Dive Review of TOPdive/Motu Aito in
French Polynesia/Fakarava

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TOPdive/Motu Aito: "Fakarava South Pass", Jan, 2018, by Alexander Armintor, AL, US ( Sr. Reviewer 10 reports with 10 Helpful votes). Report 10098.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	[19-25th July 2017. It’s been about 6 months, but I can see and hear it well. We arrived in a storm, waves, rain and sheets of water coming over the wooden top, that half covered the 30 ft boat speeding south across the lagoon, water dripping through every un-caulked seam in the roof until we were as wet as if we’d swam. I hadn’t seen any lights in any direction for some time when we ran out of gas. The crew had jerry’s in the locker though and refilled the main tank, 5 gallons at a time. Moving again through the dark and rain, I had been marveling at the deep v’s ability to cut through the waves at this speed when things got crazy and we just about flipped. We were quickly putting on lifejackets as the old man made the kid get out of the pilots chair and continued the journey at greatly reduced speed. After what seemed forever, the engines cut back and the boat slowed to a bucking crawl. I could make out a dim light through the pouring rain, which turned out to be the only running light on the Motu Aito flagship - a miners light strapped to the head of Manihi, who motioned us to jump onto his open wooden boat tossing in the waves next to us. I timed the jump with the waves and landed safely as our luggage was being tossed in by the kid. The next morning in brilliant coral atoll sunshine, a gentle breeze wafted across the flat lagoon. You’d never know I thought, as I surveyed the minefield of coral heads we’d come through the night before. We were at the end of the world. People will either love or hate the Pension Motu Aito Paradise. We liked it. Rustic? Yes, but you have to consider where you’re at man. If you don’t like eating fish – a lot of fish, don’t go. If you don’t like camping, don’t go. If you like to watch TV, don’t go. If you’re after the night life, don’t go. But, if you like sashimi, you’ll get plenty of it, if you like camping – this is glamping, pretty nice actually, if you like to read, this is the place, at least during daylight hours. As for night life, they do have coconut crabs, you have to see one to believe it, very cool As for the diving, I saw what the sea used to be. How many years, until are no places like this left, I wonder. Sharks? You betcha, so many, you don’t even notice the fish and there’s lots of fish. The current eventually sweeps you at close to 5 knots through a spot that’s only about 12 ft deep, hard coral bottom and both sides – it’s also the only place where the boats can go, so the window is pretty small. It’s a long way to the hospital from here. I wouldn't recommend it for beginners because of that reason. A couple of days later watching the help squeegee the fake beach in front of the endless pool in a $500/nt resort in Tahiti, the phrase “plastic fantastic” kept running around in my mind. The South Pass of Fakarava is the real deal.
Websites	TOPdive
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	101-250 dives
Where else diving	Florida, Alabama, Texas, Bahamas, Roatan, Turks and Caico's, Cozumel, Indonesia, Costa Rica
Closest Airport	Fakarava North Pass	Getting There	Getting there: LAX 8.5 hours to Papeete, Twin engine 1.5 hr hop to Rangiroa 30 min hop to Fakarava. Speedboat to South Pass. About 19 hrs total.
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	calm, currents
Water Temp	84-86°F / 29-30°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	50-200 Ft/ 15-61 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	?
Enforced diving restrictions	Surface with 500 psi
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters	N/A	Large Fish
Large Pelagics	N/A
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities	N/A
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	The marine life under the pier at the Pension Tetamanu dining room was extremely colorful and dense. The best single spot I've seen by far. You could easily make a movie without travelling 20 feet.

Subscriber's Comments

By Barbara sabatelli and Bruce wills in FL, US at Feb 25, 2018 15:59 EST

Loved the boat ride story!

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Dive Review of TOPdive/Motu Aito in French Polynesia/Fakarava

TOPdive/Motu Aito: "Fakarava South Pass", Jan, 2018,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subscriber's Comments

Dive Review of TOPdive/Motu Aito in
French Polynesia/Fakarava