San Juan · Culebra · Vieques
Swim with Turtles in Puerto Rico
Snorkel with wild green sea turtles from the beach at Escambrón in San Juan, with an instructor beside you and a video of your swim. Swimming is not required, only being comfortable in the water.
- 4.7 / 5 1143+ Reviews
- 1h 30m Duration
- 4 Sea turtle species in Puerto Rico's waters
- 50 yd NOAA's recommended distance from a sea turtle
- Free Cancellation
The Experience
What the Turtle Snorkel Covers
Ninety minutes at Escambrón beach: a lesson on the sand, then the reef and the turtles with an instructor.
Highlights
- Snorkel with wild sea turtles at Escambrón in San Juan
- A safety briefing and a snorkeling lesson on the beach first
- An instructor in the water with you
- A free video of your tour
- No swimming skills needed if you are comfortable in the water
What's Included
- A professional guide
- Snorkeling equipment
- Free videos (no refund if the camera fails)
Good to know: Swimming is not required, but you must be comfortable in the water. · Prescription glasses cannot be worn under a snorkel mask; contact lenses are fine. · Not suitable for children under 8, pregnant women, or people with back or heart problems. · No hotel pickup: you meet the instructor at Escambrón beach in San Juan. · Not suitable for: Children under 8 years, Pregnant women, People with back problems, People with heart problems · Not Included: Hotel pickup and drop-off, Food and drinks, Tips
How the Snorkel Runs
Get yourself to Escambrón, gear up on the beach, swim with the instructor, and leave with a video.
Get to Escambrón
The snorkel starts on the beach at Escambrón in San Juan, a short ride from Old San Juan and Condado. There is no hotel pickup: come by taxi or Uber, or drive and pay to park.
Gear and a Lesson on the Sand
The instructor hands out the mask, snorkel and fins, gives a safety briefing and shows you how to breathe through the snorkel before you go in.
The Reef and the Turtles
You swim out from the beach with the instructor over the reef, looking for the sea turtles. The whole outing takes about 90 minutes.
Your Video
The instructor films the swim, and the video comes to you free after the tour. If the camera fails, the tour is not refunded.
Photo Gallery
Escambrón and Its Turtles
The beach, the reef and the turtles.
Book Your Experience
Check Availability & Prices
Select your preferred date and time. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure.
Plan the Swim
Where, How and When
San Juan, Culebra and Vieques, the rules for turtles, swimming with turtles as a beginner, and the best time to go.
Prices are each page's featured tour: GetYourGuide checked October 2026. Listing prices are per person, adult fare.
Four Ways to Swim with Turtles in Puerto Rico
Three snorkels from Escambrón beach in San Juan and a day on Culebra. Prices from the listings, with the month they were checked.
| Feature | THIS PAGE Beginner snorkel, Escambrón | Jet snorkel, Escambrón | Shore snorkel, life vest | Culebra by ferry |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What You Pay | From $59 per person (checked October 2026) | From $99 per person (checked October 2026) | From $39 per person (checked October 2026) | From $146 per person (checked October 2026) |
| Paid on the Day | Parking if you drive | Parking if you drive, $5 to $10 | Parking if you drive, $7 | Lunch on Culebra |
| Time | 1 hour 30 minutes | 1 hour 30 minutes | 1 hour 30 minutes | About 10 hours |
| In the Water | With an instructor, after a lesson on the sand | About an hour, pulled by an underwater jet | With a certified guide, in a life vest | About two hours from Tamarindo beach |
| Getting There | Your own way to Escambrón | Your own way to Escambrón | Your own way to Escambrón | Ferry from Ceiba included |
| Best For | First-timers comfortable in the water | Saving your energy; from age 10 | A shore snorkel on a budget | A day out with Flamenco beach |
| Check dates | See the jet snorkel | See the shore snorkel | See the Culebra day |
Other Ways to Go
More Ways to Swim with Turtles in Puerto Rico
A jet snorkel at Escambrón, small groups, the Condado Lagoon, Culebra by ferry or by boat, and Vieques.
THE JET DOES THE WORKJet Snorkel with Turtles and Videos at Escambrón
Jet Snorkel's 90-minute guided snorkel from Escambrón beach in San Juan with a hand-held underwater jet that pulls you along, so distance and current cost you no effort: a safety briefing and a gear fitting, then about an hour in the water looking for sea turtles, with videos of the swim. From age 10. Bottled water and the gear are included; parking at the beach, $5 to $10, is not.
