Snorkeling advice please

[flcraigs5]

Our cruise stops at Moorea, Bora Bora and Raiatea. Which island has the best snorkeling?

[Dthomas1]

2 minutes ago, flcraigs5 said:

Our cruise stops at Moorea, Bora Bora and Raiatea. Which island has the best snorkeling?

You could do a Google search on the three to see the reviews on each.

[flcraigs5]

3 minutes ago, Dthomas1 said:

You could do a Google search on the three to see the reviews on each.

I have already done that  but I am still looking for others that maybe have recently visited the islands and what their opinions were on it.  But thanks

[Dbld777]

We were just there in March and snorkeled on all three. We would rank them:

1) Bora Bora

2) Raiatea

3) Moorea

 

Our best snorkeling and best excursion overall was with H2O Bora Bora. Best snorkeling, best tour guide/host, best boat, and best day of the trip. https://boraborah2o.com/

 

We owe a world of thanks to Petoonya who gave great guidance and I'm sure she will add some more thoughts, based on her extensive FP snorkeling experience.

[Petoonya]

I'm with Dbld777. And was still in Tahiti last week on Wind Spirit.

1) Bora Bora (by a long shot!) And as Dbld777 says H2O Bora Bora is the ultimate snorkeling outfit anywhere. Be sure to book early. They have two boats- one can accommodate 4 and the other 6 so their capacity is limited. And everyone wants them!

2) Raiatea (Taha'a) Te Mara Nui. https://www.te-mara-nui.com/en/  Terrific and they'll take you to the Coral gardens which comes in second to Bora Bora's coral gardens.

3) Moorea (not nearly as many fish as the as the others, and snorkel spots visited by many operators are very crowded.) But one of the better is Moorea Ocean Adventures https://moorea-ocean-adventures.com/    or Dr. Poole for whales/dolphins. http://www.drmichaelpoole.com/tours.htm

 

I'd advise snorkelers to use independent operators. Most, at least the ones who have relatively high ratings on Tripadvisor, are going to be better than what you will get on your ship's snorkel tours. By and large ship's tours visit areas that are "over snorkeled"- too many people. Or visit areas where fish are fed which is really not ethically or eco minded. If you choose a well recommended snorkel tour company from Tripadvisor, they are generally mindful of getting you back to the ship on time so they can keep their good reputation intact.

 

Again, book early to get the best.

 

 

[kclinton]

How can I book Dr. Poole's whale trip? Is there an email? I didn't see any contact information on the website. Also can you NOT get in the water but still see the whales?  I'd love to see them but am a bit skittish about the deep water.

[coopster]

On 8/28/2022 at 1:32 PM, Dbld777 said:

We were just there in March and snorkeled on all three. We would rank them:

1) Bora Bora

2) Raiatea

3) Moorea

 

Our best snorkeling and best excursion overall was with H2O Bora Bora. Best snorkeling, best tour guide/host, best boat, and best day of the trip. https://boraborah2o.com/

 

We owe a world of thanks to Petoonya who gave great guidance and I'm sure she will add some more thoughts, based on her extensive FP snorkeling experience.

we are booked with them in november. friends of ours used them on there used them on their  honeymoon. we booked them for an all day excursion with scuba and snorkeling can not wait.  

[Petoonya]

4 hours ago, coopster said:

we are booked with them in november. friends of ours used them on there used them on their  honeymoon. we booked them for an all day excursion with scuba and snorkeling can not wait.  

We had the full day with H2O BB  two weeks ago- they had a separate  lunch with a private vendor on her own motu. It was absolutely fabulous. We were on an 18 day cruise on Wind Spirit that had 5 days in Bora Bora. H2O BB is so good we went out with them 3 of the 5 days. Outstanding.

[canadianbear]

@Petoonya
 

If you are on a cruise which doesn’t stop at Bora Bora but overnights in Moorea, can you get to Bora Bora fairly easy to do a snorkel excursion? 

[Petoonya]

@canadianbear

The flight is VERY expensive. I think H2O BB is the creme d la creme in Tahiti.

But .....do Mermaid Private Boat Tours if you're looking for something extra special and extra fish concentrated in Moorea 🙂   More expensive and the territory not quite as pristine as BB but still absolutely sublime. The weather is always a question anywhere in Tahiti, so I'd not risk an expensive flight vs taking a perfectly wonderful tour in Moorea. Mermaid Private boat tours. Again, very much worth the expense if you're snorkeling. I very much dislike snorkeling when there are 5-6 other boats visiting the same spot.But never so with Mermaid.

Edited September 7, 2022 by Petoonya

[canadianbear]

43 minutes ago, Petoonya said:

@canadianbear

The flight is VERY expensive. I think H2O BB is the creme d la creme in Tahiti.

But .....do Mermaid Private Boat Tours if you're looking for something extra special and extra fish concentrated in Moorea 🙂   More expensive and the territory not quite as pristine as BB but still absolutely sublime. The weather is always a question anywhere in Tahiti, so I'd not risk an expensive flight vs taking a perfectly wonderful tour in Moorea. Mermaid Private boat tours. Again, very much worth the expense if you're snorkeling. I very much dislike snorkeling when there are 5-6 other boats visiting the same spot.But never so with Mermaid.

 Unfortunately we had to cancel our 50 day cruise which would be later this month.  But I’m looking at early 2024.  We had been booked with Mermaid but of course cancelled when we cancelled the cruise.  They’ll be contacted again for sure.  They were excellent to deal with by email.  
 

Thanks again for all your valuable info you share.  

