Tumakohua Pass Wall of Sharks Dive (Fakarava South)

16° 31.1′ S · 145° 27.7′ W

The most famous shark dive in the Pacific: hundreds of grey reef sharks hang motionless in the incoming current of Fakarava's narrow south pass, a 'wall' you drift past before flying over a coral slope full of fish.

Tuamotus Marquesas

Practical

Tetamanu Diving calls it the 'wall of 500 sharks', and diveplanit says about 700 grey reef sharks, the densest known population, plus blacktips, whitetips, Napoleon wrasse, barracuda and tuna. Dive it on the incoming tide or at slack. The south pass current is gentler than Garuae, so the dive suits all levels (Top Dive; Tahiti Tourisme). Typical depth is about 21 m on the wall (Walkabout 2023); a small cave at about 28-30 m gives shelter from the current. Rules: the 2025 brief says you must not dive without a professional dive centre from the island (the number of groups per day is limited), and you must not take the dinghy into the pass. Older cruiser logs describe DIY dinghy drift-dives, which the brief now discourages. Best visibility comes just before the end of the flood (Soggy Paws), sometimes over 100 ft. Waypoint 16°31.086'S 145°27.679'W over the sand trench at the pass mouth (Soggy Paws 2010). Operators: Tetamanu Diving and Top Dive at the pass, Enata from Hirifa, and the Rotoava shops on all-day trips with two dives, more than an hour each way by boat.

Best for

Bucket-list shark diving

Season

Year-round; marbled grouper spawning around the June-July full moons brings shark frenzies

Itineraries that stop here

Tuamotus: Fakarava & Toau10 days

Practical

Best for

Season

Itineraries that stop here

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