The Ultimate Moorea Snorkelling Tour: What to Expect
If you’re wondering whether to add a snorkelling tour to your Moorea itinerary, or to just explore the island and its lagoons on you’re own, I’ll tell you right now: add the snorkel tour!
We were seriously on the fence about doing it, considering the fact that so many of the best snorkel spots in Moorea are right off the public beaches, all of which could be easily accessed by car. Between snorkelling right off the shores and kayaking ourselves out to the iconic sharks and rays lagoon (which is a bucket list experience in French Polynesia), we already felt incredibly spoiled.
But since we had a bit of extra time in our seven-day stay in Moorea, and wanted to venture farther out to other snorkel sites while fully switching into “sit back and enjoy” mode, we decided to go for it. Spoiler alert: it turned out to be one of the most unforgettable days of the our entire seven-month trip.
From sailing across Cook’s Bay to encountering a pod of two dozen dolphins, watching green turtles’ heads bop up continuously through the lagoon to swimming with reef sharks, stingrays and even eagle rays, this 6-hour snorkelling excursion will practically hit every item on your French Polynesia bingo card!
Where The Snorkel Tour Takes Us
Throughout the snorkel tour, we’re actually going to be sticking along the northern coast of Moorea, travelling across the island’s three “lobes”. Starting at a pier near Paopao on the eastern shore of Cook’s Bay, we’ll traverse the bay then head up into the shallow lagoons that wrap around the coast line.
If you take a look at a Google Earth satellite view of Moorea, you’ll see exactly how vast and far out these lagoons go, encircling the entirety of the island like a continuous ring, and protected on the exterior by barrier reefs teeming with sea life. There are breaks and gaps in the barrier line, which allows boats and large animals—like the humpback whales that make Moorea their mating ground and nursery area every year—to pass through.
We’ll be sailing across the shallow lagoons and deep Cook’s Bay and Opunohu Bay, encountering marine life both above and below the water’s surface. Where we’ll jump into the water is offshore from the western lobe of the island. At first, we’ll swim in a shallow sandy lagoon north of Papetoai before making our way to a channel between Tiahura and Motu Fareone (one of two small islands to the northwest of the main island). Then we’ll head back slightly to swim in the sharks and rays sandbar before docking at a beach on Motu Tiahura for a later lunch.
Lunch will be our final stop before we double back and finish at the pier we started at.
Getting There & the Perfect Start
The tour meets at the pier by the Moorea Tourism Office, on the east side of Cook’s Bay, with a 9am departure. If you arrive early (which I highly recommend), make a quick stop at the Paopao Viewpoint on the way up. We passed this spot a few times throughout the week while driving east, and the mountain views are incredible. It’s a completely view of Mount Mouaroa, which is the iconic mountain that sits on the middle lobe of the island. The same one in frame when standing at Belvedere Lookout! (See Day 3 of our Moorea guide & itinerary.)
On one of the days, what we didn’t expect to see was a handful of nurse sharks feeding along the shoreline, right at our feet! You might be lucky enough to see them here too if there’s a feeding frenzy, or if a downpour of rain causes the runoff to attract them.
We arrived at the meetup point at about 8:30am to get ourselves signed in and appointed to our boat and captains. When we got on the jetty, the views somehow got even better than on the drive over.
Standing here and looking southeast, you’re greeted by Mount Tohivea rising dramatically behind the waterfront villas of Hotel Kaveka. Getting there early gave us a quiet moment to soak it all in before the rest of the group arrived.
Cruising Cook’s Bay
After setting off, the crew took us on a slow cruise through Cook’s Bay, pointing out prominent peaks, sharing bits of local history, and weaving in Tahitian legends tied to the landscape.
It’s not like we hadn’t seen these insane Polynesian mountain views this last week, but capturing them from the water while riding the calm waves of the bay was yet another magical scene for the books.
Then we picked up speed and started heading for the expansive lagoon along the north side of the island. After crossing one of the channels, we reached a shallow area of the lagoon where our co-captain jumped into the turquoise water to get us something.
We didn’t know what, until he came out with possibly the largest shiny conch shell I have ever seen. Pink, glossy, and lined with sharp-looking teeth, equal parts beautiful and intimidating. He showed us the dangers of picking one up without knowing that it’s an empty shell, not only to us but to the live animal that usually lives inside it. Shortly after showing us the beauty of it, he tossed it back into the water where it’s meant to stay.
As we were cruising slowly near the Hilton Moorea, we spotted a green turtle popping its head out of the water in the shallow lagoon, foretelling what was to come for the rest of the day!
Opunohu Bay Dolphin Encounter
We made our way back towards Opunohu Bay, where we were staying for the duration of our Moorea trip, and this is when everything escalated in all the right ways.
