Armedaneian

Have not snorkeled Hawaii, so I cannot compare - but of those, Cozumel was the best - lots of different types of fish

though the best experience was St. John - Trunk Bay is a little slice of heaven.

It's funny how one person's heaven can be another person's hell! To me, Trunk Bay = crowds, dead coral, and no large fish.

Bonaire should be at the top of your list, but what do I know... I think Roatan, Belize, and Grand Cayman should be up there too!

If the water is clear enough, you can STAND there and see what's in the water! No need to put your face in at all!

Lets keep the last few coral heads alive... so, please don't follow this terrible advice. This type of advice/behavior is what kills coral. If you can't put your face in the water and float, stay away from snorkeling areas... definitely don't stand in them!

There's a ferryboat to Klein Bonaire located next door to the pier. If all you need is reef to snorkel on, it's a good way to go.

Yes, we will be stopping at Half Moon Cay, our plan is to snorkel there.

Without taking the snorkeling excursion to the inaccessible side of HMC, there isn't much to see there... unless you walk to the far end of the beach, past the horse stables, all the way to the signs discouraging you from traveling further. That's where there are a couple patches of live coral teaming with life. In addition, if you swim around the edge of the rocky shoreline, there is a sunken barge filled with fish.:cool:

The rocks at the beginning of the beach, and the artificial reef nearby, are pretty boring sights for experienced divers. ;)

There's quite a few places to snorkel from Aruba's shore, and a rental car can take you to every one of them! Our favorite was Mangel Halto, near De Palm Island... but, like anywhere else, rough conditions will ruin the visibility and make reaching the reef difficult.

Ferrying to St. Johns drains too much time for a one day trip to St. Thomas... and Trunk Bay gets terribly overcrowded. I don't think it's worth the effort. I'd suggest saving time and taking a cab to Coki... or saving both time, and money, by taking a Safari to Sapphire Beach.

Blue Hole Water Sports in Nassau was pretty good... for Nassau. They're located near the port at the British Colonial Hilton. The weather was marginal the day we were there, but they presented us with a couple protected sites to choose from... or we could get our deposit back if we wanted. We went ahead with the trip and saw a couple nice patch reefs. I'd use them again.

In Freeport we go to "Paradise Cove". It's a quiet, private beach, with a reef that's accessible from shore. It's a decent swim out, but the far side of the reef is alive and worth the trouble. If anyone argues that, they didn't swim out far enough!

In Belize, you'll need a 45 minute boat ride to get to the reef. In Roatan, there are many spots to snorkel from shore, like Maya Key, Little French Key, and West Bay Beach (the ship will call it Tabyana). West Bay Beach has exactly what you need: a world class reef right at the beach. And, as a resort-lined beach, it has something for everybody, whether they want to snorkel or not. Unfortunately, it's about a 30 - 45 min. ride from Mahogany Bay... but, well worth it in my book! :cool:

While it may be taboo to feed the fish, we have snorkeled in several spots where fish feeding was allowed. We brought bagels from the breakfast buffet, because they seemed to hold up better than the other breads.

I think you're having some reading comprehension problems: "bad for the ecosystem" and "taboo" are not synonymous! Just because nobody stopped you, doesn't mean it's acceptable or safe. In addition, taking food off the ship is usually illegal. Greedy tour operators, who condone feeding fish to increase their profits, shouldn't be used as your moral compass! Who do you think is more biased, us or them?

Why is it, that the rest of us can observe all the tropicals on the reef, without using environmentally damaging lures? :cool:

Curacao has great shore snorkeling and I loved the blue room there and waters calm if you ever make it there. Have a great time on your cruise.

The water is calm if you make it there? The conditions required to dock the ship, and the conditions required for good diving, aren't always the same!

As for the Original Post... I don't think age matters as much as the weather does. For instance, some adults can't swim down 15 ft. to grab a lobster, but for an 8 year old in the Keys, that's normal... if you have calm seas and good visibility. If the weather is right, you shouldn't have any problems with an offshore excursion. Unfortunately, tour companies are often more concerned with revenue than customer comfort. They'll take you out in borderline conditions if you let them. In that situation, you should go shore snorkeling... which you won't really find in Belize City.

How do you think Klein compares to West Bay in Roatan if you have been there? Roatan is our favorite place to snorkel.

They're both in the same league... living coral reefs. Klein has a steeper drop-off outside the reef, which wraps around the whole island... but there's nothing else there. That desolation, and the island's protected status, give it a bit of an edge when it comes to critters, but there's Nothing else there! I prefer Roatan (or Grand Cayman). There's something alluring to me about restrooms and tiki bars right at the reef. ;) Either way, nice weather and good visibility make all the difference.

Did you know that Bonaire is the BEST place to snorkel?

Did you know that's highly debatable... and very dependent on conditions?

