Explore the underwater wonders of Belize’s most popular snorkeling sites on this trip to Hol Chan Marine Reserve and Shark Ray Alley. Departing from Ambergris Caye, you'll swim with an amazing variety of fish, sea turtles, stingrays, and nurse sharks among the coral formations of the largest barrier reef in the Western Hemisphere.

Snorkel tour from Ambergris Caye
Cruise the clear Caribbean waters and snorkel amid coral formations
See colorful reef fish and other aquatic life in Hol Chan Marine Reserve
Spot stingrays, sea turtles, and brown nurse sharks in Shark Ray Alley

What's Included

Professional guide
Bottled water
Use of Snorkeling equipment

Gratuities
Hotel pickup and drop-off from all hotels located north of San Pedro town (you may purchase round-trip transportation upon arrival)

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Amigos Del Mar Dive Shop & Marina
Beachfront, Ambergris Caye, San Pedro, Belize
We are located on the dock. GUESTS MUST BE AT THE DOCK 30 MINUTES BEFORE DEPARTURE TIME.

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Belize is famous for its remarkable snorkeling sites and diverse sea life. With a name that means “Little Channel” in Maya, Hol Chan Marine Reserve was the first such designated reserve in Central America and is located among the second-largest barrier reef in the world. Just a quick ride by motorboat from Ambergris Caye, Hol Chan will be the first stop on your snorkeling adventure.

After donning a snorkeling mask and fins, you'll be ready to splash into the shallow, clear Caribbean waters to explore the amazing coral reef formations below. Thanks to dedicated conservation efforts, this area boasts a wonderfully healthy and diverse population of marine life, including 160 different species of fish. You’re likely to spot large schools of snapper, grouper, and jackfish darting among the impressive coral formations, as well as larger creatures like sea turtles and stingrays.

Hop back aboard your boat for a quick ride over to Shark Ray Alley, a shallow channel in the reef where these two bottom feeders are found in abundance. Swim among gentle stingrays, with wingspans up to 4 feet (1.2 meters), as well as harmless brown nurse sharks that can reach lengths of more than 9 feet (2.75 meters). After getting your fill of these marvelous marine animals, you’ll be transported back to Ambergris Caye and your San Pedro hotel.

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Near public transportation
Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level

Minimum age is 8 years
Note: moderate level of difficulty; passengers should be in moderate physical condition to participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 15 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.
This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Featured review

Gerrid_P

If you are staying in San Pedro or Caye Caulker you have to book this experience. We did snorkeling in Hol Chan Marine Reserve and Shark Ray alley and saw an amazing variety of sea life. We saw nurse sharks, manatees, sea turtles, a barracuda and a variety of colorful fish. I highly recommend this experience. Our tour guide Soup was amazing, super knowledgeable and funny. He kept us entertained and ensured we had an amazing experience from beginning to end. If you do this excursion, make sure you book Shark Ray Alley too so that you can have the opportunity to swim with the nurse sharks!!

Reviews

4.5

175 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

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Showing 1-10 of 175 reviews

Great tour!

Sabrina_P, Apr 2024

The guides were so helpful & conscientious making sure we were safe as well as teaching us about the different fish. They pointed out & took us to places where there was a lot of activity. Catered to the whole group which were all at different levels of swimmers. Really enjoyed it the trip because of them. 👍

Great Snorkel

Robert_G, Apr 2024

Awesome time with Soup and George. Great quick Snorkel trip. You are almost guaranteed to see cool things. The Nurse Sharks are awesome and very docile.

Outstanding half day of snorkeling with Amigos Del Mar and the Birdman.

Gregory_G, Apr 2024

Birdman was very knowledgeable and patient with our novice snorkeling family. Thank you for this awesome experience with my family.

Snorkel must!

Yanica, Mar 2024

If you do any snorkeling in Belize this has got to be one of them. You're almost guaranteed to see wild life. Currents can be a little strong in certain spots so you're in for aome work, life vests are always available, don't shy out from asking for one! Went for the 2pm tour and it was certainly busy but still had way more than enough room to see stuff without people's flippers in your face 😅

Don’t miss this!

Jim_T, Mar 2024

Great guides who were very knowledgeable and helpful with a major concern with the safety of the group. Went out of their way to show us stuff we would have missed. Great tour.

Great half day snorkelling experience

Daniel_d, Feb 2024

Great experience seeing rays, sharks and other sea life. We went to 2 different snorkelling spots and had a great time!

Nice short trip

Rochelle_R, Feb 2024

A nice quick trip - lots to see in a short time. Excellent for new snorkellers or families with kids.

Rays, sharks, and awesome staff!

