Snorkel Venture Reviews 

I highly recommend Snorkel Venture for anyone looking for a great snorkel travel experience. Our guides were wonderful, took care of our every need and question and greatly contributed to the enjoyment of our trip by working closely with the resort staff to provide our group with great snorkel experiences. Prior to our trip, the Snorkel Venture staff was super responsive and helped us with every question we had and provided the information we needed to prepare for the trip. I would not hesitate to use Snorkel Venture for future trips.

Marcus was awesome. He was an excellent tour leader took great care of us. He was very generous with sharing his underwater photos. We had a blast with him and our group. We felt safe and secure the whole time and he made sure all of our flights (once we were in Indonesia) went as smooth as possible. The entire Snorkel Venture team was very helpful and the trip was as represented. We would recommend and would totally use them in the future.

Marcus and the team at Snorkel Venture did a fabulous job putting this complicated trip together. What wonderful snorkeling and upland experiences! Marcus’s expertise, leadership and ability to connect with his group made this trip top notch. He’s also an amazing photographer!
Can’t wait for the next adventure!

Saliden and Raja Ampat Apr 2024
I’m 80 years old. Been to 7 continents and more than 85 countries. Million miler with UnitedAirline. Had joined many tours in my travelling.
Marcus is the best tour leader in my memory. He is as good as they come.
He is funny, hard working, knowledgable on marine life, photography and diving. He sent us images he took the same day. A full video of our tour at the end.
The tour was great too. Best snorkelling ever and I’ve been to quite a few places. Great group of people too. All seasoned travellers.
AAA. 👍👍👍

I have just returned from a fantastic trip in Indonesia (Sulawesi/Raja Ampat). This was the first time I traveled with Snorkel Venture and I would like to emphasize the quality of their services, either in the choice of hotels or snorkeling sites or their flawless organization. I also want to especially thank Marcus, our tour leader, who through his professionalism, kindness and humor made this trip unforgettable. Thank you also for these superb photos and videos shared throughout the stay. I can't wait to go snorkeling with you again!

Just completed the Sulawesi Raja Ampat tour with Marcus as our tour leader. Everything was spot on and Marcus was an exceptional tour leader. He was extremely organized, knowledgeable, had answers for every question, personable outgoing and as the title review fish seemed to be attracted to him.

Our adventure in Sulawesi and Raja Ampat with a great group of fellow travelers/snorkelers led by our fantastic guide, Marcus Blake, was spectacular. The quality of the reefs/fish at the snorkeling sites was awe-inspiring. The resorts (Siladen and Papua Paradise Eco Resort) had very nice accomodations with great staff and a tasty variety of food. We (2 of us) thoroughly enjoyed this adventure ! It was especially enjoyable due to our guide, Marcus. His infectious energy, unwavering patience, humor, excellent photography skills, and knowledge of Indonesia and the fish/animals/nature, made our trip even more special.

Thank you Snorkel Venture for a fantastic trip in French Polynesia! Every snorkel outing was beautiful and interesting, both above and below the water. Marcus, you were a fantastic guide. Thanks for answering loads of questions about fish identification, underwater photography, snorkel equipment . . . the list goes on. Your knowledge and enthusiasm for the coral reefs, oceans and sea creatures is infectious. And thanks for always passing along beautiful photos and videos of our day's activities. Also, the Aquitiki II and the crew were wonderful, always working hard to make sure we were snorkeling the best reefs, seeing beautiful, remote atolls, and being very well fed. Thanks Sebastien, Tom and Daisy! It was yet another, all around wonderful trip with Snorkel Venture.

Probably the best aspect of the French Polynesia trip is the combination of both Snorkel Ventures and Aqua Tiki. Aqua Tiki has what looks to be the best private moorings within the Atolls they operate across, based on their proximity to top spots for snorkeling. Our trip visited Fakarava, Kauehi, and Toau. The atolls visited can vary by trip based on weather etc. All the spots chosen had great variety and were excellent. This trip is an unbeatable tropical experience for those wanting to have a hands on experience of the remoter parts of French Polynesia both under and above water. We did get to visit the atolls which was also a great scenic treat. What we saw completely blows away what I have seen in Hawaii and easily rivals the Great Barrier. Surprising aspects of the trip included seeing healthy reefs and their ability to support sharks. Its amazing how you adapt to being in the water so quickly with them and gives your presence in the environment a sense of balance.
The yacht was comfortable and easily handled the size of the group we had. The crew we had were also excellent at lending a hand for guests when needed.

