Where to go January

[newsnorker]

Hi

New to these forums.

I am looking for some advice on where to start looking.

My husband and I love snorkeling, albeit at a beginners level. We want to go somewhere warm to hot the hotter the better. I like good hotels with good standards of accomodation and service, not neccesarily high end luxury, but not basic either. We prefer smaller hotels. Would like a really good beach, with the availability to snorkel from hotel jetty etc. We do not want to have to rely on boat trips everyday. Which we did when we went to Mauritius a few years back, and we were very dissapointed.

Now I have looked at the following locations Mexico, St Lucia and Egypt. St Lucia is out WAY to expensive as it appears the carribean is in general unless you could direct me to cheaper tour operators than the normal lot. We usually book our holidays independantly, but not sure where to start with this one.

Mexico I am not sure it looks like mass tourism gone mad. Egypt appeals but I am not sure where to look at, Places like Sharm and Hurghada look very built up, but as it is cheaper than Mexico, i may have to compramise there.

I would be very grateful if someone could advice and point me in the right direction,

Many thanks for your time

T
x

[carol sheridan]

Egypt is very good value but you might find the Red Sea a little cold in January. I went to Sharm two years ago and to Marsa Alam last year. They both had very good coral accessible from the beach, but even in May I found I needed a wet suit. The Caribbean is much warmer and Cuba is good value.
I am going to Nuweiba, near Taba, in July, to a very small hotel called the Swisscare resort which gets very good recommendations on Tripadvisor.com.
In Cuba, I stayed at Las Brisas in Guardelavaca. Again, good snorkelling straight from the beach, but quite a busy hotel.
Malaysia and Thailand are also reasonably priced - why don't you check out climate/temperatures on google?

[jimj]

Aloha,

Sounds like you would be interested in one of my favorite places, Waiopae marine preserve at Kapoho on Hawaii's Big Island. Snorkeling is great for beginners, and the experienced, due to a protective outer reef (very calm water). Lots of fish and coral, both in density and diversity, along with the endangered green sea turtle.

January temps are: highs in the low 80s with lows in the high 60s. A little warmer throughout most of the remainder of the year. The water is also quite comfortable (no need for a wet suit). Geothermal hot springs warm the waters close to shore.

Accommodations are limited to vacation rental homes, no hotels and few tourists (it's where the locals go). There are a number of vacation rentals, but few actually front the marine preserve or have ocean views. Those on the water/preserve are small older cottages with one exception: a new home with a great ocean view. The waterfront homes are just steps from the water and great snorkeling. Check homeaway.com for vacation rental listings under Kapoho, Big Island, Hawaii. There is a another nearby Kapoho community with waterfront homes, but they are not on the marine preserve. Snorkeling there is interesting, but lacks the density and diversity of fish.

Good luck in your search for a snorkeling vacation!
Jim