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Can anyone give me advice as the whether I should purchase a mask and snorkle before I get to St. John? There aren't many scuba stores where I live, but there are some. I have found that masks and snorkles are not cheap. Anyone know if the prices on St. John will be higher than most retail?
Hello Candi,
Will you be doing a lot of snorkeling on this trip or only a couple times? And do you expect to use the snorkel equip. again in the near future on another vacation or cruise?
If you aren't going to use it much you can rent gear here at popular beaches like Trunk Bay and Cinnamon Bay. There is a dive shop in Cruz Bay that sells gear and also rents I believe.
A really good snorkel/mask and fin set can be pricey.
--Islander
The rental stuff is junk. The whole purpose is to relax and enjoy yourself with the underwater life and you cant do that when your mask and snorkle leak. You can purchase something at a dive shop down here for anywhere from couple of bucks at kmart(STT) or get good equipment that fits well and work well for about 180. Even if you never use it again, itll be the best 180 you ever spent. The rental places are around 40-50 per week or something but the masks, always leak and fog up....the fins are small and crap so you have to work twice as hard to get anywhere....and the snorkle is the type that usually easily takes in water. Plus, with a good mask....you can get a side view in most of them so you can see from the side. If you use the rental stuff, you wont wanna snorkle much but if you buy the good stuff and get used to it.....youll think snorkling on stj is the coolest and most relaxing think ever. Theres a reason that the 60$ masks get sold. Literally, there are enough places on stj to go to a different place every day of the week.
Go to a dive shop and theyll fit your face with a good mask!
