cruise.mode Posted March 4, 2006 #1 Share Posted March 4, 2006 We have never snorkeled before. I realize that the tour operators provide equipment for you, but is it sanitary to share this stuff? Can you buy it onboard ship (RCCL Navigator) so you don't have to drag it from home, or are you better off heading to a sporting goods store (or WalMart!) at home? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheffie Posted March 4, 2006 #2 Share Posted March 4, 2006 I hope that most operators sanitize the gear. On our first two cruises we used their gear, but since have purchased our own. I think they have it on the ships, but things on the ship are usually expensive. I suggest to go locally (they have some at our Sam's Club) and get some. You wouldn't have to pack the flippers, which take up a lot of space. Have fun planning! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petguy Posted March 4, 2006 #3 Share Posted March 4, 2006 We own and bring our own snorkel sets. We also leave the flippers at home. Most tours I have seen either do a quick rinse in the salt water or nothing at all. YUCK! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelWorks Posted March 4, 2006 #4 Share Posted March 4, 2006 ***Buy and bring your own!*** Especially if you have kids...you don't want a bad fit for a mask or flippers....because of their smaller size. The ones you can get at Costco this time of year, going into summer,...come with their own nice carrying bag....Not that big of a deal to fit it in your suitcase....flippers are long and flat...just make sure you rinse it well in the shopwers onboard when you get back to get the salt water off....and do not use sunscreen on your face before use...it makes the mask leak and causes the seel of the mask to begin to breakdown faster....(your face is down in the water...so as long as you sunscreen your face when your done snorkeling and wear a hat out of the water you shouldn't burn bad. There is no way I would ever borrow or rent snorkels....cold sores alone would freak me out...let alone everything else you can get!:eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drew sailbum Posted March 4, 2006 #5 Share Posted March 4, 2006 Though tour operators do sanitize the snorkelling equpiment between uses, there is still a lot of naturally occurring "stuff" in the sea. The operative word is sanitize, not sterilize. This is not something I would ever spend time worrying about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisevirgin06 Posted March 5, 2006 #6 Share Posted March 5, 2006 we bought our own. I purchased them at Target for $20.00 with a carrying bag. Just the snorkel and mask. WE only need flippers once and that was in Belize and we just used the ones the tour operators had. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nebr.cruiser Posted March 5, 2006 #7 Share Posted March 5, 2006 Excursions we've used do a quick cleaning of snorkel equipment, usually dunking it in some sort of solution. (Maybe just sea water.) Sometimes we bring our own equipment, depending on how much stuff we want to lug, just because it fits better. (I have a narrow face and regular-sized masks let water in). But I really never worry about germ risks; you are using them in the ocean, which has lots of stuff in it too;if you start thinking along those lines you'll never get in the water! I just figure the salt water nuetralizes germs! LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruise.mode Posted March 6, 2006 Author #8 Share Posted March 6, 2006 Thanks so much to all of you for your valuable input. Will check out Target, Walmart, etc. and will see what we can find! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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