---
title: "St. Thomas Snorkeling Tours: Prices and Where Each Leaves"
url: https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/things-to-do/snorkel-tours
description: "St. Thomas snorkeling tours from a $30 guided beach swim to a Buck Island catamaran sail: who runs each, where it leaves from and what the fare includes."
updated: 2026-10-09
source: https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/things-to-do/snorkel-tours
---

[St. Thomas](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas) · [Things to do](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/things-to-do)

# St. Thomas snorkeling tours

St. Thomas snorkeling tours run from a guided swim off [Limetree Beach](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/beaches/limetree) to a five-hour catamaran sail to Buck Island, most of them shared boats from [Red Hook](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/areas/red-hook) or the south shore. A boat reaches the cays and the park reefs off St. John; the turtles at Brewers Bay cost nothing. Choose the dock nearest the villa, then the reef.

Written by Virgin Islands Villas · Updated Nov 2026

*Juvenile hawksbill turtle on the reef at Coki Beach, St. Thomas*

## Snorkel tours on St. Thomas, side by side

*Rates and phone numbers as each operator publishes them, or as a recent local source prints them where the operator does not, checked on the day in the last column. A group size marked "about" is our read.*

| Name | What | Departs from | Group size | Rates | Phone | Checked |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Ocean Surfari](https://oceansurfari.com/tours/national-park-snorkeling-excursion/) [Map](https://www.google.com/maps?cid=10322064791097788603) | Morning snorkel, 9:30 am to 1 pm, on the 47-foot Reef Surfari into Virgin Islands National Park off St. John; gear, a snack and an open bar after. A Little and Great St. James trip with pizza runs at the same prices. | Red Hook, American Yacht Harbor dock (also Cruz Bay, St. John) | about 49 | $75 adults 11+, $55 ages 3 to 10, plus $5 fuel and $4 park fee per person | (340) 227-5448 | Oct 2026 |
| [The VI Cat](https://www.thevicat.com/) [Map](https://www.google.com/maps?cid=10381922425101260684) | Three-hour catamaran sail to Turtle Cove at Little Buck Island; gear, guidance and refreshments after the snorkel. | Marriott's Frenchman's Cove dock | up to 65 | from $109 | (340) 690-2287 | Oct 2026 |
| [Cruz Bay Watersports](https://cruzbaywatersports.com/tour/buck-island-snorkel-sail/) [Map](https://www.google.com/maps?cid=15458863445683894700) | Five-hour Buck Island Snorkel Sail on a sailing catamaran, with a stop on Water Island for lunch at your own cost and a bar after snorkeling; runs at a minimum headcount. | The Ritz-Carlton, St. Thomas, or The Westin Beach Resort & Spa at Frenchman's Reef | about 80 | from $99 (sale; $159 list) | (340) 244-1493 | Nov 2026 |
| [Aqua Marine Dive Center](https://diveaquamarine.com/all-activities/snorkel-adventure/) [Map](https://www.google.com/maps?cid=10548392458692815834) | Guided half-day snorkel, 3 to 4 hours at two sites chosen on the day, on a 42-foot dive boat; gear, water, soft drinks and snacks. Daily at 1 pm, some days 8:30 am. | Saga Haven Marina | usually 6 to 10, rarely over 15 | $85 per snorkeler | (340) 642-8701 | Oct 2026 |
| [Aqua Marine Dive Center, Limetree Beach](https://diveaquamarine.com/snorkel-limetree-beach-st-thomas/) [Map](https://www.google.com/maps?cid=15241542851869842541) | Guided snorkel from the sand, 1 hour 15 minutes, with mask, fins, snorkel and a flotation device. | Limetree Beach | minimum 4 | $30 per snorkeler | (340) 642-8701 | Oct 2026 |
| [Aqua Action Dive Center](https://www.aadivers.com/rates.php) [Map](https://www.google.com/maps?cid=590783373963754367) | Dive shop on the beach at Secret Harbour, near Red Hook, with guided shore, boat and night snorkels and gear rental. | Secret Harbour Beach Resort | about 12 | guided snorkel $60; boat snorkel $75; night snorkel $65 | (340) 775-6285 | Oct 2026 |
| [Virgin Islands Ecotours, Cas Cay](https://www.viecotours.com/st-thomas/kayak-hike-and-snorkel-at-cas-cay) [Map](https://www.google.com/maps?cid=6538394637060523726) | Three-hour kayak, hike and snorkel at Cas Cay in the Mangrove Lagoon reserve; kayak, snorkel and mask, life jacket, water and instruction. A five-hour version with lunch is from $159. | Mangrove Lagoon | — | $99 adults 13+, $69 ages 7 to 12 | (340) 779-2155 | Oct 2026 |
| [Virgin Islands Ecotours, sea turtles](https://www.viecotours.com/st-thomas/snorkeling-with-sea-turtles-in-st-thomas) | Two-hour guided turtle snorkel from the beach, with gear, life jackets and instruction; mornings and afternoons daily. | Usually Brewers Bay, near the airport | — | $89 per person | (340) 779-2155 | Oct 2026 |
| [Coral World Ocean Park, Snuba](https://coralworldvi.com/) [Map](https://www.google.com/maps?cid=14941248672184546684) | Snuba, which the park calls a mix between scuba and snorkel diving: 75 minutes, ages 8 and over. The park closes on some days in the quieter months; check its calendar before you go. | Coki Point | 1 to 4 | from $92, park admission included | (340) 775-1555 | Oct 2026 |
| [St. Thomas Scuba and Snorkel Adventures](https://www.stthomasadventures.com/) [Map](https://www.google.com/maps?cid=15899316901049895790) | Private guided snorkels by jeep to several beaches, by boat, or for turtles; based at Hull Bay. | Pickup at your ship, resort or rental | private; a Jeep fits up to 4 | $500 a Jeep for up to 4 (Multi Beach Adventure, private, 4 to 5 hours); beach break and night snorkel from $75 | (340) 474-9332 | Oct 2026 |

