Cheaper to buy snorkeling gear in London or Dahab, Egypt?

Sunflower2007

Hi,

It's my first time ever snorkeling and I wanted to buy a basic mask & snorkel for my holiday in Dahab next month.

I don't want to compromise too much on quality (i.e,. I would like to see some fish and coral! Lol), but it seems quite expensive in london. Min prices Ive seen are around £45 for the set.

Has anyone been to Dahab or Egypt? Is it cheaper to buy it out there?

Generally, do ppl buy these things abroad or at home?

Thanks!

mrs_baggins

i dive a lot and been to egypt a few times. To be honest even the stuff that you get from aldi is ok and have worn in in emergencies at 30m or so. I bought a kit last year for abbout a tenner or so. will you be going on a boat to do it or just pottering offshore? what about fins? you can always hire the whole lot when you get there if you want

absfabs

I would reckon £5 -£10 max for snorkel and mask, have bought these cheap when on hols in Greece, and they worked fine for a couple of years.

If you can't find it for <£45, I would leave it and hope to buy the set in Egypt. (any good beach resort hotel or attached diving centre should have some)

Sunflower2007

Thanks guys.

As I'm a complete beginner and I've never been to egypt before...and the fact that we're on a budget - we're gonna stick to swimming along the coastal beachy area.

I think you guys are right, I dont need to spend so much. Soo you guys have made up my mind for me, I'm gonna wait to get it out there, I thought it was quite excessive to pay £45 for snorkel+mask when the flight to dahab was only £140! Thanks guys!

Oh do I have to be a brilliant swimmer to snorkel? I can swim but Im not sure i can tread water for that long !

daveyjp

I bought mine in Sharm from a big dive shop. Same make as most of the dive schools were using and it was £20 including a diposable camera in a waterproof case - well worth having for taking photos of the fish you see. They say they are single use, but I used the case again and it didn't leak.

BTW the Red Sea is cold!

mrs_baggins

you dont have to be a brilliant swimmer but if you feel nervous dont go out of your depth. there are loads to see even in very shallow water. if you are using wet suit it will give you some buoyancy. if you are near to bham I can lend you some gear to take if you want

Mark7799

Sunflower2007 wrote: »

Thanks guys.

As I'm a complete beginner and I've never been to egypt before...and the fact that we're on a budget - we're gonna stick to swimming along the coastal beachy area.

I think you guys are right, I dont need to spend so much. Soo you guys have made up my mind for me, I'm gonna wait to get it out there, I thought it was quite excessive to pay £45 for snorkel+mask when the flight to dahab was only £140! Thanks guys!

Oh do I have to be a brilliant swimmer to snorkel? I can swim but Im not sure i can tread water for that long !

We hired equipment when we were out in Sharm last year. First time for both DW & I snorkelling and DW was amazed that I took to it much better than her bearing in mind that I only learned to swim about six years ago. If you have a pool nearby as well, have a practice in there first to get used to the equipment.

blue_haddock

I bought a mask and snorkel off ebay for my recent trip to cape verde. Cost less than a tenner brand new and seemed OK.

In the end it was used once briefly for about 10 minutes because the visibility was so poor and the sea so rough.

Gosia

Hi

My boyfriend got our snorkelling kit (mask, fins & snorkel) in TK MAXX for about 15 quid. Its Speedo make and I think the original price was about 40 quid.

That was back in April / May but they may still do them.

When we went to Egypt in May he used his Speedo snorkelling gear. When we went on a boat trip they hired them out for free anyway.

So I get the hired one and although it looked quite worn and tacky it worked just as well and it was the most amazing snorkelling trip we ever had!

So in conclusion even a cheapo snorkelling kit would be just as effective. :rotfl: