{
  "destination": "french-polynesia",
  "name": "French Polynesia",
  "question": "Can you snorkel and dive from a charter boat in French Polynesia, and how warm is the sea?",
  "answer": "Yes: Taha'a's coral garden is a shallow drift snorkel between two motu and Paipai Pass is a 25–30 m drop-off for trained divers, according to Tahiti Tourisme, but anchoring is restricted in parts of Moorea and we could not verify the current zones. The sea averages between 26.7 °C (August) and 29.0 °C (March) by NOAA's 1991–2020 means at our reference point, so it stays at 24 °C or more all year and by our rule of thumb a rash vest or 1–2 mm shorty is enough even in the coolest month.",
  "canonical_url": "https://catamaranindex.com/snorkel-dive/french-polynesia/",
  "markdown_url": "https://catamaranindex.com/snorkel-dive/french-polynesia.md",
  "destination_url": "https://catamaranindex.com/french-polynesia/",
  "best_time_url": "https://catamaranindex.com/best-time/french-polynesia/",
  "fishing_url": "https://catamaranindex.com/fishing/french-polynesia/",
  "api_url": "https://catamaranindex.com/api/snorkel-dive/french-polynesia.json",
  "book_url": "https://catamaranindex.com/go/samboat?dest=french-polynesia&pos=api",
  "checked": "2026-10-28",
  "sea_temperature": {
    "unit": "celsius",
    "source": "NOAA OISST v2.1 long-term monthly mean",
    "period": "1991–2020",
    "reference_point": {
      "place": "Between Raiatea-Taha'a and Huahine",
      "lat": -16.625,
      "lon": -151.125
    },
    "note": "NOAA OISST v2.1 long-term mean, 1991–2020, one 1/4° sea cell per destination. It is the sea surface; shallow bays can be warmer and water at depth cooler.",
    "warm_water_threshold_c": 24,
    "months": [
      {
        "month": 1,
        "name": "January",
        "sea_c": 28.5,
        "warm_water": true,
        "wetsuit_rule_of_thumb": "swimsuit or rash vest"
      },
      {
        "month": 2,
        "name": "February",
        "sea_c": 28.6,
        "warm_water": true,
        "wetsuit_rule_of_thumb": "swimsuit or rash vest"
      },
      {
        "month": 3,
        "name": "March",
        "sea_c": 29,
        "warm_water": true,
        "wetsuit_rule_of_thumb": "swimsuit or rash vest"
      },
      {
        "month": 4,
        "name": "April",
        "sea_c": 28.8,
        "warm_water": true,
        "wetsuit_rule_of_thumb": "swimsuit or rash vest"
      },
      {
        "month": 5,
        "name": "May",
        "sea_c": 28.3,
        "warm_water": true,
        "wetsuit_rule_of_thumb": "swimsuit or rash vest"
      },
      {
        "month": 6,
        "name": "June",
        "sea_c": 27.7,
        "warm_water": true,
        "wetsuit_rule_of_thumb": "rash vest or 1–2 mm shorty"
      },
      {
        "month": 7,
        "name": "July",
        "sea_c": 27.1,
        "warm_water": true,
        "wetsuit_rule_of_thumb": "rash vest or 1–2 mm shorty"
      },
      {
        "month": 8,
        "name": "August",
        "sea_c": 26.7,
        "warm_water": true,
        "wetsuit_rule_of_thumb": "rash vest or 1–2 mm shorty"
      },
      {
        "month": 9,
        "name": "September",
        "sea_c": 26.7,
        "warm_water": true,
        "wetsuit_rule_of_thumb": "rash vest or 1–2 mm shorty"
      },
      {
        "month": 10,
        "name": "October",
        "sea_c": 27.1,
        "warm_water": true,
        "wetsuit_rule_of_thumb": "rash vest or 1–2 mm shorty"
      },
      {
        "month": 11,
        "name": "November",
        "sea_c": 27.7,
        "warm_water": true,
        "wetsuit_rule_of_thumb": "rash vest or 1–2 mm shorty"
      },
      {
        "month": 12,
        "name": "December",
        "sea_c": 28.2,
        "warm_water": true,
        "wetsuit_rule_of_thumb": "swimsuit or rash vest"
      }
    ],
    "derived": "warm_water and wetsuit_rule_of_thumb are our rules applied to the NOAA mean; sea_c is NOAA's, rounded to 0.1."
