Our Favorite Maui Snorkeling Spots

Others may claim there are better Maui snorkel beaches BUT here are some great reasons why this is our number one pick.

1. It’s gorgeous! It’s a long beautiful crescent-shaped beach with golden sand. We hung out near the Sheraton Maui Hotel.
2. Excellent snorkeling just off the beach!
3. Drinks on the beach! There are people walking the beach taking drink orders. I’ll bet their legs are in tip top shape!
4. Clean restrooms. Ask your drink server for directions. It’s up near the pool bar.
5. Free parking! There are about 20 free parking spots for visitors or you can park at the nearby Whalers Village. There is a charge for this lot unless you get your ticket validated at one of the stores in Whalers Village.
6. Shopping! Whalers Village Shopping Center has some high end shopping like Versace, Prada, Coach, and fine jewelry stores, as well as specialty shops selling Hawaiian items and plenty of restaurants.
7. Golf! The Kaanapali Golf Course provides some great golfing along the water.
8. Fabulous sunsets! There is a long paved beach path for a romantic sunset walk.

Oh yeah, you want to snorkel Maui. Well, you just wade in and swim to Black Rock (Pu’u Keka’a) in front of the Sheraton.

There are tons of fish darting in and out of the lava rock crevices. There were “cleaning stations” along the way. Here is a saddle wrasse getting cleaned by a Hawaiian cleaner fish.

There are turtles eating and swimming here

and if you look closely, you’ll see some eels.

We also saw loads of butterfly fish and tangs.

Visibility is great here! And when you need a break from all that beauty you can return to the beach for a drink and some people watching. Maui snorkeling of the beach doesn’t’ get much better than this!

Best Maui snorkeling accessible only by boat: Molokini crater

We love snorkeling off the beaches of Maui because we can do it on our schedule, it’s easy, and it’s cheap! But everyone was raving about Molokini marine preserve so we had to check it out.

“Everyone” was right. It’s well worth the effort to get up early and pay the money to experience Molokini Island snorkeling.

We chose to go with the Discovery Adventure on the Ocean Spirit and we weren’t the least bit disappointed. Here’s why.

1. They visit two places—Molokini and Turtle Arches!
2. They are among the first to arrive at Molokini for the BEST Maui snorkeling experience!
3. They serve Kona coffee and pastries!
4. The boat is fast so you have more time snorkeling and less time driving!
5. They know their marine life! A marine biologist teaches you about the fish you will see while you’re sipping coffee on the way to the snorkel spots.
6. Obvious concern about your comfort and safety! They provide swim noodles to novice swimmers, they sit on surf boards to watch over you, help you, or answer your questions.

It is an island formed from a volcanic eruption that has slowly emerged from the sea. This aerial picture is from a postcard we bought on Maui. You can see the boats moored inside the crater.

We had to be at the dock at 6:15. That’s early when you take into consideration the ride from the hotel. I wasn’t really awake while we waited for the crew to stock the boat. Then the Kona coffee and pastries arrived!

Jeff and I were antsy waiting to get the boat moving. The crew assured us this was a fast boat and we would be one of the first to arrive at Molokini for the best Maui snorkeling available. He was right! Three boats were pulling in at about the same time and we were the first! And I agree it is best to snorkel early here before the crowds arrive.

The Ocean Spirit is a double-decker catamaran. It has two sets of steps down to platforms where you can put on your fins and push off into the water.

These were deluxe accommodations if you ask me! They use non-polluting Maui bio-fuel made from recycled cooking oils and fats so you won’t smell any of those nasty diesel fumes!

The crew patiently helped folks without their own gear find the right snorkeling equipment. They also handed out swim noodles to anyone who seemed unsure of themselves in the water. They didn’t embarrass anyone they just slipped a noodle under their belly and said try this.

We saw all kinds of fish! This is a parrotfish.

These are white bar sugeon fish.

We also saw billions of butterfly fish, saddle wrasses, chubs, and bluestripe snapper and some eels to name a few.

The water is a marine preserve and the island itself is a bird sanctuary. People aren’t allowed on Molokini island period!

The crew was perched on surf boards keeping a close eye on us. I know because my husband kept breaking the rules by getting too close to the rocks! He was being pretty sneaky but he kept getting caught.

The crew took his rule-breaking in stride as they repeatedly reminded him to back away from the rocks. A sudden ocean swell could scrape you along the rocks—ouch! That could ruin your Maui snorkeling experience!!

As Molokini started getting crowded with boats, we moved on to Turtle Arches. Dolphins rode in our wake for quite a distance.

Just when you think you have seen all the fish that Hawaii snorkeling has to offer, you move to a new spot and see fish you’ve never seen before. On the way back to Maui, my husband and I cornered the marine biologist. We described one fish after another and asked what we had seen. He pulled out pictures and told us all about them. The ride back seemed too short!

What a great trip!!

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