The strip of sand in the Marietas Islands cannot be seen from sea or reached by land - you have to swim underwater to get to it

Do you fancy a bit of privacy while you’re sunbathing? Well it doesn’t get much more secluded than this hidden beach in Mexico.

This strip of sand in the Marietas Islands, off the coast of Puerto Vallarta, is so secret that it cannot be seen from the sea or reached by land… and you have to swim through a long underwater tunnel from the Pacific Ocean to get to it.

Miguel Naranjo 4 This is a secret beach in the Marietas Islands, off the Mexican coast of Puerto Vallarta

The Playa Del Amor, which translates as ‘The beach of love,’ is a happy accident – the result of a series of bombings by the Mexican government in the early 1900s.

The Marietas Islands were used as a military test site for several years, until a group of environmentalists that included the scientists Jacques Cousteau protested against the bombs int he 1960s.

Bowing to pressure, the Mexican government not only put a stop to the tests, they also turned the area into a national conservation area where fishing and hunting were banned.

After remaining untouched for several years, mother nature began to work her magic on the areas that had been damaged by the bombs, including the large cavity that is now the Playa Del Amor.

Pinterest 4 The Playa Del Amor is the result of a series of bombings by the Mexican government in the early 1900s

Pinterest 4 After remaining untouched for several years after the bombings ended, the tide gradually washed up sand onto the cavity’s edge

The tide gradually washed up sand onto the water’s edge, creating what is now the beach.

The sandy strip is now one of the most popular beaches on Instagram, but it remains relatively untouched by tourism because it is so hard to get to.

A permit is needed to visit the islands by boat and once there, visitors need good swimming skills to make the underwater swim to the beach.

Pinterest 4 A permit is needed to visit the islands by boat and once there, visitors need good swimming skills to make the underwater swim to the beach