Touring on our Own + Snorkling

[bling19572010]

We are thinking about renting a 4x4 jeep and touring Aruba on our own. Can anyone tell me what the beach beach is for snorkeling?

[Arubalisa]

Some of my personal Aruba favorites:

Catalina Cove (just north of Boca Catalina)

Boca Catalina (shade palapas)

Malmok Beach (rocky)

De Palm Slope (on De Palm Island, thus not free)

Mangel Halto Reef (aka Spanish Lagoon)

Baby Beach Reef (the furthest taxi ride, thus more expensive to get to...)

 

Also check out these previous threads

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=300978&highlight=snorkel

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=320618&highlight=snorkel

[bling19572010]

Some of my personal Aruba favorites:

Catalina Cove (just north of Boca Catalina)

Boca Catalina (shade palapas)

Malmok Beach (rocky)

De Palm Slope (on De Palm Island, thus not free)

Mangel Halto Reef (aka Spanish Lagoon)

Baby Beach Reef (the furthest taxi ride, thus more expensive to get to...)

 

Also check out these previous threads

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=300978&highlight=snorkel

 

Thanks Lisa. We will be renting a 4x4 and touring the island, do you know if the maps that the rental places provide will clearly show these snorkeling spots that you mentioned?

[Arubalisa]

Rental companies offer maps. How detailed varies. You can get a good "lay of the land" beforehand with this map

http://brochures.aruba.com//arubamap/download/arubamap.pdf

 

Do not print the whole thing because it is 71 pages :eek: but you are able to print, page by page. Most of the snorkel spots are on the top left handside of the map and Baby Beach is at the lower right.

We personally like Malmok since it is closer to the hotels and Oranjestad. Baby Beach is a longer ride and a good destination if you wanted to "make a day of it". IMHO, the snorkeling is not that much better and probably safer at Malmok.

[bling19572010]

Thanks Lisa!!

[Arubalisa]

The area of Boca Catalina, click on thumbnail to enlarge:

facing north

facing south

[swom]

We did a power snorkel thru Princess in Aruba and it was fantastic. We don't usually do excursion thru the ship, but the power snorkel really interested me and I'm so glad we did it. Great snorkeling!!!

[scuba214]

We took the public bus to Malmok. The snorkeling was very good. There are no chairs to rent and not much shade available which keeps it from being crowded.:D

[davidma]

Hi, if we decide to rent a car for the day (we are there on Dec 24th this year), will we have any problems finding parking at relevant beaches or snorkel spots or should this not be an issue.

 

Thanks

Dave

[Arubalisa]

Hi, if we decide to rent a car for the day (we are there on Dec 24th this year), will we have any problems finding parking at relevant beaches or snorkel spots or should this not be an issue.

 

Thanks

Dave

Usually parking is not an issue. On weekends, you would want to get there earlier because locals will be spending the day relaxing and picnicing.

[Islandbear]

Just my two cents, But I found Baby Beach a let down after the long drive. If you are just going to snorkel I would focus on the North west shore around Malmok and Boca Catalina. If you want to combine Baby Beach with the West Coast Jeep Safari Tour go for it but don't go there just for snorkeling. The fish are aggressive from over feeding with only a few dominate species remaining, whereas the north-western beaches are in a pretty natural shape.