Fr. Polynesia · Rangiroa
Best Time to Dive in Rangiroa, French Polynesia
14.96°S 147.62°W
Dive it July to November, when the downpours ease — 2 days a month of heavy rain instead of 4. The marine life holds steady all year, so the weather picks the month.
- Best time
- Jul–Nov
- Water
- 27–30 °C
- Visibility
- 25–40 m
- Dived from
- day boat
- Tidal range
- 0.3–0.6 m
- Species logged
- 9
Where it is
111 km across · coastline from Natural Earth 10m
Diving in Rangiroa, French Polynesia — monthly breakdown
A year of scuba diving conditions at a glance. Hover a month to isolate it.
| January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conditions | Poor | Poor | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Moderate | Excellent | Good | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Poor |
| Water temp (°C) | 29 | 29 | 29 | 30 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 29 |
| Visibility (m) | 30–40 | 25–35 | 25–35 | 25–35 | 30–40 | 25–35 | 25–35 | 25–35 | 25–35 | 25–35 | 25–35 | 25–35 |
| Marine life | Steady | Steady | Busy | Busy | Steady | Busy | Busy | Busy | Busy | Busy | Busy | Steady |
| Best time | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak | Peak |
Excellent Good Moderate PoorPeak season Jul–Nov
Long-term averages, 2016–2025. Visibility is estimated from satellite chlorophyll-a. Water temperature is the surface mean; it is cooler at depth.
The Rangiroa, French Polynesia diving season
March to November · Peak season
9 monthsJFMAMJJASOND
- Water temperature
- 27–30 °C
- Visibility
- 25–35 m
- Rain
- 16 days a month
Diving conditionsIt rains less.
December to February · Off season
3 monthsJFMAMJJASOND
- Water temperature
- 29–29 °C
- Visibility
- 25–35 m
- Rain
- 22 days a month
Diving conditionsIt rains more.
- Water temperature is satellite sea-surface temperature, so expect it cooler below the thermocline.
- Visibility is estimated from satellite chlorophyll-a.
French Polynesia water temperature and weather
272 underwater observation records · 19 surveyed years of ocean data · 10 years of sea temperature
Water & weather
Rangiroa, French Polynesia water temperature by month
The dashed line is the monthly average. Eight days in ten fall inside the band.
10th to 90th percentile rangemonthly mean
5
rough days a month
Seas top 1.5 m on 16% of days. Enough to cancel a day boat
1
blowy days a month
Gusts over 40 km/h, about where a day boat stays in port
17
wet days a month
3 of them bring heavy rain
| Month | Swell | Gusts over 40 km/h | Wet days | Heavy rain | Air | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1.5 m | 1% | 24 | 7 | 28 °C | 12.8 h |
| February | 1.5 m | 6% | 21 | 5 | 28 °C | 12.5 h |
| March | 1.2 m | 0% | 21 | 4 | 28 °C | 12.1 h |
| April | 1.5 m | 2% | 18 | 3 | 28 °C | 11.7 h |
| May | 1.6 m | 4% | 16 | 2 | 28 °C | 11.3 h |
| June | 1.6 m | 7% | 15 | 3 | 27 °C | 11.1 h |
| July | 1.7 m | 12% | 13 | 1 | 27 °C | 11.2 h |
| August | 1.7 m | 9% | 12 | 1 | 26 °C | 11.5 h |
| September | 1.7 m | 7% | 13 | 1 | 26 °C | 11.9 h |
| October | 1.6 m | 6% | 15 | 1 | 27 °C | 12.3 h |
| November | 1.4 m | 1% | 20 | 4 | 27 °C | 12.7 h |
| December | 1.5 m | 3% | 22 | 7 | 28 °C | 12.9 h |
Swell is the rough end of the month: nine days in ten come in under it. Sea temperature covers 10 years, waves 4.
Pick your week
48 weeks from the daily record. Darker is better, against this site's own year. Pick a month for the detail.
