Best places for snorkel vacation

[Electrokate]

Hi,
Even though we are totally broke my boyfriend wants to blow his bonus on a vacation. Must be the 12 hour days getting to his head... Last year we went to Puerto Vallarta which isn't huge for diving so this year we want to find a place with better snorkeling. Hopefully close to shore so we don't have to pay a crew to transport us by boat. We are not into the drinking/clubbing scene nor the Sandals mega resort type places. More into bird and fish watching and cruising around. We took the public bus up and down the coast in Mexico. That was interesting, a cross between a roller coaster and Girls Gone Wild. Only the "girls" were embarrassing their teenage kids and almost everybody else...
Any snorkel nuts out there with places and times of year to recommend?
Thanks,
Kate

 

[Krish]

RIGHT HERE!!!! The Bahamas!!!! If you don't mind 70-75 degree water in the winter...Come on down! Summer is always best though IMO.

 

[mungus]

I would recomend going to Bonaire. Pretty much no club scene. There are reefs right off the resorts and the bird watching is execellent also. Check out Buddy Dive. http://www.buddydive.com/

I ran a scuba shop for a few years. All the people I took there loved it. Divers and snorkelers alike.

Brian

 

[MikeS]

Cayman Brac is good for diving/snorkeling also...and they have a parrot sanctuary, caves, all kinds of neat stuff....and no club scene....:lol:

MikeS

 

[sryder]

cozumel in mexico is also suppose to be pretty good. I also second bonaire

 

[Electrokate]

If we come to the Bahamas can we crash on your floor? I can bring frags... What island are you on?
Seriously having sticker shock on the Bonaire flights and accomodations. Getting half the price on deals to go all the way to the Canary Islands... scary. Might have to wait on that island.
Bonaire sure does look amazing though, they really have made a serious effort at conservation. It was pretty sad seeing big boxes of dead laquered seahorses at the tourist stores in Puerto Vallarta. I gotta support the good guys. Hope we can make it there at some point and I will keep my eyes on the rates.
Kate

 

[Krish]

If we come to the Bahamas can we crash on your floor? I can bring frags... What island are you on?

Why bring frags when I an pull up an entire reef(LOL) I live in the capital Nassau. Ever heard of Atlantis in the Bahamas? That about 10 minuts from my place. If you haven't heard of it here is a thread I started to show some pictures of it...You don't need to get wet to see great marine life

http://www.reeffrontiers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10546

 

[NaH2O]

Grand Cayman - was definately one of my favorite vacations! Stingray city was incredible! Cayman Online - Stingray City

 

[mungus]

Kate

Check out www.padi.com They have a travel network and they will probably be able to get you better rates than you can get on your own. Most of the general trips posted are dive vactions but if you call them direct they will be able to set up a trip for you. This is the company I certify divers throught they are the largest and best in the world.

Brian

 

[spongebob lover]

i believe you can also go to los Cabos Mex. it suppose to be pretty beautiful.
I'd just go to the Bahamas , you get to hang out with Krish and take one of his to many shrimps .

 

[coralseas]

went to cancun last spring , it was great, spent the first day snokling behind the westin, the second largest bairrer reef is along the eastern mexico and bleizes.. cancun should be cheep now, since the huracanes hit them , but should be good by now ,


going to maui soon heres a good shore dive link http://www.shorediving.com/Earth/Hawaii/Maui/index.htm

 

[Jiddy]

Cancun is wiped out

But Guam on the other hand, you can crash on my floor if you come out there, or i can get you a hotel for $20 a night on base, either way! And Guam is some of the best diving in the world

 

[coralseas]

naww ,, how long do u think i takes to dig out the lobby and replace some windows, all the hotels are made of concreate,

im not worried, we allready have booked our spring break there again. and talk about cheaper than last year

snokling was great , i saw lots of fish , and some huge coral formations, turtals, water was warm and the sand was wite, very nice,

 

[Electrokate]

The areas Rita hit are still devastated. Cancun's freshwater lagoon is brown and full of sand, the businesses are mostly still closed, the sand is mostly gone. There are a few hotels with beach left though, and a little research helps. There are almost no tourists too, which could be a serious bonus, especially when negotiating prices, if that has to happen.
Guam sounds amazing, too.
I was joking about bringing frags to the Bahamas
We are postponing our decision while I work on the ol medical bills and determine which surgerie(s) have to be done this year vs waiting (argh, more bills). After that will have a celebratory major trip outta here!
I have a big ol cyst on my wrist brought on by major electrical damage from my tank. Yes, you can injure yourself with household current. My physical med doc says one of his patients blew his right arm clean off with it and almost bled to death, all I have is a few hemangiomas to excise.Think we will go with the "wait and see if it goes away approach" since it's another 5 grand that insurance probably won't cover as it's supposedly cosmetic. So far I have had a big purple blob on my hand for 6 months. Definitely don't put your power strips next to your sump, if the pump disconnects from the hose the difficulty of turning it off is obvious. Of course the power strips were plugged in behind the sump also, and all were full of water... Think I might start a thread on this at some point.
Kate

 

[Elmo18]

Cancun is wiped out

But Guam on the other hand, you can crash on my floor if you come out there, or i can get you a hotel for $20 a night on base, either way! And Guam is some of the best diving in the world

Any chance you can dive and catch me some Chrysopterus clowns?! lol....

- Ilham

 

[Jiddy]

Elmo, we had this talk before about Deigo Garcia, lol. But what ive read is that you can get a permit in Guam for like $50 and can net fish, so i can do that for you legally, let me look into more once i get there, do you live by Ken? lol

Kate, you really tricked me,i started reading about Cancun beaches and you threw in some graphic stuff, lol. Seriously, sorry for you accident and i hope you recover soon, ill be in Guam for four months, so thats plenty of time to recover!