My husband and I are traveling to Hawaii in a few weeks and we'd like to try snorkeling for the first time. I'll admit right off the bat, I know nothing about snorkeling so if my question sounds stupid that's why. Our trip starts in Maui (we're staying in Wailea), then we go to the Big Island (staying at the Four Seasons) and then we go to Oahu and stay at the Kahala Mandarin Oriental.

Can someone recommend a place we could try snorkeling in these areas? Is snorkeling something like snow skiing in that there are beginner, intermediate and expert areas? How expensive is it to rent the necessary equipment?

Thank you one and all!

Hi Sandy,

Snorkeling is very easy - it takes about 5 minutes for whomever is renting you the equipment to show you how to use it.

I don't know if there are beginner, intermed, advance,etc. I would doubt it.

I am not sure how much it would cost - but probably somewhere from $10-40, depending on where you are.

I went snorkeling at Haunama Bay in Oahu (I may not be spelling it correctly) and had no clue what I was doing. It was very easy and very fun!

Hope this helps.

JB

I agree that snorkling is surprisingly easy to learn. You don't even need to dive under, just float on the surface and you'll see plenty of sea creatures.
I think that, for the first time snorkling, you would enjoy a sail that will rent you equipment, take you to a good spot, and show you how to use it. There has been a lot on this site regarding sails in Hawaii; I'll bet if search under the "Hawaii" catagory, you'll get some good info. Good luck and have fun!

Actually there are different levels, but I can't remember what it is all based on. On Maui, you can pick up a map (free I believe and maybe it is on their website) at a Maui Dive shop and it will rate the snorkle locations from Beginner-Intermediate-Advanced.

On the Big Island, I highly recommend either taking a snorkel cruise to Kealakekua Bay (on Fair Wind or Body Glove), or if you want to do it on your own go to Kahaluu Beach Park in Kona. I think Kahaluu is the best place for beginning snorkelers anywhere in Hawaii. Hanauma Bay on Oahu is also very good, but that's very crowded and sometimes hard to get into.

Snorkeling is fun and very easy. The above ideas are great - especially taking an organized cruise. Great place for a beginner to learn. You want to be in a place with nice calm water - no wave action.

Take your time chosing rented gear. It's very important to get a proper fit and seal on the snorkel mask otherwise you'll have salt water in your eyes all the time and will hate the whole experience. SportMart (or other equal quality sporting goods store) has adequate sets of snorkel equipment (mask, tube, and fins) in the reasonable price range. I've even seen them at Target at times. Rental or purchase, you want the mask to fit snug but not tight. The mask should never leave deep marks on your face after you wear it. Test the seal by placing the mask on your face (without the strap around your head) inhale through your nose and hold your breath. If the mask stays on your face, its good, there are no leaks so water won't get in. Its also good for the snorkel tube mouthpiece to be made of soft silicone rubber. It will be in your mouth and rubbing on your gums, you want it to be as soft as possible - and as clean as possible.

If you're not a great swimmer or are a bit nervous about getting into the water to snorkel, consider using a water skier's belt or renting a wetsuit. This adds just enough buoyancy to let you feel really secure, yet doesn't hold your head up at the exaggerated angle of a collar style life vest. The wetsuit has the added luxury of keeping you warm - sea water is always cooler than your body temperature - thus allowing a much longer in-water experience. I'm not a good swimmer and this works well for me.

If, like me, you are blind without your corrective lenses consider a dive mask with correction (much like "cheater" drug store reading glasses) or consider contacts for snorkeling. The water gives a bit of magnification, but not enough to make things clear if you're dependent on corrective lenses.

I also suggest that you purchase an underwater guidebook for the trip. You will want to know what you've just seen so you can tell your friends. Many are only about $10.

If you want to take underwater pictures, those one-use cameras work pretty well with these caveats: only use them on very sunny days, don't try to take pictures of things more than 10 feet down. Light is lost underwater very quickly and the further down the object the darker your picture will be. More than 10 feet and its just not worth the effort. The cameras are much cheaper at K-Mart than hotels gift shops. (The Big Island has a GREAT K-Mart where I bought all my souvenior teeshirts, etc. very inexpensively.)

I just can't say enough about the beauty underwater. Do whatever it takes to make yourself feel secure enough to enjoy the spectacular sights.

A note about disposable cameras: I've had the best luck with the Fuji one - it has 800 speed film in it, and my photos turn out great! Just don't shoot from too far away, or all you'll see is water. You need to be 3 feet or closer.

Hi Sandy, the beaches in Wailea in front of the hotels all have reefs off them, to the sides of each beach. So you can get your learning done right there without any major trips anywhere! All the hotels have equipment you can rent by the hour or day too. Just remember, never turn your back on the ocean and if the surf is up, go sunbathing instead because visibility will be poor and it's hard to snorkel when you keep getting pushed around by the waves Have a great time.

I second the recommendation for the Fuji disposible U/W camera. I used to use them all the time before I splurged and bought a Nikonos. They will work down to about 30 feet and I've actually had one with me on a dive to about 60 feet that didn't flood (although it will not work at that depth). It has a lever rather than a button mechanism for the shutter operation which works better in a pressurized environment.

Thank you everyone for your advice. Can someone please tell me if we rent equipment on our resort or we take a cruise, are there beginner cruises or beginner lessons offered at the resorts? Is snorkeling as simple as putting a mask on and putting your face in the water?

Can non-swimmers snorkel?

I've never been anywhere where the snorkelers were labeled as groups of beginners or advanced. The only thing different is that usually on a boat snorkel trip, the captain will call every one over who hasn't snorkeled before and gives a 5 minute demonstration. And thats pretty much it - it is basically as simple as putting on your mask and getting in the water. The only thing that some people might find weird at first is the breathing through the snorkel. You said you'd be renting equipment, but if are able to get it before you actually snorkel, (this sounds funny but it works!) fill your sink with water, put on your gear and just stick in your face. Gives you the feel of snorkeling ahead of time so you don't waste time listening to the captain and can get in the water to see the fish!

sorry - forgot to mention that if you can get your gear ahead of time, practice in the pool - that will help tremendously with getting familiar with snorkeling. And yes, non-swimmers can snorkel. Its basically just floating on top of the water and you can get a snorkler's life vest to use. Not like a big bulky orange one, but a smaller version that you can manually inflate as needed.

Two of the best places for beginning snorkelers are Haunama Bay on Oahu and the Molokini Crater off of Maui. At Haunama Bay the water is calm and very shallow so you don't even really need to float. At Molokini the water is also fairly calm (since it is protected by the crater). Rough conditions is one of the things that can make snorkeling more difficult.

I don't think there's any such thing as beginner or advanced snorkel cruises. As another poster suggested, you can try it out in a swimming pool or from a beach rather than from a boat. That way if you panic, you can always just stand up. Some resorts do offer snorkeling lessons.

be careful of snorkeling from the "beach" at Kealakekua Bay - it's a tricky spot to get into the water safely due to wave action that can push you into the rocks. A snorkel cruise would be a good start, and trying it in the hotel pool or bathtub is a good idea. It really only takes about 5 minutes to get the hang of! You might want to work out a couple of hand signels with your hubby like "I'm tired, let's go in" or "look under that rock, there's cool fish" or "let's check out that area". You can buy laminated one sheet fish guides so you can name what you're seeing!