Lighthouses of Venezuela: Caribbean Islands

Located on the north coast of South America, Venezuela has a long coastline facing the Caribbean Sea. In addition, Venezuela administers a number of islands in the westward extension of the Lesser Antilles chain. This page lists the lighthouses of those Caribbean islands. The Isla Margarita and associated smaller islands are incorporated in the state of Nueva Esparta; the smaller, mostly unpopulated islands are governed as federal territories (Dependencias Federales).

Only a small number of historic lighthouses remain in service in Venezuela, but there are many modern fiberglass or skeletal towers. Information on both active and inactive towers would be very welcome, and photos of many lighthouses are also needed.

In recent years, Venezuela has been carrying out a program to build a number of new lighthouses; the Punta Ballena light shown below and the Punta Faragoza light at right are examples of these new towers.

Active lighthouses in Venezuela are owned by the navy and managed by the Oficina Coordinadora de Hydrografía y Navegación (OCHINA).

Note: Isla Aves, a remote Eastern Caribbean island claimed and occupied by Venezuela, has a separate page.

ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volume J of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA numbers are from Publication 110.

General Sources
Faros de Venezuela: Centinelas del Caribe
An online "flip book" on Venezuela's lighthouses, written by Curti Hubschmann, an official with Ochina.
Online List of Lights - Leeward Antilles
Photos by various photographers posted by Alex Trabas. The Venezuelan Caribbean photos are by Capt. Theo Hinrichs.
Lighthouses in Venezuela
Photos available from Wikimedia.
Lighthouses of Venezuela
Historic postcard images posted by Michel Forand.
Leuchttürme Südamerikas auf historischen Postkarten
Historic postcard images posted by Klaus Huelse.

 

Faro Punta Faragoza
Punta Faragoza Light, Isla Margarita, January 2005
Flickr Creative Commons photo by Edison

Dependencias Federales Lighthouses

Islas de las Aves Lighthouses
Note: The Islas de las Aves should not be confused with Aves Island, another Venezuelan possession, which is far away in the eastern Caribbean. The Las Aves islands are the small cays of two extensive reefs located roughly halfway between the Dutch island of Bonaire and the Islas los Roques. The islands are uninhabited but are often visited by scuba divers.
Aves de Sotavento (Leeward Aves) (3)
Date unknown (station established 1931). Active; focal plane 16 m (52 ft); white flash every 7 s. Approx. 13 m (43 ft) square pyramidal steel skeletal tower with gallery, painted with red and white horizontal bands. A photo is available, there's also a closeup (halfway down the page), and Trabas has a view from the sea by Capt. Theo Hinrichs, but Google has only a fuzzy satellite view of the area. Located on Isla del Faro, a small cay at the northwest end of the western reef complex. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty J6419; NGA 17004.
Aves de Barlovento (Windward Aves)
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 16 m (52 ft); one long (1.5 s) white flash every 10 s. Approx. 12 m (39 ft) square pyramidal steel skeletal tower with gallery, painted with red and white horizontal bands. Capt. Theo Hinrichs has a photo, and another photo is available (halfway down the page), but Google has only a fuzzy satellite view of the area. This light has probably been rebuilt several times; there's a photo of one earlier tower on the ground. Located near the western tip of a cay at the southeast end of the eastern reef complex. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. ARLHS VEN-002; Admiralty J6420; NGA 17000.

