Dive Review of TOPdive/Hitlon - Overwater Bungalows in
French Polynesia/Moorea

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TOPdive/Hitlon - Overwater Bungalows, Aug, 2011, by Gary, AB, US ( Reviewer 4 reports). Report 6171.
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	"My wife and I dove 2 days (Aug 5 and 6, 2011) with Top Dives-Bathsys in Moorea. The dive operation was ok (some of the dive masters were great) but the we found the lead one rather indifferent and by day two, we didn't feel all that welcome. We checked out Moorea Fun Dives from the land and after talking to other divers, we definitely want to go with them next time instead of Top Dives in Moorea. With Top Dives-Bathsys there is often a shark feeding. It's something I don't usually go for but after 10 minutes of sitting and watching the Black Tips and Greys (too many to count) it turned into a regular dive but the sharks still hung around us. My wife went bananas with her video (it's actually Sealife Digital Camera (DC 1200) with video capability) because this type of action is unreal when recorded as a continuous stream. Sharks will come very close to you (completely unthreatening) and I couldn't resist breaking the rules once and did a quick petting of a Black Tip. Also, I usually question beginner dives because of the general lack of Pelagics. But not here. The diving is easy (little drift) and maximum depth is 60 - 70 feet but it is some of the best diving my wife and I have ever experienced. Next day was not a feeding but both dive masters had a feeding tube around there neck and I think the residual smell was enough to get the sharks interested. This time we were joined by Lemon sharks (one was around 9 feet long) and was incredibly thrilling to see Black Tips, Greys, and Lemons all mixed up. We also saw a fairly large school of Baracuda and some pretty large Titan Trigger fish. A few things to note about Moorea: They have only 9 or 10 dive sites and a Crown-of-Thorns invasion a few years back wiped out most of the coral. We would like to stay at the Inter-Continental next time (this time it was the Hilton) as that hotel is very close to the dive sites and StingRay World - took us 15 minutes in a rented Kayak to get to the Sand Bar where the rays and sharks are. StingRay World is quite similar to StingRay City in the Grand Caymans but much better in my opinion as the encounters feel much more natural. They do get fed but if you go early enough in the morning or later in the afternoon, you will avoid some of bigger tour boats and the 30 - 40 people they pack in them. All in all, we loved Moorea but I think 3 days diving is plenty (allowing for one morning or afternoon at StingRay World) as you will see boatloads of sharks even without the shark feedings."
Websites	TOPdive
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	251-500 dives
Where else diving	Carribbean, Cocos Island, Micronesia, Sipidan, Thailand, Maldives, Indonesia, Vancouver
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, dry	Seas	calm
Water Temp	77-78°F / 25-26°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	60-100 Ft/ 18-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	no
Enforced diving restrictions	[Unspecified]
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	None	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	[None]

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Dive Review of TOPdive/Hitlon - Overwater Bungalows in French Polynesia/Moorea

TOPdive/Hitlon - Overwater Bungalows, Aug, 2011,

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):

Dive Review of TOPdive/Hitlon - Overwater Bungalows in
French Polynesia/Moorea