Just about every year, we take a trip down to Florida and spend a week with family in the Destin area. But somehow, we’d never done a snorkeling excursion there until this summer!
Daniel and I realized we loved snorkeling during a day trip to Sea World’s Discovery Cove, and ever since then, we’ve been on the lookout for opportunities to go in the wild. This summer, we were still on quite a high from our snorkeling trip in the Galapagos Islands, so it was fresh on our minds when we headed down to the beach. And I’m so glad it was! I’m not sure why we’ve never tried to go snorkeling in Destin, FL, before because it’s a fantastic area for it!
Located on the Gulf Coast of Florida, Destin is a total snorkeling paradise, perfect for adventure junkies and nature enthusiasts alike. The water here is ridiculously clear, and the marine life is so diverse! There are shipwrecks, artificial reefs, and all sorts of cool stuff to explore underwater. And the visibility in this area is absolutely incredible. Unless bad weather or a boat has stirred up the water, you can see everything without a problem.
But you don’t have to go into deep water to find something cool. The family-friendly tour we took with Flippers Adventure Snorkeling kept us in shallow water, but we still saw quite a bit of marine life. So whether you’re a pro snorkeler or a newbie, there’s something for everyone in Destin! And with the warm weather all year round, it’s always a good time to take a dive.
For today, I want to tell you about our trip with Flippers Adventure Snorkeling, why we liked it, and what you should expect.
Our Tour Experience with Flipper’s Adventure Snorkeling
A Little About Sunshine Destin
Flipper’s Adventure Snorkeling is part of Sunshine Destin, a local company that offers four distinct water adventures through this one location. In addition to snorkeling, they also have dolphin cruises, parasailing, and pontoon boat rentals.
They’re far from being the only snorkeling company in Destin, but they particularly caught my eye because the tour included dolphin watching, had two stops, and lasted for 2.5 hours. This seemed like the perfect combination for a quick day trip, and I liked that they included all the necessary snorkeling gear as well.
Plus, it was only $45 per person, which is really a steal in such a tourist-centric area. They’re located right on the water at 500 Harbor Blvd, Destin, FL 32541, and they even offer free onsite parking, which seems to be a rare commodity around there.
I also liked that their crews had extensive safety certifications. According to their website: “Our captains are US Coast Guard licensed Masters, and both Captain and Crew are specifically trained in all aspects of swimming, snorkel, boat handling with First Aid & CPR!”
Obviously, we always hope for the best, but it was good to know that we’d be sent out with a well-trained crew.
Key Facts About the Snorkeling Tour
The tour leaves from the dock directly behind Sunshine Destin right on time. We arrived early to get sunscreen on, board the boat with the rest of our group, and get snorkeling gear. And by 10:50, we were undocking and getting instructions for the trip.
As I mentioned earlier, the tour lasts 2.5 hours and visits 2 very different snorkeling spots. The first was just a few minutes away from the dock at a quiet beach with a rocky peninsula, and the second was out past the popular Crab Island in some grassy shallows. The tour calls these their two “special spots,” so I won’t give away their exact locations.
Before we left, the crew made sure everyone had a mask and snorkel, and fins were also available for anyone who wanted them. This meant that we were all ready to jump in immediately as soon as we arrived. If you don’t use fins, I would recommend water shoes for safety reasons…but I’ll get into that momentarily.
Our tour boat was roomy and had plenty of seating for our tour group, plus a bathroom and bar. They also had water readily available for everyone throughout the trip.
First-Hand Account of Our Snorkeling Experience
Snorkel Spot 1
For our first stop, the boat docked out in a shallow bay just beyond a resort area beach. Because it was rather secluded apart from those few hotels, we had the area mostly to ourselves, which was nice.
The main snorkeling area was right along a peninsula made from large boulders, which protected the bay from the choppier water of the ocean. The sea floor here was fairly rocky until it took a sharp downward angle to deeper waters.
