Best Snorkeling out of: St. Maarten, St. Lucia, Barbados, Martinique, St. Kitts, St. Thomas?

[Sistersinlaw]

We are doing Southern Caribbean Cruise with stops in St. Maarten, St. Lucia, Barbados, Martinique, St. Kitts and St. Thomas.  Which stops would you recommend for snorkeling and/or diving? Please let me know which companies you chose as well if you can!  Thanks!

[omeinv]

I'm a diver, so nothing here would be specifically applicable to snorkeling, and the companies I recommend are not likely to combine snorkeling and scuba on one boat.  However, since you asked "and/or diving" here's what I have:

 

 

St Maarten:

 

Not the best diving , but not bad.  After the last big hurricane (Wilma I think) a lot of operators went out of business.  The last time I was there, I dove with Aqua Mania.  They were OK, but nothing to rave about.  I see now there are other options.  Unless you’re diving in every port, this might be one to do other things.  If you’re keen to see sharks, the site there “Proselyte” has had reef sharks every time I’ve been.

 

 

St. Lucia:

 

St. Lucia is always highly rated for scuba.  I don’t find it to be in the absolute top tier of Caribbean diving, but it’s certainly good.  I like Eastern Caribbean Divers  The pick up very close to the ship, regardless of which dock you’re at.  Scuba Steve’s is more widely know, but I like the service from Eastern Caribbean better.  Egat and Donovan there will set you up.  https://www.easterncaribbeandivingstlucia.com/

 

Barbados:

 

This one’s easy.  Great diving and a great operator.  Peter Grannum at West Side Scuba Centre.  If you like wreck dives ask about the Stavron Ikita (Stav).  Peter will pick you up just outside the port, and you’ll have a great day.  https://westsidescuba.com/

 

Martinique:

 

The one time I’ve been there I did a couple of shore dives.  I had other diving arranged, but the ship changed the docking time.  I would say the diving is good, but I don’t have any good recommendations for operators.

 

St. Kitts:

 

St. Kitts isn’t known as great diving, but I always have a super time there.  Pro Divers St. Kitts has their boat in the marina immediately adjacent to the pier, and the dives are usually a reef dive with some sharks, and then one of several wreck dives.  Margot and Austen are the owners, and I like everything about how they operate.  They can be slow to respond to emails, so build in a little advance to your plan.   https://prodiversstkitts.com/

 

 

St. Thomas:

 

There are a lot of good wreck dives in the bay where the ships dock.  The company I used to use there went out of business.  I’ve dived with Aqua Marine there, which did a port pick-up and return.  They’re over in the next bay, about 15 minutes away, where the sites are all reefs.  So if wreck diving isn’t your priority, they would be good.  https://www.diveaquamarine.com/

 

 

If snorkeling rather than diving is your interest, You should be able to find a bunch of options on St. Lucia, and there is great snorkeling from shore there at numerous places.  For Barbados Carlisle Bay is very popular for snorkelers, as it's fairly shallow and there are several sunken ships there, so there's a fair amount of sea life.  St. Thomas has a lot of beaches known for snorkeling accesible by taxi, and with gear rental available. 

 

Harris

Denver, CO

 

 

[Sistersinlaw]

Thanks so much omeinv! amazing info!

[mitsugirly]

Since omeinv has gave you suggestions on diving, I'll chime in on the snorkeling. 

 

I would say in St Lucia, snorkeling between the pitons at Jalousie Beach was amazing (we've been twice) and the amount of fish, sea life and coral has been amazing each time. You can check out both of my reviews on my travel web page/blog HERE and HERE. There's tons of pictures to show you.

 

Snorkeling in St Thomas, I would highly recommend Coki Beach. They have some amazing coral and fish there. We've done snorkeling and discover scuba there. Reviews are HERE and HERE

[caribbound]

Any other snorkeling suggestions? Or just excursion suggestions? I'm similar islands except instead of Martinique we'll be in St Croix. I only want to probably snorkel once or twice so looking for the best option. Also we are leaving out of San Juan. TIA!

[yesornocruising]

On 11/26/2022 at 1:44 PM, mitsugirly said:

Did you bring your own snorkel gear to Coki or were there rentals available?

 

Since omeinv has gave you suggestions on diving, I'll chime in on the snorkeling. 

 

I would say in St Lucia, snorkeling between the pitons at Jalousie Beach was amazing (we've been twice) and the amount of fish, sea life and coral has been amazing each time. You can check out both of my reviews on my travel web page/blog HERE and HERE. There's tons of pictures to show you.

 

Snorkeling in St Thomas, I would highly recommend Coki Beach. They have some amazing coral and fish there. We've done snorkeling and discover scuba there. Reviews are HERE and HERE