We spotted the largest pod of spinner dolphins playing right near our boat, probably twenty-some of them. Somersaulting, twisting, popping out of the water in every direction. I had never been that close to dolphins before that point, and it was completely surreal. They stayed with us for a good 15 minutes, sometimes right in front of the boat, sometimes off in the distance, breaching and flipping with Moorea’s jagged peaks as a backdrop. I genuinely didn’t know where to look because they were 360 degrees all around us!
The tour was already off to an incredible start.
First Snorkel Stop: Shallow Lagoon Warm-Up
Our first snorkel stop was in a shallow lagoon with a sandy bottom. It was more of a warm-up than a true reef snorkel. It gave the crew a chance to gauge everyone’s swimming comfort, and while marine life was limited, there were still a few fun surprises. Sunken tiki statues rested on the sand, where tiny damselfish and butterflyfish would look for their next meal. And a friendly stingray cruised past just before we headed back for the boat.
Turtles & Eagle Rays in the Tiahura Channel
Next came what was easily the biggest highlight of the day.
We cruised into the lagoon of the northwest lobe and jumped in to snorkel the channel between Moorea and Motu Fareone / Motu Tiahura. This is the same general area mentioned in Day 4, where snorkelling is sometimes possible from shore, but the current here can be strong. Doing it from a boat meant we could simply drift and let the lagoon carry us.
Before we even got in the water, we saw sea turtles popping their heads up at the surface, which immediately had everyone buzzing. Once in the water, it was clear why this spot is so special. The turtles were everywhere, grazing calmly on the coral bed below us. I spotted at least four turtles during this snorkel alone.
And then, as if that wasn’t enough, we saw them!
A fever of eagle rays, gliding beneath us in formation. I counted 24 rays at one point. It was something I’d dreamed of seeing for years, and suddenly it was happening right below me. I couldn’t stop smiling (and laughing) into my snorkel. Pure magic.
Sharks & Rays Alley
Later in the afternoon, we returned to the sharks and rays alley for a second visit. We had already been on our own when we rented kayaks from the beach at Les Tipaniers Hotel one of the mornings earlier in our Moorea trip, which was an amazing experience as well!
This time, because it was now midday, there were more people in the water and felt slightly more crowded. But with more boats came more sharks and stingrays too! A bit of sargassum drifted through with the current, floating at the surface, but visibility was still excellent. With the sun high overhead, the lagoon absolutely glowed, creating a gorgeous pattern on the sand, and the rays and sharks really lit up.
The stingrays came close enough to touch us, hoping to find some fish scraps between our fingers. They probably smell it off a lot of the boat crew that come through here as some of the tour boats also go on small fishing trips as well.
Beachside Lunch on Motu Tiahura
The day wrapped up with a private island lunch on the west side of Motu Tiahura, overlooking the calm lagoon between the motus. We were served locally brewed vanilla rum with punch (which definitely hits harder on an empty stomach), followed by a generous spread of grilled chicken and fish, poisson cru, rice, and French fries. After such an active day, loading up on protein and carbs never tasted so good.
Lunch turned into one of the most memorable parts of the day. We bonded with the crew—whose Polynesian hospitality is as warm as everyone says — and with our small group of just 12 people, which kept everything feeling intimate and relaxed.
By now, we had really worked up an appetite as it was 12:40pm, and our crew came around with a house-made vanilla rum to start off our meal. It tasted soooo smooth, but I mostly had to mix it with juice on an empty stomach. Lunch was served up at 1pm and it was so much tastier that it looks in the photo below! The flavours were just top notch, as is expected for Polynesian cuisine.
Deliciously grilled marinated chicken drumsticks, freshly grilled fish, a rich and creamy possion cru (a must-have Tahitian dish), along with fries and rice to soak up those flavours. I scarfed it down and left no crumbs for the sea puppies coming to tickle my feet!
Yes, even during lunch, the marine life stuck around. Friendly stingrays glided below our feet in the shallow water, weaving between us like curious puppies of the sea. In this area, stingrays are very accustomed to human presence, and while they are still wild animals, they tend to remain calm and curious rather than defensive. The blacktip reef sharks weren’t shy either.
At one point, I counted seven juveniles circling near the picnic tables, hoping for scraps. They are so docile in Moorea and a mutual respect is present between the sea life and the island’s people.
Thanks for Reading!
This boat tour ended up being one of the most unforgettable experiences of our entire time in Moorea. It gave us access to snorkel sites we wouldn’t have reached on our own, introduced us to incredible marine encounters, and let us fully relax while everything was taken care of.
I’m so glad we decided to do it, and if you’re on the fence, I truly hope you do it too! It’s the perfect way to cap off your Moorea adventure.
Make sure you read up on our full guide and itinerary to visiting Moorea in 7 days!
