Best Snorkeling In Barbados: Places, Beaches, Map & Tours

A well-known Caribbean retreat for many watersports,Best Snorkeling In Barbados gives you the opportunity to try activities such as scuba diving, parasailing, surfing and even snuba! What this exotic island truly excels at, however, is snorkeling.

Barbados has some of the best snorkeling in the Caribbean – and its colorful coral reefs, plentiful shipwrecks to explore, and beautiful marine life to swim with make snorkeling in Barbados an absolute “must” for visitors and tourists alike!

There are numerous snorkeling activities to try on the island. Snorkeling equipment is accessible at many local shops, guided snorkeling tours are available all around the island, and the beaches and marine parks of Barbados make it a very hard task to choose a single best snorkeling spot!

In this article we discuss all the best places and ways to snorkel in Barbados, so let’s get started!

7 Best Places to Best Snorkeling in Barbados

There are many amazing places for snorkeling in Barbados, and the best spot for you will largely depend on where you’ll be staying on the island. Our best recommendations, arranged in 3 different categories, are below!

1. Best snorkeling beaches of the Barbados West Coast

The West Coast of Barbados is easily accessible from most everywhere on the island, and it features amazing beaches for snorkeling.

Our honorable mentions (in geographical order from the North to the South of the West Coast) are:

• The Mullins Bay Beach – located in the northern St. Peter area, features a circular reef and plentiful sea life.
• The Holetown Beach – located in the middle-western St. James area of Barbados, features a beautiful coral reef with plentiful turtles and fish swimming around.
• The Brighton Beach – located in the southern St. Michael area, features some of the most beautiful reefs with extensive coral gardens, turtles and sea fish, as well as an easy to explore shipwreck just off the reef.

Key advantages of the West Coast are its reachability and great underwater visibility, allowing you to enjoy the colorful corals (amazing 80+ yards offshore) and tropical fish at their very best!

2. Best snorkeling beaches of the Barbados South Coast

Just like the West Coast, the South Coast of Barbados also features calm blue waters with great visibility (around 60ft for most of the year) and perfect temperatures (rarely go under 79°F / 25°C).

Our recommendations of the best snorkeling beaches on the South Coast are:

• Graves End Beach – located in St. Michael, features an astonishing amount of fish as well as a shallow barrier reef which makes it a great spot for the newbie snorkeler.
• Palm Beach – located in Christ Church, features some of the calmest and clearest waters, as well as an artificial reef with turtles for you to snorkel along with.

Some tourists agree that you should give the South Coast a try even if you live closer to West Coast locations, as they found the journey to be well worth it!

3. Best marine parks for snorkeling in Barbados

There are two main marine parks on the coastline of Barbados that are simply amazing for snorkeling – these are the smaller Folkestone Marine Park (in St. James, see here for snorkeling reviews), and the bigger Carlisle Bay Marine Park (in St. Michael, see here for snorkeling reviews).

• Folkestone has plentiful beach activity – so much so that you may find it too busy, especially during high season. Snorkeling wise, it features a large sandy reef with coral heads and gorgonians, as well as plentiful fish that are beautiful to watch as they feed off the reefs.
• Carlisle Bay is even more popular (albeit bigger), and is an amazing snorkeling choice if you like to explore shipwrecks – as it features 6 of them! They are all surrounded by tropical fish, as well as old anchors and cannons.

Make sure you bring all the right snorkeling equipment when you visit, as well as an underwater camera if you can get your hands on one – there will be plenty of exciting footage to record while snorkeling with turtles in and around the shipwrecks of Barbados!

You can read more specific information about each of the locations mentioned above, here.

Barbados Snorkeling Tours Best Snorkeling in Barbados

As one of the best destinations in the whole Caribbean for snorkelers, Barbados offers a wide choice of exciting snorkeling tours. You can find a complete list of operators and their available snorkeling sites here.

If you’re a snorkeling enthusiast looking to take your experience to the next level at one of the best snorkeling destinations, then consider taking a snorkeling tour!

You can check out snorkelers’ reviews of such tours on TripAdvisor or Cruise Critic. Here’s an example:

“The colorful coral reefs and marine life in Barbados make it a prime destination for snorkeling. You don’t have to stray too far from shore to see starfish, sea turtles and more.”

Barbados Snorkeling Map

Here’s a snorkeling map that will help you better visualize the Barbados locations recommended above!

The snorkeling map (click image to zoom) showcases the area of the coast that you’ll want to be close to if you’d like easy access to the best snorkeling locations during your Barbados vacation.

Best Way to Get to Barbados

We know first-hand that Barbados has some of the best snorkeling available in the Caribbean – and potentially in the world – so now the question arises, how do you get there?

That’s where we come in! At Caribbean Charter Flights we dedicate ourselves to helping you fly smart in the Caribbean by letting you take advantage of the best offers and flights available.

Our charter flights to Barbados are the best way to make a stylish entrance on the exotic island, and our clients’ testimonials assure you that we’ll take good care of you all along the way!

Why not get a quick personalized quote today and let us help you find the best flight available? No strings attached!

Or if you’d like to ask us a question first, then get in touch here. Our Caribbean travel experts always reply quickly, and will be happy to help!

 

Image sources and special thanks: Tarik Browne (and this one), Ben Ramirez, Connie MaBest Snorkeling in Barbados