 

 

[Petoonya]

Really sorry about your canceled cruise. 2024 will be here before you know it and you have all this time to have fun planning. Happy to hear that you had great responses from Mermaid. Luna is a true mermaid. Always nice to chat with you😍

[Host Bonjour]

 

[Host Bonjour]

 

[canadianbear]

@Petoonya perhaps another (stupid) question.  If our ship is overnight in Raiatea, would a ferry be possible to Bora Bora for Patrick’s snorkel tour?  Just thinking since I have until 2024 to figure things out & organize now. 
 

Thabk you, as always, for your input to all questions.  Really appreciate it. 

[Petoonya]

A good question. It is possible but think it would be hard to coordinate. There’s a ferry 3 days a week between Raiatea and Bora Bora but it takes 2.5 hrs each way. Might be very hard to coordinate with arrival and departure of the ship. But there are reasonably priced flights between Raiatea and BB on Air Tahiti last I read. And only 20min. flight. Again could be hard to get flight times to work but worth a try! I like to use the Expedia feature “Rome to Rio” to plug in off the beaten path destination ferries, flights etc. Will let you have the fun of researching it though! Let me know what you find.
 

Are you just one day in BB?

[canadianbear]

3 minutes ago, Petoonya said:

A good question. It is possible but think it would be hard to coordinate. There’s a ferry 3 days a week between Raiatea and Bora Bora but it takes 2.5 hrs each way. Might be very hard to coordinate with arrival and departure of the ship. But there are reasonably priced flights between Raiatea and BB on Air Tahiti last I read. And only 20min. flight. Again could be hard to get flight times to work but worth a try! I like to use the Expedia feature “Rome to Rio” to plug in off the beaten path destination ferries, flights etc. Will let you have the fun of researching it though! Let me know what you find.
 

Are you just one day in BB?

I don’t think it would be worth taking a chance then with ferry or flight.  It’s not a “must” for Bora Bora-it’s just not on our cruise for 2024 because of ship size.  I’m happy if we can just see the South Pacific with the current ports but thought if it was easy on ferry we’d try.  
 

Thank you again for your help and input. I honestly will just be just happy if we can go on this one! 

[ChrisC101]

Thanks to all the CC posters here.  We are booked with H2O in BB now for our upcoming 3/16/24 Windstar Dreams of Tahiti. 

[jbcallender]

On 1/10/2023 at 12:52 PM, ChrisC101 said:

Thanks to all the CC posters here.  We are booked with H2O in BB now for our upcoming 3/16/24 Windstar Dreams of Tahiti. 

You will love H2O.  Ask for Rudpolph for your boat captain!  He was marvelous and made sure we got to all the great locations before the giant tourist boats.  We used them in November 2022.

Edited June 9, 2023 by jbcallender

[ChrisC101]

If I had to do it again I would’ve booked the entire boat.  We were the original two, they got four more (totally understandable) but we felt hostage to the four’s desires and plans.  They also got the shade in the back, we had to be in the sun in the bow.  The first place we went was fabulous but we spent way too little time there and way too much time at other places.  So my advice: book the whole boat.

[vaindioux]

I have just snorkeled Tahiti and Moorea.

Tahiti is not worth it. Moorea is just pure paradise.

Tons of coral and fish in 1 foot of water.

I saw a manta ray too.

 

Pat

[skinsmom]

On 8/29/2022 at 6:41 AM, Petoonya said:

I'm with Dbld777. And was still in Tahiti last week on Wind Spirit.

1) Bora Bora (by a long shot!) And as Dbld777 says H2O Bora Bora is the ultimate snorkeling outfit anywhere. Be sure to book early. They have two boats- one can accommodate 4 and the other 6 so their capacity is limited. And everyone wants them!

2) Raiatea (Taha'a) Te Mara Nui. https://www.te-mara-nui.com/en/  Terrific and they'll take you to the Coral gardens which comes in second to Bora Bora's coral gardens.

3) Moorea (not nearly as many fish as the as the others, and snorkel spots visited by many operators are very crowded.) But one of the better is Moorea Ocean Adventures https://moorea-ocean-adventures.com/    or Dr. Poole for whales/dolphins. http://www.drmichaelpoole.com/tours.htm

 

I'd advise snorkelers to use independent operators. Most, at least the ones who have relatively high ratings on Tripadvisor, are going to be better than what you will get on your ship's snorkel tours. By and large ship's tours visit areas that are "over snorkeled"- too many people. Or visit areas where fish are fed which is really not ethically or eco minded. If you choose a well recommended snorkel tour company from Tripadvisor, they are generally mindful of getting you back to the ship on time so they can keep their good reputation intact.

 

Again, book early to get the best.

 

 

Hi there!  We'll be there in November and visiting some new to us areas.  We've already booked H20 Bora Bora.  I agree private vendors are normally better than the ship's tours.  Do you have any specific snorkel tour vendors/recommendations for Rangoria or Huahine? Thanks so much!

[john2003]

On 6/23/2023 at 6:49 PM, vaindioux said:

I have just snorkeled Tahiti and Moorea.

Tahiti is not worth it. Moorea is just pure paradise.

Tons of coral and fish in 1 foot of water.

I saw a manta ray too.

 

Pat

How do you snorkel in 2 foot of water?

[vaindioux]

1 hour ago, john2003 said:

How do you snorkel in 2 foot of water?

I went to Moorea  too. That is exact, 1 to 2 feet is full of coral and fish.

I also saw a manta ray lol, but it was deeper like 20 feet.

Tahiti is lousy compared to Moorea.

 

Pat

[john2003]

I assume this is a place you can walk in off the beach. Can you say where and how you got there from the ship?