Scuba diving in Ha'apai
The
pace of life in Tonga is supremely relaxed. We
love to take that pace onto the boat with us and,
even more importantly, under the water on our
long, slow dives. We dive in small groups of up
to four divers per guide and our dives normally
last in excess of an hour. As the only operator
on the island we enjoy having the dive sites all
to ourselves. We never rush our divers on the
boat or in the water and we do not impose time
limits on your dive time; your personal air consumption,
temperature tolerance and maximum bladder capacity
are the only limits. We do not impose fuel surcharges
for single divers or off-shore trips.
Diving climate
Diving
is possible all year round in Ha’apai. Water
temperature is at its highest in March reaching
28°C (82°F) and drops to a low of 21°C
(70°F) during August when the Humpback Whales
arrive. Visibility doesn’t vary much throughout
the year with anything below 20 meters being uncommon
and 30 meters plus as the norm. We dive to a maximum
depth of 30 meters keeping profiles within no-deco
limits and we have oxygen on board for your safety.
Dive plans are always tailored to meet the experience
levels and desires of our guests.
Ha'apai´s dive sites
Ha'apai
is one big dive site, and our strategic geographical
position on Lifuka Island grants us the maximum
range of operation giving total coverage North
to South along the main Island chain. This central
location permits access to every dive site ever
discovered here allowing us (and you) to dive
the very best that Ha'apai has to offer, the underwater
Kingdom of Tonga! You won’t dive the same
site twice; unless you want to of course. We have
around twenty specific areas that we visit and
dive on a regular basis, each one markedly different
from the next.
The
coral reefs here, some of the best in Tonga, are
very healthy with a high degree of bio-diversity
and feature dynamic characteristics including
drop-offs, swim-throughs, caves, tunnels, walls
and overhangs. Many of the reefs we dive fringe
the islands of Uoleva, Lifuka, Foa and Ha’ano
islands and there are also exciting off-shore
sea pinnacles like Atlantis, Christmas Reef, Fantasia,
Lafa Lafa and Fale Anga that we just love to explore
again and again. When calm weather prevails we
may visit Mounga’one and Ofolanga Islands
to dive the famous Arch of Ofolanga and the enchanting
Hot Spring Cave.
Marine Life
Ha’apai
has a splendid array of marine life, there’s
way too much to list here but to give you an idea
of what you might see just click the What
you may see link to the left. Ultimately,
the numerous and varied dive sites plus the great
bio-diversity combined with excellent visibility
adds up to some exciting and memorable diving
experiences here in Ha’apai. A picture says
a thousand word so have a look at our gallery
to gain a deeper appreciation of the area.