Chubby Hubby Snorkel Question!

We are going on our first cruise Feb. 2015 for our 30th Anniversary. I have a chubby hubby --well he's over 300 but under 330. Most of the snorkeling excursions say under 300#. He wants to snorkel so bad but I don't think he'll lose that kind of weight by the time we go. Any suggestions? I was just going to book it and hope they don't say anything! Any thoughts/suggestions?

If you are booking thru the cruise line, they will probably deny him a space on the excursion and refuse him a refund.

Snorkeling is a great experience, and for anyone overweight the stress taken off your joints is fantastic!! That said, I would call whoever you are booking with and ask why they have a weight restriction- it may have to do with the transportation or what their snorkel vests are capable of. I wouldn't just book and not say anything- if they decided to verify his weight you could be out the price of the excursion since you knew the limitations.

Would it be possible to get your own gear and snorkel in the location you are going without a guide? (As a scuba instructor, I HIGHLY recommend buying your own gear anyway- for sanitary reasons. Good snorkel gear is costly, but the ease of use and the comfort of the fit is very much worth it. I don't mean the kits from Costco or a sports store, but fitted gear from a dive shop. Especially for a bigger guy an easy to use snorkel will deliver more air.)

You don't mention where you are going and I didn't look up your cruise but DIY snorkeling might be an option . . .

however I highly recommend asking your/his personal DR first ..... if can be a wee bit of a strain . . . we are talking the realities of swimming in the ocean here.

I'd do a private tour (we almost always do anyway) and ask if his weight is a problem when booking--it shouldn't be, but it's best to know for sure.

Ship excursions often have a lot more restrictions--recently I heard of a ship snorkeling tour that wouldn't let anyone over 60 snorkel! What!!! I'm 69, have snorkeled many, many times and I'm an excellent swimmer, having been a lifeguard and swimming instructor, as well as living on a lake.

Just check out the ports of call boards for recommendations, or use Trip Advisor.

I am in my early 50s and weigh approx 295 and I have snorkeled on Carnival , Royal Caribbean, Disney and on numerous "Private" excursions no one ever has asked my weight or weighed me. I would just go unless, he has problems getting around or a medical condition.

If you can't book a snorkel excursion just book a beach excursion and bring your own goggles and snorkel tube along. You really don't need the fins.

Personally, I prefer to snorkel from a beach in a sheltered cove.... such as Trunk Bay on St. Johns.

I've snorkeled both from beaches and off of excursion boats. The beaches with a small bay has less of or no current at all. If you snorkel off of a boat in open water, even with a vest, there is frequently a current that you have to swim against. It can be exhausting for someone who is not in good shape.

In Bermuda we had a great experience. It was a snorkel excursion on a good size boat holding about 2-30 people. After a 40 minute ride we anchored at a beautiful cove and the crew dispensed snorkel gear, swimming floats and even had kayaks to paddle. We swam and snorkeled off the sheltered beach for 2 hours.

Also, don't be disappointed. Frequently there may not be too many fish to view, but it's worth a try and a beautiful half day on the water or beach.

PS.... so snorkel tours go specifically to locations (both open water and sheltered bays) where turtles swim. A great experience.

I wear a fanny pack with bagels in it. Dog food & cheerios float so I don't use them. I've tried rolls, bread, etc. but find bagel are the best. If they are small fish they eat them out of my hand, bigger fish I break off a piece near my face. Fish swarm to me even when I don't see any at first. Somehow they know and find the bagels. So we don't have to swim in the ocean, any bay close to shore works.

I wear a fanny pack with bagels in it. Dog food & cheerios float so I don't use them. I've tried rolls, bread, etc. but find bagel are the best. If they are small fish they eat them out of my hand, bigger fish I break off a piece near my face. Fish swarm to me even when I don't see any at first. Somehow they know and find the bagels. So we don't have to swim in the ocean, any bay close to shore works.

This is just SO WRONG. Nothing not available in their normal environment (or produced specifically as an acceptable alternative) should be fed to fish, fowl, wild animals...

PLEASE spend the minimal money it takes to buy appropriate fish pellets.

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OP, for Safety sake, please have your DH verify with his doctor it is safe for him to do this exercise. Don't take a risk with his health and safety. If he gets MD clearance, terrific. It will give you peace of mind and able to enjoy the snorkeling without undue concern. Have Fun on your cruise. :)

I wear a fanny pack with bagels in it. Dog food & cheerios float so I don't use them. I've tried rolls, bread, etc. but find bagel are the best. If they are small fish they eat them out of my hand, bigger fish I break off a piece near my face. Fish swarm to me even when I don't see any at first. Somehow they know and find the bagels. So we don't have to swim in the ocean, any bay close to shore works.

Please don't feed the fish. I know that will attract fish but it is not their normal diet and will kill them.

