Learn How to Snorkel

SCUBA diving can literally open up a whole new world for most people but you can begin to appreciate that world by snorkelling. If you have never snorkelled before, then this page might help you learn how to snorkel so you can get started.

Snorkelling Safely

Before learning how to snorkel there are some pre-requisite factors that you will need to know about.

  • Firstly, you cannot learn how to snorkel unless you can swim.
  • Secondly, you should be aware of some fundamental snorkel safety practices. You can find further information about snorkelling safety here: how to snorkel safely.

Learning How to Snorkel

Below are 6 steps designed to help you learn how to snorkel.

  1. Enrol on a Basic Snorkelling Course

    Many diving centers offer such courses alongside their diver certification programs. This may seem an obvious tip but a dive center can show you how to use your dive fins most in the most effective and energy conserving way possible to ensure you do not wear yourself out. Learning how to snorkel with a dive center will teach you all of the following skills.

  2. How to Clear Your Dive Mask

    Sometimes when you are snorkelling your dive mask will take in water. This is something that occurs with all masks and is largely unavoidable. However, there is a technique that can be used to clear your mask while you are in the water which is fundamental to helping your learn how to snorkel.

    • Firstly, if you are on the surface you can of course just lift the mask off your face and tilt the bottom out to allow the water to run away.
    • Secondly, you can clear your mask while you are under the water. You simply use your hand to put pressure on the top of your dive mask between your eyes and gently breathe out through your nose. This technique drives the water out of the mask beneath your nose and replaces it with what you have exhaled. When you finish, your mask will go back into position without allowing water back in.
    • Thirdly, nowadays you can purchase dive masks that have a purge function. The purge function is activated when you apply pressure to the whole mask and exhale through your nose. The seal between the mask and your face is not broken but a purge function kicks in, expelling water from within.

  3. How to Clear Water from Your Snorkel

    Clearing, or purging, your snorkel is another thing that you will come up against as you learn how to snorkel. Try to buy a snorkel that has a purge valve. A purge valve snorkel will enable you to remove any water that enters your snorkel accidentally or as a result of a “duck dive” beneath the surface. If you are using a standard snorkel (non-purge valve), you just need to blow out through your mouth in a short but sharp fashion to make a “tuh” sound. This will drive unwanted water upwards out of the snorkel.

  4. How to Use Fins

    You do not need to use fins when you snorkel… but how you snorkel will be affected hugely if you do not. Dive fins help to propel you through the water in a much less invasive way i.e. you will create less splashing and therefore not frighten off marine life so easily. This same propulsion makes your passage through water easier: your leg “kicks” will be more effective moving you further with less effort. In order to get the most from your fins, you should keep your legs straight, with your knees bent slightly, and move them in a scissoring motion. This is the most efficient way to move with fins.

  5. How to Avoid Squeezes

    If you perform duck dives to descend underwater you may experience a sensation known as squeezing. Squeezing is the sensation of pressure beneath your mask and within your ears that occurs as pressure causes air spaces to shrink. Learning how to snorkel safely and comfortably is paramount and dealing with squeezes is very important in order to avoid discomfort and even damage to your ears.

  6. How to Conserve Marine Life

    Learn How to Snorkel Learning how to snorkel includes learning how to take into account the impact that your actions has on the environment. You should remember how to behave when snorkelling and remember that you need to be extremely sensitive to the marine habitat you are lucky enough to be experiencing. Do not touch the creatures you encounter as you may harm them or actually end up the recipient of a nasty bite or sting.

    Take care that your snorkelling equipment (snorkel, fins etc.) are not accidentally brushing against corals and fauna causing accidental damage. Coral reefs are very delicately balanced ecosystems, so please do your utmost not to tip that balance in the wrong direction.

Summary of How to Snorkel Tips

Do yourself a favor and learn how to snorkel correctly: you will be able to get the most out of the snorkelling experiences you have and also learn how to appreciate more fully what you see.


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