Leah_M, Feb 2024

Patient guide and helpful, fun staff. Sometimes these types of excursions are tacky/cheesy but this team was fun, real, informative and respectful. Gear was high quality and communication was strong. Plus we saw a ton of wildlife!

Fantastic memorable experience

Brandon_W, Feb 2024

I loved how personable every crew member was! They were kind, engaging and made sure we were safe at all times. We separated into groups during snorkeling so we could learn a little about what we were seeing which was very helpful.

Great morning trip

Andrew_S, Feb 2024

We saw everything! Sharks, rays, variety of colorful fish, barracuda, eel, lobster - really great. Went for morning (9-11, essentially) and could have snorkeled longer. The part in shark alley really fun, too. Guide was great ("Bird").

Great tour. Would do again!

James_M, Feb 2024

Great short tour! Our guide Saeed was both informative and entertaining. Swimming with the sharks was the highlight for sure!

Beautiful Tour, Amazing Wildlife

Tatiana_V, Jan 2024

Amazing tour. The tour guides were very knowledgeable and friendly. Highly recommend to anyone who wants to see the belizean ocean and loves a nice swim!

A must-do in San Pedro

Robynne_W, Jan 2024

Snorkeling just an arm's reach from huge but peaceful nurse sharks, rays and schools of fish was a wonderful experience! Our guides were knowledgeable and pointed out all kinds of fish. Great trip!

Great company to use for snorkeling

Diane_G, Jan 2024

Excellent equipment and service Awesome snorkeling Guides were very friendly Easy boat ride even for those who get seasick

A highlight of our trip!...

Allison_M, Jan 2024

A highlight of our trip! The reef and marine life a were beautiful. Sharks and manta ray feeding was exciting! The guided were friendly and we felt very safe with them.

4/5 Excursion, 2/5 Admin & Operations, 3/5 Overall

Sarah_C, Jan 2024

On the boat and snorkeling: 4/5 - Our three guides were knowledgable about the reefs, nurse sharks, and fish living in Hol Chan - Included a mask and snorkel set, fins, and life vest - After the first stop, we were offered water from a Gatorade barrel, watermelon, and pineapple - The tour did not include any towels, which normally wouldn't be an issue, but it poured heavily during the second stop and all the way back to the dock. The boat was small for the 18 guests + 3 guides on it, and the majority of the boat was exposed to the elements. For the price paid for this tour, they should have included towels and tarps to keep dry for guests. - We departed and arrived on time. Amigos Del Mar Dive Shop & Marina Communication & Admin: 2/5 - The morning of the tour, it was raining, so I reached out to the operating team on Viator 2 hours before departure and was unable to get a response. - The original message they sent when I booked the tour had a phone number on it to call or WhatsApp. However, when called, no ring went through. When I messaged it on WhatsApp, I got a notification that the number was not on WhatsApp. - I reached out to Viator to confirm information, and they said we were confirmed on the tour for the day, and gave us a different number for the dive shop than was originally communicated. - When checking in for the tour, the registration team asked where we were staying. After we had finished the tour and were back at the hotel eating lunch, they called our hotel to put us in contact with them and said we hadn't paid them for the tour even though we had been prepaid through Viator. They were rude, and said we had to come back to the shop to pay. - When I said we'd already paid and they needed to work with Viator because we were not coming back, they put me on hold, and then said "Oh, yeah, Viator just got back to us, you're paid". An absolute waste of time, and a horrible way to end that experience, especially because the guides had been great. Overall: 3/5 - If you're set on doing this tour with Amigos, bring two towels for yourself in case of rain - Do not expect them to respond via the Viator app or through the phone numbers - Be wary if they reach out to you if you book through Viator - they need to work it out through Viator, not you directly!

Stunning Snorkel Excursion in Belize

Carol_C, Jan 2024

Birdman and crew saw to our safety, delight and adventure throughout. We swam with rays, lobster, tropical fish and stunning coral. We learned about marine life and its fragility.

The crew was excellent...

Susan_W, Dec 2023

The crew was excellent and made the experience safe and fun. We would definitely use them again in the future.

Awesome experience

Mary_E, Dec 2023

the tour water guide was patiently waiting for me all along and I felt very secure. I loved the whole experience and booked a second tour. This was great for a 77 year old.

BEST EXPERIENCE EVER

Patricia_K, Dec 2023

Hands down the best experience of my life! My husband and I enjoyed the excursions so much. Our favorite part is that even though it is a snorkeling it is still a guided tour. I was extremely afraid but Shaid was so patient and kind to me. He ensured my safety and my experience was amazing..... Despite the motion sickness that I also had. My husband loved swimming with the sharks! Just one of those experiences of a lifetime. I would 1000% recommend this company!

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