Skip to content

Top Navigation

Southern Living Southern Living
  • Food
  • Holidays & Entertaining
  • Home & Garden
  • Style & Culture
  • News
  • Video

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Southern Living

Southern Living Southern Living
  • Explore

    Explore

    • These Haircuts Are Going To Be Huge in 2021

      The trendy haircuts you’ll be seeing everywhere next year. Read More Next
    • How To Season A Cast-Iron Skillet

      Learn how to season this Southern kitchen staple in five easy steps. Read More Next
    • The Right Way to Heat a Pre-Cooked Ham

      It's so easy, trust us. Read More Next
  • Food

    Food

    See All Food

    Lost Cakes of the South

    These simple and spectacular Southern cakes deserve a comeback
    • All Food
    • All Recipes
    • Holidays & Occasions
    • Quick Fix Suppers
    • Slow Cooker Recipes
    • Desserts
    • Casseroles
    • Healthy Recipes
  • Holidays & Entertaining

    Holidays & Entertaining

    See All Holidays & Entertaining

    70 Wedding Vow Examples That Will Melt Your Heart

    Fight writer's block and find ways to express your love with these romantic, funny, and short wedding vow examples.
    • Christmas
    • Entertaining
    • Thanksgiving
    • Southern Weddings
    • Easter
    • Kentucky Derby
    • Valentine's Day
    • 4th of July
    • Mother's Day
  • Home & Garden

    Home & Garden

    See All Home & Garden

    7 Paint Colors We’re Loving for Kitchen Cabinets in 2020

    ‘Tis the season to ditch your all-white palette in favor of something a little bolder and brighter.
    • Home Decor Ideas
    • Idea Houses
    • Before & After
    • Inspired Communities
    • Curb Appeal
    • House Plans & Builders
    • The Grumpy Gardener
    • Plant Names A-Z
  • Style & Culture

    Style & Culture

    See All Style & Culture

    50 Books Everyone Should Read in Their Lifetime

    Curl up with a classic!
    • Southern Culture
    • Hair
    • Travel
    • Beauty
    • Pets
    • Southern Fashion
    • Healthy Living
  • News
  • Video

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Southern Living
  2. travel
  3. Florida
  4. 10 Best Beaches To Snorkel in Florida

10 Best Beaches To Snorkel in Florida

By Kevin Mims
Updated June 29, 2020
Skip gallery slides
Save FB Tweet
Credit: Image Source/Getty Images

The Sunshine State is famous for its white sand beaches and year-round sunshine, but the life under the surface of the water is just as exciting.

Start Slideshow

1 of 11

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Snorkeling Hot Spots

Credit: Image Source/Getty Images

From the Emerald Coast to the turquoise waters of the Palm Beaches and beyond, Florida’s more than 1,000 miles of coastline have some of the best snorkeling around. Whether you want to bask in soothing water, find sharks’ teeth, or come face to face with tropical fish and stingrays, these are 10 of the best places to do it.

1 of 11

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 11

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Bathtub Reef Beach, Stuart

Family-friendly and scenic, Bathtub Reef Beach is located at the northern tip of Hutchison Island in Martin County. The beach gets its name from the water’s bathtub-calm conditions created by the reef system just off the shore. The reef hosts a variety of sea life, including endangered sea turtles.

2 of 11

3 of 11

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Cannon Beach, Key Largo

Credit: benedek/Getty Images

For lovers of Florida history and shipwrecks, Cannon Beach at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park is a must-see. It’s one of the most fun ways to view artifacts of centuries-old shipwrecks, which are submerged in Cannon Beach’s calm and shallow waters. This is a popular spot for families to swim with small children.

3 of 11

Advertisement

4 of 11

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Phil Foster Park, Jupiter

Wildlife abounds under the water’s surface at Phil Foster Park in Palm Beach County, which has a snorkeling trail 200 feet off Phil Foster Beach that attracts underwater photographers, divers, and snorkelers alike. The trail spans two acres and is teeming with tropical fish and marine animals—more than 300 species have been observed there.

4 of 11

5 of 11

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Red Reef Park, Boca Raton

Situated off scenic A1A between South Beach Park and Gumbo Limbo Nature Center, Red Reef Beach boasts an artificial reef where snorkelers can see a variety of tropical fish upon entering the water. The reef is shallow, so plan to snorkel when the tide is high.

5 of 11

6 of 11

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Venice Beach

Venice, Florida is the “Shark Tooth Capital of the World,” and the turquoise waters of Venice BeachĀ are a paradise for shark-tooth hunters who can snorkel for those treasures along the shore. Lifeguards, free parking, food concessions, and other amenities make Venice an ideal spot to spend a day at the beach.

6 of 11

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 11

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

St. Andrews State Park jetty, Panama City Beach

Snorkel northwest Florida’s St. Andrews State Park to see why the Panhandle is called the Emerald Coast. A rock jetty forms a lagoon protected from the Gulf of Mexico that’s easy to snorkel and flanked by a white-sand beach—a perfect way for beginners and families with children to escape the heat.

7 of 11

8 of 11

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Coral Cove Park, Tequesta

Credit: GabrielPevide/Getty Images

Its rugged beauty and impressive rock formations make Coral Cove Park a popular beach destination in southeast Florida. On a calm day, you could mistake the waters off this beach for the Caribbean, with its clarity and countless species of marine animals, including rays, tropical fish, and seahorses.

8 of 11

9 of 11

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Regina Sugar Barge, Anna Maria Island

Credit: Melanie Wynarski/EyeEm/Getty Images

For more experienced snorkelers and divers, the Regina Sugar Barge wreck on Anna Maria Island has a lot to explore. The wreckage of the barge that sunk in 1940 spans a length of 200 feet, rests in 20 feet water, and is only 150 feet from the beach.

9 of 11

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 11

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Peanut Island Park, Riviera Beach

An island getaway and snorkeling trip in one: that’s Peanut Island in Riviera Beach. There’s no land access to the island, so a boat ride or water taxi is required. It’s well worth the effort to see the clear, blue-green waters of this popular snorkeling and paddling spot and the tropical fish and other animals that inhabit them.

10 of 11

11 of 11

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park, Dania Beach

Nurse sharks, spiny lobsters, and an array of tropical fish are just some of the specials snorkelers can spot at Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park in Dania Beach. The 2.5-mile stretch of beach offers easy snorkeling and diving from shore.

11 of 11

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 11 Snorkeling Hot Spots
2 of 11 Bathtub Reef Beach, Stuart
3 of 11 Cannon Beach, Key Largo
4 of 11 Phil Foster Park, Jupiter
5 of 11 Red Reef Park, Boca Raton
6 of 11 Venice Beach
7 of 11 St. Andrews State Park jetty, Panama City Beach
8 of 11 Coral Cove Park, Tequesta
9 of 11 Regina Sugar Barge, Anna Maria Island
10 of 11 Peanut Island Park, Riviera Beach
11 of 11 Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park, Dania Beach

Share options

Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Login

Southern Living

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • About Us
  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Books from Southern Living
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
  • Sitemap

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en EspaƱol this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Shape this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
  • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
Southern Living is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. Southern Living is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporationthis link opens in a new tab All Rights Reserved. Southern Living may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.southernliving.com

View image

10 Best Beaches To Snorkel in Florida
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.