Is it possible for kids to snorkle wearing glasses?

[WendyandGoofy]

My DH and I wear contacts, but our boys, 8&9, both wear glasses. (I guess we'll be easy to spot!) We are hoping that they will enjoy snorkling, but is it possible to get a "seal" with glasses on? I'm thinking of getting our older boy prescription goggles, since his eyes are much worse. We swim quite a bit as it is, and they love to wear goggles in the pool. They don't seem to mind their uncorrected vision under water, but I thought they might be pleasantly suprised how pretty everything is "in focus"!

Any ideas? Thanks so much!

 

[prymsu]

www.diversdirect.com

There are some different googles that can correct your vision...

 

[Luvmic49]

We sailed on the Magic last June. Our DD (11) wears glasses and cannot see very much without them. She had just gotten new glasses, and we brought along the old ones for spares. I took the arms off the old pair (goggles won't seal with one wearing glasses because of the arms) and just kind of stuffed them in the snorkling goggles. This worked great, she did not miss a thing.

 

[disneyholic family]

well i admittedly don't wear glasses so i haven't a clue, but my son is an avid scuba diver and wears glasses, but just wears a regular mask.....without correction.....
also hubby snorkels on occasion with the kid when we're at the coral reserve.....hubby's blind as a bat without his glasses but seems to do fine with just a standard face mask.....and is always ooohing and ahhhing (of course, perhaps he can't see a thing and does that for public consumption)....
but neither of them seems to need a special mask...

 

[bev r.]

this past November we were able to rent prescription masks for a reasonable rate. I don't exactly remember how much they were, my brother-in-law got them. My husband and I also used them and were able to see with them, even with all three of us having different prescriptions.

 

[Limmer]

I wear glasses all the time and I cannot see without them but when I was snorkeling everything was clear as a bell with just a regular mask. I don't know why but I could see fine.

 

[Scott H]

When viewing things underwater thru the lense of a face mask things are enlarged by 25%. Hence some folks do not need to get a prescription mask.

 

[WendyandGoofy]

Thanks for your replies! Since we don't have any old glasses, I think we'll rely on the magnification of the goggles. Glad to hear that you glasses wearers can see the fishies!

 

[Werner Weiss]

I'm very nearsighted. I've snorkeled three ways:

• With regular goggles -- The magnification helps, so even with regular goggles, the undersea world was beautiful, though rather fuzzy.
• With regular googles, but with old glasses with the temple arms removed perched on my nose inside the goggles -- Well, it seemed like a good idea, but it was difficult to keep everything in place.
• With rented goggles that contain correcting lenses -- The rental shop ("Snorkel Bob" in Kapaa, Kauai) had various strengths of lenses to correct nearsightedness, though not astigmatism. The goggles didn't correct my vision on land as well as my regular glasses, but underwater, the view was wonderful!

I would imagine that anyone whose nearsightedness involves more than three diopters would benefit quite a bit from corrective goggles. If your perscription involves six or seven or eight diopters, the difference would be so dramatic as to justify whatever extra effort and expense it takes to get the corrective googles.

That raises a question... Does anyone know of a places to rent corrective googles during the Eastern Caribbean Disney Cruise?