Which fins should you get?

What we recommend for diving in Puerto Rico

It all depends on whether you’re shore diving or boat diving.

• Boat diving: either option works just fine, boots with open-heel fins or full-foot fins, because you’re not walking over anything that could hurt your feet.
• Shore diving: go with boots and strapped, open-heel fins. The boots protect your feet while you walk over asphalt, cement and hot sand, and from any glass or anything else on the ground that could cut you. That applies to shore diving all over the island.

Full-foot or open-heel

• Full-foot: slip on barefoot. Light and simple, good for snorkeling and warm-water boat dives.
• Open-heel: worn with boots and an adjustable or spring strap. The standard for scuba, and the one you want for shore entries.

Match the fin to your body

When you’re buying fins, think about your fitness level. If you have any limitations from the waist down, like bad hips, knees or ankles, you’ll want softer fins or split fins. Split fins get a lot of hate, but they’re really good for this.

On the flip side, if you’re in good shape and stiffness isn’t an issue, you can pretty much pick the fin you want.

• Paddle: the classic blade. More control for frog kicks, back kicks and holding still, which is why photographers and technical divers like them.
• Split: easy on the knees with a flutter kick. Popular with divers who want less effort.
• Stiffer vs softer: stiffer blades move more water but need stronger legs. Softer blades are easier to kick all day.

Match the fin to your diving

Look at the type of diving you’re doing, too. Ideally, you don’t take a basic Open Water course in long freediving or spearfishing fins. They’re so long they’re hard to control while you’re learning, and too long for scuba on a busy reef.

It works the other way around as well. If you’re freediving or spearfishing and want to go a little deeper, super short snorkeling fins mean you have to kick way, way more than with a long fin to reach the same depth. More in freediving fins vs scuba fins.

Buying boots

Buying boots should be like buying shoes. They should feel comfortable, like an extension of your foot.

What’s very important is to match the boot to the fin. A thick-soled boot might need a slightly bigger fin. If you plan to wear 2 or 3 mm socks with full-foot fins, you might need to go up a size. It all depends on how you plan to dive, so bring your boots when you shop for fins, or pick both together.

Finding the right pair

One of our divers didn’t do his Open Water with us, but went through his Advanced and all the way up to Master Scuba Diver here. In the beginning, he didn’t like the fins he had. Over several courses he settled on slightly stiffer fins, because they let him do the frog kick, which is the technique he likes to use when he dives.

It’s personal preference. In the end he found the fins that let him dive the way he wanted to, and it made him a better diver overall.

Leg cramps and tired legs

Stiffer fins can cause cramps more than slightly softer ones. But in our experience, most cramps and tired legs come from not drinking enough water and not getting enough rest, and dehydration is very common in Puerto Rico’s heat. Drink water before and between dives.

Fit

• Snug, with no pinching or pressure points.
• No heel lifting when you kick.
• For open-heel fins, fit them with the boots you’ll actually wear.

Sizes vary between brands, so the best way to choose is in the shop.

Making them last

• Rinse them with fresh water after every dive.
• Don’t let them dry in direct sun. Keep them in a cool, dry place.
• Check the straps often and replace them before they get critical, not when they snap in the middle of a dive.
• Don’t stand on the tips. People break fins all the time by standing on the tips, with their full weight or with full weight plus dive gear. Fins aren’t designed for that, and it usually ends with a snapped blade. That’s not a manufacturer defect, it’s using the fin the wrong way, and it happens way more than you’d think.