Snorkel· Rurutu· French Polynesia: Tuamotus, Marquesas, Gambier & Australs
Avera Reef Snorkel and Dive Site (Rurutu)
22° 28.8′ S · 151° 21.6′ W
Rurutu's west-coast fringing reef off Avera, where the boat pass and sandy anchorage give the island's most accessible snorkelling on calm, low-swell days, and a mapped scuba-diving site lies just offshore.
Practical
Coordinate is an OSM scuba-diving site off Avera (from the French ministry of sport's 2018 facility census). No dive centre on Rurutu appears in the current sources; ask your pension. Rurutu has only a narrow fringing reef and a small lagoon, not a true lagoon: snorkel inside the reef near the Avera boat pass in calm weather, never with surf breaking in the pass. Pitufa (Oct 2018) anchored on sand in 14 m just outside the pass; in SW swell over about 3 m surf breaks across the bay. The water is cool (air down to about 15°C Jun-Oct, Tahiti Tourisme). Licensed whale boats offer in-water snorkelling with humpbacks Jul-Nov.
Best for
Calm-day reef snorkel
Season
Calm, low-swell days
Nearby
- Avera Bay Anchorage (Rurutu)0.2 NM away
- Avera Snack0.4 NM away
- Ana Puuru Cave (Rurutu)0.7 NM away
- Matotea Avera Bay Viewpoint (Rurutu)1.1 NM away
- Rurutu Whale Season (Jul to Oct)1.1 NM away
- Mt Manureva, Taatioe and Teape Ridge Hike (Rurutu)1.2 NM away
- Mt Pito Hike (Rurutu)1.3 NM away
- Marae Ta'aroa (Vitaria, Rurutu)1.6 NM away