Shore Excursions and Diving

[saltrip]

We'll be sailing in August on the 14 night Marquesas, Tuamotus and Society Islands. This is our first time in French Polynesia. We want to balance diving at the best locations but not missing any must see sights on land. Since you can't book diving ahead of time it's making it a little difficult to plan and book shore excursions. Any suggestions on what not to miss would be helpful. I'm hoping it will be possible to dive then go on shore and to explore on our own a bit if nothing else.

Thanks!

[shrkdive1]

Following along to hear what others say about the Marquesas excursions versus diving as we are booked on the same itinerary in September and we are also divers..  This will be our second PG cruise.  The prior cruise was the Society and Tuamotus islands only.

[Tahitianbigkahuna]

Only advanced divers can dive in the Marquesas. Rangiroa is great but again you must be a good diver. Bring your logs as they will want to see them. Bora Bora is solid as well as Moorea for diving.

[sita]

Rangiroa not on this itinerary but Fakarava is fantastic. At the time we dove the Tuamotus from the PG it was strictly thru outside operators (booked by the ship) Not sure still the case. There are several operators on Fakarava in case booking directly is better for your schedule. In marquesas there used to be an operator In Hiva Oa and that’s all…ship is best option and need advanced open water cert with deep credential. Have not yet dove in Marquesas.  Would skip diving in Huahine and take a dive or two between Borabora and Moorea. Looks like you just spend a day each on this itinerary which does limit your options. Would focus on water in BB (dive followed by a visit to the BB motu) and land in Moorea. Diving can be great there also. Have taken 48 dives off the PG and can offer you more specifics should you have any questions about Tuamotus/Society dive sites. PG dive crew is fantastic; enjoy!

[saltrip]

Thank you for the great information. I may have more questions as I'm planning. I'm glad to hear the PG dive crew is fantastic. We've been diving over for 25 years but mostly in the Caribbean and Hawaii so we're really looking forward to diving on this trip.

[AussieBoyTX]

I echo the advice on certifications and logbooks. Every operator I have been with in French Polynesia has taken these very seriously and some people missed out because they didn't have the necessary qualifications or currency.

 

Fakarava diving is world class and I would dive over the other alternatives on the island. IMO, Fakarava's south pass is a top 10 dive and if you can find someone who will guarantee taking you there, I would do that. The dive requires CMAS ** or PADI Rescue (Advanced + Deep isn't enough for this dive). Since you're in Fakarava all day on this itinerary, you have enough time to do it. I last did the south pass right before Covid and Dive Spirit Fakarava was doing the south pass every day at the time.

 

Fakarava's north pass is also great, if that's what you can work out.

 

Marquesas is also supposed to be great and I would dive, unless there was a particularly interesting Jacques Brel or Paul Gauguin (the artist, not the ship) excursion.

 

Diving in the Society Islands has always been "meh" for me. I just do it to get under water. If you do the Tuamotus and Marquesas diving, you'll find Bora Bora and Moorea underwhelming. I agree that one a day is enough for me.

[Tahitianbigkahuna]

2 hours ago, AussieBoyTX said:

I echo the advice on certifications and logbooks. Every operator I have been with in French Polynesia has taken these very seriously and some people missed out because they didn't have the necessary qualifications or currency.

 

Fakarava diving is world class and I would dive over the other alternatives on the island. IMO, Fakarava's south pass is a top 10 dive and if you can find someone who will guarantee taking you there, I would do that. The dive requires CMAS ** or PADI Rescue (Advanced + Deep isn't enough for this dive). Since you're in Fakarava all day on this itinerary, you have enough time to do it. I last did the south pass right before Covid and Dive Spirit Fakarava was doing the south pass every day at the time.

 

Fakarava's north pass is also great, if that's what you can work out.

 

Marquesas is also supposed to be great and I would dive, unless there was a particularly interesting Jacques Brel or Paul Gauguin (the artist, not the ship) excursion.

 

Diving in the Society Islands has always been "meh" for me. I just do it to get under water. If you do the Tuamotus and Marquesas diving, you'll find Bora Bora and Moorea underwhelming. I agree that one a day is enough for me.

 

South Pass on Fakarava is really good .... just make sure the vendor you book has a deep 'V' boat as the trip can be rough and long 😉

[saltrip]

21 hours ago, AussieBoyTX said:

I echo the advice on certifications and logbooks. Every operator I have been with in French Polynesia has taken these very seriously and some people missed out because they didn't have the necessary qualifications or currency.