## Which dock St. Thomas snorkel trips leave from

The shared boats sail from two shores. Near town on the south side, The VI Cat leaves Marriott's Frenchman's Cove dock and Cruz Bay Watersports boards at The Westin Beach Resort & Spa at Frenchman's Reef. On the East End, Ocean Surfari leaves the American Yacht Harbor dock in Red Hook, Aqua Marine runs from Saga Haven Marina, and Cruz Bay Watersports also picks up at The Ritz-Carlton, St. Thomas. The kayak trip starts in Mangrove Lagoon, and the guided swims start on the sand.

Pick by the dock nearest your villa before you pick by the reef: a three-hour trip turns into most of a day once a cross-island drive is in it.

A cruise day changes the choice. From the Havensight pier, Frenchman's Reef and Limetree are a short [taxi](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/services/taxis) south, so The VI Cat's three-hour sail or the shorter swim off Limetree leaves time in hand. From Crown Bay, [Brewers Bay](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/beaches/brewers-bay) is just past the [airport](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/airport), and the two-hour turtle snorkel that usually starts there is the easy fit. St. Thomas Scuba and Snorkel Adventures collects you at the ship. Red Hook is across the island from either pier, and the five-hour Buck Island sail fills most of a port call, so give either a wide margin before an all-aboard. [The cruise port guide](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/cruise-port) has the taxis from each pier.

## Which St. Thomas snorkel trip suits your day

Turtles are the usual reason, and two trips are built around them. The VI Cat sails three hours to Turtle Cove off Little Buck Island, where the snorkel is in the water beside a refuge nobody lands on. Virgin Islands Ecotours guides you to the same animals from the sand at Brewers Bay, the shorter outing and the gentler one for a nervous swimmer. For coral rather than turtles, Ocean Surfari crosses from Red Hook into Virgin Islands National Park off St. John.

With children, the Cas Cay kayak trip takes them from seven, Coral World's Snuba from eight, and Ocean Surfari prices a child from three. A first-timer does well on Aqua Marine's swim off Limetree, the least expensive trip in the table: an hour and a quarter from the beach with a guide and a flotation device. Aqua Action at Secret Harbour and the Hull Bay shop both take swimmers out after dark for a night snorkel. And a party of four that wants its own guide and its own clock can hire St. Thomas Scuba and Snorkel Adventures, which drives a Jeep from beach to beach for four or five hours.

