Itemata focuses on the Tuamotus & Rangiroa with occasional trips to the Marquesas custom itineraries are also offered on full charters. Cruises vary from 8-days to 16-days.

Highlights of these trips and an itinerary map

The final itinerary is, of course, always dependant upon weather, sea conditions and where the best animal sightings are at any particular time of year

FAKARAVA / THE TUAMOTUS: The underwater life found in the channels is abundant and varied … and in the lagoons, in particular, you’ll find some glorious corals. You will encounter huge schools of sharks (large concentrations of gray sharks, but also white tips, black tips, sleepers, great hammerhead sharks and tigers. You will also see barracudas, eagle rays and manta rays, napoleon wrasse, as well as dolphins and a multitude of different schools of fish: big-eye snapper, goatfish, groupers, parrotfish, butterflyfish … and lots of moray eels & turtles … At certain times of the year, you can view passing humpback whales, melon-headed whales, whale sharks, giant groupers, schools of manta mobilae.

RANGIROA:  Rangiroa reef encircles a serene, aquamarine lagoon brimming with life. This is nearly identical to Fakarava in terms of being some of the most thrilling diving in the world. It happens in the two large passes which allow the flow of water between ocean and lagoon. Here you find sharks in unbelievable numbers. The species you are likely to encounter are grey reef sharks, silvertips, whitetips & blacktips … lemon sharks & nurse sharks & tiger sharks …. silky sharks & great hammerheads.  You’ll also see manta rays, leopard rays & huge schools of eagle rays, big pods of dolphins (who love diver interaction) and if you’re lucky, even the stray marlin. On the ocean side, the action is generated by the schools of Napoleon wrasses, barracudas, snappers, dogfish tuna, bigeye jacks . There are lovely lagoon dives also with beautiful corals, plenty of turtles, morays and reef fish (unicornfish, surgeonfish, paddletail snappers, fusiliers, kingfish, soldierfish ….). Mix in a few critters and you have super dives.

MARQUESAS: (private charter only)  As there are a handful of dive cruises per year in this region, so you’ll find yourselves virtually alone with magnificent mantas, some measuring up to 16 feet across. You’ll also see eagle rays, scalloped hammerheads, silky sharks, grey reef sharks, white tip & black tip reef sharks …. even the occasional tiger shark. In addition to the sharks, you find kingfish, tuna, napoleons, dolphins and swordfish. To top it off, not far from Nuku Hiva resides a colony of several hundred Pygmy killer whales and the rarely seen melonheaded whales.