Head as far south as you can go in the United States and you’ll end up in beautiful Key West, Florida where it’s always five o’clock somewhere. We found tons of things to do in Key West while we were there, but we specifically wanted to try out all the water sports Key West had to offer.

First up – Key West snorkeling tours!

Check out the full video and be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel. It helps us a ton!

We had brought our snorkels, masks, and fins in case we wanted to snorkel on our own but since Key West is a busy hub for cruise ships, it’s easier to take advantage of the many adventure services that are already there. You can take a variety of snorkeling excursions that take you out near the reef instead of being stuck near the shore. Don’t get me wrong, there’s some great beaches to snorkel in Key West but the adventure of being on a boat is a lot more fun!

Beer and wine included is also a nice perk.

 

The Great Florida Reef

Florida is home to the only living corral barrier reef in the continental United States. It’s the third largest in the world and measures at an impressive 4 miles wide stretching 170 miles long. It makes an arc that follows the Florida Keys when viewed on a map.

The healthiest part of the Florida Reef is found a little north in Key Largo where the long Keys protect the reef from damaging brackish water and temperature variations.

Best Snorkeling in Key West

The easy answer is if you want the best clear water for snorkeling – GO ON A BOAT.

We like joining multi-hour snorkeling excursions like Fury or Sebago that bring you out to the reef by a sailing catamaran. Half of the adventure is just being on the boat itself! When you sign up for typical Key West snorkeling trips, you don’t have the option of which reef you’re going to visit, but for the cheap price in the $40+ range, that’s to be expected. Companies have to pick the location depending on which area is best at the time. That would be a big plus of owning or renting your own boat.

There are four main areas where they might take you depending on which one is good at the time. The first three are about seven miles southwest of Key West and are called Sand Key Lighthouse, Eastern Dry Rocks, and Western Dry Rocks. The fourth is the same distance northwest and called Cottrell Key. If you want a healthier reef, you’ll have to go a little north in the Upper Keys since the reef in Key West is heavily trafficked. It also mixes into the Atlantic Ocean which makes the health of the reef not as pristine.

If you’d rather snorkel on your own, we think the best beach to snorkel in Key West is Fort Zachary Taylor Beach. It’s part of Florida’s State Park system and has rocks that you can swim out to with fish that hang out in the shallow water. Be sure to get there in the morning as snorkelers tend to cloud up the water.

Why Choose a Sailing Catamaran Snorkel Trip?

When we go to Key West, it doesn’t matter that it’s not the Great Barrier Reef or Galapagos Islands. We’re just looking for fun. We want clear water and we want to see some fish. Throw in some sharks, stingrays, and some turtles and we’d be thrilled but really we just want to have a good time.

This is why we’re all about the party catamarans!

It’s hard not to see a smile on Sarah’s face when we’re out on a boat with crystal clear aqua-colored water. Diving off the boat is a blast and after a strenuous afternoon chasing colorful fish in salty water, refreshing cold beer is hard to beat.

We Have A New Camera!

Many years ago on a cruise to St. Maarten, we had a waterproof camera that got fried on another snorkeling adventure. I remember the moment jumping overboard and accidentally knocking the battery door open allowing fresh salty water to flood in and wreak havoc on the circuits.

For years after, I couldn’t justify replacing it with another one but always had a GoPro on my radar. Before we left for this trip, we knew we wanted to get some great footage so we sprang for a GoPro Hero 8 Black and I have to tell you, this little camera is pretty incredible!

Capturing up to 4k resolution footage, this little camera has a whole host of awesome features such as time lapse, time warp, and incredible slow motion and it all fits easily in my pocket. Not to mention the best video stabilization I’ve ever seen. This little camera rocks and I think has upped our vlogging quality. We’ll keep experimenting with it to bring you awesome footage.

Here Fishy Fishy!

Once the catamaran got out into open water, we quickly got to exploring decks around the ship. Catamarans are multi-level, have a lot of railing to lean on and watch the water, and usually netting that you can relax on while the water is rushing by.

After a beautiful and breezy trip out to the reef, the boat pulled to a stop and everyone was a flurry to get their masks, fins, and snorkel on. They gave us the green light and with our new GoPro in hand, we lined up to be one of the first to jump overboard. We plunged into the warm water and our journey began to find some colorful fish and maybe a shark or two.

As we swam farther away from the boat we both took turns diving as deep as we could to spot fish and keep an eye out for sharks and turtles. Along the way we saw lots of yellowtail snapper, yellow and black striped porkfish, white fish with black stripes called sergeant majors, yellow groups of striped fish hanging out together called grunts, and a few cousins of Finding Dory called blue tangs.

It seemed the further we went, the deeper the water sank below us. As we dove down, visibility started becoming harder as our masks were fogging up. We had to keep surfacing to clear the fog from our masks. Eventually we used the old trick of spitting in our masks to keep it clear. It works!

Among the coral and clumps of living reef, we spotted a handful of beautiful parrotfish that chased each other along the bottom. A parrotfish is a little over a foot in length and can range in many different shades of colors. On this trip we must’ve seen at least a few different varieties from fun and colorful to spotted brown.

Closer back toward the boat, one of the crew picked up a conch to take a closer look. Underneath was shiny pink while on the outside was covered in algae. Resting on the bottom of the ocean, you might glance right over it due to its camouflage of green and brown. It always amazes me seeing these beautiful shells in their element instead of on the shelf at a tourist shop. How many people get to see a large shell with something actually alive inside?

I’m diving down again and again to film a few more fish and then when I come up, Sarah has a streak of fear from what she says is a shark coming right towards her! She goes to show me and we both look out into the blue expanse in the direction of the dark object.

She’s a little shaken and irritated that I’ve been off filming when this particular shark decides to make a meal of her. She points out the dark, hungry menace and it turns out to be a buoy attached to a thick rope! It’s a good thing I was nearby to save her indeed.

We laugh it off and spend the rest of our time diving down and exploring the ocean floor. After a good forty five minutes of snorkeling, the air horn goes off and our time in the water has come to an end. We slowly make our way back trying to be the last ones back on the boat. Sarah floats up to the stairs underneath the catamaran and we hoist ourselves out of the water while flailing to catch our fins that are floating away.

Hoist the Sails!

The way back is relaxing and as we say cheers with endless beer, we watch the blue water pass quickly underneath. Sarah even sees a couple large sea turtles racing by on the way back. The sails are up and as we cruise back to the marina, we can’t help but smile on this beautiful day of snorkeling in Key West. Once we get back to the marina, we fill up a beer to go, tip the crew, and cross the gangway to our next adventure.

We didn’t see any sharks but maybe next time! We might even have to try out scuba diving to get more bottom time. Either way, if it’s on a sailboat, sign us up!

Have you ever been snorkeling on a reef?