Islas los Roques Lighthouses
Note: The Isla los Roques are an archipelago of more than 50 islands with a rich associated complex of coral reefs, located about 150 km (90 mi) north of La Guaira. The islands have been a national park since 1972. El Gran Roque, one of the larger islands, has a permanent population of about 1500 and an airstrip accessible by small aircraft.
Cayo de Agua (2)
Date unknown (recent). Active; focal plane 17 m (56 ft); white flash every 15 s. 15 m (49 ft) round cylindrical fiberglass tower with lantern and gallery, painted with orange and white horizontal bands. Ana Claudia Crispim has a great photo, and Trabas has a photo by Capt. Hinrichs, but Google has only a fuzzy satellite view of the island. Located on a small cay at the west end of the Los Roques archipelago. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Site manager: Parque Nacional de los Roques. ARLHS VEN-006; Admiralty J6425; NGA 17012.
* El Gran Roque (Los Roques, Faro Holandés) (2)
1875. Inactive since the 1950s at least. Approx. 18 m (60 ft) square pyramidal stone tower, now falling into ruin. Pedro Sánchez's photo is at right, José Ilidio Spinola has a good photo, and Edwin Rivera has a great 2007 closeup, but Google has only a fuzzy satellite view of the island. Obviously endangered. Nearby is an active light (focal plane 114 m (374 ft); white flash every 10 s) on a 6 m (20 ft) hexagonal fiberglass pillar. Located on a hill in the center of El Gran Roque, at the northern end of the reef complex. Site open, tower open but dangerous. Site manager: Parque Nacional de los Roques. ARLHS VEN-009(=025); Admiralty J6424.
Punta Sebastopol (3)
2002 (station established 1970). Active; focal plane 12 m (39 ft); white flash every 6 s. Approx. 10 m (33 ft) round cylindrical fiberglass tower with gallery, painted with orange and white horizontal bands. John Pernales has a photo, and Trabas has a distant photo by Capt. Hinrichs, but Google has only a fuzzy satellite view of the area. This light marks the Boca de Sebastopol, one of the few good entrances through the reef. The original skeletal tower was replaced by a fiberglass tower in 1992; that tower was patched up after being heavily damaged by Hurricane Brett in 1993. Located on Cayo Grande at the southeastern point of the reef complex. Site open, tower closed. Site manager: Parque Nacional de los Roques. ARLHS VEN-022; Admiralty J6425.4; NGA 17016.


El Gran Roque Light, Islas los Roques, , June 2004
Wikipedia Creative Commons photo by Pedro Sánchez


Isla Farallón Centinela, Isla La Tortuga, and Isla La Blanquilla Lighthouses
Note: These isolated and uninhabited islands lie off the coast of central Venezuela.
Isla Farallón Centinela (5?)
2001 (station established 1930). Active; focal plane 44 m (146 ft); white flash every 12 s. 6 m (20 ft) hexagonal fiberglass skeletal tower, painted with red and white horizontal bands. No lantern. A 2008 closeup and a 2007 photo show the present tower, and a third photo shows the previous (1996) tower, but the tiny island is missing from Google's satellite view. The phrase farollón centinela means "little sentry lighthouse." Note: NGA misspells the name as "Isla Farallin." Located atop an isolated rock in the Caribbean about 40 km (25 mi) north of Cabo Codera. Accessible only by boat; landing is difficult. Site and tower closed. ARLHS VEN-010; Admiralty J6462; NGA 17036.
Cayo Herradura (3?)
2005 (station established 1939). Active; focal plane 14 m (46 ft); white flash every 10 s. 13 m (43 ft) round fiberglass tower with lantern and gallery, painted with red and white horizontal bands. Edgar Espinoza's photo is at right, a 2009 photo and another photo are available, and Google has a fuzzy satellite view. The lighthouse is very similar to the Isla Chimana Segunda lighthouse (see Venezuela Mainland). Cayo Herradura is a cay off the north coast of Isla La Tortuga, an uninhabited island about 30 km (20 mi) north of the mainland and 140 km (90 mi) west of Isla de Margarita. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. ARLHS VEN-007; Admiralty J6472; NGA 17028.
Faro Cayo Herradura
Cayo Herradura Light, Isla la Tortuga, 2010
Wikipedia Creative Commons photo by Edgar Espinoza
Punta Oriental (Isla La Tortuga)
Date unknown (station established 1939). Active; focal plane 17 m (56 ft); white flash every 7.5 s. 15 m (49 ft) round fiberglass tower with lantern and gallery, painted with red and white horizontal bands. A closeup photo and a distant view from the sea are available, and Google has an indistinct satellite view. Located at the southeastern tip of Isla La Tortuga. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. ARLHS VEN-020; Admiralty J6474; NGA 17032.
Isla La Blanquilla (2?)
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 27 m (89 ft); white flash every 2.5 s. 14 m (46 ft) round cylindrical fiberglass tower, painted with orange and white horizontal bands. No photo available, and the light has not been found in Google's satellite view. Ray Radloff has a photo (halfway down the page) of a square skeletal tower, and another photo of that tower (third photo on the page) is available. Isla La Blanquilla is a low island about 10 km (6 mi) in diameter, 120 km (75 mi) northwest of Isla Margarita. Located on the southwestern coast of the island. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Site manager: Parque Nacional de los Roques. ARLHS VEN-023; Admiralty J6476; NGA 17014.

