Cayo Perico

Type

ISLAND

Cayo Perico

Coat of Arms

Appears in

Grand Theft Auto Online

Location(s)

Caribbean Sea,Colombia^[1]

Government & Settlement

Motto

"Mit Offenen Armen"^[2][3]
From German:"With Open Arms"

Occupancy

Owner

Juan Strickler

Unlock Requirements

Unlocked after

Heist Prep: Gather Intel
(Ability to revisit the island for scoping/Access toKeinemusik Beach Party viaLSIA)

Map

• Map
• Satellite View

Map of Cayo Perico.

Cayo Perico (commonly referred to as justThe Island orParadise) is a private island in theCaribbean, off the coast ofColombia^[1], that appears inGrand Theft Auto Online as part ofThe Cayo Perico Heist update.

Description[]

Cayo Perico is considered one of the most secure private islands in the entire world, and the location of theremote island compound of the world’s most notorious drug dealer,Juan Strickler (also known as El Rubio).^[4] It also contains an untold fortune in art, gold and drug money, scattered across the island.

Cayo Perico is not only the nerve center of El Rubio’s drug empire, but also plays host to his other great love: marathon beach dance parties, where everyone from jetsetters and heiresses to legendary music producers gather to rave until the sun comes up.^[5]

The island first appeared in the "El Rubio Dossier" teaser released during theLos Santos Summer Special update, which contained views of three locations on the island, including a sprawling clifftop Spanish-style estate, a security tower and a farm.

History[]

APrimitive Shelter is situated in the southeastern area, implying an untold prehistory.

Various artifacts around the island give hints to its history, including a cemetery near the airstrip, several collapsed obelisks, one of which forms the center point of a circular graveyard of 13 plots and relics from theSpanish Empire such asconquistador armor.

At some point before 2020,Juan "El Rubio" Strickler, one of the world's biggest narcotraffickers, acquired the island and made it the center of his criminal empire, and renamed it "Cayo Perico" (which translates to "Cocaine Cay"). He established enormous marijuana farms and cocaine factories on the island and installed an airstrip and two docks to distribute his products. Strickler also established a solar farm on the island to hide his activities using his green advocacy as a front. To generate more income, he opened abeach party on his island to hard partygoers to sneak his products in. On the southernmost part of the island is amansion where El Rubio hides a collection of gold and other expensive and rare items such as a limited-edition, diamond-encrusted bottle of Sinsimito Tequila, a ruby necklace, several bearer bonds, a large pink diamond, and a diamond-encrusted panther statue sitting on a large sapphire ball. Any guest or criminal who attempted to steal from El Rubio were either shot to death or fed to El Rubio'spet panther, littering the island with corpses.Pavel stated there were successful heists in the past, but those who were behind them did not live long to savor their victory because El Rubio identified them by their weapons, and their bodies were "sent to the panther's cage in very small boxes".

Geography[]

Although the name of the island is "Cayo Perico"—which translates to "Cocaine Cay" in Spanish (or lit. "Parakeet Cay")—Cayo Perico is not acay in the topographic sense, and is actually ahigh island telling by its rocky topography and elevation. With the exception of a few beaches, Cayo Perico contains little sand, with most beaches on the island being covered by small rocks.

Cayo Perico’s weather is always set to clear during heist intel or regular visits, therefore having no chance of rain or snow, although there is a very small chance that the weather can be set to a thunderstorm during the Cayo Perico Heist finale.

Wildlife[]

While there are no native fauna seen on land, the wildlife is heard in abundance, including frogs, birds and snakes. Ablack panther is kept in captivity in El Rubio's compound. A mutilated shark and a stranded whale can be seen, and there are whale skeletons in the water. The "Loch Santos Monster" inhabits the surrounding seas. Schools of tropical fish can also be seen in the water.

Points of Interest[]

The island is littered with many historical artifacts and interesting objects, some of which are relevant to the heist and will be able to be sent toPavel duringintel gathering forThe Cayo Perico Heist. Others are just noteworthy for existing.

The surrounding waters are home to manyWrecks as well as a large meteorite in the far northwest.

Skeletons and corpses[]

There are manyskeletons and corpses, some in plain view, some hidden.

