Warm reefs in Hawaii and the Florida Keys, manatee springs on Florida's Gulf Coast and cold, clear kelp forests in Southern California. Here is how the states compare and where to start.
Watch turtles graze in knee-deep water, float over a sunken crater on Maui, meet manta rays on the Kona coast at night and swim a north shore reef on Kauai. Each island has its own season, so pick the coast that is calm on your dates.
47 spotsWild manatees drifting past your mask. Seahorses under a bridge. The only living barrier reef in the continental US. Florida packs all three into one state, so pick the region first, then the month.
78 spotsForget coral. California snorkeling is swaying giant kelp forests, orange garibaldi, curious sea lions and, off La Jolla in late summer, harmless leopard sharks gliding over the sand. The water is cold, but the wildlife is worth the wetsuit.
23 spots
Orange garibaldi glide beneath you while sea lions bark from the cliffs. La Jolla Cove is the postcard of San Diego snorkeling: a 200 foot pocket of…
Every La Jolla snorkel happens in this protected water. The reserve runs from the Cove to La Jolla Shores, and because nothing may be taken, the fish…
Picture a 19th century brick fort on a tiny island, 70 miles of open water from Key West. You swim along the outside of its moat wall, where reef…
Hop on a boat from the marina, float over shallow Keys reef, then look straight down at a nine-foot bronze Jesus at Key Largo Dry Rocks. This state…
Walk off a sandy beach into shallow, buoyed water, no boat needed. Bahia Honda is the Keys' easiest way in. Decide whether the shore fish are enough,…
Looe Key is the Lower Keys' answer to the crowded Upper Keys reefs. The coral on this long spur and groove reef tops out only about 7 ft down. You…
Most of Biscayne National Park lies underwater, and the best of it is a day trip from the mainland. Join a ranger or Institute boat and you can…
Blue Heron Bridge is the shore snorkel people plan a whole trip around. For an hour either side of high tide, the water under the bridge turns clear…
After sunset, a boat from Kona drops you at a patch of ocean lit from below. Giant manta rays glide in to feed on the plankton your lights attract,…
Below the white Captain Cook Monument lies a reef often called the best snorkeling on the island. The monument sits across the bay from the nearest…
Step off a flat lava shelf and you are over a steep, coral-covered reef within seconds. Turtles, schooling fish and a good chance of spinner dolphins…
A sandy spit shelters a shallow bay here, a lifeguard is on duty every day, and green sea turtles often rest on the sand. Poipu Beach Park is the easy…
Sand channels, coral heads, reef fish, turtles and the odd monk seal: Tunnels is the north shore reef everyone has heard of. Plan it carefully. It is…
Drift over sand, coral heads and sea grass in a few feet of water, with turtles feeding below. Behind a fringing reef, Anini is one of the calmest…
Green sea turtles graze on algae and rest in the shallows of this Makena lava reef, often within a few hundred yards of the sand. Swim out from shore,…
A crescent of volcanic rock rises about 3 miles off Maui's south coast, and its protected inner cove is one of the clearest places to snorkel in…
Some of Maui's healthiest coral and busiest fish live in this deep, rocky cove on the northwest coast. In summer the water can be glassy. In winter it…
A reef wall drops along this headland at the north end of Kaanapali Beach, with fish a few kicks from shore. Black Rock, or Puu Kekaa, is the easiest…
A golden-sand crescent sits between two lava points, and the water here is usually the gentlest on Maui's northwest coast. You enter straight off the…
A collapsed volcanic crater open to the sea holds the most protected snorkeling on Oahu, a shallow inner reef where the fish are used to people. It is…
In summer the water goes clear and flat in this lava-rock bowl on the North Shore, and reef fish crowd the ledges. Sharks Cove is a marine reserve, so…
Reef fame is not Waikiki's strength, but it has a protected marine reserve, two lifeguarded beaches with easy sand entries and boats that reach a…
The water runs a little warmer than it should, thanks to the Kahe power plant outflow, and the fish have noticed. Green sea turtles, thick schools of…
Rock-walled pools with white sand, shallow water and almost no surf make Ko Olina the easiest place on Oahu to put a mask on a child. The reef fish…
Every spot is checked against the official park, sanctuary or county page first, then against local operators and recent visitor reports. We record the date we checked each fee and rule.
Difficulty reflects a normal day: how far you swim, how you get in and what the current does. Best months combine water clarity, surf season and the animals you came to see.
We only recommend tours with small groups, a reef briefing and a no-touch policy, and we flag any spot where crowds or hazards are a real problem.