FROM THE SHORETurtle Snorkel from Escambrón Beach with Videos
Sea Adventures of PR's 90-minute snorkel from the shore at Escambrón beach: a class on the sand, then the bay with a certified guide in a group of up to 10, with a USCG-approved life vest, mask, snorkel and fins, and a free video. Children 7 and under cannot take part. Parking, $7 if you drive, is extra.
TURTLES AND MANATEESTurtles and Manatees Snorkel from Playita del Condado
San Juan Snorkel's 90-minute guided snorkel from Playita del Condado, in water where sea turtles and manatees come to feed, with mask, fins, snorkel and life jacket, lifeguard-trained guides and a free video. You must know how to swim; from age 10. Touching and feeding the animals is not allowed.
CULEBRA BY FERRYCulebra by Ferry: Turtle Snorkel at Tamarindo and Flamenco Beach
Kayaking Puerto Rico's day on Culebra by the public ferry from Ceiba, about ten hours in all: round-trip ferry tickets, a ride across the island, about two hours of guided shore snorkeling from Tamarindo beach in the Luis Peña Channel reserve, where green and hawksbill turtles are often seen, then Flamenco beach, entry included. Gear with a flotation belt, snacks and a photo album are included; lunch is not. From age 6; you must be comfortable swimming.
CULEBRA BY CATAMARANCulebra Snorkel and Beach Day by Catamaran from Fajardo
East Island Excursions' six-hour catamaran day from Puerto del Rey Marina in Fajardo: 50 to 55 minutes across, a reef snorkel, a deli lunch on board, then the afternoon at the beach the captain picks for the day, usually Flamenco or Culebrita, with soft drinks, beer, piña coladas and rum punch. The swim from the boat to the beach is 15 to 21 metres, so you must be able to swim.
ON VIEQUESVieques Small-Group Turtle Snorkel with Photos
Snorkeling & BioBay Tours With Fokito's two-hour small-group snorkel on Vieques: you meet at the old ceiba tree past the airport, ride to the snorkel spots that suit the day's sea, and swim with a guide looking for sea turtles, rays and reef fish, with photos and videos, water and snacks. The tour starts on Vieques, so take the ferry or a flight first.
The Guide
Where the Turtles Are, and How You Swim with Them
San Juan, Culebra or Vieques, which snorkel fits you, what it costs, which turtles you meet, and the rules that protect them.
You can swim with wild sea turtles in Puerto Rico without leaving San Juan. At Escambrón, a beach park on the north shore between Old San Juan and Condado, guided snorkels walk in from the sand and swim out over the reef looking for green sea turtles, in about 90 minutes. For a day out, the island of Culebra has a shore snorkel at Tamarindo beach, on the coast of a marine reserve, and Vieques has small-group snorkels of its own. Every sea turtle here is protected by federal law, so you watch from a distance and never touch.
The short answer
For most visitors, the turtle swim is Try Scuba Diving’s beginner snorkel at Escambrón, sold on GetYourGuide as San Juan: Beginner Snorkeling Tour with Turtles and Videos. You meet the instructor on the beach, get the mask, snorkel and fins, a safety briefing and a short lesson, then swim out over the reef with the instructor, who films the swim and sends you the video free. Swimming is not required, only being comfortable in the water, and it suits ages 8 and up. It costs from $59 a person, with 1,143 reviews (checked October 2026). There is no hotel pickup: take a taxi or Uber to Escambrón, or drive and pay to park.
Check dates for the turtle snorkel
Pick your snorkel
Beginner Turtle Snorkel at Escambrón with Videos
A lesson on the sand, an instructor in the water and a free video, at Escambrón. Swimming not required if you are comfortable in the water.
Check dates →Jet Snorkel with Turtles and Videos at Escambrón
Jet Snorkel's hand-held underwater jet pulls you along the reef at Escambrón for about an hour, with videos. From age 10.
See the jet snorkel →Turtle Snorkel from Escambrón Beach with Videos
Sea Adventures of PR's 90 minutes from the shore at Escambrón with a certified guide, a USCG-approved life vest and a free video.