| Week 1 | January week 1: Moderate | February week 1: Poor | March week 1: Excellent | April week 1: Excellent | May week 1: Excellent | June week 1: Good | July week 1: Good | August week 1: Excellent | September week 1: Good | October week 1: Good | November week 1: Excellent | December week 1: Poor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 2 | January week 2: Poor | February week 2: Poor | March week 2: Excellent | April week 2: Excellent | May week 2: Excellent | June week 2: Moderate | July week 2: Good | August week 2: Good | September week 2: Good | October week 2: Good | November week 2: Excellent | December week 2: Poor |
| Week 3 | January week 3: Poor | February week 3: Moderate | March week 3: Excellent | April week 3: Excellent | May week 3: Excellent | June week 3: Poor | July week 3: Excellent | August week 3: Moderate | September week 3: Excellent | October week 3: Excellent | November week 3: Excellent | December week 3: Moderate |
| Week 4 | January week 4: Poor | February week 4: Moderate | March week 4: Excellent | April week 4: Excellent | May week 4: Excellent | June week 4: Poor | July week 4: Excellent | August week 4: Excellent | September week 4: Excellent | October week 4: Excellent | November week 4: Excellent | December week 4: Moderate |
Excellent Good Moderate PoorBest week to go: third of October
January, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Moderate | 29 °C | 1.4 m | 26 km/h | 75% |
| Week 2 | Poor | 29 °C | 1.6 m | 27 km/h | 75% |
| Week 3 | Poor | 29 °C | 1.6 m | 29 km/h | 74% |
| Week 4 | Poor | 29 °C | 1.5 m | 29 km/h | 78% |
February, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Poor | 29 °C | 1.6 m | 29 km/h | 79% |
| Week 2 | Poor | 29 °C | 1.7 m | 28 km/h | 72% |
| Week 3 | Moderate | 29 °C | 1.5 m | 26 km/h | 67% |
| Week 4 | Moderate | 29 °C | 1.4 m | 26 km/h | 71% |
March, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Excellent | 29 °C | 1.4 m | 25 km/h | 69% |
| Week 2 | Excellent | 29 °C | 1.2 m | 24 km/h | 66% |
| Week 3 | Excellent | 30 °C | 1.2 m | 25 km/h | 67% |
| Week 4 | Excellent | 30 °C | 1.3 m | 25 km/h | 65% |
April, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Excellent | 30 °C | 1.4 m | 25 km/h | 61% |
| Week 2 | Excellent | 30 °C | 1.5 m | 25 km/h | 62% |
| Week 3 | Excellent | 29 °C | 1.5 m | 24 km/h | 62% |
| Week 4 | Excellent | 29 °C | 1.6 m | 25 km/h | 60% |
May, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Excellent | 29 °C | 1.6 m | 27 km/h | 60% |
| Week 2 | Excellent | 29 °C | 1.6 m | 28 km/h | 56% |
| Week 3 | Excellent | 29 °C | 1.6 m | 28 km/h | 50% |
| Week 4 | Excellent | 29 °C | 1.6 m | 28 km/h | 49% |
June, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Good | 28 °C | 1.6 m | 28 km/h | 47% |
| Week 2 | Moderate | 28 °C | 1.6 m | 29 km/h | 51% |
| Week 3 | Poor | 28 °C | 1.6 m | 30 km/h | 57% |
| Week 4 | Poor | 28 °C | 1.8 m | 32 km/h | 49% |
July, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Good | 28 °C | 1.8 m | 33 km/h | 41% |
| Week 2 | Good | 28 °C | 1.7 m | 30 km/h | 43% |
| Week 3 | Excellent | 27 °C | 1.6 m | 29 km/h | 39% |
| Week 4 | Excellent | 27 °C | 1.6 m | 30 km/h | 36% |
August, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Excellent | 27 °C | 1.6 m | 30 km/h | 39% |
| Week 2 | Good | 27 °C | 1.6 m | 30 km/h | 44% |
| Week 3 | Moderate | 27 °C | 1.8 m | 31 km/h | 42% |
| Week 4 | Excellent | 27 °C | 1.8 m | 31 km/h | 37% |
September, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Good | 27 °C | 1.8 m | 29 km/h | 43% |
| Week 2 | Good | 27 °C | 1.8 m | 29 km/h | 45% |
| Week 3 | Excellent | 27 °C | 1.6 m | 29 km/h | 41% |
| Week 4 | Excellent | 27 °C | 1.5 m | 30 km/h | 37% |
October, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Good | 27 °C | 1.6 m | 30 km/h | 45% |
| Week 2 | Good | 28 °C | 1.6 m | 28 km/h | 48% |
| Week 3 | Excellent | 28 °C | 1.4 m | 26 km/h | 43% |
| Week 4 | Excellent | 28 °C | 1.4 m | 26 km/h | 49% |
November, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Excellent | 28 °C | 1.4 m | 26 km/h | 58% |
| Week 2 | Excellent | 28 °C | 1.4 m | 25 km/h | 65% |
| Week 3 | Excellent | 28 °C | 1.5 m | 25 km/h | 70% |
| Week 4 | Excellent | 29 °C | 1.5 m | 26 km/h | 70% |
December, week by week
| Week | Conditions | Water | Swell | Wind | Rain chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Poor | 29 °C | 1.6 m | 28 km/h | 70% |
| Week 2 | Poor | 29 °C | 1.6 m | 27 km/h | 66% |
| Week 3 | Moderate | 29 °C | 1.5 m | 25 km/h | 68% |
| Week 4 | Moderate | 29 °C | 1.4 m | 26 km/h | 73% |
10 years of daily records, averaged into weeks.
