Respectful diving

Our respectful dives toward marine fauna and its environment.

Your expert

Arnauld

Arnauld AVARE

Diving instructor - Tek Instruction and Course Director

Arnauld is the ‘the Rangiroa Diving center’, owner and has nearly 30 years of diving experiences. The Rangiroa atoll, in French Polynesia, Tuamotus, is well known for the presence of bottlenose dolphins. They have been used to tolerating humans’presence for around 20 years. Arnauld has developed a different diving approach that is more respectful of this marine fauna and in partnership with the NGO “Dauphins de Rangiroa”. You will benefit from its expertise and support for grouped diving trips.

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Our values

Safety First

We strongly emphasis on training and instructorsrefreshing program. Risk Zero does not exist;however, safety is everyone’s concern. For you, for us for all! Safety is not negotiable, and we musttend toward 0 incidents!

Wildlife passive approach

We sensitize divers and locals on wildlife respect and the importance of its conservation. We don't touch, we don't pursue, and we don't feed the animals.

Environment respect

We raise awareness among divers and the locals about respecting this environment by highlighting the importance of this fragile heritage.

Professionnalism

We try to provide more knowledge to our diveswhere our customers will come back with knowledge, awareness other than a simple fun dive with an interpretation their underwater encounter.

Value for money

We strive to protect the environment and to minimize our impact on it. It may cost slightly more (qualitative approach, skills other than just being a simple diving instructor) but, together, we will contribute to the environment protection you love.

Positive impact partnerships

- The NGO “Dauphins de Rangiroa” association measures the tourist impact on bottlenose dolphin’s activities on bottlenose dolphins and their environment.

- The NGO “PACT for Wildlife” association fights against the excesses of tourism on wildlife and sets ecotourism projects.

Oceania

French Polynésia

Africa and Indian ocean

South Africa

Kenya

Mozambique

Zanzibar

Central and South America

Mexico

Asia

Indonesia

Our charter, in partnership with PACT for Wildlife NGO

1. Always put animal welfare and biodiversity conservation before self‑interest.

2. Avoid overcrowded areas and limit the number of boats and divers on site.

3. Respecting and enforcing regulations, safety rules, distances and proper behavior.

4. Never guarantee an observation.

5. Respect animals' life cycles and activities (e.g. resting, hunting, socialization).

6. Limit interactions with wildlife by passive observation.

7. Do not attract, feed, touch or chase marine life.

8. Do not take anything from the environment.

9. Evaluate divers' skills, particularly in terms of buoyancy and webbing techniques.

10. Provide diving equipment appropriate to the type and location of the dive.

11. Secure equipment to prevent damage to the environment (e.g. secure emergency regulators).

12. Do not anchor your boats in seagrass beds, seaweed or coral; use mooring buoys instead.

13. Share objective knowledge about marine ecosystems and fauna.

14. Support local associations working to conserve species and environments.

15. Invite divers to take part in participatory science programs.

16. Manage natural resources such as fresh water as efficiently as possible.

17. Reduce and manage all forms of pollution (e.g. waste, sunscreen, wastewater, equipment).

18. Do not enter into or maintain collaborations that harm biodiversity.

Testimonies

A wonderful experience! We were lucky enough to dive with this club, where the staff were super friendly. Dolphins were a common sight, and on one dive we saw 6 dolphins, 2 tiger sharks, a school of blacktip, greytip and whitetip sharks, a hammerhead shark and a school of eagle rays, all in just 20 minutes. A dream come true. The club insists on respecting the dolphins, asking you not to touch them, unlike other clubs on the island.

Nino -

We did 7 dives with Rangiroa Diving Center. The team is very professional, welcoming and responsible. They explained to us how to behave with the animals, especially the dolphins. We saw the dolphins on every dive, sometimes several times, which was a great experience. What's more, we only dived with small groups of 4 guests + the instructor. It only takes about 5 minutes by boat to get to the dive site, which is great. So there were 6 of us on the boat with the captain. We also had the chance to dive with Pamela, who is a dolphin behavior researcher, and she was delighted to talk to us about these wonderful mammals. We highly recommend diving with this club, which is environmentally friendly, fun and very professional!

Mathieu -

We did a discovery dive in August. Arnaud was very attentive and available before the dive to talk things over and reassure us. During the dive he was very professional, listening to the difficulties we encountered and adapting to them. It was a real pleasure and a very good experience, thanks in particular to him. I highly recommend this center if you're considering diving on Rangiroa.

Ludovic -

Superb family club, professional and ethical towards marine wildlife, especially dolphins. It's ideally located towards Tiputa pass, where wonderful dives and respectful observations of the island's emblematic underwater species await you.

Marie C. -

Exactly the dive center we were looking for! Professional, environmentally friendly, small and fun. Arnauld is always available to answer any questions you may have, so you can plan your trip and your dives as well as possible. As a former instructor, the Club owner's responsiveness and the fact that he's still in the water reassured me. This means he's always keeping an eye on the quality of the service. Also, this club is attached to the Dauphins de Rangiroa association, which ensures that our dives have as little impact as possible on the animals and the environment. JC guided us on the first dives, and Arnauld took us on the drift dives (a first for Anna)! A real pleasure throughout our 6 dives each!
Result: leopard rays, great hammerhead sharks, dolphins, turtles, wall of grey sharks etc... 😍
In short, it's with stars in our eyes that we leave Rangiroa. It's a real pleasure to see a dive center so committed and aware of the fragility of the environment that surrounds it and provides its wealth!

Guillaume -

« It seems to me that the natural world is the greatest source of excitement; the greatest source of visual beauty; the greatest source of intellectual interest. It is the greatest source of so much in life that makes life worth living.» David Attenborough