Rainbow Reef (“Safari Snorkel by Boat”)

Ship’s Excursion out of Freeport, Grand Bahama Island, Bahamas

Ship: Norwegian Gem (NCL)

Sailing Date: December 22, 2007

Date of Snorkel: December 27, 2007

Equipment Availability: we have our own which we take with us, but equipment is available on board the boat and included in the price of the excursion.  The equipment for loan was relatively new and appeared to be well maintained and sanitary, if you consider dunking briefly in soapy water to be “sanitary”.

Water Access: the Fantasia II Snorkeling Boat, under the command of Captain Rick

            Freeport, Grand Bahama, was a new port of call for us, as well as for the Norwegian Gem on her US inaugural voyage, which just happened to be a Christmas cruise. Fire boats shooting water everywhere greeted us on the ship’s early morning arrival into the harbor, and a very good band combo (with local singer) were on the pier to welcome the ship and passengers too.  The snorkeling was magnificent and we were thrilled to find a site that clearly rivals just about any other location we have sampled in the Bahamas.

            The Fantasia II is a modified double-decker barge with a bar, plenty of shade, toilets and a loud speaker system below, and plenty of seating on comfortable deck chairs both on top and below. An unusual feature is a bright yellow hard plastic slide that extends from the front of the upper deck into the water—great funs for adults and children alike once we were on site at Rainbow Reef. Assorted drinks, grilled hot dogs and hamburgers were available for sale on our way back to the marina.

            Passengers are escorted from the ship to buses for the 30 ride around a portion of the island.  A small marina lies just behind the Westin Hotel, and we enjoyed shopping here in a wide variety of local stores at the end of our excursion.  Unlike many Bahamanian ports, the stores sold local gifts, not the usual Tanzanite, tacky T-shirts, ashtrays and other materials that one finds in every other port all over the Bahamas and the Caribbean these days.

            Rainbow Reef lies approximately 1 mile off shore from the Westin Hotel and is an extensive site with a well developed reef. The depth of the water varies from about 6 to 20 feet, but the water is clear as can be; we had no trouble with visibility at all, despite the number of fellow snorkelers in the water with us.  Magnificent corals and brightly colored fish abounded, both in terms of variety of species and quantity within each.  Our favorite Midnight Parrot fish were very much in evidence along with other Parrot varieties, and numerous types and varieties of Butterfly Fish, Angel Fish (predominantly Grays), Grunts, Wrasses, Tangs, Hamlets, Trumpetfish, as well as Hogfish.  But, new and most fascinating to us were the Black Durgeon Triggerfish, a species that we have seen only from a distance and in very limited numbers at other sites.  There was an enormous school of them at Rainbow Reef, and we were thrilled to add an incredible number of photographs of them to our collection.

A highly recommended trip!

Snorkeling Grade: A+