Gear & storms
What to wear
Off the coldest water of each month, not the average — that is what the suit has to cope with.
| January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suit | January: skin | February: skin | March: skin | April: skin | May: skin | June: skin | July: 3 mm | August: 3 mm | September: 3 mm | October: skin | November: skin | December: skin |
- Oct–Junskin or 3 mm shorty
- Jul–Sep3 mm full suit
Swell through the year
The rough end of each month — nine days in ten come in under it.
Amber is over 1.5 m.
Tides
Tropical storms
1 of the last 30 Januarys saw a tropical storm pass within 250 km. Anything has been recorded Jan–Feb.
Share of the last 30 years with a storm that month.
- NOAASea surface temperature, from OISST and MUR
- ERA5Wind, waves, rain and air temperature, via Open-Meteo
- OBISMarine species records within 60 km
- IBTrACSTropical cyclone tracks, 1996 to 2025
Rangiroa, French Polynesia marine life — what you'll see diving
| Species | When | Observed window | Reliability | Evidence | Records |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blacktip reef shark | All year | Near-guaranteed | 66 | ||
| Bottlenose dolphin | All year | Near-guaranteed | 45 | ||
| Napoleon wrasse | All year | Likely | 36 | ||
| Grey reef shark | Apr, Jun, Aug | Likely | 35 | ||
| Hawksbill turtle | Mar, May, Jul | Hit-or-miss | 10 | ||
| Blackfin barracuda | Mar, Jul, Sep–Nov | Likely | 16 | ||
| Ocellated eagle ray | Jun–Jul, Oct | Likely | 10 | ||
| Whitetip reef shark | Apr–Jun, Nov | Hit-or-miss | 10 | ||
| Camouflage grouper | Mar, Jul | Hit-or-miss | 9 |
Peak Present
- Observed window
- Months with records. Peak is where most of them fall.
- Reliability
- Near-guaranteed in 60% of surveyed years or more
- Likely 30% to 60%
- Hit-or-miss under 30%
- Evidence
- Years it was seen, out of the years anyone surveyed.
- Records
- OBIS sightings within 60 km.
These are sightings people logged, not a full survey of the reef. A species missing from a month may just mean nobody recorded one.
Diving Rangiroa, French Polynesia — common questions
- When is the best time to dive Rangiroa, French Polynesia?
- Dive it July to November, when the downpours ease — 2 days a month of heavy rain instead of 4. The marine life holds steady all year, so the weather picks the month.
- When is the diving season in Rangiroa, French Polynesia?
- The diving season in Rangiroa, French Polynesia runs July to November.
- Is the diving in Rangiroa, French Polynesia good for beginners?
- It is better with some experience. It suits Advanced Open Water divers or equivalent, so newer divers should ask the local operator which sites fit their level.
- How warm is the water in Rangiroa, French Polynesia?
- Between 27 and 30 °C at the surface across the year, coldest in August and warmest in April. It runs cooler below the thermocline.
- What wetsuit do I need in Rangiroa, French Polynesia?
- A 3 mm full suit covers the coldest water of the year. In the warmest months a skin or 3 mm shorty is enough.
- What is the visibility like in Rangiroa, French Polynesia?
- Roughly 25 to 40 m depending on the month. That is estimated from satellite chlorophyll-a rather than measured in the water.
- What will I see diving Rangiroa, French Polynesia?
- The most consistently recorded species are Blacktip reef shark (near-guaranteed), Bottlenose dolphin (near-guaranteed) and Napoleon wrasse (likely), from 272 records within 60 km.
- Does Rangiroa, French Polynesia get tropical storms?
- Yes. Over 30 years of records a storm passed within 250 km in Jan–Feb, most often in January at 1 of 30 years.
- Is there current in Rangiroa, French Polynesia?
- The tide rises and falls 0.6 m around the full and new moon, against 0.3 m in between. How much of that becomes current depends on the shape of the channel.
- When should I avoid Rangiroa, French Polynesia?
- January is the weakest month for conditions.
- How do you dive Rangiroa, French Polynesia?
- Mostly from day boats. Trips run through the season, Jul–Nov.