| 14-Night Fantasy Total/Hybrid Eclipse Cruise via Tahiti and her Islands. | |||||||||||||||
| Itinerary:
02Apr: Papeete 03-06 Apr: 06-07 Apr: Pitcairn 08 Apr: Eclipse Intercept 11 Apr: Hiva Oa, Marquesas 12 Apr: Nuku Hiva, Marquesas 14 Apr: Fakarava 15 Apr: Moorea 16 Apr: Papeete |
Above and below the pristine waters of French Polynesia: Transparent waters in every direction beckon you to explore. And it's so easy aboard the Paul Gaugin, where our retractable water level marina platform invites you to step off into one of our kayaks or windsurfers. Water Ski around a harbor or join in a diving excursion in one of our inflatables with our staff of PADI dive masters. - Aboard the Paul Gaugin, we offer a wide selection of dive courses from refresher to advanced diver courses. In addition we can enroll you in a Discover Scuba Diving program at home prior to your voyage - you can then complete your open water course during your cruise. Diving in the TUAMOTU ISLANDS Located over 200 miles north of French Polynesia's Society Islands, the Tuamotu island chain are actually not technically "islands", but atolls. Numbering 78, the Tuamotu chain is the largest chain of atolls in the world. Geologically speaking, polynesian atolls are the tops of ancient collapsed volcanoes, now consisting of various sized motus (or small islands) surrounded by magnificent rings of coral built up over the centuries. Countless species of coral are seen in the Tuamotu waters.. All
the Tuamotu atolls are surrounded by steep dropoffs and cliffs
overlooking vast expanses of remote and tropical south pacific ocean
waters. At the center of every atoll is a large, relatively calm lagoon
fed by just a few passes from the open ocean. Most of the diving action
occurs in or near these passes, as these are the spots with an almost
continuous waterflow resulting from 2 daily tides rushing in and out of
the lagoons. These tides are affected by various
factors including not only the moon and gravitational pulls of the
earth but also the weather and swells of the open ocean just outside
the coral fringes. Typical depths within the lagoons average around
20-30 meters, but can be as deep as 100 meters in some places. In
terms of diving, all this means deep and clean ocean waters outside and
large quantities of fish of inumerable species in the lagoons. As for
visibility, the open ocean is best with clear and clean waters giving
superb visibility of hundreds of feet all day long. Within the lagoons,
the situation is completely different and constantly changing due to
daily plankton buildup and tidal changes. In fact, it can be next to
zero in certain places at certain times, with the passes being the only
reliable places for non-local divers. Overall, probably the most notable shared feature of the Tuamotus is the sheer multitude of a very diverse array of species of fish. It is here that one will encounter some of the largest schools of fish anywhere on the planet! All the usual polynesian fish suspects are here in great numbers including black tipped, lemon, nurse, and grey reef sharks, barracuda, tuna, jackfish, red snapper, napoleon fish, surgeon fish, huge moray eels, various rays, and several different species of sea turtles. Of course lets not forget about the thousands of brightly colored smaller fishes that will constantly dazzle your eyeballs. In addition to these animals, dolphins, whalesharks and the ever impressive and majestic Manta Rays are also seen on a regular basis. Watersports Shore Excursions Scuba The Ledges - Certified Divers Duration: 3 Hours. Boat Ride, Refreshments, Swimming. Scuba Shark Gallery - Beginner Divers Lagoon Discovery with Snorkeling Scuba Shark Gallery - Certified Divers |
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