Introduction

The Marquises Islands form one of the archipelagoes of the French Polynesia, located about 600 to 1000 km south of the equator and 1600 km from Tahiti. With a total surface of 997 km², they were an important cultural center of the eastern Polynesia. The largest island, Nuku Hiva (2'652 inhabitants), is located in the northern part of the archipelago; the administrative centre, the village of Taiohae, is located there. Geologically young, those islands have a sharp relief and do not display any flat land not lagoon. Climate is sub-tropical, with a total of rain between 1 to 3 meters, making the Marquises Islands one of the driest place in Polynesia. Average temperature is 26°C.

Still nowadays, Marquises Islands are quite isolated. Most visitors fly from Papeete. Accommodation is limited, and advance booking is strongly recommended. It is also worth to underline that while scuba diving is getting more and more popular, the quality of the diving sites is lower than in other places in Polynesia, especially in the Tuamotu.

Travel facts

Diving type

Destination

easily accessible

bargain destination

Diving level & type

for beginners

for advanced divers

shore diving

liveaboard

Diving Characteristics

pelagics

lots of fish

lots of corals

interesting underwater scenery

Other activities

attractive natural spots

gastronomy

night life

beach

snorkeling

Infrastructures

• diving center
  

  Centre de Plongée Marquises
  Centre de Plongée Marquises (diving center)
  telephone : (689) 920 088

  address : BP 100 Taiohae, 98742 Nuku Hiva, Marquises, Polynésie Française

  email : marquisesdives@mail.pf

  internet : www.marquises.pf/pagestour/page108.htm
  rating : 3 / 4 stars

  comments :

  The only diving center on Nuku Hiva is under the direction of Xavier Curvat, who dived for 20 years in the waters of the Marquises archipelago. He is assisted by Loïc Leduc, a nice Briton, who was guiding us underwater. The diving center is located two kilometers away from the Keikahanui hotel, which is the most comfortable hotel of the island with its 20 bungalows, all offering a nice view on the sea. Henry, the director of the hotel, brings himself the divers to the diving center every day. But there is a charge for this service, which is a little of a pity considering the rather high rates of the rooms.
  
  The price for one dive is 50 euros, with some discount is several days of diving are booked; all equipment is included, except the dive computer - and all equipment is in excellent shape. The boat is comfortable and can accommodate around 10 divers. Diving starts from the deck on the back of the boat. In the case of strong current, getting back on the boat can become challenging and required the help of the staff, especially since the boat has to move away from the rocks at the surface of the sea.

  
  

Diving Sites

• 

  Les Péponocéphales

  rating : 2.0

  depth : surface
  description :
  
  Toward the east of the island, some forty minutes by boat, on rough seas, you can also snorkel with long-nosed dolphins. This species, closely related to the pygmy killer whale, gathers along the windward coast in their hundreds to bask in the sun and surf the waves. Carried out instead of the second dive, but at the same cost.
  
  
• 

  Pointe Motumano

  rating : 2.0

  depth : 25 m
  description :
  
  A 35-minute boat ride from Taiohae. On the way to the site, a dozen spinner dolphins come to show off near the boat. This site is renowned for its manta rays. Despite poor visibility due to the abundance of plankton, we came across three different manta rays, which made several appearances close to the boat, at a depth of around 12 to 15 m. A particular feature of this site is the almost total absence of coral.
  Site description: A 30-metre rocky wall on a gently sloping sandy bottom.
  Incredible numbers of small moray eels nestling in the wall aspirations. Rich in reef fish of all kinds. We also saw three nudibranchs.
  
  
• 

  Sentinelle aux Marteaux

  rating : 2.0

  depth : 25 m
  description :
  
  Located at the entrance to Taiohae Bay, less than 10 minutes by boat. No doubt due to poor visibility, we didn't see any hammerhead sharks, which usually frequent these spots. However, a manta ray passed two meters above our heads. The rock face was infested with sea urchins, whose spines made us cautious, especially as there was a strong surf that day. Despite the almost total absence of coral, this site is home to a large number of reef fish, as well as a multitude of small moray eels on which small cleaner shrimps sometimes land. We also saw two nice-sized stonefish.