Last updated on .
Klein Curaçao is one of the best day trips you can do while visiting Curaçao. This tiny uninhabited island lies 10 kilometers southeast of Curaçao.
Introduction to Klein Curaçao
Klein Curaçao is a 1.7-square-kilometer (0.66 square-mile) desert island that’s popular with beach day-trippers coming from Curaçao. It’s also a fantastic spot for diving.
The island played a major role in the Atlantic slave trade. The Dutch West India Company would quarantine sick slaves there before taking them to Willemstad to be sold. Slaves who didn’t survive were buried on the southern tip of Klein Curaçao.
In 1871, English engineer John Godden discovered a significant amount of phosphate on the island. It was exploited from 1871 to 1886, with all phosphate exported to Europe. During this period, miners stripped the island of all its hills and dense vegetation, leaving it bare and desolate.
Once all the phosphate was extracted, the desertification of the island began. The population of seabirds plummeted because cats introduced to eat rats also ate eggs and hatchlings. Furthermore, the lighthouse keeper kept goats that ate up all the vegetation. All the goats were removed by 1996 and the feral cats by 2004. Seabirds returned to nest, as well as hawksbill, loggerhead and green sea turtles. The island has been a protected Ramsar site since 2018, and over 105 species of seabirds and migratory birds have been spotted there.
Day Trips to Klein Curaçao
Unless you have your own boat, the only way to get to Klein Curaçao is via an organized day trip. You can find several companies that organize them. Fees and amenities vary by company.
Depending on the departure point and the type of boat, the trip takes about 90 minutes to get there and about an hour to get back. It can get choppy on the way there, so keep that in mind if you get seasick. It’s typically calmer on the way back.
Klein Curaçao with Mermaid Boat Trips
We went with Mermaid Boat Trips. They’re regarded as one of the top companies running trips to Klein Curaçao and are the only one with a beach house and facilities on the island. They provide breakfast and lunch on the island and also have free masks available at the beach house.
Mermaid charges US$140 per adult and US$70 per child age 4-12 (as of February 2025). Kids under 4 can go for free. They’re typically a little more expensive but they do a fantastic job. Also, I highly recommend booking online ahead of time. (Note: Use the promo code on this website for a 10% discount (as of February 2025).)
The boat departs at around 7am from Caracasbaai and is back between 4:30 and 5pm. If you’re renting a car, you can park for free outside the dock. Otherwise, you can arrange for a transportation for an extra fee.
As for the boat, there are two decks. If you want to get some sun and feel the breeze, you can sit on the upper deck. During the trip, you can treat yourself to free coffee, tea, and water. For your convenience, they even free provide seasickness pills.
Disconnect and be prepared for a relaxing day as there’s NO WiFi on the island! Finally, you’ll have to take your own towels as well as snorkeling and diving gear if you wish to do so.
Arrival on Klein Curaçao
Our morning started with a courteous driver in a full-size van picking us up from our hotel in Willemstad at 6:10am. We arrived at the dock about 20 minutes later and walked to the boat to check in. Since we had paid in full online, we just took a seat and settled in for the trip.
The boat left shortly after 7am, crossing through the natural lagoon of Spanish Water (Spaanse Water) before passing to the Caribbean. Along the way, we passed Seru Kabritu and got a look at the oil rigs on the other side. Once out on the sea, we saw a storm rolling through to the north and got a glimpse of a beautiful rainbow. We also went past Fuik, Duivelsklip, and Oostpunt on the inaccessible southern tip of Curaçao, which has been set aside as a wildlife preserve.
About an hour later, Klein Curaçao started coming into view. We could easily spot the Mermaid beach house and could immediately see the difference between their facilities and those of other companies.
After the boat stopped, the crew loaded up a dinghy with food and supplies and unloaded it on the island. When they came back, the day trippers piled onto the dinghy and got shuttled over. It took a few trips to get everyone on the island, where people dispersed and claimed space under the palapas. A few people dove into the water and swam to shore to make sure they got a good spot on the beach.
Mermaid Beach House
Once we got settled on the beach, the crew called everyone over to the beach house to go over the schedule for the day and lay out some ground rules. The beach house has a patio covered by a large thatched roof, picnic tables, clean bathrooms, and a bar. There’s complimentary soda and water throughout the day. If you buy a cocktail or beer at the bar, you can pay with a credit card on the boat trip back to Curaçao.
After the orientation, the crew served breakfast. It was fresh fruit with either cheese or ham and cheese sandwiches. For lunch, the crew rang the bell to call everyone over. There was a nice spread of barbecued chicken, hamburger, ribs, rice, salad, and veggies. While the breakfast sandwiches were a little simple, the lunch was delicious. Both meals are all-you-can-eat!
