Cold water

[Bimmersbabe]

I would like to snorkel, my husband has no interest. We will be in Nassau, St. Thomas and St. Maarten leaving FLL o March 26th. Will the water be warm enough to snorkel? Can I just go to a beach and do this on my own? And, if so, I plan on buying a snorkel set as I am worried about how the rentals are cleaned - is it worth it to buy and pack? I guess that also depends on the first 2 answers ;)

[Sixtytwo]

The water temp should be fine in St Thomas and St Maarten, can't say what Nassau will be. Yes, there are many great places to snorkel in St T and St M. The value in buying your own snorkel gear depends on how much you plan to use it. If this is the first adventure snorkeling and you find it is not for you, then the value is not there.

 

 

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[SuiteTraveler]

You can easily snorkel off of Coki Beach in St. Thomas. You will see quite a lot of Sargent Majors there - bring extra large Milk Bone dog biscuits and the fish will eat out of your hand! It's really fun!

 

Here is a travelogue from one of our frequent posters showing photos from snorkeling at Coki Beach:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=42952465

 

For St. Maarten, here is information on snorkeling from beaches there:

http://www.sxm-beaches.com/snorkel/

[Bimmersbabe]

Thank you! I've never snorkeled and I enjoy trying new things. I also love to travel, this is first cruise. I am really hoping to get hooked

[navybankerteacher]

I would like to snorkel, my husband has no interest. We will be in Nassau, St. Thomas and St. Maarten leaving FLL o March 26th. Will the water be warm enough to snorkel? Can I just go to a beach and do this on my own? And, if so, I plan on buying a snorkel set as I am worried about how the rentals are cleaned - is it worth it to buy and pack? I guess that also depends on the first 2 answers ;)

There is no way I would want to put a rented snorkel mouthpiece in my mouth - at least buy and bring your own. Fins take up a lot of space, so unless you are sure you will want to snorkel again, it is better to rent. Face masks: either way.

 

The Caribbean will be warm, but Nassu may be cool for you - it depends upon what you are used to.

[Bimmersbabe]

We booked in August, I've done everything myself! I'm so thankful for finding Cruise Critic, everyone has been beyond helpful. Thank you for all the great suggestions. I have pages of notes!

[SuiteTraveler]

Since you have not done this before, keep in mind that if you have any kind of shiny metal on your swimsuit, you will likely attract barracuda which will follow you around tirelessly - they are curious fish. So it is generally better to have a more plain swimsuit that is fabric only. I remember one snorkel trip off of Cancun where this lady in our group had a metal buckle on her swimsuit and the barracuda would not leave her alone as it was looking at the buckle trying to figure out if it was a smaller fish it could eat. She was new to snorkeling and freaked out and got back on the snorkel boat and would not go back in the water.

 

In regards to Nassau, there are sharks present in the area where you snorkel which might be a bit much for a first timer? There really aren't any beaches there where you can see much snorkeling from them - it's all about the deep water snorkeling from a boat. If you just want a beach day, get off your ship as early as possible and as you leave the port, turn right and walk straight ahead a few blocks to Junkanoo Beach. You can rent beach chairs there and there is a bar and restaurant. There is some brain coral and fan coral in the area, but not much fish. Junkanoo Beach is free, so if the water is cold, you won't have wasted your money on a snorkel excursion that is too cold to enjoy and you can spend a nice day enjoying a lovely beach.

[donaldsc]

I would like to snorkel, my husband has no interest. We will be in Nassau, St. Thomas and St. Maarten leaving FLL o March 26th. Will the water be warm enough to snorkel? Can I just go to a beach and do this on my own? And, if so, I plan on buying a snorkel set as I am worried about how the rentals are cleaned - is it worth it to buy and pack? I guess that also depends on the first 2 answers ;)

 

 

Try going into Google and typing "water temperature in XX" where XX is the name of your port. You will very quickly find your answers.

 

DON

[cb at sea]

Snorkel gear is soaked in a bleach solution. It's clean. Otherwise, there would be TONS of sick folks from snorkeling!

 

How easy snorkeling is really depends on how rough the water might be, and how strong of a swimmer you are. Personally, I prefer seeing fish on my plate...or in an aquarium....

 

The water may be a few degrees warmer than Georgia beaches....after all, it is the Atlantic...NOT the Caribbean.

[Bimmersbabe]

CB - you lutreally made me lol! Suite traveler - thank you for the shiney metal info, one of my suits definitely had that. Donaldsc - great suggestion, ty

[OCruisers]

The water temperatures in St. Thomas and St. Maarten will be fine with St. Thomas being the better of those two for snorkeling. .

In Nassau it is too chilly for me to snorkel that time of year.;)

[obnurse]

I agree....google the average temperature for those areas at that time of year. I'm on the odd side. The water is very cold for me in March. The rest of my family jumps right in, so everyone is different. Don't worry too much about predators. You're less likely to see them then you think. It's easy to buy snorkel equipment and take along. It's not that expensive and it's reassuring that it's clean. We've carried our own for years. In fact, we all have prescription masks now. Also, you may want to consider a snorkeling excursion where you can snorkel and your DH can enjoy being on the boat and having a boat ride. That way, you're with others and the safety factor is a little better. If you do decide to snorkel on your own, consider getting some kind of a cheap floatation device. Even one of those foam noodles helps a lot if you get tired in the water. Have fun!!

[EatDrinkCruz]

I was in St Thomas in Dec and the water was 82. go to the rocky part of sapphire beach by the boat docks, my wife and I rented a condo there for 10 days GREAT snorkeling there and it is public. we saw rays, turtles, octos, puffers, lobsters and tons of different fish, don't let the barracudas scare you they are just inquisitive.