Black Sand Beach

This was glorious. In terms of sheer beauty, this is in my top 10 beaches in the world. Frankly, you can only see so many white sand beaches with crystal clear turquoise water, before they all start blending together. We’ve been to the Black Sand Beach in Hawaii, but this one just seems so much more dramatic. Perhaps it was because there are cliff walls here, or perhaps it was because we visited right before a hurricane and nobody was out. But we had to place all to ourselves. The contrast of the black sand with the cliffs and sea was dramatic. And then the sun began to set and the drama level increased tenfold. Getting there involves a 10 minute hike through an easy and flat wooded area. The first time we tried to find it, we had a bit of a mishap, in that we did not follow the instructions and started 4-wheeling down a path and ended up seeing the black sand beach from afar. You will see a sign that clearly points to the path for the black sand beach (see photo. We ignored it the first time). You can either park there or across the street, and there’s an entrance; it’s pretty well marked. We just went off on our own adventure the first time! Absolutely worth the 10 minute hike. What a gorgeous beach. Note that you should not swim here, as I am told the currents are treacherous. Pro tip: go at Sunset and the black sand seems even more dramatic!

Nice, casual 15 minute walk from the road. The entrance is at the ‘PLAYA NEGRA’ sign. Dirt pull off Parking is just past the entrance on the right side. Walk to the beach is pleasant, you’ll be walking in the Arroyo (dry river bed). We were fortunate that the rain from the day before was minimal so we had a mostly dry walk. However, be prepared to get wet and walk thru deep water enroute to the beach. If it has rained a lot the water will pool up. Definitely NOT a place to swim, just walk and take photos. The current is very strong.

Awesome beach. It's kind of flat beach so safe for swimming and relaxing at the shore. Black Sand is also available. Getting into the place is little different. At the entrance you will find a small board written black and sand beach if you missed that then that's hard to find. Google map does tell you exactly. Then you need to walk for around 20 mins to reach the beach side. But waking is easy , you have plenty of shades, so not hard and in the beginning it has a Stony way down and then flat sand way. Must go to this calm and beautiful place

Black Sand Beach in Vieques is a must-visit stop that promises an adventure from the moment you arrive. Parking is a breeze with plenty of spots off the side of the road near the trail entrance at the Playa Negra sign. As you embark on your journey you will pass by the graffiti-covered bridge. Keep an eye out for hermit crabs the size of grapefruits crossing your path – they add a touch of whimsy to the trek. Be sure to wear your water shoes or Crocs because the trail to the beach is wet, and getting into the water can be rocky. But trust me, it's all worth it once you take a dip in the refreshing ocean. Before you leave, make sure to make your “mark” on the rocks with some black sand after a swim. Then, head off to explore the next beach on your agenda for the day. Black Sand Beach is an adventure you won’t want to miss!

Beautiful! The black sand is so fine and soft. The water has big rocks on the floor so not the best swimming spot. About 10 min walk to get to the beach

Short walk. Saw a few hermit crabs, lizards and horses along the way. Opened up to lots of black sand that feels soft and fine. Definitely recommend

It was a nice long walk down a shaded sandy path. At the time we were there, we had to dig a little into the sand to find the black sand. We went just before dusk and found it mostly empty, aside from the horseback riders.

Omg this was a disappointment, first to get there is so many turns and there is horse dung and you are going through a jungle to get to a disappointment and water that looks like a dirty sink. Yeah a little bit of black sand.

This was glorious. In terms of sheer beauty, this is in my top 10 beaches in the world. Frankly, you can only see so many white sand beaches with crystal clear turquoise water, before they all start blending together. We’ve been to the Black Sand Beach in Hawaii, but this one just seems so much more dramatic. Perhaps it was because there are cliff walls here, or perhaps it was because we visited right before a hurricane and nobody was out. But we had to place all to ourselves. The contrast of the black sand with the cliffs and sea was dramatic. And then the sun began to set and the drama level increased tenfold. Getting there involves a 10 minute hike through an easy and flat wooded area. The first time we tried to find it, we had a bit of a mishap, in that we did not follow the instructions and started 4-wheeling down a path and ended up seeing the black sand beach from afar. You will see a sign that clearly points to the path for the black sand beach (see photo. We ignored it the first time). You can either park there or across the street, and there’s an entrance; it’s pretty well marked. We just went off on our own adventure the first time! Absolutely worth the 10 minute hike. What a gorgeous beach. Note that you should not swim here, as I am told the currents are treacherous. Pro tip: go at Sunset and the black sand seems even more dramatic!