French Polynesia was our fourth trip with snorkel venture which is testament to how good their trips are. This one didn’t disappoint; excellent organisation and communication from their office staff, fabulous boat and crew (Daisy’s puddings were amazing) Marcus our guide was so helpful nothing was too much trouble for him and we came away knowing how to use the GoPro and edit the photos so a big thankyou (although I may need a refresher for the next holiday) we also have a lovely video to remember the trip courtesy of Marcus.

Snorkel Venture is an amazing adventure snorkeling only travel company. Every detail of trips in foreign countries are setup and explained, step by step timelines given and explained, all questions answered immediately considering the time difference. The staff in the corporate office are outstanding, giving the confidence to travel to countries like Cuba, which I just did.

One or two Snorkel Venture tour guides are with you throughout the trip. Our incredible guide Marcus met us in Miami, made sure we had all our Cuban documents completed and ready to give to the Cuban Immigration and Security officials when we landed at the Camaquey airport in Cuba. Thanks to Snorkel Venture travel staff member Crystal’s and Marcus’s guidance all went smoothly at the airport except for 1 piece of lost luggage in the group. Snorkel Venture/Aggressor had contracted a bus with a Cuban guide to take us to the port and the Aggressor Jardines II, our live aboard home at sea for a week then back to the airport. I gained a deeper understanding and appreciation of the Cuban people and their life since the long lasting US embargo both during the week and shared by the Cuban guide on the bus rides.

There are not enough superlatives for our Snorkel Venture tour guide Marcus. He was fun, caring, confident, competent and reactive immediately to any accident, coming up with ingenious solutions such as waterproof electrical tape to cover a bleeding Hutia bite on my fingertip so I could still snorkel for the rest of the day. Everyone left our snorkeling week feeling like best friends of Marcus and hoping to have him as our tour guide in the future.

Marcus was always in the water snorkeling with us, checking that each of us was ok, directing us to marine life we would have missed otherwise, and taking fabulous videos and photos that he shared with us at the end of the trip. He worked into the night to put together a fantastic video of our trip that included both photos and videos taken throughout the trip.

Snorkel Venture also has great partners like Aggressor, which provides the live aboards, skiffs, an outstanding caring and capable crew on the Jardines II live aboard. Their photographers were always snorkeling with us, redirecting us to marine life we would have missed; chefs creating fabulous meals in a small galley kitchen; funny creatures created daily from our fresh towels in our cabins; hot drinks, homemade treats and fruit awaiting us on the skiff in between the 2 morning snorkels and again between the 2 afternoon snorkels; hot towels wrapped around us once we were out of our wetsuits; and fun bartending mixing tasty mojitos and other drinks. The Cuban Gardens of the Queens fleet manager was also on our live aboard and presented slide shows in the evening including an overview of Cuba and the Gardens of the Queen marine reserve we as Americans were so fortunate to snorkel and an overview of the fascinating mangroves so abundant throughout the reserve. We had briefings before every snorkel site with drawing to explain the plan.

The Jardines II crew was exceptionally caring & helpful. When I found out I physically could not climb the excellent study ladder to re-enter the skiff the crew devised a way to lift me out of the water, into the skiff and onto the bench. They helped getting my legs & fins over the side of the skiff so I could easily slide into the water. Knowing I had balance issues they even helped getting my boots and wetsuit pants off over my feet while I held onto a pole at the outdoor shower. All done without me asking for help. Way above and beyond excellent service!

This was my third Snorkel Venture trip - Belize atolls, Roatan & Utila, and now Cuba Gardens of the Queen. All were great but the privilege of snorkeling Cuba’s marine reserve and learning so much about the Cuban people topped any snorkeling I have done in my 43 years of snorkeling the Caribbean and Central America reefs and mangroves. The abundance of fish of all varieties made me feel like I was in an aquarium of clear salt water. The numbers of huge stingrays and beautiful spotted eagle rays, turtles, upside down jellyfish, barracuda, tarpon …. I could go on and on. But the most exciting, adrenalin pumping experience was snorkeling with an abundance of reef sharks and silkies! We loved it so much as a group we wanted to do it again and Marcus made it happen. And the Aggressor’s video and photos were amazing.

I have to add that our group of snorkelers immediately felt like comfortable friends as we all enjoyed everything we had hoped for and so much more.

