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The idea here is not to turn you into a fluent Spanish-diver, but you should at least recognize some of these terms if your hear them. You might want to print out this list to take if you plan on diving off the track in Latin America. (Turns out they don't speak Latin after all.)
To get started, you are probably going to look for, or be solicited for, un paseo de buceo, meaning a dive trip. Possibly a paseo de esnorkel. You'll set out in a lancha, hopefully de motor, which might be called a panga. If they mention a yate don't necessarily expect a yacht: just something bigger than a small launch.
As far as your basic equipment, you won't get far asking about a máscara, the word is visór. Lots of people around the water understand "snorkle" (and the improbable improvised verb, snorkelear, but lots would recognize pipa instead.
About that snorkelear verb, by the way--the reason it was coined is (see if this sounds familiar) to differentiate snorkle diving from SCUBA diving. The word for diving is bucear and a diver is a buzo. So far as I know there is no such noun as esnorkelador. Thank God.
Fins are aletas, the same thing you call fish fins. It's a diminutive of alas, by the way, which means "wings", a concept I like. Take these little wings and learn to fly.
A spear is a lanza, but they would call a spear gun a pistola or possibly harpón (pronounced "ar pone"). So there's a noun you might dig if you're a shooter--pistolero.
More equipment: knife is cuchillo (or it might be called a navaja, which is more like a fighting knife.) A net is called a red (and pronounced "raid"). Your gear is equipo, and might be stored in a bolsa (bag) or mochila (pack). A few things you might hear on board: chaleco is a life vest, rope is cuerda or soga, ancla is anchor, anzuela is a fishhook.
Some depth terms: Bajito means shallow, profundo is deep. Bajar is to go down, going up is subir (which would also mean to get in the boat) or ascendir. Remember that the "u" in profundo is sounded like the "oo" in "moon". Honduras means "depths" or "deep waters", profundidad de doce metros would mean "depth of 12 meters".
In case it should come up: Cuidado (kwee dah doe) means "look out", "careful", "Heads!" Peligro is danger, peligroso means dangerous. Seguro means safe. In trouble you should yell, Ayudame (Ah yoo dah may). If you hear that or Socorro! somebody needs help. Precaució means "Warning!" or "Caution!"
As mentionedBuzo means diver, vago means a vagabond or derelict. So what would El Buzo Vagabundomean but "The Snorkle Bum".
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