Islas Los Frailes Lighthouse
Isla Los Frailes
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 160 m (525 ft); white flash every 15 s. 12 m (39 ft) square skeletal tower with gallery, colored with red and white horizontal bands. Trabas has Capt. Theo's distant view, and Google has a satellite view. Isla los Frailes is a high island about 16 km (10 mi) off the northeast coast of Isla Margarita. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. Admiralty J6508.5; NGA 17153.

Nueva Esparta Lighthouses

Isla Margarita Lighthouses
Note: Isla Margarita is by far Venezuela's largest island, about 80 km (50 mi) long and about 40 km (25 mi) off the coast. It has a population of over 400,000 and has become a very popular destination for tourists from both North and South America. The island is accessible by air or by ferry from Puerto la Cruz or Cumana on the mainland.
* La Puntilla de Porlamar
1896. Active; focal plane 20 m (66 ft); long (1.5 s) white flash every 10s. 15 m (49 ft) octagonal masonry tower, painted with pink and white horizontal bands. Anna Malachowska's photo is at right, an excellent 2007 photo is available, Orlando Leiva has a distant view, Huelse has a distant postcard view, and Google has a satellite view. The lighthouse is located east of Calle la Marina on the waterfront of Porlamar, the principal town of the Isla Margarita, on the south coast of the island. Site open, tower closed. ARLHS VEN-012; Admiralty J6503; NGA 17154.
Punta Mosquito
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 30 m (98 ft); white flash every 6 s. Fiberglass tower, height unknown, painted with orange and white horizontal bands. No photo available, but Google has a satellite view. Located on the southeastern point of Isla Margarita, about 12 km (7.5 mi) southwest of Porlamar. Site status unknown. ARLHS VEN-019; Admiralty J6508; NGA 17152.
* La Guardia (Ensenada La Guardia)
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 12 m (39 ft); two white flashes every 12 s. Approx. 10 m (33 ft) hexagonal fiberglass tower, painted with red and white horizontal bands. Javier Delgado has a closeup photo, a more distant view is available, and Google has a satellite view. Located on a sharp point of land about 7 km (4.5 mi) north of La Guardia on the north coast of Isla Margarita. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty J6500.8; NGA 17162.1.
* Punta Faragoza (Punta Zaragoza) (2)
Date unknown (station established 1997). Active; focal plane 85 m (279 ft); white flash every 10 s. 23 m (75 ft) hexagonal tower with lantern and gallery, painted with red and white horizontal bands. A photo is at the top of this page, a second closeup is available, José Ilidio Spinola has a photo, Trabas has Capt. Theo's view from the sea, a 2002 postage stamp shows the lighthouse, and Google has a good satellite view. The lighthouse in described in NGA as being "rubblework," indicating that the present tower replaced an older stone tower. Located on a promontory about 10 km (6 mi) southwest of the northeastern tip of Isla Margarita. Accessible by hiking trail from a popular beach on the east side of the promontory. Site open, tower closed. ARLHS VEN-017; Admiralty J6501; NGA 17162.
Cabo Negro (Cabo de la Isla) (3)
Date unknown (station established 1929). Active; focal plane 70 m (230 ft); white flash every 5 s. 12 m (39 ft) hexagonal tapered fiberglass tower with lantern and gallery, painted red with a white horizontal band. Trabas has a good though distant photo by Capt. Theo, and Google has a satellite view. Located on the northeastern tip of Isla Margarita. Site status unknown. ARLHS VEN-004; Admiralty J6502; NGA 17160.
Faro de la Puntilla
La Puntilla Light, Porlamar, February 2008
Flickr photo copyright Anna Malachowska; used by permission
** Punta Ballena (2)
2007 (station established 1999). Active; focal plane 76 m (249 ft); white flash every 10 s. 30 m (98 ft) tapered octagonal concrete tower with lantern and gallery, rising from a semicircular 1-story building. The tower is colored with dull orange and white vertical stripes. Vicente Guarache's closeup photo is at right, Fran Paredes has a good aerial photo, Roberto Carboni has a closeup photo, and Google has a satellite view. J.D. Volcan has a June 2007 photo of the lighthouse under construction, and it was announced as operational in a September 4 notice to mariners. Located high on a promontory at the easternmost point of the Isla Margarita, near Pampatar. Site open; it appears that the tower is open for climbing, but more information is needed on this. Admiralty J6502.25; NGA 17155.5.
* Hilton Marina
Date unknown. Active; focal plane about 16 m (52 ft); white light, pattern unknown. Approx. 14 m (46 ft) round fiberglass tower with lantern and gallery, painted with orange and white horizontal bands. Gerswin Pineda has a closeup, Marinas.com has aerial photos (misidentified as Faro de la Puntilla), and Google has a somewhat fuzzy satellite view. Located on the beach adjacent to the Hilton Marina. Site open, tower closed.
* Hilton Marina Entrance
Date unknown. Active; focal plane about 13 m (43 ft); green flash every 3 s. 10 m (33 ft) hexagonal fiberglass tower, painted green with one white horizontal band. Juan Carlos Trujillo Maldonado has a photo, and Google has a satellite view. Located on the west mole of the Hilton Marina west of Pampatar. Accessible by walking the pier. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty J6502.45.

