Just wondering if anyone has a favorite snorkeling/diving outfitter in Key West. My husband and I are going for a short tip at the end of April and would like to do a snorkeling (possibly with kayaking) and maybe a dive. My husband has been diving before and loved it- I did not fare as well thanks to my claustrophobia but would love to try again. Any feelings on Seabago? Thanks for the help!

I don't think Floridays has Kayaks but they come highly recommended. Sebago is what folks call cattle boats because of how many people they load up with for one trip.

I second Floridays. My husband and I took our first snorkeling trip with them and they were great. Unlike the catamarans, they don't pack people in like cattle cars. They dock at the Hyatt.

Just spent a week in the keys. We rented kayaks at Bahia Honda state park, they have group tours or you can go on your own.

We used Looe Key Dive for our dive/snorkle tour. They take you out to the reef, 3 different sites. Both divers and snorklers go together. It was fantastic! They really knew their stuff and were really "eco" friendly.

Looe Key is about 20 minutes north of Key West. Really easy drive. Looe Key reef is one of the best reefs I've seen. There were tons of fish, baracuda, eels and even a nurse shark! Fantastic!!

Maybe he could dive and you could snorkle. You'd both be together but doing your own thing!

Thanks you guys, I'll check them both out and scratch Seabago off of our list! I am driving in from Miami so I'll have a car. We were trying to decide whether or not to keep it.

meant to include the web site :

http://www.diveflakeys.com/

I'm confused - are you certified divers or not?

In early March, we went out with Strike Zone Charters (Big Pine Key), they do dives and snorkels on the same trip - they were very good, they take you to Looe Reef Marine Sanctuary. Don't know anything about Seabago, though. Strike Zone was recommended to us by the place we stayed, Parmer's Resort.

Sorry for the confusion, no we are not certified and would have to do a resort course. Also, has anyone been to the Dry Torgas? Any other "must-dos" on your lists? We are hoping to cram as much adventure into our trip as possible. Thanks again.

You can take instruction with Looe Key Diveshop they have prices listed on the site:

http://www.diveflakeys.com/dive_training.htm

Looe Key is not in Key West. It is several islands away and about a 30 minute drive.

We will most likely have a car and don't mind driving for a better trip. I've checked out the Looe Key Diveshop (thanks Wendy) and it looks like it may be a better location than those in Key West. True?

For diving look at Southpointdivers.com
I also liked the Floridays for snorkeling.

We, too, are Keys-bound (June) and new to the experience. Is a resort dive course good? We've snorkeled in many places in the Carribean, but thought that we would like to try diving.
Thanks in advance! Rose

The Dry Tortugas are about 60 miles west of Key West and must be reached by boat or seaplane. They're pristine since they don't expect the heavy dive traffic of the Keys, but I think you'll be fine with Looe Key.