We are headed to Aruba in June and are avid snorkelers. Any tips as to best "from the beach" snorkeling (home base is the Hyatt Regency)as well as snorkel trips from DePalm or Red Sail?
Thanks,
Chris

We were in Aruba last September and went on a 6-hour snorkeling/sailing tour on the Tranquilo. I can't say enough good things about this trip! They take a much smaller group than you will find on the DePalm or Red Sail trips so you will have a lot more personal attention from the crew. (I have heard that the DePalm and Red Sail trips cater to the cruise ship crowd). We stopped to snorkel twice. The first stop was at a shallow reef and then we stopped at a deeper reef. In the deeper water, we did what they call "drift snorkeling". Basically, everyone snorkeled along behind one of the staff in a dinghy. If you aren't comfortable in the deeper water, you can get in the dinghy at any time. It was great! The snorkeling in the deep water was amazing!

They provided soft drinks, beer, great rum punch and served a fantastic homemade dutch pea soup and sandwiches for lunch. My husband HATES pea soup and even he ate 3 bowls of this stuff!

Here's a link to their website:

http://www.visitaruba.com/tranquilo/

For snorkeling from the beach, we thought it was best at the reef near baby beach on the south side. I don't think that there is a lot of snorkeling near the hotels on Palm Beach. You will probably want to rent a car or 4-wheel drive to get to the good snorkeling spots on the island.

Have a great trip!

The best snorkeling site in Aruba is Bonaire. I am not joking.

baby beach.

The Antilla wreck and Arashi reef

Aruba isn't the best place for snorkeling but it's okay. We liked Baby Beach the best (easy to snorkel from shore). DePalm Island was pretty good but they have recently made it expensive to go there.

Arashi/Boca Catalina had murky water when we were there; Antilla (wreck) wasn't too great either but conditions vary from day to day.

I heard about an area called Mangel Halto on the south side which is supposed to have good snorkeling from shore if you're a strong swimmer. Unfortunately our week ended before we had a chance to check it out.

Thanks for the tranquilo website. I have contacted them for more info. If my daughter eats split pea soup I will be a believer.

We found Arashi Beach/Boca Catalina (close to the California Lighthouse) the best. Wasn't murky when we were there a couple of weeks ago. Enjoy!!