Isla de Cubagua Lighthouses
Note: Cubagua is an island about 9 km (5.5 mi) long located south of Isla Margarita. Though it is uninhabited, the island is a popular destination for scuba divers, and day trips are available from Punta de Piedras on Margarita.
Punta Palanquete (Punta Brasil) (2)
2004. Active; focal plane 15 m (49 ft); white flash every 8 s. 12 m (39 ft) round fiberglass tower with lantern and gallery, painted with orange and white horizontal bands. The lighthouse replaced a 10 m (33 ft) concrete post light. A photo is available, Luis Gerardo Gonzales has a photo of a previous tower, and Google has a satellite view. Located at the northwestern point of the Isla Cubagua, about 18 km (11 mi) southwest of Punta de Piedras on the Isla de Margarita. Accessible only by boat, but there is an excellent view from ferries between Cumana and Isla Margarita. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty J6492; NGA 17168.

Punta Ballena Light, Pampatar, March 2008
Flickr Creative Commons photo by Vicente Guarache
Punta Charagato
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 15 m (49 ft); white flash every 12 s. 10 m (33 ft) round fiberglass tower with lantern and gallery, painted with orange and white horizontal bands. A photo is available, there is a view from the sea, the light is visible in an aerial photo, and Google has a satellite view. Located at the northeastern point of the Isla Cubagua, about 15 km (9 mi) south southwest of Punta de Piedras. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty J6494; NGA 17172.

Information available on lost lighthouses:

Notable faux lighthouses:

Adjoining pages: South: Venezuela Mainland | West: Bonaire

Return to the Lighthouse Directory index

Posted July 7, 2003. Checked and revised December 5, 2012. Lighthouses: 20. Site copyright 2012 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.