The water here was super-clear, and we found no shortage of colorful and clear fish! The time flew by while we followed schools of fish around and searched the rocks for hidden creatures. While we didn’t see anything “epic” (like sea turtles or dolphins), we had a lot of fun and saw quite a few different kinds of fish.
Safety Considerations While Snorkeling
Most of the crew stayed onboard during this time, but they did have someone stationed near the end of the peninsula with a flotation device to let us know how far it was safe to go out. If we ventured too deep, he’d get our attention and direct us back to a safer location.
Now, we didn’t receive any sort of sea life warnings prior to getting in the water, and frankly, I didn’t even think about it before we jumped in. But you need to wear water shoes or fins anytime you’re snorkeling.
While exploring the rocks, Daniel and I noticed a unique fish hiding down in one of the crevices. It was dark brown and rather lumpy and blended in really well with the boulders around it. So, of course, we figured it was a rockfish or stonefish, and we dove down deeper to get up-close footage.
Now, if you’re unaware like we were, here’s some shocking news: the stonefish is the most venomous fish known to man. When we found that out after the fact, I felt sick. First, because we had willingly gotten so close to one without knowing how dangerous it was. Second, because there were so many people (including kids) climbing around those rocks and standing on them to get a break. All it would take was one wrong barefooted step for disaster to strike.
Now, stonefish are incredibly rare in this part of Florida, so it really wouldn’t have made sense for someone to tell us to watch out for them. But I’m telling you, just in case. And besides, you never know when you’ll find a jellyfish or sharp shell underfoot, so it’s best to wear more protection than you think you’ll need.
Boat Ride & Dolphin Spotting
After we finished up at the first snorkeling spot, we boarded the boat and headed further out past Crab Island. This submerged sandbar is a really popular spot to stake your pontoon boat and enjoy the stunning waters of the Gulf.
There are floating shops, ice cream boats, and even little playgrounds bobbing on the waves here! But thanks to its location near the deeper water of the Destin Bridge, it’s also a great spot to see some dolphins!
We saw several in just a few minutes time as we passed by the hubbub of Crab Island. The captain made sure to slow down the boat so we could watch and even turned around for a minute to give us a better view.
Snorkel Spot 2
Eventually, we arrived at our second snorkeling spot, a grassy area beyond Crab Island. The water here was cloudier, but the seagrasses provided havens for all sorts of cool underwater creatures. We saw tons of big hermit crabs and fish. And although we didn’t get to see any, this is apparently a hotspot for seahorses as well!
While we saw fewer brightly-colored fish, I really enjoyed the different atmosphere that the seagrass created. It was like swimming over little ecosystems, and we had fun trying to spy on the creatures hiding below. Outside of the seagrass patches, we also got to see some pretty big fish here, whereas our first stop was mostly small, tropical ones.
We did have to be careful in this area because the seagrasses are protected. So we had to watch where we stepped and be careful not to dive too deep and disturb these underwater sanctuaries as we swam. We also learned that it worked best to swim slowly and float our way around rather than walk in the shallow water because it was so sandy. If we weren’t careful, we’d add sand to the seagrass floating in the water and decrease our visibility.
Closing Thoughts on Our Snorkeling Tour
All in all, we had a fantastic time on our snorkeling excursion. It was neat to explore the Gulf of Mexico from this viewpoint and see all the cool fish that live there (even the scary ones).
After the tour, we were pretty hungry, so we headed just down the road to Taqueria El Rinconcito, which was hands-down some of the best Mexican food I’ve ever had. We got our order and were back on the road within 15 minutes with happy stomachs, so I just had to drop them a shoutout here.
If you’re looking for more fun things to do in Destin, be sure to check out my blog post 5 Must-Do Experiences in Destin, FL Besides the Beach. And don’t forget to save this for easy access when you take your next Destin vacation.
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That’s all from me for today. Thanks for being here, and happy travels!
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