Best Snorkeling

[lovetotraveltx]

Is the snorkeling good here? If so, can you just walk somewhere or need to take an excursion? We will be on the Carnival Vista. Thank you!

[crewsweeper]

Off the reefs on West Bay/West End.

[Guest 2000]

The easiest access to walk-in reef snorkling is directly in front of Tabyana Beach, the cruise ship guest only bit of West Bay Beach.

 

By  the by ~ many people believe Roatan to offer the best snorkeling in the Caribbean.   

 

Edited June 16, 2021 by Guest 2000

[trafaelwyr]

I can second this about Tabyana Beach.  When I did the Liberty of the Seas cruise in 2018, Roatan was the last place visited and I did the Tabyana Beach break.  The water was amazing and I saw lots of underwater sea life while snorkeling.

[lovetotraveltx]

19 hours ago, trafaelwyr said:

I can second this about Tabyana Beach.  When I did the Liberty of the Seas cruise in 2018, Roatan was the last place visited and I did the Tabyana Beach break.  The water was amazing and I saw lots of underwater sea life while snorkeling.

 

On 6/15/2021 at 9:10 PM, Guest 2000 said:

The easiest access to walk-in reef snorkling is directly in front of Tabyana Beach, the cruise ship guest only bit of West Bay Beach.

 

By  the by ~ many people believe Roatan to offer the best snorkeling in the Caribbean.   

 

Can you walk or get to this beach on your own, or do you need to book an excursion? Thank you!

[trafaelwyr]

6 hours ago, lovetotraveltx said:

 

Can you walk or get to this beach on your own, or do you need to book an excursion? Thank you!

 

You would need to book an excursion or, and I don't know if you can do this or not, get a taxi there as it is definitely not somewhere you can walk to.  If you look at Roatan on Google maps, you should be able to find the pier where RCL docks (it's near the airport).  West Bay Beach is on the opposite side of the island right at the bottom tip.  I'm looking forward to going to Roatan on my 8/29 RCL cruise, but I don't know if they'll have an excursion to that beach or not given the current situation.  It is a wonderful beach tho!  When I was there in September of 2015, the weather was perfect, the beach was beautiful and the water was very clear.

[Guest 2000]

On 6/18/2021 at 10:13 AM, lovetotraveltx said:

 

Can you walk or get to this beach on your own, or do you need to book an excursion? Thank you!

 

As said above you can not walk to West Bay Beach from either one of the ports on the island. You can get a taxi, have them drop you off at the road between Bananarama and Paradise Beach Club but it is a bit more hassle than it is worth, ya still gotta get back to the ship. You can hire a driver for the day ( pay him upon return to the ship) and make West Bay one of your stops or pay a day pass at Infinty Bay Resort,  with transport included,  right next to Tabyana. There are several other options along West Bay which offer day passes.  If you are going for beach and snorkeling only I don't see much reason to do it indepentently. 

[c-leg5]

On 6/13/2021 at 7:59 PM, lovetotraveltx said:

Is the snorkeling good here? If so, can you just walk somewhere or need to take an excursion? We will be on the Carnival Vista. Thank you!

If you are on Vista you will not dock where RCL docks at Coxen Hole but at the private beach area at Mahogany Bay, winds and weather permitting. This is even further from west Bay.
 

People have reported snorkeling at Mahogany Bay, no charge and being satisfied - avid snorkelers, not so much. It depends on your budget and the quality of snorkeling you are after.

 

Prime snorkeling at the places suggested above. Tabyana, (part of West Bay) needs to be booked as a ship excursion. Other locations along the bay can be arranged independently by various methods as suggested. Choose a venue that includes transportation or arrange a driver for the day to take and wait for you. Private driver is increasingly beneficial the larger your party and gives you the option to be more flexible if you want to add additional stops or the weather doesn’t co-operate and you want to go somewhere else.

 

Before the pandemic there were multiple reputable tour companies using more or less the same pricing structure, who has survived and whuch venues will still be available is anyone’s guess.

[Den7Cruiser]

I have snorkeled many different places in the Caribbean and I agree, the snorkeling in Honduras was excellent.  We booked the Tabyana Beach Break with Lunch excursion a few years ago and will be doing the same thing again in the fall when we cruise there on Liberty of the Seas.  One of my favorite excursions of all time!