Hello tbass,

There are places to rent gear at some beaches. And dive shops will rent gear by day or week. What island are you visiting? How often do you plan to snorkel?

If you have a nice snorkel set already then bring it. Snorkeling with a mask that fits you well is key. What you get from a rental might be good and might not.

--Islander

I plan to do a lot of snorkling with my 9 yo son. We will be staying on STJ. DO you know roughly the cost of aweekly rental?

Prices range from $50-75/ week depending on what you look for. I always recommend buying at home and bringing it if you intend to use for a week. Might be cheaper at home and you do not have to deal with selection, worry about losing it, getting back in time before they close, etc. Besides, what dental hygiene did the previous user practice?
The book St John Off the Beaten Track is a great reference for snorkeling, history and hiking trails. We found it priceless for our family. Suggest Hawksnest, Cinammon and Francis Bays on the North Shore. Trunk is nice, but you need to get there early or on slow cruise days to avoid the 'crowd'. Waterlemon Cay is worth the effort (hike) and the South Side offers Salt Pond and Lamshure Bays.
If you can spring for it and have the time, a day sail will take you to places off island that will blow you away. We took the Wayward Sailor to Loavango Cay (just north of STJ). Cap'n Phil was a great host and very helpful showing us what to look for and where to find it.

You' ll love it and wish you could return every week.

Buy it and bring it. I fit 3 sets into this bag that I will carry on:

http://www.ebags.com/ameribag/healthy_back_bag_reg_mesh_activity_bag_large/product_detail/index.cfm?modelid=3204

Other e-tailers sell snorkle sets with or without bags - just froogle/google it and you'll find what you might want. Just make sure mask skirt is 100% silicone.

Agree w. Chris...

Also we've had great success using the "Feet Fins & Four Wheels" guidebook... has provided excellent info on beaches, trails, snorkel spots etc.

Don't forget to buy the NG Virgin Islands National Park map.
Shows trails and snorkel spots.

If you're staying on St. John, Francis Bay was our favorite. Around the rocks are coral & a lot of fish. More in the center of the bay or the northeast corner of the bay, you might have the good fortune of coming across sea turtles...the one we saw in the center of the bay eating on the grass on the bottom was 4 - 5 feet across. Our second favorite was Cinnamon Bay. We heard that Watermelon Cay in Leinster Bay was EXCELLENT, but didn't make it there. It's a short walk from the parking area for Annaberg Sugar Factory ruins along the washed out road & then maybe a 25-50 yard swim to Watermelon Cay itself.

We went out on two sailing vessels, both of which will take you to great snorkeling spots, including some fantastic bays around Normans Island, BVI. (You might need a passport to do that one; email ahead for full information). Here's a link to a nice couple who live aboard their vessel(Robin and Rick Galup), maximum guests is 6, minimum is 2, Robin snorkeled with us off Flanagan Rock off the southeast end of St. John. It was Rick who told us about Watermelon Cay.( http://www.stjohnlinks.com/Charters/Long_Distance/Index.htm).
Here's another link to another great couple (Peter and Dorothy Muillenburg). Their vessel was built by Peter on St. John, has wooden masts, and is a gaff-rigged ketch. It's quite an impressive sight ( http://www.sailbreath.com/index.htm). Both of these are moored in Coral Bay.

"Watermelon Cay" is actually named "Waterlemon Cay" and "Norman Island has no "s"." I'm so anal! Haha!

Thank you for the link to their site. I just sent them an e-mail and we will be booking with them on our next trip.