## St. Thomas snorkeling excursions: what the fare leaves out

The headline price is rarely the price paid. Ocean Surfari lists $75 an adult, then adds a $5 fuel surcharge and a $4 National Park entry fee a person, and a 20% gratuity for parties of six or more. Cruz Bay Watersports' $99 Buck Island sail is a sale price on a $159 list, runs only once enough people book, and stops on [Water Island](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/areas/water-island) for a lunch you buy yourself.

None of the Buck Island trips go ashore. The island is a national wildlife refuge closed to the public, so the snorkel is in the water off it, which is where the turtles are in any case.

## Snorkeling Mangrove Lagoon and the St. James islands

Two trips stay inside the marine reserves at the island's southeast end. Virgin Islands Ecotours [paddles kayaks](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/things-to-do/kayaking) from Mangrove Lagoon to Cas Cay, a three-hour outing: the paddle out through the mangroves, a walk on the cay and a snorkel in water calm enough for a young child, with no open-water crossing. Ocean Surfari's Friday-morning trip goes the other way, out to Little and Great St. James, at the same price as its park trip and with pizza aboard.

## Beach snorkeling on St. Thomas, free from the sand

Several St. Thomas beaches have snorkeling off the sand for nothing. [Coki Beach](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/beaches/coki), beside [Coral World](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/things-to-do/coral-world), has reef fish a short swim out; vendors rent gear and parking is charged. At Brewers Bay the turtles graze the seagrass a few strokes off the beach, tagged by the University of the Virgin Islands since 2014, and nothing is rented there, so bring a mask. [Sapphire Beach](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/beaches/sapphire) has a shallow reef entered from the shore, and [Secret Harbour](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/beaches/secret-harbour), open with no day pass, has Aqua Action on the beach renting snorkel sets by the day.

Virgin Islands Ecotours' turtle snorkel usually starts at Brewers Bay, so its fee buys a guide, the gear and a lesson, not the turtles. [Where to see sea turtles on St. Thomas](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/things-to-do/sea-turtles) has the free version, and [the St. Thomas snorkeling guide](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/things-to-do/snorkeling) ranks every spot from the beach and by boat.

Villas on St. Thomas

Every villa on the island is listed by its owner on [St. Thomas vacation rentals](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/vacation-rentals). See rates and dates, then write to the owner.

## Questions about snorkel tours on St. Thomas

### What is the best snorkeling tour in St. Thomas?

For turtles, The VI Cat's sail to Turtle Cove off Little Buck Island; for coral, Ocean Surfari's morning in the national park off St. John; with young children, the Cas Cay kayak trip from Mangrove Lagoon. For a first snorkel, Aqua Marine's guided swim off Limetree Beach, with a flotation device and the sand a few strokes away.

### What is included on a snorkeling excursion in St. Thomas?

Snorkel gear on every trip listed here, and on most boats a drink once you are out of the water. Fuel, park fees, gratuity and lunch are where the trips differ, so read the fare line before you book.

### Can you land on Buck Island on a snorkel trip?

No. Buck Island National Wildlife Refuge is closed to the public by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The VI Cat snorkels at Turtle Cove, in the water off Little Buck Island, and nobody goes ashore.

### Can you snorkel St. Thomas without a tour?

Yes. Coki Beach, Brewers Bay, Sapphire Beach, Secret Harbour and [Hull Bay](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/beaches/hull-bay) all have snorkeling from the sand and no entrance fee. Bring your own gear to Brewers Bay, and ask the dive shop at Hull Bay before you count on renting a mask there.

Sources: [U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service](https://www.fws.gov/refuge/buck-island/visit-us) (checked Oct 9, 2026) · [Department of Planning and Natural Resources](https://dpnr.vi.gov/coastal-zone-management/what-we-do/marine-protected-areas/) (checked Oct 9, 2026) · [University of the Virgin Islands](https://www.uvi.edu/news/2017/17_051_turtle_project.html) (checked Oct 9, 2026)

Every listing is free: an operator can ask to be added or corrected through [our contact page](https://virginislandvilla.com/contact).

- [Snorkeling on St. Thomas](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/things-to-do/snorkeling)

- · [Boat charters on St. Thomas](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/things-to-do/boat-charters)

- · [Fishing charters on St. Thomas](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/things-to-do/fishing)

- · [Water sports on St. Thomas](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/things-to-do/water-sports)

- · [Things to do](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas/things-to-do)

- · [Back to St. Thomas](https://virginislandvilla.com/st-thomas)