Bonaire is great though. Grab a water taxi near the port and head over to Klein Bonaire. For $15, it's a day that can't be beat. Save the car rental for Aruba and go to Mangel Halto:

Its a quiet, local beach, easily reached by rental car. The actual reef is found outside the rocks, along the purple line. It's significantly better than either Catalina or Malmok. :cool:

There are dive shops here offering multiple options. Does anyone have an opinion about this part of the Dominican Republic? Thanks! :cool:

First, let me say this... daily conditions determine which side of the island is best for good visibility. That aside, I'd try to get everyone to West Bay Beach on Roatan. The wives can either lay in the sun, or go to a Tiki bar while you guys dive... at the fantastic reef right there (pictured below).

You may enjoy Cozumel too, but it won't allow you to keep the group together. On the other hand, you may just want to ditch the wives, and that would be unavoidable (for good diving) in Coz. ;)

We're going to be in La Romana next month and are determined to snorkel. I've heard it's not a great diving port, but we'll be there nonetheless. Our two best options seem to be Saona or Catalina Island. Is anyone familiar with these spots... and could you please share your opinions? Thanks! :cool:

 

Roatan has excellent snorkeling. I recommend Tabayana Beach.

 

To clear up any potential confusion: "Tabyana Beach" is the cruise ship's section of West Bay Beach. :cool:

The short answer is... it all depends on the conditions. ;)

If you have to pick one port today, I'd say pick Roatan. From Coxen Hole, West Bay Beach is easy to get to and has fantastic snorkeling right at the beach. It's a little harder to get to from Mahogany Bay, but I'd still rather go to WBB. We use Bananarama, but there are quite a few options, including simply taking a cab to the public beach and renting gear from any vendor there. Once again though... it all depends on the weather. If the surf is up on that side of the island, you'd be better off somewhere like Little French or Maya Key. :cool:

In Belize, snorkeling is a chore to get to from the ship... unless you take the ship's tour. Either way, you snorkel along an offshore reef and its very weather dependent. Conditions can get quite rough and people have died there, more than once, while snorkeling in "acceptable" conditions. I wouldn't call it "easy snorkeling", but they do have a nice reef... just a boat ride away from the outlying islands. :rolleyes:

Snorkeling in Coz can be worthwhile. It's cheap and easy from the Money Bar, and both it and Chankanaab have comparable shore snorkeling. I've seen some nice-sized coral heads at both places... but, once again, it all depends on the conditions. The coral is found scattered along the shore in patches, and the bigger stuff tends to be in deeper water, so without good visibility you won't see much.

IF you get to tender into Georgetown, they drop you off next to Eden Rock. There is a dive shop there with gear rental and steps carved into the rocks for entry. It's a bit of a swim out to the good stuff, so if that's a problem for you, Sunset House is less than a mile further down the road. There, the reef actually runs into the shoreline... and they have a nice Tiki Bar too! :cool:

Grand Cayman... easy diving, good vis.

Unless you're there on a day without good vis? :rolleyes:

I've seen both fantastic and terrible conditions at each of these ports. I'm not sure visibility is the sort of thing you can count on.

Both Roatan and Grand Cayman have good diving from shore. They're my favorites. :cool:

 

My youngest is 6 and not very good swimmer, but we still want to go snorkeling or some sort of "swimming with turtles\stingrays\other" adventures.

 

There is a solution to this... swimming lessons! A life-vest shouldn't be a substitute for a person's ability to survive in their chosen environment. It is a life-saving device designed for emergencies, not an invitation to enter an emergency situation.

Good parenting aside, a beach, like Coki, would be your best bet. If you didn't see any fish there last time, you need to go further out. ;)

You shouldn't need much strength in your wrist to snorkel... as long as you can get your flippers on. Your legs should be what propels you, so the only issue I can see would be getting back in the boat. Sometimes those ladders can be a problem, depending on the boat's configuration. :cool:

Why anyone would consider snorkeling without fins is beyond me. 90% of your motions comes from your legs, and failing to use fins severely limits where you can go and how easily you can get there.

It's not so mysterious... some people just like to float on top and look down.

In Coz, "The Money Bar" is somewhat close to the port and has pretty good snorkeling. It features little patches of coral scattered off the beach and is as good as you'll get from shore there... you need a boat to get to the really good stuff.

As for GC, We've never made it to 7 mile beach... because there's fantastic snorkeling right there by the tender port. Eden Rock and it's dive shop are both there and Sunset House isn't much further down the road. Both feature world class, live coral reefs near shore. If we're with people who are concerned about the distance to swim out, we go to Sunset House. :cool:

Some have criticized the source that came up on my news feed, but it seems that other sources also point out the same issue concerning Nassau.

All the big money wants you (and your $$$) to stay with the cruise lines and their excursions.

While Detroit has "nice" places and scary places mixed together downtown, Nassau's port is surrounded by safe, touristy spots. It's much harder to step into a bad situation there, because it takes some effort to wander off the tourist path. :cool: