Best small snorkeling trip?

I will appreciate suggestions of snorkeling trips which are neither alcohol-oriented nor packed with people. I have been to the Constellation and would like a trip to other spots with better fish than Church Bay (otherwise I will head back to Church).

thanks!

Well a quick and easy one is snorkel beach. You only need to invest in a short walk from the boat and 5-bucks to enter the park. If you go out to the end of the swimming bay so that you are about even with the fort wall, the snorkeling is actually quite good. Come back around the other side of the rocks that protect the swimming bay. Water is a little more turbulent here so visibility is not quite as good on this side of the wall. Park opens at 9 and that is the best time to go. You can knock it out in a little over an hour and move on to somewhere else. We did the coral reef snorkeling excursion with Royal Caribbean through FantaSea on their cat and it was a complete waste. Crappy little bay not that far from the ship with 4 other boats around a dead reef at the bottom of a cliff wall along the shore. Nothing to see and endless people running into you. Given that most of the idiots are standing on the dead coral and adjusting their gear, I suspect the cruise ship trips go here so the clueless people don't screw up the living reefs. Good luck and please report back if you find any good spots. I would love to try a new spot next year!

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I will appreciate suggestions of snorkeling trips which are neither alcohol-oriented nor packed with people. I have been to the Constellation and would like a trip to other spots with better fish than Church Bay (otherwise I will head back to Church).

 

thanks!

I can't think of anything better than Church Bay in Bermuda. I tried most of the boat excursions over the years, four or five, and they were meh as far as the actual snorkeling compared to the Caribbean. Most of the fun was the social aspect. Meeting people and drinks. Tobacco Bay is Ok and easy. Church Bay can have bad surf, that's the only issue there. Snorkel Park is known to have broken glass issues. I wouldn't risk it.

I will appreciate suggestions of snorkeling trips which are neither alcohol-oriented nor packed with people. I have been to the Constellation and would like a trip to other spots with better fish than Church Bay (otherwise I will head back to Church).

 

thanks!

I just came back from Bermuda. We rented a Boston Whaler from Somerset Watersports for 4 hours for our family of 4. They showed us a map of where we could go and we had a total blast driving our own boat and determining our own course (within the set boundaries - on the boat was the same map with snorkeling spots marked out). The Whaler came with a cooler filled with 4 water bottles, one for each of us and ice (you can bring more stuff of your own) and a bag of bread to feed fish at the HMS Vixen. You can rent snorkel gear for extra which we did. We set a course for Middle King's Point or thereabouts and set the boat ashore. I guess we picked the "right" island because 30 minutes later, 2 big snorkel tour boats (including Fantasea) came by and anchored near us. I'm about to post my trip report. You can see our photos there. Took some photos underwater but those did not show up that clearly, sadly. The whole family agreed though, it was a great choice for us (teens not old enough to drink and one parent allergic to alcohol). :)

Somerset Watersports seems like a good operation. Walked up and did a JetSki tour with them a few years ago and it was great. I was going to do it again this past trip but thought I would give the catamaran snorkel cruise a try instead. Wish I would have stuck with plan A! On a recent visit, friends did the same thing you did with a focus on fishing. They too had a good experience.

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Thanks, everyone, for taking the time to reply.

I rented a boat from Somerset last time and enjoyed it, although the water was too choppy to snorkel. I will probably try their competitor. H2O Watersports, this time for variety.

I went to Snorkel Park once--a lot of fish and convenient, but so much less beautiful than Church Bay or Horseshoe.

I have heard good things about Hat Trick--12 person max catamaran--and will try it.

And I loved the suggestion that one dead reef is used to keep jerks from ruining living coral.

Thanks, everyone, for taking the time to reply.

 

I rented a boat from Somerset last time and enjoyed it, although the water was too choppy to snorkel. I will probably try their competitor. H2O Watersports, this time for variety.

 

I went to Snorkel Park once--a lot of fish and convenient, but so much less beautiful than Church Bay or Horseshoe.

 

I have heard good things about Hat Trick--12 person max catamaran--and will try it.

 

And I loved the suggestion that one dead reef is used to keep jerks from ruining living coral.

The real reason that excursions go to certain reefs has nothing to do with the suggestion the other person made. It is pretty mundane. The sea around Bermuda can often be rough. The boat you go out on is not going to take tourists, particularly if it is a cruise line excursion to snorkel at reefs in rough waters. They are not taking people to dead reefs to protect the reef. They go to the protected bays because the water is calm. When you consider that cruise line excursions include many first time snorkelers that is probably a wise course. If you want to find something better likely renting a boat from H2O or Somerset is better but be safe!

You are exactly right about the need for first timers--especially kids--to be in a very tranquil spot. And it may be that the obvious tranquil spots draw so many big snorkel boats that the reefs die as a result of so many people mistreating the reef. I am sure he was kidding about the designated dead reef.

The real reason that excursions go to certain reefs has nothing to do with the suggestion the other person made. It is pretty mundane. The sea around Bermuda can often be rough. The boat you go out on is not going to take tourists, particularly if it is a cruise line excursion to snorkel at reefs in rough waters. They are not taking people to dead reefs to protect the reef. They go to the protected bays because the water is calm. When you consider that cruise line excursions include many first time snorkelers that is probably a wise course. If you want to find something better likely renting a boat from H2O or Somerset is better but be safe!

As always, you make a LOT of sense, Charles4515. When we took our Boston Whaler out, the staff at Somerset stressed the importance of staying within the boundaries marked. They talked about rough waters in different areas. Even the little island we chose, we snorkeled in the calmer, "inside" area. The water looked gorgeous on the outer side but you could see the waves banging up against the rocks and common sense prevailed. The boat tours that anchored close to us anchored on the calm side. Lots of kids with life jackets and noodles jumped off. We still got to see a bunch of fish where we were (pictures in my review) and hubby who went a bit further outwards was excited to see "the biggest rainbow parrotfish ever" but you can't tell the size from the fuzzy photo (he wanted badly to catch a pix before it swam off). The choppy seas though was not worth braving for another better photo.

Later on, as we drove around the island a bit, we pulled up alongside both Summit and Breakaway. We were told we could do that but NOT to go around the bend. There were no white caps then but the sea was still deceptively choppy. I found myself in a hurry to get back to calmer waters.