aardogfsu Posted April 28, 2015 #1 Share Posted April 28, 2015 Just curious if it makes sense to do that...I'm on a 15 day cruise from Ft. Lauderdale to San Diego...any good reefs swimming distance from shore on some of those ports? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiserBruce Posted April 28, 2015 #2 Share Posted April 28, 2015 (edited) You won't be snorkeling anywhere near the Canal, I don't think... What other places are you stopping at? We can't just guess where you are stopping- there are many possible ports. Looking at the boards for those ports will be helpful. Edited April 28, 2015 by CruiserBruce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aardogfsu Posted April 29, 2015 Author #3 Share Posted April 29, 2015 Fri May 15 Cartagena, Colombia 8:00am 2:00pm Mon May 18 Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica 8:00am 6:00pm Tue May 19 Corinto, Nicaragua 10:00am 6:00pm Wed May 20 Puerto Quetzal, Guatemala 8:00am 6:00pm Thu May 21 Puerto Chiapas, Mexico 8:00am 5:00pm Fri May 22 Huatulco, Mexico 8:00am 2:00pm Sun May 24 Puerto Vallarta, Mexico 8:00am 4:00pm Mon May 25 Cabo San Lucas, Mexico 8:00am 3:00pm are some of the ports Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiserBruce Posted April 29, 2015 #4 Share Posted April 29, 2015 Snorkeling on the Pacific side is not that great. I would be looking on the Caribbean side. Cabo has some snorkeling, but again, Pacific snorkeling is second rate, compared to the Caribbean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillB48 Posted April 29, 2015 #5 Share Posted April 29, 2015 Unless you are going to hit one of the ABC islands there won't be much on the Caribbean side either. From what I have seen of the waters around Cartagena it doesn't strike me as a great snorkeling area. Full disclosure... haven't done very much snorkeling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiserBruce Posted April 29, 2015 #6 Share Posted April 29, 2015 (edited) Unless you are going to hit one of the ABC islands there won't be much on the Caribbean side either. From what I have seen of the waters around Cartagena it doesn't strike me as a great snorkeling area. Full disclosure... haven't done very much snorkeling. Actually the Caymans have pretty good snorkeling. Cozumel is ok. Roatan is OK. Costa Maya is fine, perhaps the best in the western Caribbean except for Belize. Belize has great snorkeling. St Thomas/St John is good. Grand Turk is perhaps the best, but doubt a Canal cruise is going to stop at Grand Turk. And yes, the ABC islands have snorkeling, probably in the "average" range. We have snorkeled MANY locations in the Caribbean. Edited April 29, 2015 by CruiserBruce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillB48 Posted April 30, 2015 #7 Share Posted April 30, 2015 I just assumed that Cartagena was the only Caribbean stop and there sure is not much there for snorkeling... from what little I know the Caribbean certainly does have better snorkeling than the mentioned Pacific areas. In Panama I would think the best snorkeling would be in the San Blas Islands on the Caribbean side and some of the islands in the Las Perlas chain or Coiba Island which are on the Pacific side. Very few main stream cruise lines call on the San Blas any more and only the boutique, small ship cruise lines make their way to Panama's Pacific Islands. Isla Coiba used to be Panama's "Devil's Island" but now is a national park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eltigre Posted June 9, 2015 #8 Share Posted June 9, 2015 We bring our gear rather use rentals. Plus with hubby's beard we know the mask works!! Nothing can ruin a great day that bad gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcmarya Posted June 9, 2015 #9 Share Posted June 9, 2015 You can snorkel in Huatulco, I always do. Take a cab to Playa La Entrega for $5 per cab one way. There is a dedicated snorkel area with lots of fish, though sometimes the visibility is not super. There are plenty of cabs waiting for the trip back or you can take a water taxi for a few $'s more. You can snorkel at a couple of places in the Sea of Cortez near Cabo but not sure how expensive a cab would be. You can also take one of the small boat tours to Land's End and ask to be dropped off at Pelican Rock to snorkel. The area is now roped off so it is fairly safe. I was the only one wanting to get off on my boat tour so I had to pay $13 instead of the usual $10 or so. I was dropped off and picked up at a time I specified. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
My Lady Sydney Posted August 16, 2015 #10 Share Posted August 16, 2015 Only been snorkeling a few times but the first was in Tahiti-- can't seem to find anything that good. Should we take our equipment or are we likely to be disappointed? Doing Cozumel, Grand caymon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cb at sea Posted August 16, 2015 #11 Share Posted August 16, 2015 Lots of folks bring their own gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiserBruce Posted August 16, 2015 #12 Share Posted August 16, 2015 Lots of folks bring their own gear. And many, many, more don't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Keith1010 Posted August 17, 2015 #13 Share Posted August 17, 2015 It's a personal decision. I would bring my own not wanting to use ones used by others. I don't think these places are big for snorkeling though. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pate522 Posted August 21, 2015 #14 Share Posted August 21, 2015 Wondering if eltigre can tell me what mask her husband uses for snorkeling that works with his beard. I got my husband to try it once, but the water poured into his mask because of his beard. Now he refuses to do it because he thinks he will have to shave his beard off! Hopefully we can try again...I really enjoyed it that one time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCruisers Posted August 21, 2015 #15 Share Posted August 21, 2015 A Panama Canal cruise is so NOT the best for snorkeling. ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eltigre Posted September 4, 2015 #16 Share Posted September 4, 2015 Wondering if eltigre can tell me what mask her husband uses for snorkeling that works with his beard. I got my husband to try it once, but the water poured into his mask because of his beard. Now he refuses to do it because he thinks he will have to shave his beard off! Hopefully we can try again...I really enjoyed it that one time. Hi, sorry it took me a bit to get back as we just moved & I couldn't locate the gear. It is a Body Glove, not expensive but a good fit & we always bring Vaseline along. So far he hasn't needed it but if you can't get a snug fit the Vaseline on the beard helps. Make sure you test the mask before purchase. Check out http://www.hawaiisnorkelingguide.com/snorkeling_masks.html for fitting info. A good fitting mask & snorkel makes ALL THE DIFFERENCE..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Luv Crusin Posted September 6, 2015 #17 Share Posted September 6, 2015 (edited) We bring our gear rather use rentals. Plus with hubby's beard we know the mask works!! Nothing can ruin a great day that bad gear. My DH has a beard and mustache. How does your husband would around that? I didn't read the whole thread! Nevermind! Edited September 6, 2015 by I Luv Crusin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VidaNaPraia Posted September 11, 2015 #18 Share Posted September 11, 2015 I would bring my own not wanting to use ones used by others. The cleaning solution they use on the gear has a strong smell that makes me sick when I breathe it in, so I bring my own. DH is not so sensitive and likes to travel light, so he rents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drbees Posted October 6, 2015 #19 Share Posted October 6, 2015 The cleaning solution they use on the gear has a strong smell that makes me sick when I breathe it in, so I bring my own. DH is not so sensitive and likes to travel light, so he rents. FYI...to travel lite, just take your own snorkel, and rent the mask and fins. I would never put a rented snorkel in my mouth. A great experience in the caymans is to walk around to the other side of the cove where the tender boats come in and swim with the school of large tarpons that hang out next to the restaurants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now