Name	Description including Pavel's commentary.	Location	Image	Map
Smuggler.	A skeleton holdingCocaine with more bricks scattered around.	Small western beach (betweenWest Beach and theFishing Jetty).
Party goer.	“Well, well. A guest at the last party, perhaps. Just think, if we do not pull this off perfectly, we too will be found like this...” — Pavel Pavel suggests this was a previous beach party guest who didn't follow the rules. This is confirmed in overheard guard dialogue during the heist itself.[6]	Rock promontory just north ofWest Beach, only visible from clifftop above.
Conquistadors	A selection of artifacts including Conquistador skeletons in armour.	On a small island off the west coast.
Smuggler	A smuggler withCocaine brick in a sunkenNarcosub.	Underwater off the southwest edge of the larger of the two islands west of Cayo Perico.
Robber	Remains of an intruder killed while trying to breach the compound fence.	Western end of the compound perimeter wall/fence.
Whale	A whale skeleton	In the sea, off the southeastern coast.
Whale with alien egg.	A whale skeleton with analien egg.	In the sea, off the northeastern coast.
8[7]wrapped corpses.	Two female bodies wrapped up.	Off the southwest point close to the shore.
	AwreckedBlista Compact with three more female corpses	Near the drainage tunnel entry toEl Rubio's Compound.
	Two more more female corpses	Near the drainage tunnel entry toEl Rubio's Compound, just east of the three above.
	One wrapped corpse	Just southeast of the above two corpses.
Whale	“Well, well. You do not see this too often on dry land. It must have become beached” — Pavel A beached whale corpse.	Next to the fishing jetty on the western part of the island.
Shark	The mauled corpse of a shark.	Eastern shoreline

Locations and Landmarks[]

• West Beach
  • Cayo Perico Beach Party
• Cayo Perico Airstrip
• Cayo Perico Power Station
• Cayo Perico Lighthouse
• Cayo Perico Solar Farm
• El Rubio's Compound
  • Primitive Shelter
  • Ritual Hut
• North Dock
• Main Dock
• Communications Tower
• Crop Fields
• Campsite
• Fishing Jetty

A cartel torture cage. (Map).

A cemetery. (Map).

A creepy graveyard on one of the smaller islands (aerial view)(Map).

Collapsed obelisk. (Map).

Sunken meteorite. (Map).

A ritual hut within El Rubio's grounds, near his compound.

A primitive shelter.

A campsite.

Influence[]

The island appears to be based onNorman's Cay (a.k.a. Cayo Norman), a smallBahamian island used by theMedellín Cartel as a transshipment base for smuggling cocaine into the United States and as a private party island, while the estates and welcome sign are based onHacienda Nápoles, a luxurious estate built and owned by Colombian drug lord and Medellín Cartel leaderPablo Escobar. Cayo Perico's airfield also bears some resemblance with the real-lifeNorman's Cay Airport. The party and the musical guests are also likely an allusion to the infamousFyre Festival, a fraudulent attempt to host a luxury music festival in Norman's Cay that ended in utter disaster.

The shape of the island appears to be based onCanouan, a small island belonging toSaint Vincent and the Grenadines, mirrored and rotated.

Perico is also a slang for "cocaine" inMexico andColombia, referencing the fact that the island has a cocaine farm.

Events ofGrand Theft Auto Online[]

The Cayo Perico Heist[]

Cayo Perico is first visited in late2020 when theGTA Online Protagonist accompaniesEnglish Dave to a party hosted byJuan Strickler under the guise of a management member. The player then sneaks off to scope out the island, by hacking into acommunication tower to gain access to Strickler'scompound's CCTV in order to find out whereMartin Madrazo'sfiles are being kept. Afterwards,Pavel directs the player to scope out theNorth Dock and some secondary targets, before instructing them to continue scoping for infiltration, escape points, point of interests or return toLos Santos to prepare for the heist. Once all preparation works are done, the crew executes the heist, recover Madrazo's files and escapes.

Pavel later informs the player that they can return to Cayo Perico to pull off more heists once Strickler stocks up on morecash, gold, and other equipment to be robbed. The party was over, so the player must pose as smugglers in order to access the island again.

At any point during the heist setup, players can return to Cayo Perico to scope out additional information.

After completing the heist as host, players can return to Cayo Perico and attend the party in free roam. It's not possible to explore the island while the party's going on.

The Contract[]

While the island does not make any appearance inThe Contract update, it's mentioned thatPavel has visitedFranklin Clinton'sAgency (offscreen) in2021, looking for theGTA Online Protagonist, and asking when the protagonist is going to take "another trip to theCaribbean", confirming they are still occasionally robbing El Rubio's Compound to this date. Franklin may also ask if theGTA Online Protagonist has ever been in the Caribbean, possibly referring toKeinemusikBeach Party.

One of the party guests makes an appearance insideRecord A Studios after the missionStudio Time. If the player visits Record A Studios after that mission and bumps into her, she'll recognize them as the person from "that island thing a while ago", referring to the Keinemusik Beach Party during the first playthrough of The Cayo Perico Heist.

The Criminal Enterprises[]

In2022, as part ofThe Criminal Enterprises update, aMetal Detector can be found during aRandom Event in Los Santos, next to a skeleton carrying a Cayo Perico treasure map. The Metal Detector can be used to locate dailyBuried Stashes on Cayo Perico whilere-scoping the heist.

