Rangiroa Accommodations

[texmaxdiver]

Hello fellow dive peoples- we have four of us heading to Rangiroa in late August of 25. Looking for advice for anyone that advice on where to stay . Outside Kia Ora, which looks WOW expensive, there doesn't seem to be many choices. Fine with basic or even expensive, but perhaps not $700 per night.

Part 2 of the question: Our group are 3 DMs and one Rescue Diver, so depth and current are not a big detractor in picking one island over the next. If someone thinks we are making a big mistake with Rangi over Fakarava, I'm totally willing to listen.

We are doing whales out of Moorea on the back half of this trip.

Gracias in advance.

 

[ACHiPo]

Rangiroa is good. We dove with TopDive and 6Passengers. I preferred 6Passengers. We stayed at Kia Ora for a couple nights and it is expensive and just ok. I can't recommend other places--I know there are some private bungalows/guest houses with meals that are more reasonable, but not sure about AC, cleanliness, etc. I have a travel agent I used for Rangiroa accommodations--she will advise for a flat fee, or you can book through her if you prefer. PM me if you want her contact info.

I have not dived Fakarava, but did dive Tikehau and preferred it to Rangiroa, although both are pretty spectacular. I just liked the CocoDive experience the best--relaxed and amazing diving. We stayed at Le Tikehau Pearl, which is expensive (liked it better than Kia Ora in Rangiroa). CocoDive has relatively inexpensive lodging and meals available, but can't vouch for it. Again, I'm sure there are other places available that are less expensive.

 

[Manuel Sam]

On the higher end but less than Kia Ora, both the Maitai and Raira Lagon are nice hotels that have AC.

There are many Bed & Breakfast (pensions) choices. Le Relais de Josephine is highly regarded among those and boasts an idyllic location right on Tiputa Pass. It is reputed to offer very good food.

At the lower end of the spectrum, I often stay at Pension Teina et Marie. It is basic but won't break the bank. I like it because it is easy walking distance to stores and restaurants and next door to the dive shop I always use (Raie Manta).

Somewhere in the middle of my scale is Pension Bounty, where I stayed this past December. It is next door and a short walk along the beach to the Kia Ora, where I found dinner prices to be quite reasonable considering how expensive the hotel itself is.

You may find - and this may be why you found so few choices - that many of these do not list thru the Expedias of this world. You may need to contact them directly via Messenger or email. Try this website:

Accommodations in Rangiroa - Tahiti Tourisme

Discover the possibilities for accommodations in Rangiroa, the best known atoll in the Tuamotu Islands Rangiroa is the biggest atoll in French Polynesia

www.tahititourisme.com

Whether Rangiroa or Fakarava, you can't go wrong with either one. In my opinion, both are good. In an ideal world, time and money-permitting, you do them both, even tho if you were to poll the people in this forum, you will find people who favor one over the other. I see it as it being a bit akin to preferring cats over dogs or sailboats over powerboats. To each his or her own.

 

[gwklein]

I stayed at Pension Cecile in January. Its an inexpensive, basic, tropical guest house by American standards. If that is what you are looking for I would recommend it. Breafast and dinner were included. Meals are served buffet style and are good basic food. I let them know in advance that I didn't eat fish (the main food in French Polynesia) so I got a separate main each night. There was no A/C but there were two fans in the cottages. In January, I needed the fans in the daytime but at night I needed a blanket in the lagoon cottage. I also stayed in a garden room which was hotter. Wi-Fi was good in the dining area but did not reach all the cottages. There is no beach; however, there is a deck over the water and a ladder leading down to a snorkel area. A small grocery store was two buildings away. A couple of restaurants were in a short walking distance. Each cottage is decorated in a different funky and colorful manner. Beds were comfortable and bathrooms were basic. Everything was clean, but geckos did make visits to the rooms as they do in most topical settings. The owners were wonderful. Guests were invited to a family birthday party one night.