See the shore snorkel →Culebra by Ferry: Turtle Snorkel at Tamarindo and Flamenco Beach
Kayaking Puerto Rico's day by the public ferry: a guided shore snorkel at Tamarindo beach, then Flamenco beach. From age 6.
See the Culebra day →Prices, ratings and review counts from the listings (GetYourGuide checked October 2026; Viator checked October 2026). Operators price by date and season, so treat the figures as the shape of the market, not a quote.
Where the turtles are
| Place | What it is | Trip for it |
|---|---|---|
| Escambrón, San Juan | A beach park on the Atlantic shore, where most San Juan turtle snorkels start | Beginner snorkel with videos |
| Playita del Condado and the Condado Lagoon, San Juan | A small beach and a lagoon reserve a short walk east, with manatees as well as turtles | Turtles and manatees snorkel |
| Tamarindo beach, Culebra | A shore snorkel on Culebra’s west coast, by ferry from Ceiba; boat days from Fajardo snorkel the reefs nearby | Culebra by ferry with the Tamarindo snorkel; by catamaran from Fajardo |
| Vieques | The larger island south of Culebra, by ferry from Ceiba; snorkels around Punta Arenas and Mosquito Pier | Small-group snorkel on Vieques |
The San Juan guide covers Escambrón and Condado, the Culebra guide the ferry, the boats and Tamarindo, and the Vieques guide the island’s snorkels.
Boats from the Fajardo marinas also go to Cayo Icacos, an uninhabited cay in the Cordillera reefs reserve; its draw is the beach and the reef rather than turtles. icacos-island-water-taxi.com covers the water taxi out there from Las Croabas.
Which turtles you meet
Four sea turtle species occur in Puerto Rico’s waters: the green turtle, the hawksbill, the leatherback and the loggerhead. Puerto Rico’s natural-resources department, the DRNA, calls the green turtle the most common, because the islands have plenty of the seagrass it eats, so a green turtle grazing or rising to breathe is the usual sight on a snorkel. Hawksbills feed on the reefs, picking sponges out of the coral. Leatherbacks come ashore to nest, and the loggerhead, once common, is rarely seen in Puerto Rico.
Under the US Endangered Species Act the hawksbill and the leatherback are listed as endangered and the green turtles here (the North Atlantic population) and the loggerhead as threatened. Puerto Rico’s own list names the green, hawksbill and leatherback turtles as endangered.
The rules, in short
- Never touch, ride, feed or chase a turtle. Federal law makes it illegal to harass, harm or pursue them, and in Puerto Rico a violation of the endangered-species rules is a felony, with fines of $5,000 to $50,000 per animal.
- Keep your distance. NOAA recommends at least 50 yards. The DRNA’s code for licensed guides on Culebra says to watch from the side, at least 3 metres away, never above, below or in front of a turtle, and never to circle it.
- Leave the coral alone. Damaging coral can bring DRNA fines of $500 to $10,000 under Puerto Rico’s coral-reef law.
The Puerto Rico sea turtle rules guide sets them out with their sources, and covers snorkeling without a tour.
What it costs
| Trip | Listing price | Not included |
|---|---|---|
| Shore snorkel with a life vest and video, Escambrón (Sea Adventures of PR) | From $39 in current promotion (usually $58) | Parking, $7, if you drive |
| Turtles and manatees snorkel, Playita del Condado (San Juan Snorkel LLC) | From $55 | Tips |
| Beginner snorkel with videos, Escambrón (Try Scuba Diving - San Juan) | From $59 | Food and drinks, tips |
| Jet snorkel with videos, Escambrón (Jet Snorkel) | From $99 | Parking, $5 to $10, if you drive |
| Culebra by ferry, Tamarindo snorkel and Flamenco (Kayaking Puerto Rico) | From $146 | Lunch on Culebra, tips |
| Culebra by power boat from Fajardo (Sail Getaway) | From $195 | Tips |
Listing prices: GetYourGuide checked October 2026; Viator checked October 2026. What is not included is what each listing states.
Not a swimmer, or snorkeling for the first time?
You have options. The beginner snorkel at Escambrón asks only that you are comfortable in the water, the jet snorkel does the swimming for you, and Sea Adventures of PR runs a family snorkel for children aged 8 to 14 that starts in the shallows. Some tours are for swimmers only. The beginners guide sorts them out.
