This was our first time snorkeling (though we’ve been on other water adventures before) and while obviously the views, marine life etc were all spectacular, the thing that really stood out were the crew. Liz (the captain), Sophia, Lyla and Nate were absolutely incredible.
The boat was very clean and organized. They had handy baskets for us to put all our stuff in and worked with everyone individually to get us fitted for gear. The gear was top notch - clean, well maintained and they even had prescription goggles for us! They walked us through instructions and demonstrated how to use the gear. I liked that they had inflatable life vests and showed me how to get a little bit of air in, that made me feel safer without being unable to maneuver.
On the way over to the spot, some dolphins came by. Liz turned the boat so we could see them better. The dolphins rode along the bow with us for a bit.
Once we got to the spot, they asked us to self identify into two groups. Group 1 for more experienced folks; group 2 for those who hadn’t snorkeled before or weren’t strong swimmers. We were very much in the second group.
They put out a big floating mat next to the boat to get people started on. They sprayed our goggles with defogging liquid and walked people through the steps in the water until they were comfortable with snorkeling. Lyla was our tour guide, with Nate and Sophia accompanying on surf boards.
My husband and I were really struggling. His gag reflex made the mouth breathing too hard for him and I’m scared of water so it takes me a really long time to get comfortable. We were considering just hanging out on the surf mat or the boat but Nate helped us figure things out and took us out on his surf board. He stayed with us the entire time, was so very patient and kind and did his best to make sure we had fun. He even dove down to check for turtles in the area we were in (since we were further back from the rest of the group).
We saw two sea turtles when they came up for air and so many fish all around us! Liz would periodically put out some food in the water and schools of fish would swarm all around us.
My husband eventually got too sea sick despite meds and had to head back to the boat. Liz took care of him. They had bags for him to throw up in and gave him a cold sprite to help settle the nausea.
Eventually, we headed back to the boat and back towards shore. There was water, a cooler full of cold juice and soda cans and snacks, all complimentary. We drove past Diamond Head on the way back. They had a bathroom on board, also very clean, where we could change out of our wet clothes.
Overall, the whole experience was very enjoyable and I would do it again in a heart beat. Would highly recommend Living Ocean tours!