If you have not been to Rangiora, all the dive shops pick up on the main (only) road for each of the guest houses, so you have to walk up to short dirt drive way to meet the truck. If you are not on time, everybody's pick up is delayed.

I used Top Dive. All dives are done in the pass. In four days of diving, even though all dives were in the pass, each dive was completely different due to the changing tides. Nitrox 32% was included in the price. Computers were set to 1.6 ppo, instead of 1.4, to increase the depth. Other dive shops were diving air so the divers could reach 180 feet. Some dives involved brief deco. If you are not comfortable with deco, tell the shop in advance and the dive will be modified. Tanks are 100s steel. The DMs carry long alternates so it is easy to share air if you run low while on deco. Many of the dives involved visits by friendly dolphins.

For lunch, Top Dive drove the divers to one of the close by eateries. I really enjoyed Josophine's. Some divers brought lunch with them and ate at the covered pinic tables.

I didn't make it to Fakarava.

 

[SpottedPickleLamb]

Has anyone found that some of the places do not accept a credit card for deposit? I am trying to book two nights at Josephine (considered upscale there!) and they are saying the deposit required to reserve the room will only be accepted by direct bank deposit? I specifically asked to use a credit card and they said that is not an option. I have read many good reviews about this hotel on here, google, and reddit. I am surprised and it makes me uncomfortable. The deposit is supposed to be 100% refundable if you cancel within 6 weeks. Thanks!

 

[ACHiPo]

Has anyone found that some of the places do not accept a credit card for deposit? I am trying to book two nights at Josephine (considered upscale there!) and they are saying the deposit required to reserve the room will only be accepted by direct bank deposit? I specifically asked to use a credit card and they said that is not an option. I have read many good reviews about this hotel on here, google, and reddit. I am surprised and it makes me uncomfortable. The deposit is supposed to be 100% refundable if you cancel within 6 weeks. Thanks!

We did not have that issue in Rangiroa or Tikehau. We had dinner at Josephine (took the boat crew out for dinner the last night), but I can't remember if we used cards or cash to pay--I think cards, but I really don't remember.

 

[MinnesotaWilly]

A friend stayed at Kia Oro before my trip down and he said it was beyond fantastic. But he won the trip in a contest at Sony, also my employer at that time. My Avatar is a frame from a video we shot in Tiputa Pass in 1995. That was the pre-dawn of video shot on Hi-8. No red filter. No dome port lens. My friends sailed down to Rangiroa from San Francisco on their way around the world and I flew down and jumped on for 2 weeks. Amazing diving the Pass. Dropping down the face to 120 at slack tide and then pushing off and riding the incoming tidal flow as it gets going faster and faster as you drift dive through the mass of sharks. I uploaded our sharkiest dive to youtube. Low res video and there are plenty of nice HD shots from others more recent than mine. But this was my fist dive in the pass. We went with a dive company on that first one, then on our own the rest of the trip. I attached a few pics from that trip. We saw Manta Rays and snorkled with them every morning. Youtube link:

 

[Shasta_man]

I went to Rangiroa many years ago and the Discover Scuba there started my scuba journey.

Two things to add here: overwater bungalows are worth every cent if you love the ocean and jump in daily. Biggest benefits are its much cooler than on land including the beach bungalows, aircon unnecessary, and few insects as well including mosquitos which makes for a better experience. You also have access to the water without walking through coral up the beach and we had a lot of neat stuff swimming through including a pair of eagle rays and the big moray in the coral head behind the room next door. We also had the wall you could open up completely and have the whole horizon. You choose where to spend your hard-earned pay.

 

[VH2O]

Not sure where OP booked but if not staying at Kia Ora, you can still go over to the bar and hang out on the deck. Also they will allow outsiders in for the luau show & dinner (fun to do once) if they are not booked with their own guests. You do need advance reservations for this.
My diving there was with Rangiroa Plongee who were excellent. I was impressed with the gear (new aqualung) and their operation, versus some of the other dive outfits we used in FP.