One thing you have to look out for is all the hermit crabs scurrying around the beach. If you’re not careful, you can easily step on one! There were literally hundreds of them hanging out near the beach house as well as lizards.
The Beach
As for the beach, it’s a pristine stretch of powdery white sand with crystal clear water. It’s a true paradise and we enjoyed every moment. I took a short walk down to the northern and southern ends of the beach and checked out some of the other companies’ facilities, and by far Mermaid has the best.
Lookout Tower
The lookout tower is one of the highlights of the beach house. You can climb up to the top level for fantastic 360° views of the entire island and the beach below. You can also see Curaçao in the distance.
When looking east, all of the island’s landmarks are visible, including the lighthouse and shipwrecks. You can also see how bare the island is.
What to See on Klein Curaçao
If you like to explore, you’re in luck. Trails starting near the Mermaid beach house lead to a few points of interest. The trails eventually loop back to the beach house. You can even go off the trails and roam all over the island if you wish. To enhance the experience, you can pick up a guide at the beach house with information about each point of interest on the island.
Lighthouse
The most recognizable landmark on Klein Curaçao is the lighthouse. It makes for a stark contrast to the island’s barren landscape.
Before there was a lighthouse, sailors would use the presence of birds as a warning. As a ship would approach the island, the birds would flock towards it to protect their breeding ground. To ensure this natural warning system stayed in place, in 1737, the Dutch government penalized anyone for eating bird eggs. Whites would have to pay a fine and blacks were enslaved and forced to work in the salt pans of Bonaire for a year. Many historians consider this one of the first forms of environmental protection enforced by a government.
The first lighthouse, the Prince Hendrik Lighthouse, was built on Klein Curaçao in 1849. It was completely destroyed by a hurricane in 1877. The current lighthouse was built in 1885 near the center of the island and contained living quarters for a lighthouse keeper. The lighthouse keeper required the knowledge, experience, and craftsmanship to keep the lighthouse functioning properly every night.
Features of the Lighthouse
You can explore the lighthouse at your own risk but beware of missing floorboards. The structure consists of two areas for the lighthouse keepers built atop large cisterns leaning against the tower. Each wing contained a bedroom, living room, kitchen, storage room, and recreational area. The doors and windows were made of wooden shutters.
The shaft of the lighthouse is made of coral and limestone. It was renovated in 1914. Every evening before sunset, the lighthouse keeper raised a counterweight in the center of the tower to a height of over 25 meters. It would slowly lower throughout the night causing the mirrors in the light to rotate at the correct speed. Today, it’s possible to climb up the shaft and get close to the top. You’ll get some great views of the island from the windows on the way up.
The top of the lighthouse was built out of steel in 1914. At that time, two identical samples were ordered from France – one for Klein Curaçao and one for the California Lighthouse on Aruba. In 2008, the lighting system was fitted with a solar-powered LED beacon, eliminating the necessity of a lighthouse keeper. The lamps flash twice every 15 seconds, and the Mermaid overnight crew regularly checks and informs the government of its functionality.
Wreck of the Bianca Maria
On the east coast of Klein Curaçao, you’ll see the remains of the biggest and most famous shipwreck on the island. The Bianca Maria was a tanker built by Drypool Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Ltd., in Hull, England, and launched as the Guidesman on September 16, 1964. It was sold in 1983 and became the Vasiliki IV until 1987, when it was sold again to a Venezuelan company and renamed the Bianca Maria.
The Bianca Maria ran aground in 1988. Local authorities attempted to tow it away but failed. Fortunately, they were able to board and empty the leaking fuel tanks, preventing the possibility of environmental damage. Ever since, the ship has been pounded by large waves and strong winds. There’s not much left today and it will eventually disappear. The debris field stretches further south down the shoreline.
Wreck of the Tchao
A few steps north is the wreck of the Tchao, a French sailing yacht that ran aground on April 1, 2007. The yacht was too heavily damaged to save and now rest permanently on the shore of Klein Curaçao. Thankfully, all four passengers survived.
Rock Piles
Near the wrecks you’ll probably spot a couple rock piles. One is circular and looks like some kind of structure and the other is just a mound. I’m not sure what their purpose might have been, and I haven’t been able to find any information about them.
Sailboat Wreck
Walking south down the shoreline I came to the wreck of a sailboat. It looked fairly recent and I couldn’t find any information about it.
Graves on Klein Curaçao
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, the Dutch West India Company used Klein Curaçao to quarantine sick slaves before taking them to Willemstad to be sold. The slaves that didn’t survive were buried mainly on the southern tip of the island. There are also other burial sites for people that were shipwrecked or fishermen who died at sea.
