Curaçao: Snorkel Cruise with Tugboat Wreck & BBQ Lunch

4.75

(146 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

Someone hands me a mask that still smells faintly of salt and sunscreen. We’re already drifting past these wild-looking villas in Spanish Waters — I’m still trying to guess who lives in them when our guide, Rudy, calls out over the music that we’re almost at the Tugboat. It’s funny how fast you forget about your phone when the water starts turning that turquoise color. I was nervous about snorkeling (I always am), but Rudy just grinned and said, “Jump in, you’ll see.” So I did.

The first thing I noticed underwater was how quiet it gets. The tugboat itself is smaller than I expected, kind of hunched over in the sand, but there’s this weird beauty to it — yellow fish darting through rusty holes, soft coral swaying like someone breathing. My friend tried to name all the species; I mostly floated and watched sunlight flicker across metal. Back on deck, someone handed me a rum punch (stronger than I thought), and suddenly everyone’s talking at once — swapping stories about what they saw down there.

We stopped again near a shallow reef just around the corner — more fish, more laughter, one guy lost his flipper and pretended he was a mermaid for half the swim. Meanwhile, you could smell BBQ drifting from upstairs. The crew set up this buffet that honestly tasted better than most restaurant lunches I’ve had — maybe it was just eating with wet hair and salty skin that made everything sharper? There was music playing, people dancing barefoot on deck, and I remember thinking: this is exactly how you want a day trip in Curaçao to feel. Even now, sometimes when I catch the scent of grilled chicken mixed with sea air, my brain goes right back there.