Best places to Snorkel in Mexican Riviera?

[MAN86]

Seeking advise on the best places to snorkel April 2006: Cabo, Mazatlan, PV, Acapulco, Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa, Manzanillo:confused: Any comments are greatly appreciated:D

[platterb]

Man86,

 

Although we have cruised extensively in the Caribbean and know all the best sites, our 11/1 Star sailing will be the first on the Mexican Rivera. I was able to pull up the various shore excursions offered @ the NCL site before being removed while the ship is in Alaska.

 

I did post a similar question on the regular NCL board a couple of months ago. Most people who responded indicated that the Mexican Rivera doesn't have the same level of Scuba/Snorkeling sites found in the Caribbean. They indicated that the water clearity is somewhat merky. So my husband and I have been looking more into kayaking and sailing.

 

The Star will begin the Mexican cruises again at the end of September. Since you're not sailing until next Spring, I would post your inquiry this fall once a few Star sailings have been completed.

 

Happy Cruising

[Sailfish]

Of the ports you mention, I would recommend you dive in Cabo. In PV, the only site worth diving is at the Marietas Islands, where you'll find an awesome set of tunnels and swim-throughs. In Cabo, the visibility will be better. The diving in April in PV will get you around 35 ft visibility - Cabo will be slightly better. There are few dive sites in Manzanillo and Ixtapa, but they might be too far, if time is a factor. Do something else in Mazatlan and Acapulco.

 

I've been to all ports - I just got back from PV and did some diving there, as we were there for the week. Visibility was crappy - 20-30ft most days. The tunnels had quite a bit of surge and we didn't see any manta rays at El Morro (usually a great dive site, but no dive op will take you El Morro unless you dive with them for a while).

 

If you have any questions, let me know.

 

Good luck.

[Sailfish]

It just dawned on me you wanted to know about snorkeling, not scuba. Sorry!

 

Snorkeling is good in PV, Ixtapa and Cabo. Do something else at the other ports. In PV, Los Arcos is a good place to go, or the Marietas - both sites are shallow.

 

In Ixtapa and Cabo, there are numerous places to go - also decent visibility.

[MAN86]

You were one of the few who has responded to my question. We are looking at some excursions offered; i.e. snorkeling. Do you have any recommendations, advise, or comments on the following: :confused:

Cabo - Chilleno Bay

Puerto Vallarta - Yelapa Beach

Ixtapa/Zihuantenejo - Las Gatas Beach Club, Bay of Zihuantenejo/King Reef

Manzanillo - Elephant Rock

Many thanks :D

[sceneisle]

Bahia Chileno is one of the two best snorkeling sites in Los Cabos (the other is Playa Santa Maria; just a short distance from Chileno). Both sites are easily accessable by bus or cab and are located a few miles outside of Cabo, along the "corridor". Many years ago, we took a snorkeling tour with La Princessa, out of Cabo San Lucas............very good trip to Playa Santa Maria and some whale watching as an extra bonus.

 

Regarding Ixtapa, we enjoyed snorkeling Isla Ixtapa; a small island just off the coast and an inexpensive trip by water taxi.

[Snorkel Dawg]

We found snorkeling at Los Arcos in PV awsome! much clearer than in Cabo, but that's just our opinion.

We booked a boat from "Cesar" at the beach in front of Los Arcos, it cost us $30.00 for a 90 minute tour.

[cruise pup]

I heard good things about Chileno Bay in Cabo. I want to Santa Maria Cove and that was terrific. However, some people complained the water was chilly (this was in January) which I would imagine would be true of all the Cabo snorkel sites. Maybe a wet suit would help if you're particulary sensitive. I found it chilly at first but as soon as I started swimming I got used to the water termperature very quickly.