Huge boulders make for incredible underwater topography which includes caverns, swim-throughs and overhangs. This world-renowned dive is among the best in the region and although it requires a longer boat trip to the south of Motu Piti Aau it’s definitely worth it.

These graceful, magnificent rays put on a breathtaking display as they glide effortlessly through the water – they are also often curious to take a closer look at divers. It’s not unusual to encounter numerous mantas on one dive (especially between May and December). Both highlight the manta rays that frequent the area. Two well-known sites with depths up to 30 metres/100 feet. There are a multitude of other marine species to see but the sharks are the stand out reason for most divers visiting this site. Rare are the dives where you don’t encounter one or many big lemon sharks. Located about 1 kilometer from the western pass, this dive site is probably the one with the most abundance of sharks. Whilst Tapu may not boast the most beautiful corals or impressive reef in French Polynesia, there are a number of good reasons why this site is often deemed one of the best in Bora Bora. Green turtle, humphead parrotfish and schools of red snapper also like to frequent this dive site. Starting a 13m depth, this valley is named after the iconic lemon sharks that like to swim along the rolling coral hills. Moorea: Vallée des Requins Citron (Lemon Shark Valley) Marine life here is just as impressive as the reef and you’ll be rewarded with an abundance of shark, ray, turtle and napoleon wrasse sightings. The gently sloping reef at Le Mur de Corail soon transforms into an impressive scene of dramatic lava structures and alleys. Le Jardin de Roses is a stunning reef at 30m depth that is carpeted with flower-like montipora coral that truly resembles a garden of roses (hence this site’s name). Moorea: Jardin de Roses (Rose Garden) & Le Mur de Corail (Coral Wall) Such a hubbub of fish often attracts predators such as lemon sharks and grey nurse sharks that are known to patrol this site, as well as black tip, white tip and grey reef sharks that regularly visit their popular ‘cleaning station’ here. Expect to be awed by the sheer number of fish that dart in and out of the reef and stream by in the blue. Named after the stone Tiki statue at 13m depth. Blown up on the 23th of November 1977 it lies on a 20 to 25 meter/65 to 85 foot bottom depth and offers a great shelter to a rich marine life. The Orohena ship did multiple trips in the Polynesian islands and abroad, until it was claimed unfit for navigation. A few meters from there, you can also discover the Orohena wreck, a wooden 45 meter/147 foot long schooner, built in 1944 and packed with an 875CV Fairbanks motor. It is now lying on the bottom of the ocean at 20 meters/65 feet. In 1960, the plane was seriously damaged during a rough landing in Raiatea, and after being judged useless, it was brought back to Tahiti to be sunk in November 1962. You’ll be able to explore the Catalina PBY-5A plane wreck, given to RAI (ancestor of Air Tahiti) by the US Navy, that was flying the Polynesian skies in the 50’s. One of the few wreck dives in the archipelago. On your way to or from this dive site, you’ll also be able to watch all the surfers riding the famous waves of Sapinus right next to the dive site. Other dive sites may also be called that, but La Source is definitely a must-do! Coral reefs, turtles, chevron barracudas, eagle rays, white tip reef sharks, humphead moari wrasse and an underwater spring will make you eager to jump in the water. Some say that this is the most beautiful dive site on Tahiti’s west coast. A few tiger sharks can sometimes be spotted around the site.

A stone Tiki statue dedicated to Dominique Fleurisson (a great technical diving instructor) is watching over the dive site. From calm, crystal clear lagoons to exhilarating drift dives in narrow channels and passes with canyons, and a handful of wrecks, the dive sites of French Polynesia are packed with promise – of which they certainly deliver! Here are some of the most iconic dive sites which are bound to have you booking your next flights in no time.Ī very popular dive site because of its great fauna, including black tip and grey reef sharks, lemon sharks, maori snappers, schools of jacks and barracudas, eagle rays.

Toau atoll dive sites