Best island to snorkle

[kichi_kichi]

My wife and I are taking a Caribbean cruise during the spring break. We are debating between snorkeling at Barbados or St Thomas.

 

Does anyone have any recommendations on what place is better to snorkel at?

[sammynobrains]

St. Thomas without a doubt. Check out the St. Thomas boards for more information.

[billandtina315]

I just returned from So. Carib> Constellation cruise. We snorkeled on Barbados with Silver Moon II and High Pockets in St Thomas. The vislbility was much better in St Thomas.

[kichi_kichi]

How about Antigua? We are visiting the following ports:

 

1. Barbados
   
2. St Lucia
   
3. Antigua
   
4. St Maarten
   
5. St Thomas
   

We are figuring out what we should be doing at each port.

 

Thanks,

Saurabh

[michmike]

have you snorkeled before? If not, an inexpensive option to try it for the first time would be to go to coki beach on st thomas where you can snorkel right from the beach. They rent gear there. You won't see anything spectacular but there are plenty of fish very close to shore in relatively shallow water so it is a good spot to try it the first time. That having been said, you won't get any assistance in HOW to do it, but if you read up a bit online first you can get a good feel for what it is all about.

 

On the other hand, if you've snorkeled before or want someone to be there with you as newbies, I would try a local day sail w/ snorkeling. Staff on those boats are very patient and encouraging with newbies and will typically get right in the water with you. Check the port of call boards for both st thomas and barbados and you will find reports on a number of day sail operators. I've not read much about snorkeling in the other ports you list but do know that there are many options in both Barbados and St Thomas.

[sammynobrains]

Sorry, I was thinking beach snorkeling, where your best bet is St. Thomas.

 

If you want to snorkel from a boat, almost any island that you mentioned is a good bet. If you're a beginner snorkeler, I'd recommend Coki on St. Thomas or Pinel on St. Martin.

 

If you're looking for general things to do on each of the islands, the ports of call boards are your best bet.

[gourmetgal]

The best snorkling is definitely in St. John. Trunk bay, Cinnamon bay. Take a taxi to Red Hook ( takes about 20 minutes)and catch the ferry to St. John, then get open aired taxi( a few dollars pp) right across the square from where the boat lets you off. to the beach of your choice. There is also ferry service from downtown St. Thomas but it takes longer to cross the water.

There is actually great snorkling right off the beach at the Sapphire Beach resort in St. Thomas. you can take a taxi there. from the cruise dock. Coki beach is ok for snorkling but it is very crowded.