Which cruise location had the clearest beach water you've seen?

[Debbbiee]

I'm curious about the beaches beaches you've been to on a cruise stop.  The clearer the water, the better!

TIA,

Debbie

[caribsun]

The cruise lines private islands in the Bahamas. 

[BklynBoy8]

We have experience Clear Aqua water at most Caribbean Islands..

 

Beaches that are away from the Cruise Ports maybe influenced by the harbor traffic and ships.

[Flatbush Flyer]

1 hour ago, caribsun said:

The cruise lines private islands in the Bahamas. 

You need to expand your horizons….

Try Polynesia and Hawaii. Even the Seychelles would blow away anything you’ll find in the Atlantic O or Caribbean Sea.

[Hlitner]

The clearest sea water we have experienced was at various islands in the South Pacific.  Bora Bora was certainly among the best.  The water off Northeastern Australia and out at the Great Barrier Reef was quite amazing.  
 

Hank

[Heidi13]

Many of the South Pacific islands have great clear water, but the best I have seen was many years ago in Cabo San Lucas, where we could see the anchor sitting on the bottom in over 80' of water.

[Flatbush Flyer]

56 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

The clearest sea water we have experienced was at various islands in the South Pacific.  Bora Bora was certainly among the best.  The water off Northeastern Australia and out at the Great Barrier Reef was quite amazing.  
 

Hank

Aren’t you on Vista now? If so, how about a “live from…” report?

[mnocket]

1 hour ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

You need to expand your horizons….

Try Polynesia and Hawaii. Even the Seychelles would blow away anything you’ll find in the Atlantic O or Caribbean Sea.

I've never thought of Hawaii as having particularly clear water.  Snorkeling there was fine, but not nearly as nice as other places - especially the South Pacific islands. 

[Flatbush Flyer]

2 minutes ago, mnocket said:

I've never thought of Hawaii as having particularly clear water.  Snorkeling there was fine, but not nearly as nice as other places - especially the South Pacific islands. 

NaPali Coast on Kauai.

[Hlitner]

8 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Aren’t you on Vista now? If so, how about a “live from…” report?

Already doing it on the O Board.  🙂

 

Hank

[mnocket]

Just now, Flatbush Flyer said:

NaPali Coast on Kauai.

Funny you mentioned that.  I stayed there many (many, many, many) years ago for my honeymoon.  I remember there was this much touted snorkeling cove - you had to park on the road and take this hike down a rather steep hillside/cliff to get to the beach.  We were a ways out in the cove when all of a sudden I saw this moray eel sticking up from the rocks/coral with its mouth wide open and sharp teeth on display. Scared the daylight out of me.  

[9tee2Sea]

depending on the weather, I thought the clearest waters in were Roatan.  Didn't even need to put on the snorkel gear.  Just walked knee deep, looked down from above and you can see all the fish swimming around you.

[navybankerteacher]

Pacific islands generally - but close to home, Dawn Beach on the east side of St. Maarten, facing St. Barth’s, was the best I saw in the Caribbean.

[capriccio]

A decade ago we did a power snorkel excursion off a beach in Grand Turk.  The water was crystal clear and we saw creatures ranging from sea horses to barracuda until all of a sudden it was pitch black.  We had 'gone over the edge' of the Grand Turk Wall with a 7,000 foot drop off.  That was a most impressive, not to mention irrationally scary (since, as my father an avid sailor always said, if it is over your head its' over your head), experience. 

 

The best snorkeling we've done was Two Step on the Big island (Hawaii) 20 years ago and Klein Bonaire about a decade ago.  Neither of those were especially deep but they were crystal clear and filled with fish and Two Step even had spinner dolphins.

 

Unfortunately our scheduled 2020 Polynesian cruise was a victim of Covid and we are both getting too old to snorkel very much now.

[Cruzaholic41]

My vote is Half Moon Cay, HALs private island.  There are others in the Bahamas that are so clear, the water is almost invisible, but you’re not getting there on a cruise. 
 

Otherwise, Bonaire and Cozumel. 

[SbbquilterUT]

Caribbean side would be Bonaire.  Next year we get to see the South Pacific and hope to be awed.

[Gwendy]

Ovea in South Pacific.  You could see ship’s anchor on bottom of ocean floor.  Unfortunately it is no longer a port of call.

[lynncarol]

In the Caribbean, Klein Bonaire as of 2024.  In the world, Seychelles and the Maldives (although that was over 20 years ago, so who knows now what they are like)

[ldubs]

If cruising by RV counts, then I would say Oregon's Crater Lake.  Sorry for the detour, but the water clarity depth there is incredibly remarkable.  

[sandiego1]

I agree with others about Klein Bonaire, but my experience was about 20 yrs ago. More recently, the pink sand beach at Komodo Island. Nuku’alofa in Tonga had surprisingly clear water and abundant fish. Niki Hiva in the Marquesas was fantastic!

 

In the US, Fishbowl and Aquarium in Maui are fantastic but they have been closed for many years. Two-step and Kealakekua Bay on the Big Island are pretty good.

 

Our 1st trip to the Great Barrier Reef 15 years ago was awesome. However, our last trip in 2019 was quite disappointing. Much of the coral reef has been bleached and while the water is still clear, the amount of sea life was, sadly, greatly diminished.

 

lastly, snorkeling at several of the Galápagos Islands was pretty awesome. And the sea life is not afraid of humans.

[donnatello]

The clearest water we've ever seen (and able to actually go swimming in) was off the coast of Croatia.

[broberts]

On 4/2/2024 at 6:27 AM, Debberly said:

I'm curious about the beaches beaches you've been to on a cruise stop.  The clearer the water, the better!

TIA,

Debbie

 

Weather and sea conditions can change visibility for some time. Pristine Caribbean waters are often clouded for weeks following major storms.

[capecruzer]

Roatan, Honduras

St. John USVI (port is St. Thomas, need to ferry over)

[MBP&O2/O]

Freeborn, Bahamas. Alongside in 8 fathoms and we could see marine life on the sea bed

[clo]

On 4/2/2024 at 5:46 AM, BklynBoy8 said:

Beaches that are away from the Cruise Ports maybe influenced by the harbor traffic and ships.

I haven't read this thread before but just had to today. Yes, yes and yes. We used to spend a ton of time in Rio de Janeiro. Can you just imagine the difference between the ship port and Copacabana Beach? 
Did someone already say basically this? Then my apology.