Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Roatan, Belize

[PTN96]

We (DH, DS9, DD4 and myself) are headed on a cruise for spring break. We will be in Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Roatan and Belize. We would like to snorkel at one of the ports and hit a beach with a pool on another. Any suggestions for the best place to snorkel with 2 little ones.

 

We have been to Grand Cayman and visited the stingrays and also to Cozumel for the beaches but have never snorkeled in Cozumel.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Mindi

[092306]

I am assuming you will either be on the VALOR or LEGEND. I was on the Valor this past sept.

As far as the snorkeling question. I have done SCUBA in Cozumel and Roatan. I loved diving in both these ports. Having said that I would recommend those two ports. When I went diving, I was diving with a guy who has a timeshare in Grand Caymen. HE LOVES Grand Caymen. I did not dive in GC, so I am not sure if this helps, however hopefully it does. if you ask me to rate one over the other i would pick Cozumel. Cozumel has a constant current around it so visibiltiy is fantastic. i have yet to have a bad dive in Cozumel.

[MacSmooth]

We (DH, DS9, DD4 and myself) are headed on a cruise for spring break. We will be in Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Roatan and Belize. We would like to snorkel at one of the ports and hit a beach with a pool on another. Any suggestions for the best place to snorkel with 2 little ones.

 

We have been to Grand Cayman and visited the stingrays and also to Cozumel for the beaches but have never snorkeled in Cozumel.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Mindi

My wife and I were on the Carnival Valor last August and had the exact same itinerary as you. I went snorkeling everywhere except for Belize:

 

Grand Cayman - As part of our 4x4 Jeep Adventure excursion, we stopped along the Seven Mile Beach at the Beach Club Colony. They had snorkel grear available (already included in the cost of the excursion) and I snorkeled from the beach. It was ok, didn't really see "a lot" though. But I think this may have been because I didn't swim away far enough from shore.

 

Roatan, Honduras - We snorkeled here as part of our Catamaran Sail & Snorkel excursion. It was great, all the people on the boat were seperated into groups based on snorkeling experience. They also had two types of life vests, the typical orange blocky ones for beginners and the inflatable/deflatable vests for the more advanced snorkelers. Since we were snorkeling off a ship, the water was considerably deeper and there was A LOT more to see.

 

Cozumel, Mexico - I snorkeled here as part of the ATV Beach Adventure. This was probably the best snorkeling location in terms of the amount of fish that I saw. Here, I snorkeled as part of a group (some people chose to rest on the beach after the ATV part of the excursion). One thing to note is that the beach was EXTREMELY ROCKY and we had to walk about a quarter mile from the main beach area to were we snorkeled from. We also had to swim quite a distance from the shore (they did have a "resuce" canoe close to the group in case anyone couldn't keep up or wanted to quite). But while we were snorkeling I saw tons of fish, a good amount of coral formations, sea urchins, sea horses and a stingray as well.

 

So I would agree with the previous poster that the best two places are Roatan and Cozumel.

 

Here are a few pictures (just from Roatan and Cozumel), didn't really see much in Grand Cayman:

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Shawn loves to cruise]

We (DH, DS9, DD4 and myself) are headed on a cruise for spring break. We will be in Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Roatan and Belize. We would like to snorkel at one of the ports and hit a beach with a pool on another. Any suggestions for the best place to snorkel with 2 little ones.

 

We have been to Grand Cayman and visited the stingrays and also to Cozumel for the beaches but have never snorkeled in Cozumel.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Mindi

 

Hi Mindi,

 

I wanted to reccomend Mystic Snorkel in Cozumel. Went with Rosi last year and had the most amazing private snorkel tour with 4 others. She took us by boat to 3 different sites and was very helpful with a novice snorkeler in our group. We had a great time and saw loads of fish..you can see many positive reviews on trip advisor as well. Good luck in your search.

 

Shawn

[jamga02]

I agree with the majority of other posters, Roatan and Cozumel will be the 2 best locations to snorkel. Also, if you wanted, you could snorkel Eden Rock or Sunset House on Grand Cayman for free if you have your own gear. But for seeing aquatic life and beauty, Roatan would be my winner, with Cozumel a close second.

[princessonthebeach]

I recommend Mystic Snorkel too. I was with Shawn and the gang. I was terrified to say the least. Rosie stayed with me and I had a good time. We saw 5 nurse sharks which was cool.

[rum bar]

We are on the Legend in April and planning to dive at each port, any recommendations of dive operators, including the cruise ship excursions (which seem to be competitively priced)?

[JayhawkerKC]

We are on the Legend in April and planning to dive at each port, any recommendations of dive operators, including the cruise ship excursions (which seem to be competitively priced)?

 

We took this cruise in November '08. We used Alison in Cozumel -

http://www.scubawithalison.com/ and would highly recommend her. Don't just take my word for it as there are many positive posts on the boards. Have fun!

[Mary Ellen1]

Agree with the recommendations to snorkel with Rosi in Cozumel. I found out about her on TripAdvisor, where she was one of the very top-rated excursions. Our group of 6 snorkeled with her in November 2008. She took us to 3 different locations and it was fantastic -- we saw nurse sharks, tuna, octopus, starfish... We had a great time with her, and going on a snorkel excursion in Cozumel gave me a much better appreciation for the island.

 

Mary Ellen

[HAULNTA]

West End Bay Beach Roatan, AKA Tabanya Beach, is my pick for you for the best beach snorkeling.

[Loves Snorkeling]

Do you remember how much she charged for the tour?

How did you meet them? Did they pick you up?

Thanks for the tip!

[clackey]

West End Bay Beach Roatan, AKA Tabanya Beach, is my pick for you for the best beach snorkeling.

Although Rosie does offer a great trip on Coz, I would have to take the kids into consideration. They might have problems on a boat trip.

 

We have snorkeled all of these ports and Haulnta's suggestion would be my pick for the little ones. You have a sandy beach for the digger in the bunch and the reef is so close to shore and shallow enough that a novice could have a ball snorkeling there.