  },
  "wetsuit_rule": "Our rule of thumb for snorkelling, applied to the monthly mean: 28 °C or more: swimsuit or rash vest; 26–28 °C: rash vest or 1–2 mm shorty; 24–26 °C: 3 mm shorty; 21–24 °C: 3 mm full wetsuit; 18–21 °C: 5 mm full wetsuit; below 18 °C: 7 mm wetsuit, or a drysuit for diving. Divers lose heat faster and meet cooler water at depth: go one band thicker. People feel cold differently; this is a guide, not a source's advice.",
  "sites": [
    {
      "name": "Taha'a coral garden (Jardin de Corail)",
      "kind": "coral garden",
      "where": "West side of Taha'a, between two motu",
      "facts": [
        {
          "text": "Tahiti Tourisme describes crystal-clear shallow water between two motu on the west side of the island, where you drift with the current over the coral.",
          "status": "official",
          "sources": [
            {
              "id": "dive_pf_tt_garden",
              "name": "Tahiti Tourisme",
              "title": "Jardin de corail, Taha'a",
              "url": "https://tahititourisme.pf/en-pf/activities/points-of-interest/jardin-de-corail-tahaa-en-en-pf-3342043/",
              "checked": "2026-10-28",
              "note": "Official tourism board listing, last updated 3 July 2024.",
              "tier": "official"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Paipai Pass",
      "kind": "reef and pass",
      "where": "Taha'a",
      "facts": [
        {
          "text": "Tahiti Tourisme describes a drop-off at 25–30 m for trained divers, with white-tip reef sharks; Taha'a has one dive centre and centres on Raiatea also dive there.",
          "status": "official",
          "sources": [
            {
              "id": "dive_pf_tt_tahaa",
              "name": "Tahiti Tourisme",
              "title": "Diving in Taha'a",
              "url": "https://www.tahititourisme.com/activities/diving/tahaa/",
              "checked": "2026-10-28",
              "note": "Official tourism board page, undated. Promotional descriptions, not survey data.",
              "tier": "official"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "fees": [
    {
      "item": "Lagoon or dive-site fees",
      "amount": "Not verified",
      "status": "not_verified",
      "sources": []
    }
  ],
  "mooring_and_anchoring": [
    {
      "text": "Moorea: since December 2020 anchoring is banned in a protection zone around an underwater seawater pipe in the inner waters of Papetoai.",
      "status": "official",
      "sources": [
        {
          "id": "dive_pf_papetoai",
          "name": "DPAM, Government of French Polynesia",
          "title": "Création d'une zone d'interdiction de mouillage à Papetoai",
          "url": "https://www.service-public.pf/dpam/2020/12/03/creation-dune-zone-dinterdiction-de-mouillage-a-papetoai/",
          "checked": "2026-10-28",
          "note": "Official news item of the maritime affairs directorate, 3 December 2020 (French; translations ours).",
          "tier": "official"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "text": "Moorea's wider anchoring rules (the maritime management plan and a 2025 government order, both contested in court): not verified.",
      "status": "not_verified",
      "sources": []
    }
  ],
  "diving": [
    {
      "text": "Whether you must dive with a licensed dive centre: not verified.",
      "status": "not_verified",
      "sources": []
    }
  ],
  "visibility": {
    "text": "Tahiti Tourisme says visibility reaches up to 40 m at Taha'a's outer-reef sites (Ruutai, Tau Tau, Taputapu). This is the tourism board's description, not a measured average.",
    "status": "official",
    "sources": [
      {
        "id": "dive_pf_tt_tahaa",
        "name": "Tahiti Tourisme",
        "title": "Diving in Taha'a",
        "url": "https://www.tahititourisme.com/activities/diving/tahaa/",
        "checked": "2026-10-28",
        "note": "Official tourism board page, undated. Promotional descriptions, not survey data.",
        "tier": "official"
      }
    ]
  },
  "not_verified": [
    "Moorea and Bora Bora anchoring zones in force for 2027.",
    "Rules for divers without a dive centre.",
    "Fees of any kind.",
    "Measured visibility (only the tourism board's description)."
  ],
  "source_counts": {
    "official": 4,
    "secondary": 0
  },
  "status_legend": {
    "official": "Read in an official text: government, park authority, ministry or official tourism board.",
    "secondary": "From a newspaper, NGO, guide or tour operator; not official.",
    "not_verified": "We could not confirm it. We leave it open rather than guess."
  },
  "caveat": "Park rules change and some are seasonal. Check with the park, the charter base or a local dive centre. The answer, wetsuit column and warm-water flag are our wording and rules applied to labelled facts and NOAA means.",
  "sources": [
    {
      "id": "dive_pf_tt_garden",
      "name": "Tahiti Tourisme",
      "title": "Jardin de corail, Taha'a",
      "url": "https://tahititourisme.pf/en-pf/activities/points-of-interest/jardin-de-corail-tahaa-en-en-pf-3342043/",
      "checked": "2026-10-28",
      "note": "Official tourism board listing, last updated 3 July 2024.",
      "tier": "official"
    },
    {
      "id": "dive_pf_tt_tahaa",
      "name": "Tahiti Tourisme",
      "title": "Diving in Taha'a",
      "url": "https://www.tahititourisme.com/activities/diving/tahaa/",
      "checked": "2026-10-28",
      "note": "Official tourism board page, undated. Promotional descriptions, not survey data.",
      "tier": "official"
    },
    {
      "id": "dive_pf_papetoai",
      "name": "DPAM, Government of French Polynesia",
      "title": "Création d'une zone d'interdiction de mouillage à Papetoai",
      "url": "https://www.service-public.pf/dpam/2020/12/03/creation-dune-zone-dinterdiction-de-mouillage-a-papetoai/",
      "checked": "2026-10-28",
      "note": "Official news item of the maritime affairs directorate, 3 December 2020 (French; translations ours).",
      "tier": "official"
    },
    {
      "id": "noaa_oisst_ltm",
      "name": "NOAA PSL (NOAA/NCEI OISST v2.1)",
      "title": "NOAA High-resolution Blended Analysis: OISST v2.1 long-term mean monthly sea surface temperature, 1991–2020 (sst.mon.ltm.1991-2020.nc)",
      "url": "https://psl.noaa.gov/thredds/catalog/Datasets/noaa.oisst.v2.highres/catalog.html",
      "checked": "2026-10-28",
      "note": "NOAA's published 1/4° monthly climatology (climo_period 1991/01/01–2020/12/31; every month of every cell we use rests on 30 years). Read on 28 Oct 2026 through PSL's THREDDS point service by scripts/fetch-sst.mjs; we chose one sea cell per destination and rounded to 0.1 °C. Satellite-and-in-situ analysis of the sea surface, not a beach or depth reading.",
      "tier": "official"
    }
  ],
  "attribution": "Cite \"Catamaran Index\" with a link to the canonical_url of the page the figure comes from, and name the original source listed with it.",
  "affiliate_note": "book_url links go through /go/samboat, an affiliate link: Catamaran Index may earn a commission on bookings, at no extra cost to the traveller. It never changes the data."
}