North of Bridgetown near Holetown on the west coast of Barbados, the snorkeling at Folkestone Marine Park is the most popular shore-accessed dive site on Barbados. This dive site has sand flats with coral heads that are habitat to numerous reef fish. The Folkestone Park has an underwater snorkel trail circumnavigating an inner reef. The main snorkeling area has a protective rope separating the zone from boat traffic. If you plan to go beyond the ropes, a diver-down flag is highly recommended. The dive site is located about 0.5 miles north-northwest of Holetown.
For advanced snorkelers, there is a barge wreck in 20 foot deep water located about 600 feet offshore with a small dive raft located above it. Overall, the visibility while snorkeling Folkestone Park ranges from 40 feet to 70 feet, except during winter northern swells when it can be quite poor.
To reach the snorkeling on Barbados by air, use the Grantley Adams International Airport (BGI), which is located southeast of Bridgetown on the southend of Barbados. There are regular flights from Toronto, London, Miami, San Juan, Saint Vincent, Saint Lucia, Dominica and Port Of Spain. There is a $27.50USD departure tax per person that may be included in the airline ticket, but double-check to make sure. While there is regular public bus service and costly taxi service, it is recommended to rent a car to make use of the good road network to get to the snorkeling dive sites on Barbados.
While snorkeling on Barbados, you may encounter one of the many types of turtles including hawksbill turtles, leatherback turtles and green sea turtles. There are a variety of marine life spread around the dive sites such as parrotfish, trunkfish, barracuda, snapper, chub and angelfish among the sea fans and barrel sponges.
Overall, Folkestone Marine Park is the 1st most popular snorkel dive spot of all 17 snorkeling dives in Barbados.