The update also introduced theCayo Perico Series, a series of races set in the island of Cayo Perico to be played by 1 to 8 players. The races are not related to the game's narrative whatsoever and are at present the only non-glitch way for a player to operate personal vehicles (at least those eligible for races) on or around Cayo Perico.

San Andreas Mercenaries[]

Cayo Perico, Juan Strickler and the heist are mentioned multiple times in theSan Andreas Mercenaries update by returning heist crew membersCharlie Reed,Rooster McCraw andPernell Moss. Pernell says he's still spending his cut from the protagonist's previous heist, while Rooster suggests the protagonist keep robbing Strickler's compound.

The update also introduced theAssault on Cayo Perico adversary mode.

Mission Appearances[]

Grand Theft Auto Online[]

The Cayo Perico Heist[]

• Heist Prep: Gather Intel
• The Cayo Perico Heist
• DJ Requests
  • Keinemusik - Collect the skate merchandise
  • Keinemusik - Collect the pizza
  • Keinemusik - Recover the chakra stones

The Criminal Enterprises[]

Races[]

• Cayo Perico Series
  • Cayo Perico - Bike & Subscribe
  • Cayo Perico - Coast's Clear
  • Cayo Perico - Crash Course
  • Cayo Perico - Flier Flier
  • Cayo Perico - Get Blazed
  • Cayo Perico - Going Down
  • Cayo Perico - Going Up
  • Cayo Perico - Hard Dock Life
  • Cayo Perico - Hauling Gas
  • Cayo Perico - Paradise Won

San Andreas Mercenaries[]

Adversary Modes[]

• Assault on Cayo Perico

Gallery[]

Pre-release

Cayo Perico's Landscape.

Main Dock.

Cayo Perico seen from the ocean.

El Rubio's office.

Military vehicles.

Small boat port area.

Lounging area.

Ocean view from balcony.

Sunset/Sunrise view of island.

Beach View.

Map from surveil.exe.

Map from thesubmarine's computer.

Keinemusik at the beach party.

Newswire release

In game

Sand sculpture of theLoch Ness Monster, found behind the bar counter at the beach party.

A watchtower nearEl Rubio's Compound.

The island's highest point, theCommunications Tower.

A drainage tunnel under water.

Aerial view of the Airstrip, Power Station and Solar Farm.

Aerial view of North Dock.

Aerial view of El Rubio's Compound and the surrounding grounds.

Aerial view of the Communications tower and farms.

Aerial view of the Main Dock.

Map

In-game map.

Atlas map (FromSnapmatic).

Satellite map (From Snapmatic).

Old treasure map seen during aRandom Event.(Texture)

Trivia[]

• The island shares some programming traits with other outside locations in prior games:Liberty City inGrand Theft Auto: San Andreas andNorth Yankton/Ludendorff inGrand Theft Auto V.
  • The island can only be visited inmissions or by a scripted/restricted trip to the dance parties.
  • There are no radio stations available when traveling by vehicle on the island; however, they can be accessed during races.
  • Just like Lundendorff, Cayo Perico is located in the same game world as the main map and is only loaded when needed. The Cayo Perico map is located south-east off the coast ofTerminal.
• Most of the island'sflora and environment sounds are reused assets fromGuarma inRed Dead Redemption 2.
• Vehicles on the island all have San Andreas license plates, unlike the Ludendorff-dedicated snowy models/variants which had a dedicated North Yankton plate applied.
• With the exception of aSpeedo parked outside the compound, someWrecks, and rarely spawningVerus ATVs, El Rubio and his cartel seem to avoid the use of modern land vehicles on the island, including Juan’s personalStafford andBrioso 300.
• The horn and lights on vehicles do not function when the player scopes the island, but they function during the heist finale.
• If the player takes a photo with the Snapmatic app, the photo's location name is displayed as being "San Andreas" instead of Cayo Perico. This is most likely due to the fact that the game is scripted to display thePacific Ocean or San Andreas name if the player is too far from the map.
• The island is only mentioned by name by the guards in only one dialogue. This may mean that Cayo Perico's name came at the end of the development of the DLC. Most dialogues refer it as "The Island" and "Paradise".
• In the Kosatka/Pavel introduction cutscene, the coordinates for Cayo Perico are shown on the Heist Planning Table as 55.9533° N, 3.1883° W. When entered into Google Earth however, it's revealed that these are actually the coordinates for Edinburgh, Scotland where Rockstar North is headquartered. Their offices at Barclay House as of 2021 are several streets over to the southeast of the direct coordinate point.

References[]

Navigation[]