OP: regardless of what others say, it IS a safety issue for both your hubby AND the crew. I say this from the viewpoint of a former lifeguard (as a teen and early 20-something). If something were to happen to your husband in the water, the crew needs to be able to respond and get your husband on board without risking their own safety. Trying to lift a morbidly obese person onto a boat unfortunately does pose a major safety issue. One of the things I was taught was to never risk your own life - if a situation will place you in dire danger, better to save yourself than lose two lives. I'm sorry to be brutal, but I am being honest. As others have said, you can always do a shore entry and snorkel. I don't know where you are going, but there are wonderful shore snorkeling sites in the USVI (St. Johns in particular) Big Cayman, etc.

As for people bringing human food to feed to the aquatic wildlife - DON'T do it! It truly does harm them. It's rather selfish to do this just so the fish will swarm you. Enjoy what comes naturally!!

We haven't snorkeled for a couple of years so I don't feed the fish anymore. However people feed the turtles as they are waiting for a seat at a popular restaurant by us. Most feed bread! The turtles are happy eating it and it does not kill them.

If you decide to snorkel on your own, make sure your hubby has his BP checked beforehand. High BP is a risk factor when snorkeling or diving, and more so if one is overweight.

There are good reasons why there are weight restrictions on certain excursions. Many of these have already been mentioned.

Roz

We are going on our first cruise Feb. 2015 for our 30th Anniversary. I have a chubby hubby --well he's over 300 but under 330. Most of the snorkeling excursions say under 300#. He wants to snorkel so bad but I don't think he'll lose that kind of weight by the time we go. Any suggestions? I was just going to book it and hope they don't say anything! Any thoughts/suggestions?

He has 13 weeks to lose the weight. For a person that size, two pounds a week can be obtained with minor dietary changes and walking for 45 minutes a day. If he wants to snorkel he can lose the weight. If not, go without him and enjoy yourself.

We haven't snorkeled for a couple of years so I don't feed the fish anymore. However people feed the turtles as they are waiting for a seat at a popular restaurant by us. Most feed bread! The turtles are happy eating it and it does not kill them.

It may not kill the turtles but it can make them quite ill. What part of "natural diet" do you not understand? Do you also feed migrating birds (e.g., ducks and geese) that may land on or near your property often enough that they stay put? That's another "cute" thing to do at their eventual expense.

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I wear a fanny pack with bagels in it. Dog food & cheerios float so I don't use them. I've tried rolls, bread, etc. but find bagel are the best. If they are small fish they eat them out of my hand, bigger fish I break off a piece near my face. Fish swarm to me even when I don't see any at first. Somehow they know and find the bagels. So we don't have to swim in the ocean, any bay close to shore works.

Can I assume that you also feed the animals in National Parks?

DON

Assuming it's okayed by his doctor snorkeling from a beach rather than on an exclusion is the best bet. If there is a limitation placed by the tour company you don't want to put yourself in the position of being embarrassed, or the tour company in the roll of enforcer.

I totally agree with previous posts regarding getting your own equipment. We bought ours well over 20 years ago. We got ours after watching a tour guide "clean" the mouthpieces by rinsing in sea water, then handing them out to the afternoon passengers.we were told our gear will last a long time if we carefully rinsed it after every use, and so far it's still working.

I'm always amazed when I bring my snorkel and mask out and find the mask is still clear, and the snorkel doesn't leak, either.

My snorkel has valves near the mouthpiece and higher on the tube that greatly simplify clearing seawater. You don't need to be able to clear the whole tube since there are two places to force water out. As I age and COPD limits my breathing I am more happy with my long-ago choice.

For beach snorkeling we don't use fins, just regular water shoes that I wear to protect my feet.

OP what ports are you going to be visiting? We LOVE to snorkel and manage to find places that you can walk right off the beach and into the water with snorkeling right there under your feet.

If you let us know where you are going, we might be able to suggest a place to go on your own. It's very easy to catch a cab and head to the beach. It might also be safer for your husband to be in fairly shallow water while snorkeling just in case anything would arise. :)

Something I had not considered b4 .. many excursions are snorkeling from a boat ... and getting back on the boat means climbing a sometimes small ladder . . . the boat is moving ... sometimes a good bit due to waves.

How's hubby in this situation? I've been a diver for over 40 years but as I age ... even being experienced .. getting back on the boat is getting to be more and more of a workout. Shore snorkeling usually eliminates this factor . . .

Something I had not considered b4 .. many excursions are snorkeling from a boat ... and getting back on the boat means climbing a sometimes small ladder . . . the boat is moving ... sometimes a good bit due to waves.

 

How's hubby in this situation? I've been a diver for over 40 years but as I age ... even being experienced .. getting back on the boat is getting to be more and more of a workout. Shore snorkeling usually eliminates this factor . . .

That's very true--some boat ladders are really hard to climb, even for the young(er) and fit. Crew will help, but it can be pretty difficult.

I love shore snorkeling when possible. What islands are you going to?