Sea turtles are among the cutest animals that populate our seas. Unsurprisingly, divers and snorkelers alike are always happy to see and swim with them. Here are the best places for turtle snorkeling and snorkeling in maldives where you must go.
If you like snorkeling, you definitely need to switch from fish to sea turtles. Snorkeling with sea turtles in their natural habitat is a magical experience. From the South Pacific to Nicaragua, these destinations offer a unique opportunity to snorkel and swim with these rare and endangered animals. Turtles are one of the symbols of the sea. Calm and playful, they are one of the most pleasant creatures to watch underwater. Of the seven species that exist in the world. At Lets Trip Desi we have collected the best places for turtle snorkeling and must go for turtle snorkeling in maldives.
Best Turtle Snorkeling Places To Visit
Here are the best places for turtle snorkeling:
Ari Atoll, Maldives
The Maldives is made up of more than 1,000 coral islands divided into 26 ring-shaped atolls in the Indian Ocean. These atolls are famous for their white coral sand and incredible marine life.
The diving and snorkeling in Ari Atoll are unforgettable and also suitable for beginners. This is best place for turtle snorkeling in maldives. Snorkeling in maldives you must try at least once.
Sea turtles are everywhere, even in shallow water. You can easily see Hawksbill sea turtles eating sea sponges along the reef (in the feeding area). Sometimes it is possible to swim with Olive Ridley and green turtles. However, these turtles rarely lay their eggs in the Maldives. Turtle snorkeling in maldives is the best experience for us.
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Sipadan, Malaysia
Sipadan is a very small island in Malaysia in the Celebes Sea and is one of the best diving destinations in the world with over 3,000 different species of fish and hundreds of corals.
This place is ideal for swimming with the green and hawksbill sea turtles that inhabit the reef all year round. You will be surrounded by them (seeing 20 to 30 per dive). They don’t care about divers, they just eat or come to the surface to breathe. Furthermore, the water is always lukewarm with a temperature of 26-30 ° C (79-86 ° F).
Maui Island, Hawaii
Hawaii is a volcanic archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean and is home to 5 of the 7 species of sea turtles. The most common are the green turtle (locally called honu) and hawksbill turtle (honu’ea). Less frequent are the leatherback turtle, the loggerhead and the olive ridley.
Hawaiian green sea turtles can be easily spotted year round when snorkeling or scuba diving along Maui’s south and west coast, particularly off South Maui Turtletown.
Note that you shouldn’t harass these turtles. First of all, stalking will annoy the turtles, but turtle stalking is also illegal in Hawaii.
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The Great Barrier Reef, Australia
The Great Barrier Reef is the largest coral reef system in the world. It stretches for 1,200 miles (2,000 km) and is even visible from space. Although damaged by global warming and pollution, this marine formation is still rich in life, with over 1500 species of fish, several species of whales, dolphins and 6 species of sea turtles.
Green sea turtle nesting sites are called colonies. There are a total of 18 along the reef. Five of them, with around 30,000 nesting females, are found around Raine Island and Moulter Cay in the northern part of the Great Barrier Reef. The other 13 are located in the southern part, where around 8,000 females go to lay their eggs on a group of islands called Capricorn Bunker.
Abu Dabbab, Egypt
Abu Dabbab, located near Marsa Alam, is one of the most famous snorkeling spots in Egypt and the Red Sea. Facing a beautiful sandy beach, the bay is home to large seaweed beds and healthy coral reefs where divers can easily spot green sea turtles, stingrays, hundreds of colorful reef fish and even dugongs.
Cook Island Marine Reserve, Australia
The Cook Islands Marine Reserve is a small protected area not far from the Gold Coast in southeastern Queensland. This place is a sanctuary for marine life, inhabited by a wide variety of fish, including parrotfish, pufferfish, grouper, leopard sharks, wobbegongs and resident green sea turtles. Therefore, turtles can be seen all year round.
When interacting with sea turtles, avoid touching them and keep a distance between 4 and 5 meters (15 feet). This way you can enjoy watching the turtle and avoid disturbing this marine reptile. Green and loggerhead sea turtles have been recorded to nest on the beaches of northern New South Wales with young emerging from their nests from January to May. However, it is worth noting that Cook Island does not have large turtle colonies or the huge hatches found at various sites in Queensland.
Amedee Island, New Caledonia
Small Amédée Island, known for its lighthouse built in 1865, is one of New Caledonia’s iconic landscapes. If home to beautiful coral reefs with crystal clear waters, the islet is known above all for being the best place in the area, and one of the best in the South Pacific, to swim with green turtles. Many of them are found in the seagrass meadows that stretch in front of the beach.
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Akumal, Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Located between Playa del Carmen and Tulum, Akumal is a Mayan word meaning “turtle’s place” and is the best place in Mexico to swim with green and loggerhead turtles.
Playa Akumal is ideal for snorkelers (even beginners), because the small bay is protected by a reef and is shallow (15 feet / 5 meters deep). The seabed is sandy and covered with a carpet of plants that attract turtles.
Tortuguero National Park, Costa Rica
If you are looking for two of the most spectacular wildlife events in the world (sea turtle nesting and hatching), you must go to Tortuguero National Park, on the northeastern coast of Costa Rica. This place is truly rich in biodiversity. Here you will find mangroves, capuchin monkeys, hundreds of birds and, of course, sea turtles (green, hawksbill and leatherback), which can be seen all year round.
Green and leatherback sea turtles come to the beaches to lay their eggs. During the green turtle nesting season, more than 2,000 females arrive in the area. Most of them lay eggs at night. So, if you want to observe them, you will need a local guide, as it is forbidden to go to the beach after 6 pm.
Bunaken Marine Park, Indonesia
Bunaken Marine Park is located in North Sulawesi in Indonesia and was one of the first marine protected areas declared by the Indonesian government, and it shows! The number of turtles here is increasing year after year and the park is filled with kaleidoscopic coral reefs, schooling fish, critters, and passing pelagics.
The most common turtle species in Bunaken is the green sea turtle and at wall dive sites like Lekuan it’s entirely possible to lose track of how many individuals you see on a single dive, and some of them are huge! Hawksbill turtles are also frequent sightings within the park.
