Best Snorkelling Beaches on the Costa Blanca

Why the snorkelling is so good here

The Alicante coast is mostly limestone, not granite — that means clear water without silt, rocky reefs full of cracks for octopus and moray, and Posidonia seagrass meadows that act as nurseries for almost everything that swims. Two formally protected marine reserves — Cabo de San Antonio (between Dénia and Jávea) and Isla de Tabarca off Santa Pola — have been no-take zones since the 1980s, so fish life is genuinely abundant.

What you can expect to see on an average summer snorkel: bream, sea bass, mullet, damselfish, wrasse, salema, the occasional barracuda and — if you look in the right cracks — octopus, moray eels and shoals of cardinalfish. Posidonia meadows shelter pipefish, seahorses and starfish.

The 8 best snorkelling spots

Kit and conditions

• ✦Mask, snorkel, fins — buy decent ones, hire ones leak
• ✦Reef shoes — pebble entries are uncomfortable barefoot
• ✦Rash vest or lycra top — even in August an hour in the water gets cold
• ✦Bring a float or surface marker if you head past the swim zone
• ✦Best months: June to October. Best time of day: morning, before wind
• ✦Visibility is best after a few days of calm — check the forecast

Guided snorkelling & scuba trips

Several operators run morning snorkel tours from Jávea (Cabo San Antonio) and from Santa Pola (Tabarca). Trips typically last 3–4 hours, include kit and a marine guide, and cost €30–€50 per person. For experienced snorkellers, the dive centres also run free-dive 'discovery' trips along the cliffs of Benitachell.