Kelp Forest Snorkeling Experience

Immerse yourself with a snorkeling adventure in Cape Town's majestic kelp forests.

VIBRANT REEFS

Reefs covered by soft corals and other colourful invertebrates

FANTASTIC FISH LIFE

Swim with the charasmatic red roman

Kelp Forest Snorkeling in Cape Town

Embark on an unforgettable kelp forest snorkelling adventure with Kelptown, right in the heart of Cape Town’s Great African Seaforest. Snorkelling in Cape Town offers a rare chance to explore one of the world’s most biodiverse underwater ecosystems, where towering kelp fronds make it seem like you are in a natural cathedral, revealing a vibrant reefs and diverse marine life.

Why Cape Town is the best kelp forest snorkel destination?

The kelp begins to grow from the intertidal zone to about 15 meters water depth making it accessible from the beach and suitable for beginners. Within a meter of water you can witness colourful and diverse reefs, marine life like octopus, a variety of fish species and of course the unique experience of diving through a kelp forest. Cape Town has sunny skies and good visibility on a regular basis which is uncommon in kelp forests globally. The “Great African Sea Forest” is also in good health and actually expanding in range. Cape Town is also on a peninsula with two major ocean currents, the warm Agulhas Current and the cool Benguela Current, allowing good conditions with different wind directions. Kelptown snorkel experiences take place at some of Cape Town's best swimming beaches like Windmill beach and Millers point.

Why you should do a Kelptown Snorkel Experience?

Kelptown snorkel experiences are privately guided, allowing you to feel safe and comfortable all while having all the stunning marine life pointed out to you with fantastic anecdotes and crazy stories about the lives of the kelp forest inhabitants. Perfect for eco-adventurers and ocean lovers, this is your chance to connect with nature in a truly unique way. Contact us to book your private kelp forest snorkelling tour in Cape Town today!"

Possible Sea-life Encounters

It should be noted these are only potential sightings

Fish - red roman, red steenbras, cape bream, cape knife-jaw, klipvis, streepies, black-tail, white steenbras, white mussel-cracker
Invertebrates - spiny sea star, cape urchin, palmate sea-fan, nippled sea-fan, false plum anemones, nudibranches
Cephalopods - common octopus, common cuttlefish
Mammals - cape fur seals, cape clawless otters (rare)
Sharks - pyjama sharks, puffadder shy sharks, Spotted gully sharks, short-tailed rays

(Great-white sharks have become extremely rare in Cape Town and would not normally be found inside kelp forests)

TOUR DURATION

This experience usually takes 2 hours with approximately 1 hour of water time

Private Experience

This is a privately guided experience with a naturalist guide

Weather dependent

This experiene is subject to wind and swell conditions. See cancellation policy

GENERAL ITINERARY GENERAL ITINERARY

Meet at a predetermined destination
Gear fitting
Briefing and overview of the dive site and what to expect while in the Kelp Forest.
Change into gear and then Transfer to snorkel site
Snorkel up to 1 1/2 hours
Change out your gear at snorkel site
Enjoy a warm drink and relive your experiences
Return

WHAT IS INCLUDED? WHAT IS INCLUDED?

Gear Rental

Light Refreshments Afterwards

PRECAUTIONS PRECAUTIONS

For this experience at minimum, you should be able to swim.
Subject to wind and swell conditons.
This is a physical activity in cold water, you should be of sound physical and mental health for this experience
Do not touch the reef as there are sensitive living creature. Sea urchins occur in high numbers that can leave spines in you.
Cases of Rabies have been found in the Cape Fur Seal Population. We will do our best to avoid encounters with seals.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Have you seen any great white sharks on snorkel experiences? - No, great whites used to occur in false bay in large numbers however in the last ten years they have become vary scare due to a pair of shark hungry orcas or a overfishing of smaller sharks which is a major food source
Rest rooms and changing rooms? - We start the experience at a dive shop that has all the facilities you'll need. There are rest rooms, cold showers at some of the sites we visit, however on request we sometimes visit some lesser visited sites where there are no such facilities.
Will I get cold? - The water temperatures range vastly in false bay from 13 degrees Celcius to 20 degrees Celcius. You will be kitted out with a 5mm or 7mm wetsuit based on conditions that will keep you nice and warm while experiencing the kelp forest
What should to bring? - Bring your own towels and sandals you can use to walk down to the beach with