 

Fakarava diving is world class and I would dive over the other alternatives on the island. IMO, Fakarava's south pass is a top 10 dive and if you can find someone who will guarantee taking you there, I would do that. The dive requires CMAS ** or PADI Rescue (Advanced + Deep isn't enough for this dive). Since you're in Fakarava all day on this itinerary, you have enough time to do it. I last did the south pass right before Covid and Dive Spirit Fakarava was doing the south pass every day at the time.

 

Fakarava's north pass is also great, if that's what you can work out.

 

Marquesas is also supposed to be great and I would dive, unless there was a particularly interesting Jacques Brel or Paul Gauguin (the artist, not the ship) excursion.

 

Diving in the Society Islands has always been "meh" for me. I just do it to get under water. If you do the Tuamotus and Marquesas diving, you'll find Bora Bora and Moorea underwhelming. I agree that one a day is enough for me.

We don't have CMAS or PADI Rescue are there other dive sites we can do without those on Fakarava? We'll bring our dive logs with us for sure.

[AussieBoyTX]

1 minute ago, saltrip said:

We don't have CMAS or PADI Rescue are there other dive sites we can do without those on Fakarava? We'll bring our dive logs with us for sure.

 

For sure. Everyone offers the north pass every day. If the current is inbound, it's particularly striking because you start the dive in what feels like blue water and after a short while you see the reef rising up below you as you drift into the atoll.

[Tahitianbigkahuna]

The North Pass on Fakarava is very wide ... the sides are 40 - 60 feet deep with the center being much deeper. The North Pass on Fakarava is the widest pass in French Polynesia. Water clarity is very good. Lots of large fish and a bunch of sharks with most being black tip reef. 

 

The South Pass is not near as wide but the majority of it is deeper. There are Hammerheads in the South Pass ... never seen any in the North Pass though they may be there as well ...

 

I find it interesting that this itinerary for the Marquesas bypasses Rangirioa ... one of the best dive locations in the world. 

Edited January 16, 2023 by Tahitianbigkahuna

[sita]

Saltrip & Skrkdive1, your cruises are right in Humpback season in FP. They come us from Antarctica to birth (no dummies) late July ish and leave around October. They come fairly close to the reef in Moorea and other islands and FP dive boats are pretty lax about letting you get in the water to observe with a mask. Never had the opportunity though did hear the song during a dive in Moorea once. When we surfaced they were visible thru binoculars at great distance; amazing how sound travels underwater. All this talk about diving and French Polynesia has me itching to book another trip there. Definitely not a ‘meh’ experience for me.

[shrkdive1]

On 1/15/2023 at 1:25 PM, AussieBoyTX said:

I echo the advice on certifications and logbooks. Every operator I have been with in French Polynesia has taken these very seriously and some people missed out because they didn't have the necessary qualifications or currency.

 

Fakarava diving is world class and I would dive over the other alternatives on the island. IMO, Fakarava's south pass is a top 10 dive and if you can find someone who will guarantee taking you there, I would do that. The dive requires CMAS ** or PADI Rescue (Advanced + Deep isn't enough for this dive). Since you're in Fakarava all day on this itinerary, you have enough time to do it. I last did the south pass right before Covid and Dive Spirit Fakarava was doing the south pass every day at the time.

 

Fakarava's north pass is also great, if that's what you can work out.

 

Marquesas is also supposed to be great and I would dive, unless there was a particularly interesting Jacques Brel or Paul Gauguin (the artist, not the ship) excursion.

 

Diving in the Society Islands has always been "meh" for me. I just do it to get under water. If you do the Tuamotus and Marquesas diving, you'll find Bora Bora and Moorea underwhelming. I agree that one a day is enough for me.

We agree Fakarava's north pass is a dive not to miss as we did this one in 2013 and will plan to do it again this year.  Are there any land based excursions in the Marquesas that should not be missed as opposed to diving that day?  Trying to decide if we should skip a few dives there?

[minidonuts85]

This is all great info! We are on the 7-night sail Aug 26 (+3 days post in Moorea) and looking to balance dive and other tours. @sitathanks for the mention about skipping diving in Huahine; we were on the fence about this one.

 

We planned to dive in the AM (where offered) and then head out afterwards for other activities. Bora Bora and Moorea seem to be our two dive stops and really looking forward to it.

 

[minidonuts85]

About the logs....we have them all stored on our dive computers, which we will be bringing along. Do they need a printout of the log? Thanks!

[shrkdive1]

I would bring the actual logs with you as they could question if the dive computer was used by you and only you.  We brought our dive logs last time and they reviewed them intently.

[minidonuts85]

Thank you @shrkdive1. Our logs aren’t signed (not sure if that is also required) given they are on our computers. But we do also log the dive shop and the divemasters name and PADI number which will be reflected in our printed logs exported from the computer. . Hopefully that is good enough.