The Complete Guide to Snorkeling

Snorkeling is often an underrated activity. For many travelers to tropical destinations, it’s presented as something anyone can do, and often involves plowing along the surface with rental gear and a swim vest on. But snorkeling can be so much more!

In fact, modern scuba diving grew out of snorkeling, or skin diving as it was known then.

Snorkeling can be incredibly rewarding and enjoyable. It benefits from its simplicity, where you can simply grab a mask and some fins, rather than hauling a bag full of heavy scuba gear. This also allows for more flexibility, allowing you to bring your gear on trips where packing tons of scuba gear isn’t a possibility. And the lack of bubbles means you can often get closer to marine wildlife than with scuba gear on.

Preparation

To really make the most of your next snorkeling trip and leave the newbies in your wake, a bit of preparation is helpful.

Improve your swimming

If your swimming skills aren’t the best, take some swimming lessons at your local pool. And, even if you’re a decent swimmer, becoming an even better swimmer will only benefit you in the water.

Focus in particular on the freestyle, as the kicking technique from that style is the one you’ll be using when snorkeling.

Being a strong swimmer will also allow you to ditch the swim vests that are often popular with snorkeling outfits.

While a snorkeling vest helps you with flotation, it will also hinder your movements in the water. And make it harder, if not impossible, to dive down to check out a reef or fish.

Good swimming skills will help keep you safe in the water.

Practice

Swimming is one thing – Swimming with fins on is something else entirely.

The extra drag and weight of the fins put an extra toll on the muscles, which is why you might experience cramping if you’re not used to swimming with fins.

So take a pair of fins to the local pool, or your home waters, and do some laps with them on.

Improve your breath hold

Many snorkelers simply stay at the surface and use the snorkel to breathe while looking down.

A number of more advanced snorkelers, though, move into skin diving territory by doing occasional dives below the surface while holding their breath.

This will allow you to get a much closer look at the marine wildlife, and you’ll be able to see reefs and other underwater features up close.

To maximize your time underwater, you can train your breath holding capacity, as well as your swimming efficiency.