of the beach. We haven’t had any direct contact with them yet. But our partner Bryan has information about this dive site and a video:

The bay of Lagun Beach opens very far inland and is very narrow. High rocks frame it completely on both sides. It is estimated that the beach is only 40 metres wide from wall to wall at the entrance. The water is very calm, making it ideal for snorkelling and families. The narrow width also makes it easy to keep an eye on the little ones. The bay is about 100 metres long and looks like a notch from above. This makes for spectacular drone shots like this one in a slightly thundery atmosphere:

Play of colors and light in Lagun Bay

On another day, I went into the water to photograph the beach from a water perspective while Stefan flew the drone over Playa Lagun again.

Buoys in the bay

I swam along the bay to the yellow marker buoys. They don’t just spoil the turquoise Caribbean Sea idyll here at Playa Lagun. We also found these chains of bright yellow buoys on the beaches Grote Knip and Karakter Beach. But they were probably necessary,

• to mark the reef areas away from swimming and snorkelling areas to protect the corals
• to draw a clear line for boat and jet ski traffic

Hammer hard!

On the way back to the shore of Lagun Beach, I stayed in the water up to my thighs and filmed some corals and fish. In the crystal clear water near the rock wall and the stairs that lead down from the Bahia Apartments to the water below, the fish can also be seen very well from above. Suddenly something big and round swam straight towards me. I froze and didn’t move, just let my camera work.

The beauty of this turtle is breathtaking

What can I say? This was my very own personal turtle moment. No one else had noticed the turtle. So I got to watch and film it exclusively, but most of all it got to watch me! Did you know that turtles have excellent eyesight – better than us humans? This meant that the turtle was well aware that I was there. It circled around me, coming closer and closer, almost touching me. That was just beautiful!

The Turtle Woman

The female tortoise swam around in the shallow water for what seemed like an eternity. How did I know? Females have a very short tail under their carapace. The males, on the other hand, have a clearly visible, longer tail. My filming and enthusiasm didn’t go unnoticed over time and other snorkellers and swimmers joined me in the shallow water. Time to go…

It’s a girl!

The honk pulls the zonk

I came out of the water, still buzzing from my date with the turtle, and found my tongue again. I still had our GoPro in my hand. So just turn around and tell Relaxed Curacao about it. The only thing I forgot was that this take was completely wasted. Only muffled, unintelligible sounds coming through the Plexiglas underwater housing.

Grilled fish or chicken?

As you have just read, at Playa Lagun you have the chance to experience turtles individually, which is not possible at the famous turtle beach Playa Piskadó. There are also no masses of fish waste floating around at Playa Lagun. Everything is smaller, more intimate and more original. That’s why you might see a wild chicken running by from time to time.

The barbecue restaurant “Discover Lagun” is located on the left side of the access road to the beach. Every Wednesday from 5 pm it’s barbecue night and it’s “all you can eat”. On our last visit the price was 49 NAF (about 25 EUR) per person. A good opportunity to let the day fade away on the beach with a delicious meal.

Discover the menu in “Discover Lagun”

Other facilities at Playa Lagun

For the sake of completeness, there is also a snack car near the parking lot of Playa Lagun. This was closed on our last visit, so we couldn’t try anything.

The restrooms at Playa Lagun are located in a low, painted building and are not very inviting. They serve their purpose – provided they are open.

But hey, what the heck, the sand at Playa Lagun is also snow white, the bay is small but fine and the water is clear and turquoise blue. You don’t need much more to be happy on holiday, right?

White sand and blue lagoon at fishing beach