Snorkeling in the Tiputa Pass in Rangiroa [Reviewed + Rated]

My husband and I love snorkeling and have been all over the world discovering the best sites. I have created a rating system for all of my guides.

Remember snorkeling is somewhat subjective because your underwater experience will all depend on the ocean conditions for that day.

OVERALL SNORKEL RATING KEY

🤿 🤿 🤿 🤿 🤿   =   World-class snorkeling and worth traveling just for the snorkeling alone!

🤿 🤿 🤿 🤿   =   Incredible snorkeling and should be on your list of top things to do!

🤿 🤿 🤿   =   Decent snorkeling and worth the effort!

🤿 🤿   =   Worth consideration if you are running out of things to do!

🤿   =   Not worth it!

Unlike some snorkeling or diving sites that required a very long boat ride, the Tiputa Pass (and the adjacent snorkeling site, the Aquarium) was easily accessible from our hotel, Hotel Kia Ora Resort & Spa.

Quick geography lesson.

Rangiroa’s lagoon is huge! It is so big that the whole island of Tahiti could fit into the lagoon.

There are only two channels that connect the lagoon to the open ocean: the Tiputa Pass and the Avatoru Pass.

Our hotel was located only 10 minutes away from the Tiputa Pass! We were picked up and dropped off at the hotel’s dock. Super convenient, and one of the many reasons we chose to stay at Hotel Kia Ora.

To snorkel the Tiputa Pass, you’re going to need a boat!

Never attempt to shore snorkel to the Tiputa Pass!

You will need an expert guide for this thrilling experience. I’m sure there are several operators who offer this experience, but here are the two I am aware of.

We booked the tour directly with Hotel Kia Ora. They have an onsite dive center called Blue Velvet.

The hotel arranged a small group snorkeling tour that included several drift snorkels in the Tiputa Pass PLUS the Aquarium. We only had two other couples in our group plus our boat captain and guide. Perfect size!

The cost for the Drift Snorkeling + Aquarium Tour was 7500 xpf per person (~$69 USD).

Tour times will vary because it all depends on the tides. On the day we went, our tour was scheduled for 12:30 pm. We left directly from the hotel’s personal boat dock.

The highly-rated dive company, Six Passengers, also offers this same thrilling snorkeling experience. They will pick you up at your hotel or guesthouse for a comparable cost ($72 USD per person).

Read the TripAdvisor 5-star reviews here.

Your boat captain will drop you off right where you need to be, so there’s no extra effort needed.

You will be snorkeling when the current is flowing from the ocean side to the lagoon side. 

Stay close to your guide as he navigates you through the channel.

By the way, if you are traveling across the world to experience some of the world’s best snorkeling in French Polynesia, I strongly advise bringing your own snorkeling gear!

Especially your own snorkel mask (here are my favorite masks).

I see this question get asked a lot:

Is the Tiputa Pass dangerous?

No, not if you feel comfortable in the water AND have a guide.

Remember the Tiputa Pass is a channel between the lagoon and the open ocean. Tides change daily with currents going in and out.

You can only SAFELY drift snorkel when the tide is coming into the lagoon. Otherwise, you will be swept out into the ocean.

The drift snorkel is like a giant adult slip ’n slide.

Once you jump out of the boat, it’s like you are flying. No kicking is needed. It’s thrilling and reminded me of our drift snorkel at Taha’a’s Coral Garden but a little stronger. So much fun!

If you have never snorkeled before, this is not the place to learn!

You need to be comfortable in the water. If you do not have basic snorkeling skills, the Aquarium is a great place for beginners.

I personally wear a snorkel vest in case I get tired in the water and want that extra buoyancy.

Sharks! Sharks! Sharks!

All from a distance though, which was much different than our experience at the Sharks & Rays Sandbar in Moorea.

We felt completely safe as our expert guide navigated us through the channel.

The types of sharks we saw were blacktip reef sharks and one grey reef shark. Other highlights included an eagle ray (seen deep on the ocean floor), a large school of leatherjacks and paletail unicornfish, palometas, and needlefish.

Sometimes, you will see dolphins. Our boat captain looked for them, but they did not want to come out to play that day.

However, we did see them leaping out of the water during our bike ride later that afternoon (#6 on our favorite things to do in Rangiroa!).

We snorkeled at the Tiputa Pass and the Avatoru Pass, which is located on the opposite end of the Tiputa Pass.

Snorkeling at the Avatoru Pass was part of our full day Blue Lagoon Tour with Rangiroa Excursion.

By the way, do not miss the Blue Lagoon! You get to hang out with baby blacktip reef sharks who swim right by your feet.

On the day we snorkeled at the Avatoru Pass, it was overcast and a little windy. Visibility was poor. We did a short drift snorkel, and I did not see anything memorable besides a few scattered passing fish.

The snorkeling experience at the Tiputa Pass was by far superior to the Avatoru Pass.

The weather conditions can make or break an experience. Hopefully, in the future, I can snorkel at the Avatoru Pass again in more ideal conditions to give it a fair comparison.

If you snorkeled at the Avatoru Pass and had an amazing experience, please share in the comments below! I would love to know what it’s like on a great weather day.

If you are going to Rangiroa, do not miss the chance to drift snorkel at the Tiputa Pass!

It was one of the highlights of our trip. Bonus points for being right next to our hotel which meant no long boat rides.

If weather conditions are not ideal, the tour could be canceled. Make sure to book at least 4 nights, so you increase your chances of having this thrilling snorkeling experience. 

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Questions about our Tiputa Pass experience?

Let me know in the comments below!