Nice, casual 15 minute walk from the road. The entrance is at the ‘PLAYA NEGRA’ sign. Dirt pull off Parking is just past the entrance on the right side. Walk to the beach is pleasant, you’ll be walking in the Arroyo (dry river bed). We were fortunate that the rain from the day before was minimal so we had a mostly dry walk. However, be prepared to get wet and walk thru deep water enroute to the beach. If it has rained a lot the water will pool up. Definitely NOT a place to swim, just walk and take photos. The current is very strong.

Awesome beach. It's kind of flat beach so safe for swimming and relaxing at the shore. Black Sand is also available. Getting into the place is little different. At the entrance you will find a small board written black and sand beach if you missed that then that's hard to find. Google map does tell you exactly. Then you need to walk for around 20 mins to reach the beach side. But waking is easy , you have plenty of shades, so not hard and in the beginning it has a Stony way down and then flat sand way. Must go to this calm and beautiful place

Black Sand Beach in Vieques is a must-visit stop that promises an adventure from the moment you arrive. Parking is a breeze with plenty of spots off the side of the road near the trail entrance at the Playa Negra sign. As you embark on your journey you will pass by the graffiti-covered bridge. Keep an eye out for hermit crabs the size of grapefruits crossing your path – they add a touch of whimsy to the trek. Be sure to wear your water shoes or Crocs because the trail to the beach is wet, and getting into the water can be rocky. But trust me, it's all worth it once you take a dip in the refreshing ocean. Before you leave, make sure to make your “mark” on the rocks with some black sand after a swim. Then, head off to explore the next beach on your agenda for the day. Black Sand Beach is an adventure you won’t want to miss!

Beautiful! The black sand is so fine and soft. The water has big rocks on the floor so not the best swimming spot. About 10 min walk to get to the beach

Short walk. Saw a few hermit crabs, lizards and horses along the way. Opened up to lots of black sand that feels soft and fine. Definitely recommend

It was a nice long walk down a shaded sandy path. At the time we were there, we had to dig a little into the sand to find the black sand. We went just before dusk and found it mostly empty, aside from the horseback riders.

Omg this was a disappointment, first to get there is so many turns and there is horse dung and you are going through a jungle to get to a disappointment and water that looks like a dirty sink. Yeah a little bit of black sand.

Playa Negra is featured in the tourism marketing for Vieques and you'll instantly recognize the beach once you arrive. My wife, two teenage sons, and I parked our rental car in the mini-parking lot up the hill. We took the walking trail (about 15 minutes to the beach from the mini-parking lot) which descends to a wooded area. At the end of the trail, you'll see a private beach with the cliffs to the left and the pretty water straight ahead. I would recommend walking along the right side to get a better view of the cliffs and black sands. Watch your step - tour groups with horses will sometimes use this same trail. Overall, this beach is worth a photo - but is not conductive to a full day visit because the waves can be a bit rough. It's a pleasant hike to view the beach before returning to your rental car. Including the walk down to the beach, I would allocate about 1.5 to 2 hours for a leisurely visit.

Worth the drive and totally worth the hike to get here! Beautiful terrain and cool spider webs, complete with huge spiders! This secluded spot is incredibly cool. The water is warm, the sands are black, the high rocks are beautiful, and the black pebbles and seashells are abundant.

This was such a unique experience! It was about a 15 minute walk to the beach through the jungle and not too strenuous of a hike. The beach was private and beautiful with clear water! It's not ideal for an entire beach day, but would be good for beach hopping or a picnic. There were also wild horses next to the beach when we came and one of the younger horses rolled around in the sand like a dog.

Incredibly beautiful. The beach has a bunch of little coves that you can set yourself up in and hang out all day. The sand is very soft. Beach is clean. Water is clear.

A pretty overlook, but not a place to play in the water. Waves are breaking right on the rocky shore.

In A Nutshell: -The Black Sand Beach does have black sand, just not as much as you would have imagined as you walk down the trail towards it. -As a matter of fact, I enjoyed the walk towards the beach more than the black sand itself. -I was able to see a huge hermit crab walking along and a couple of iguana's partaking in some adult activities ;) -Parking was very, very minimal, but luckily I was on a scooter so space wasn't an issue. Overall, I guess if you really want to see some black sand then SURE go ahead and check it out. It takes about 15 minutes to get to it.

Quiet beach with not a lot of bells and whistles. The beach is gorgeous with clear bright blue waters. You can rent a cabana for $20 a day or camp there. There is love rock that attracts fish. The beach is pretty clean.

