Buying snorkel fins in Papeete

[DaveA]

I have read in several reviews that your really need your own fins for the snorkel excursions. Since I live nowhere near the sea and have no local dive shops, buying fins from home (in the UK) means over the Internet and will cost me the equivalent of about $45 for a fairly basic pair.

 

My question is: presumably they will be easily avaialble in Papeete but does anyone know what the prices are like there?

 

Thanks in advance for any information past travellers can provide.

 

Dave

[cruisernurse]

Will you be flying straight from the UK to Tahiti or will you have a layover somewhere in the states? We have Sam Clubs, Costo, and BJ's here in the states that carry that type of thing during the spring and summer time. They run around $40USD and are very good quality.

I saw the snorkel sets last time while in Tahiti, but since I had bought my own prior to the cruise I didn't really pay attention to the cost. Everything is expensive over there, but it may be about the same since your shipping is so much. If you are just going to snorkel and not dive I can tell you that we didn't use our fins but 1 time and then they were in our way. You will need water (aqua) shoes more than fins. Now those you are a must. They were everywhere over there and around $20USD. Of course we had bought the same pair of water shoes at WalMart for $4.

 

Also, if you wait to buy fins in Tahiti that will free a lot of room in your luggage too.

 

Have you tried http://www.snorkelcity.com ? They are very good and ship really quickly. We have ordered several things from them. Last time we didn't get a snokel vest (the yellow ones) and wished we had. This time we ordered them and they were here in less than a week.

 

good luck maybe someone else actually looked at prices or made a purchase in Tahiti.

[DaveA]

Thanks for the info cruisernurse. We'll be stopping over one night in LA on te way to Papeete but without a car it might not be so easy getting fins near LAX.

 

I already have aqua shoes. Perhaps I'll skip using fins altogether. I remember on the great barrier reef in Australia that fins were quite awkward in shallow water, trying to avoid damaging corals etc. My onlty conern is that several reviews have said that with the drift snorkels in particular that fins are very useful. I'm not sure why that would be the case?

[chasetf]

Perhaps I'll skip using fins altogether. I remember on the great barrier reef in Australia that fins were quite awkward in shallow water, trying to avoid damaging corals etc. My onlty conern is that several reviews have said that with the drift snorkels in particular that fins are very useful. I'm not sure why that would be the case?

True there are shallow water snorkeling areas, but there are some deep water areas (which are the best in my opinion) you may want to try. We took a number of "around the island" tours at Moorea and Bora Bora and got into some areas with currents that required fins. Bottom line is if you do not have fins (either yours or boat supplied) you may be limiting your snorkel opportunities.

 

We got some travel fins that are short and pack well. They might fit your bill.

[flip]

Chasetf, where did you find travel fins and are they labeled as such?

 

Ginger

[captbill]

where did you find travel fins and are they labeled as such?

 

I've seen Travel Fins available on several snorkel/dive gear sites. Just personal preference, but I like my full-length Blades and I'm not interested in trying shorter fins. However, for those folks who might prefer an alternative to full-size fins, here are a couple of different manufacturer's ideas.

 

Try: http://www.divemagazine.co.uk/news/article.asp?UAN=888&v=3&sp=332441698572342706344

 

and: http://www.snorkelcity.com/travelfins.html

[aadaneboy]

Dave,

We didn't bring our fins with us for the trip, since they take up so much room. We did have aqua shoes which were more than enough. We did Marc's Motu Picnic (Not to be missed) in Moorea--and I think they had fins to borrow but you don't really need them. We also did a drift snorkle in Raietea (booked off the ship at port for 1/2 the price as Princess) and they also had fins/mask/snorkle to borrow if you wanted also. I think they suggest you bring your own in case the tours run out.

 

If you are a fairly strong swimmer, fins are not necessary. I remember seeing them in the giftshop on the TP. They were not overly expensive, but honestly I don't recall the price--definately cheaper though to purchase on the ship than in PPT.

[DaveA]

Thanks, aadaneboy. I'll not bother packing any, and wait and see when we get there. Only seven weeks to go and counting!

[Stranger1]

For anyone interested in a good quality pair of travel fins, I just received my pair from the National Geographic society. They are a good 7 inches shorter than my other fins and are very high quality (US DIVERS brand). Here's a link for anyone interested.

 

http://www.shop.com/op/~Packable_Travel_Fins-prod-26985191

[flip]

Stranger1

 

Thanks for the info on the fins from National Geographic. What is the length, the web site does not say.

 

Ginger

[Stranger1]

Ginger,

 

I have the large ones and they are 14.5in. My regular ones are about 25 inches so there's quite a bit of difference.