Aruba offers lots of great snorkelling opportunities right from shore. You don’t need to go out on a boat or excursion to experience amazing snorkelling and see all kinds of different fish and sea creatures. There are masks and snorkels on the property, please ask your host for help locating them.
Snorkelling at Palm Beach isn’t great but there are several spots a few minutes away that are among the best places in Aruba to see some marine life.
Catalina Cove, Tres Trapi and Malmok and our three favourites and we often go for an early morning swim before the tourist excursions arrive.
Tres Trapi
Let’s start with Tres Trapi because this is the best place to spot a sea turtle. The best time of day to see a turtle is in the morning. The turtles are found munching on the sea grass on the sea bed but will come up for air every now and then. When entering the water at Tres Trapi, swim out until you see the dark grass on the bottom. Look for turtles munching on the grass. More on swimming with sea turtles here.
Malmok Beach
From the main Malmok parking lot, walk south along the sidewalk for about 2 minutes until you reach a beach with a few palapas. From there, get into the water and snorkel along the shore. You’ll see fish immediately upon entering the water. Malmok is less busy in the morning but the light can be better in the afternoon. You are more likely to encounter large groups from catamarans on excursions anchored right off the shore in the afternoon. Apart from snorkelling, Malmok does not offer much in terms of amenities such as restaurants, washrooms or chair rentals.
Boca Catalina & Catalina Cove
Catalina Cove is our go-to spot for a quick morning simw and snorkel. Just a few hundred meters north of Malmo, these two very small beaches have sandy entry points and lots of fish.
To see the most fish, enter at Catalina Cove and swim out and then to the right. You’ll often see excursion catamarans moored in that direction. We suspect that they feed the fish to attract them. Please do not feed the fish.
Baby Beach
Baby Beach has good snorkelling at the southeast corner of the lagoon. If you walk all the way to that end of the beach, enter the water and swim left or right alongside the channel to see fish. The water is rough outside the lagoon and can be very dangerous.
Mangel Halto
South of Oranjestad, Mangel Halto is one of the best spots for snorkelling on Aruba. This beach is famous for its mangroves and is a 30-minute drive from Noord. Enter the water either through the mangroves on the west side or from the main beach on the south side and swim out to the area depicted below.
Safety Consideration
Wherever you snorkel, when swimming or snorkelling outside of the roped-off swimming areas, always be on the lookout for boats and jet skis. We always recommend swim fins, which makes getting back to shore or fighting the current easier.
