kneptoon
Contributor
Over the past 18 months I have made 3 trips to the Tuamotus Islands. The first was a combination of Fakarava and Rangiroa. Then just Fakarava and the third trip just Rangiroa. The diving is really spectacular on both islands, but there are also some "samey samey" dives. Such as, South Pass in Fakarava; yes it is a wonderment of sharks by the hundreds, but after 20 dives it pretty much doesn't change. I will dive it again I'm sure. North Pass is less predictable, with a strong current operators won't dive the pass, which makes good sense. If the current is safe the North offers more variation than the South. There is a lot to see on both islands. I did a solo trip to Rangiroa this past February logging 2 or 3 dives a day. The cost of the trip was around $3000. The costs split roughly in thirds: air fare/ lodging & food/ diving. Comparatively I spent almost $2000 for a trip to Cozumel in January. Though I love Cozumel it doesn't compare to the Tuamotus. A fair diving comparison might be Indonesia or Palau. A trip to dive Komodo would cost around twice what my trip to Rangiroa cost. I haven't done Palau, so I will leave the cost comparison to those who have. I did my own booking as I like doing it myself. I have no idea if I saved money doing it on my own. So French Polynesia is expensive but compared to what? Take a look at the new prices for liveaboard diving in Raja Ampat. You're looking at 10K vacation.