When to go
Any month: the San Juan snorkels run all year, and a calm sea matters more than the season. From November to April, the winter swell season, long-period swells reach the coasts, and the Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30. Water off Culebra averages about 80 °F in February and 86 °F in September. See the best time to swim with turtles.
Who should pick something else
- You want the turtles and a beach day: go to Culebra; see the Culebra guide.
- You are staying on Vieques: the snorkels there start on the island; see the Vieques guide.
- You would rather not swim at all: take the jet snorkel, or read the beginners guide.
- You want to know exactly what is allowed: read the turtle rules first.
Swim with the Turtles at Escambrón
Try Scuba Diving's 90-minute snorkel from the beach in San Juan: a lesson on the sand, an instructor in the water and a free video of your swim. Starting from $59 per person.
See datesMore Trips with Open Dates
More Puerto Rico Snorkel Trips with Open Dates
Turtle snorkels, boat days and island trips with live availability. Times and cancellation terms are on each listing.
Swimming with Turtles in Puerto Rico: Questions
Where to go, what it costs, touching and distance, swimming skills, the species and the season.
Yes: the easiest place is Escambrón beach in San Juan, where guided snorkels go out from the sand looking for green sea turtles; Culebra and Vieques are the island trips. The San Juan snorkels take about 90 minutes and start from $39 a person (checked October 2026). On Culebra the usual turtle snorkel is from Tamarindo beach, inside the Canal Luis Peña reserve; on Vieques small groups snorkel around Punta Arenas and Mosquito Pier. See San Juan, Culebra and Vieques.
For a short trip, Escambrón in San Juan: no boat, no ferry, 90 minutes from the beach. For a day out, Culebra: NOAA has protected the coastal waters around Culebra as critical habitat for green turtles since 1998, and Tamarindo beach lies on the stretch of coast covered by the Canal Luis Peña reserve, a no-fishing zone since 1999. Vieques suits travellers already staying on the island.
The San Juan turtle snorkels run from $39 to $99 a person for about 90 minutes; a Culebra day costs from $146 by ferry to $195 by power boat (GetYourGuide checked October 2026; Viator checked October 2026). Parking at Escambrón is extra if you drive.
No. All sea turtles in Puerto Rico's waters are protected by the federal Endangered Species Act, which makes it illegal to harass, harm or pursue them, and Puerto Rico lists the green, hawksbill and leatherback turtles as endangered under its own wildlife law, where a violation is a felony with fines of $5,000 to $50,000 per animal. NOAA's guidance is to never touch, ride, feed or chase a sea turtle. See the turtle rules.
No law sets a distance in metres; the guidance does. NOAA recommends staying at least 50 yards from sea turtles in the water (Hawaii alone uses 10 feet). The code Puerto Rico's natural-resources department, the DRNA, teaches licensed guides at Culebra's Canal Luis Peña reserve says to watch from the side, at least 3 metres away, never above, below or in front of a turtle, and never to circle it.
It depends on the tour. Try Scuba Diving's beginner snorkel at Escambrón does not require swimming, only being comfortable in the water, from $59 (checked October 2026). Jet Snorkel's underwater jet pulls you along. San Juan Snorkel's tour from Playita del Condado is for swimmers only. See turtle snorkeling for beginners.
Four species occur here: green, hawksbill, leatherback and loggerhead. The DRNA calls the green turtle the most common in Puerto Rico's waters, because of the seagrass it feeds on; hawksbills feed on the reefs, picking sponges out of the coral. Leatherbacks come ashore to nest, and the loggerhead, once common, is rarely seen.
Any month, on a calm morning. The turtles feed here all year. From November to April, the winter swell season, long-period swells reach the coasts, and rip currents are the islands' leading surf hazard; the Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30. See the best time to go.
Yes: Escambrón and Tamarindo are open beaches, and people snorkel there on their own as well as with tours. The wildlife rules apply either way: no touching, feeding or chasing. A guided snorkel adds the gear, a life vest on most tours, a guide watching the sea and someone who knows where to look. On the open north coast in winter, go with a guide or not at all.
No. Puerto Rico has no law banning oxybenzone sunscreen: a 2025 bill passed the House but a Senate committee recommended against it in October 2025. Hawaii, by contrast, has banned the sale of oxybenzone and octinoxate sunscreens since January 2021. A long-sleeved rash guard keeps the sun off without putting anything in the water.
Still have questions? Email us at info@swimwithturtlespuertorico.com