Your own snorkeling equipment for ship excursion?

[Cruisin' Chick]

If you're going on a snorkeling excursion booked thru the cruiselines, does the company provide the equipment or do you need to bring it???? And if you use theirs, should you use alcohol to make it safe?

[suziehmkr]

Patty,

When we booked thru RCCL, they supplied the equipment. We brought alcohol wipes (this was in Mexico) and we were the envy on the boat!! LOL You can get them pretty inexpensively at the drugstore and worth peace of mind in my opinion. We did enjoy snorkeling so much that we ended up getting our own for this trip, since we plan to snorkel in 4 out of 5 stops (hopefully) - but it did add an extra suitcase to the list! LOL

[bruce-r]

If you already own your own mask, you should bring that because it is likely to fit you better than the random excursion provided mask. A little defog wouldn't be a bad idea. If you baby shampoo at home, a little of that works good. If you have green palmolive dish soap, dilute that to use as a defog because that works very well. Both work better than the often recommended spit-in-your-mask method.

 

If you have your own dry snorkel, you should also take that as well. The snorkels provided on the excursions are pretty basic.

 

I'd leave fins at home an plan on using the excurions'.

 

If you don't have any of your own gear, bring something to clean the mouth piece of the snorkel. Alcohol as recommended above, or one of the alcohol based mouthwashes would work.

[hcat]

we always take our own....the fins fit better & I prefer our own stuff for obvious sanitary reasons..we get the float vest they usually provide...it's a lot to carry but in Hawaii we will go at least twice & it'll be worth it-- my hubby is a great packer!

[bankofdad]

we always take our own....the fins fit better & I prefer our own stuff for obvious sanitary reasons..we get the float vest they usually provide...it's a lot to carry but in Hawaii we will go at least twice & it'll be worth it-- my hubby is a great packer!

 

I agree. I always brign my own stuff. It's a hassle to drag around, but I'm always glad I did it once I'm in the water.

[Middleager]

We brought our own full gear. However, you could consider just buying your own snorkel as that's one piece you'll put in your mouth.

 

Get a good dry snorkel, it's worth the extra money. Next would be the mask. You could consider not bringing the fins because they do add a bit of weight.

[beachchick]

As far as just getting the snorkel (with no mask), it's certainly one option, but not the best. The reason is that the fit of a mask it affected by the weight, length, and pull of the snorkel. It's truly better to get them as a set--and try them on for good fit; better yet, also give them a "test" in the bathtub/hottub/pool before you go.

 

Once we invested in our own excellent gear, we wouldn't even consider using any other.

 

Fins can be pretty hefty and until our last Hawaii trip we simply used rentals. We had tried a couple of styles and really weren't happy. The ones we finally bought are short power fins with adjustable strap that's fully padded (no need for liners/socks). Love them--and they don't take up much space in the luggage.

 

beachchick

[zqvol]

I suggest your own gear for all the reasons that everyone has said. If you don't have it there should be plenty of dive shops in the LA area. You can also get good prices on gear in the islands, or if you have a chance and don't snorkel a lot rent gear for your entire cruise in HNL. That way you will have a good fit and once you clean it you are good to go.

[Brahmama]

Don't forget to bring some water shoes! I forgot them the first time and my feet regretted it.

 

Carol:)