This was the best beach of our entire visit to Puerto Rico and Vieques. If you cannot read your tourist map, enter "Gallery Galleon" into your GPS and you will get here just fine. There is a parking "lot" just a minute walk from the entrance to the trail. Enough room to park for about 10 cars. Walk from the lot back across the street to the left, past the gallery and between the guardrail and chain link fence. You really cannot miss it. The walk down to the beach is about 10 minutes along a dried up creek bed. The only "tricky" part is walking down the initial rocky hill. After that, it is just a sandy walk with a couple of tree roots to climb over. Very shaded and peaceful walk. The beach was deserted except for one other family. The black sand is very fine. There are no rocks or seaweed on the beach or in the water. There were very small waves, no undercurrent. Just the best place to stand in the water up to your neck and relax. The 10 minute walk was definitely worth it.

Vieques (island) is awesome. The equivalent to escaping the city at home and heading to the San Juan Islands. Black Sand Beach is a little hard to find since google maps takes you to the incorrect entrance. Luckily, a fed-up local has put up a sign on their property that says NO ENTRY TO BLACK SAND BEACH. Just wish they had put an arrow about which way to go. Vieques is FULL of free-roaming horses. They cross the roads willy-nilly, and will even meet you on the path heading to Black Sand! The short hike through the trees to the beach was beautiful too. Though the section we ended up at didn't have a ton of black sand so it sounds like we didn't go far enough to get the seaweedy, black sand-side since our views were of clear water and breathtaking views...until we met an errant nude sunbather...ellipses ellipses ellipses... Worth seeing if you like horses, short hikes, and great scenery! (Sans nude sunbathers.)

So different! Gorgeous to take in but not for swimming. A lot of seaweed wrapped up in the break to wade through. Anyways, when you arrive, the magnetic black sand is to the right side. It Super Super soft and I read that you should treat this beach like a spa. Exfoliate yourself with it and even bury your body in it for 40 minutes bc the naturally occurring magnetite is known for aligning the body. Or do what I did and have yourself a photoshoot! The beach takes beautiful photos. These with my cell phone! Located on the south side of Vieques. Rt 996 mile marker 7.0. Just before the galleria. 10 minute walk down a trail to the beach.

This is a must see! It is a solid 10.5 min walk in. Be careful walking out with wet sandals the last up hill to the road is steeper than you think. You walk on a sandy riverbed that twists and turns something out of Indiana jones. Check the tides of you can, high tied doesn't leave much beach space. We arrived at 09:30 with enough beach to walk a little but no place to lay out. This was something I have never seen before and glad we went! Park just up the street across from the gallery plenty of dirt space to leave a jeep

Visited here this past week. It is not a beach to spend time at. It's more a place to see. There isn't room to put down a towel and hang out as the beach is smaller now after he hurricane. The trail there is a bit of a hike/walk. But it is BEAUTIFUL! so glad we got to see it.

Black Sand Beach - Playa Negra This place isn't the easiest to get to & kind of off the beaten path for beaches in Vieques but it's worth the time to come out and have a look. To find it, head to the Gallery Galleon (you can find it on the Vieques tourist map that the rental car companies give you) The entrance is just before the gallery. The only real marking is a spray painted light pole to indicate the entrance. You have to walk maybe a 1/2 mile down creek/drainage slough to get there. The path is flat wide and very easy. I wouldn't suggest being Indiana Jones and try 4 wheeling your rental jeep down there because in more than one place trees are in the way. When you get closer to the ocean and if you look ahead there are dozens of crabs that hide out in their little holes. Once you get even kind of close they dart back into the hole. So for your 15 minute walk you are rewarded with a very cool beach that has both normal sand and areas of black sand. I don't know what the sand is made of but it's heavy. The beach portion is pretty short/small. We didn't stick around and try to snorkel or swim, just check it out, take some pictures and head out. Once you're back at the car, you can wander over to check out the Gallery Galleon or if you want to try another beach that doesn't have a lot of people just continue down route 201 until you reach Playa Grande.

We had to walk like 15 minutes to get to this gorgeous place but it was worth it , it was so peaceful and clean !!

Beautiful and hidden. 15 min walk wear tennis shoes. The waves are to strong to get in the water. The beach isn't groomed so tons of seaweed. Itsy beach area. We took a few pics and left.

Truly a hidden gem. The hike is not that bad. It was a brisk 10 minute walk down hill and a 15 minute walk up hill. You won't find to many people on this beach as most people do not want to actually have to walk/drive to this location.

I'm rating the beach 5 because of the its isolation and views. It's about a quarter mile hike through a creek with sketchy walking trail so be prepared to get a little sweaty. The beach it self does have black sand but it's all completely black. But if your looking for a little adventure on the island definitely check it out.

Good public beach, but certainly not like Flamenco beach on the island of Culebra next door, or the beach of Culebrita.