Top Punta Cana Snorkeling - page 8

An exception experience with Melvin and his team. Huge respect to being eco-conscious, educational and entertaining at the same time, there are not that many excursions like this one on the market in the area. Would definitely recommend to solo female travellers too - I felt safe and cared for, met good companions along the way but also definitely had a chance to enjoy by myself, no interactions were forced

Wonderful trip — highly recommend! We’re a family of six (two adults, a 17-year-old girl, a 14-year-old boy, and two 12-year-old boys), and we were looking for a small-group experience with great snorkeling — definitely not a “party boat.” This trip exceeded expectations. The boat is a fairly large catamaran, but our group was just our family plus one other couple, which made it feel relaxed and uncrowded. Our guide, David, was engaging, knowledgeable, and great with the kids. The captain, Mitchell (spelling?), was also friendly and clearly very capable. We started with a snorkeling stop that was fantastic. Even though the main area had a lot of tourist boats, David jumped in with us and guided us away from the crowds. He pointed out all kinds of interesting things — a live conch, a sand dollar — and even gave us fish food so the fish would come right up to us. He also spent time teaching the kids about the different fish, which they loved. One of the highlights was seeing a coral reef “farm,” where coral is being grown on an underwater rope system to help restore reefs over time. I really appreciated David’s focus on the environment, which seemed consistent with the broader appreciation for nature we saw throughout the DR. The second stop was more of a hangout spot — shallow water near a beach with other boats around. The kids got to paddleboard, and David didn’t just hand them equipment — he jumped in and played football with them, which they thought was great. Even with a number of boats nearby, it didn’t feel overly crowded and still felt very family-friendly. On the way back, David pointed out several sea turtles, which was a really cool bonus. The trip lasted about four hours and included sodas, snacks, and alcoholic drinks that David made. Overall, we loved this experience — especially as a family that wanted to avoid a party-boat vibe. Our resort had tried to steer us toward what felt like a very controlled, almost artificial snorkeling setup, and we’re so glad we didn’t take the bait (pun intended). I’d book with David and this company again in a heartbeat.

HQT was very good at communicating pick up and drop off times and locations. They were there at the airport when we got out of baggage claim and there at the hotel in enough time once we were leaving Punta Cana. My only issue was that their responsiveness was lacking when we requested a later pick up time. But we made it to the airport safely and had plenty of time to get through security so it all worked out in the end.