Would I do it again? I hope so and hope I will be physically stronger the next time. But I know if I’m not that I will be totally taken care of so that I can enjoy everything Cuba’s Gardens of the Queen and the Aggressor Jardines II have to offer.

Unbelievable experiences with a great team leader who made sure Everyone was having a good time. Photos and videos that was shared was incredible Would do again in a heartbeat

What made my experience great was the presence of Marcus and the over the top group that was along for this adventure. Marcus was kind and attentive to each and every person onboard including the onboard working crew. I feel blessed to have had this extraordinary time of my life. I can say that this tops my South African Safari. And that says A Lot.

The reefs were healthy and gorgeous, with tons of fish. The staff was super friendly and helpful, and the food was delicious.

Wakatobi is a resort that will spoil you. The resort is reached easily from Bali by a 3 hour plane ride.
Wakatobi is on Tomea island which is relatively large that has it's own power plant which means air conditioning 24/7 and consistent source of electricity. Wi-fi works through out most of the resort. It's a large resort so they do provide more than a smaller resort can. The food was excellent with a buffet at every meal. The service is also outstanding. We really enjoyed the employees who were so helpful and friendly. At the end of your snorkel you would put all of your equipment in your personal box and they would clean and dry your gear and have it waiting in the boat for you the following day.
The coral is very healthy and colorful with lots of small fish. We also had our own boat and guides that were dedicated to the snorkel venture group which is a real advantage as we could go where we wanted rather than being with a dive group.
Of course having Bernita as the Snorkel Venture leader made sure everything ran smoothly. She helped make it so much fun and helped solve any issues.

It was such a memorable experience. The corals were not overrated. They were fabulous! The amount of fish and the variety was unbelievable. Accommodations were better than what I had pictured. It was hot there and I wish Misool huts were cooler or had more fans. Thanks to both Marcus and Dalton for attending to everything we could possibly think of. Without Marcus's help, I don't know if I would have had such a fantastic time! Would I do it again, in a heartbeat

Our trip to Misool and Wakatobi was our first to Indonesia. We had high expectations for sure, but our time with Snorkel Ventures exceeded our expectations.

Dalton and Marcus went out of their way to make us feel feel comfortable and taken care of (including pushing our van when it stalled and envisioning how to pull off an underwater "side-eye" photo shoot). They were always there when we needed them, were great company at meals, tried to answered our questions about which one was the "blue fish", and openly shared their extensive knowledge of the region and sea life.

In fact, we had such an amazing time we're booking another trip with Snorkel Ventures for next fall (and our best friends may join too after seeing all the amazing photos).

Bottom line... Amazing experience. Super amazing guides. We're ready to do it again.

Sincerly,
Lee, Jeff (and Barbs)

Everything about Alami Alor was 5 star., the rooms, the staff, the guides, the food, the setting , the customer service! Our hosts Rhome & Max joined us for every meal. The non stop joking between them and Marcus made the dinner conversations very entertaining. Temo's pre dinner presentations re the affects of global warming on the reef, Indonesia facts, local fishing were very interesting. Our fun filled , very knowledgeable guide Marcus was always trying to make each person's experience better. The dive guides enthusiastically found the hidden sea life and took photos with our cameras for us while we watched. The Komodo Resort is in a great location with scenic boat rides to great snorkelling, we enjoyed turtle bay, staff and services are attentive. Best of all are Marcus's incredible photos which make the memories last forever....can you say MOLA MOLA!

Misool and Wakatobi trip is awesome. Our tours leaders did a great job keeping things running smoothly and ensuring we were happy every step of the way!

Beware that, despite initial friendliness, this company is very sticky about accommodating any changes, regardless of the circumstances. I had initially booked a trip to Egypt for 2024, but wondered about changing to Indonesia more than a year in advance. Well, that was not going to be easy, even if both trips still had vacancies. When the shooting started in Gaza slightly less than a year in advance, there was no longer any question of going somewhere safer. They just kept all the money and referred me to insurance.
In the past, I have actually been to many of the places where they go: Komodo, Alor, Raja Ampat, Sulawesi, Halmahera. Nowadays, it is not too hard to find nice places whlch take snorkelers just as seriously as divers and will provide guided trips to the same spots. This works out cheaper and so comes down to personal preference. Do you just want to snorkel with a couple of people and a guide, or be in a phalanx of snorkelers guarded on all sides?