High up on everyone’s wish list in a tropical vacation destination like Costa Rica is often the water activity, snorkeling.  The Gulf of Nicoya has some fairly decent snorkeling areas, the most famous being Tortuga Island or Isla Tortuga. There are other spots that are good when conditions are correct and yet others that require fair amounts of experience, but Tortuga is for everyone.

The water conditions depend on two things, tide/waves and time of year. Big tides and surges tend to stir up the bottom making the water cloudy. This usually clears up when the tides get smaller. The dry season (December-April) is the best time for snorkeling although it can be good at any time of the year on any given day. The rains bring down a lot of sediment from the rivers and in general the water is murkier during the rainy season (May-November).

There is not a lot of coral around but it is possible to see sea fans and some coral including brain coral. Most of the fish are concentrated around the underwater rock structures. On the rocks are often bright blue polyps, a favorite food of sea turtles. It is common to see reef fish such as sergeant majors, king angelfish, damselfish, hogfish, hawk fish, parrotfish and triggerfish. With some more luck it is also possible to see moray eels, golden trevallies, needlefish, parrotfish, spadefish, jacks and bigeye trevallies. During certain times of the year it is possible to encounter manta rays but eagle rays and cow nose rays are usually around. Under some of the rocky structure it is possible to observe white tip reef sharks with a good portion of luck. Also sea turtles frequent these areas and can be seen as well.

So if you haven’t done it yet go visit Tortuga Island for some fun snorkeling and a great day on the beach afterwards. Several tour companies from Paquera offer daily tours.