Pacific Islands · Fiji
Beqa Lagoon
Up to 100 bull sharks on one dive inside Fiji's first National Marine Park
Photo: Jay Brasher · CC BY 4.0
Beqa Lagoon lies off Pacific Harbour on the south coast of Viti Levu, and its name rests on the shark dive at Shark Reef Marine Reserve, where up to 100 bull sharks can gather on one dive in peak season and a tiger shark sometimes cruises in alone. Away from the sharks, the lagoon carries the nickname Soft Coral Capital of the World, with pinnacles such as Caesar's Rock and Seven Sisters, wrecks at Rusi's Pinnacle and Carpet Cove, and the walls of Frigates on the outer barrier reef.
About diving in Beqa Lagoon
Diving here runs by boat from Pacific Harbour, and the lagoon lies a short ride offshore: The Arena, the shark dive site, is about 15 minutes out. The shark dive at Shark Reef Marine Reserve does not run every day, and the other days go to reef and wreck dives among the lagoon's pinnacles and walls. Beqa Adventure Divers holds the day-to-day management of the reserve and patrols it against poaching.
Soft corals cover the lagoon's pinnacles, and on current-swept ones such as Caesar's Rock they are at their brightest when the current runs, feeding on the nutrients it sweeps past. Frigates, on the outer barrier reef, is big enough for three or four separate dives, with fans and hard corals on its walls, zebra sharks, schooling barracuda, whitetip and grey reef sharks and hawksbill turtles. On the wrecks, the Tasu II carries a good growth of soft coral after years on the bottom, and the hull at Rusi's Pinnacle is the largest in the lagoon.
The reef sites leave room for newer divers: Swim-Through City at Bird Island is a little easier to dive and sheltered from strong currents and ocean swell, and Turtle Head is usually protected from current, with a route that stays shallower than 20 m (65 ft). Caesar's Rock, by contrast, is dived only in flat seas at slack tide. The wrecks rest at 28 m (90 ft) and deeper, so they suit divers comfortable at depth; the Tasu II, very rarely swept by strong currents, is the one for long bottom time.
Best time to dive Beqa Lagoon
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Fair | Fair |
| Sea surface | 29°C84°F | 29°C84°F | 29°C84°F | 28°C82°F | 28°C82°F | 27°C81°F | 26°C79°F | 26°C79°F | 26°C79°F | 26°C79°F | 27°C81°F | 28°C82°F |
| Daytime high | 29°C84°F | 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F | 29°C84°F | 28°C82°F | 27°C81°F | 27°C81°F | 27°C81°F | 27°C81°F | 27°C81°F | 28°C82°F | 29°C84°F |
| Rain | 331 mm13.0 in | 325 mm12.8 in | 358 mm14.1 in | 221 mm8.7 in | 153 mm6.0 in | 103 mm4.1 in | 85 mm3.3 in | 87 mm3.4 in | 105 mm4.1 in | 181 mm7.1 in | 183 mm7.2 in | 291 mm11.5 in |
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime |
| Sea surface | |||||
| 29°C84°F | 29°C84°F | 29°C84°F | 28°C82°F | 28°C82°F | 27°C81°F |
| Daytime high | |||||
| 29°C84°F | 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F | 29°C84°F | 28°C82°F | 27°C81°F |
| Rain | |||||
| 331 mm13.0 in | 325 mm12.8 in | 358 mm14.1 in | 221 mm8.7 in | 153 mm6.0 in | 103 mm4.1 in |
| Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Fair | Fair |
| Sea surface | |||||
| 26°C79°F | 26°C79°F | 26°C79°F | 26°C79°F | 27°C81°F | 28°C82°F |
| Daytime high | |||||
| 27°C81°F | 27°C81°F | 27°C81°F | 27°C81°F | 28°C82°F | 29°C84°F |
| Rain | |||||
| 85 mm3.3 in | 87 mm3.4 in | 105 mm4.1 in | 181 mm7.1 in | 183 mm7.2 in | 291 mm11.5 in |
2011–2025 averages. Sea surface: NOAA Coral Reef Watch, measured at the surface, so deeper water can run colder. Daytime high and rain: NASA POWER.
January to April sits in the wet season: rain alone does not stop the diving, but bad weather can cancel the shark dive, although bull sharks are seen more often again from February. May opens the dry season and the bull shark season. June to August adds the best odds of a tiger shark, which otherwise appears only now and then. The bulls stay through September, and the dry-season visibility holds into October, when the water has run at 27 °C with visibility between 15 and nearly 30 m. November brings back both the wet season and the bulls' mating season, when they are seen less often.
Best months: June, July, August
Beqa Lagoon water temperature and weather by month
The sea surface runs from 26 °C (79 °F) in August to 29 °C (84 °F) in February. Most rain falls from December to April, peaking at about 360 mm (14 in) in March; it stays largely dry from June to September. Daytime highs sit around 28 °C (82 °F) all year. The coldest water here is about 24 °C (75 °F), so pack a 3 mm full suit.
Dive types & marine life
Bull sharks, mostly females, lead the feed: up to 100 can show on one dive in peak season, their season runs May to September, and they are seen less often from November to January, their mating season. Tiger sharks come sporadically and usually alone, best from June to August. Grey reef sharks turn up 10 to 20 or more at a time, and tawny nurse sharks also gather at the feed.
- Reef
- Coral garden
- Wall
- Wreck
- Bull sharks
- Tiger sharks
- Reef sharks
- Barracuda
- Trevally & jacks
- Groupers
- Eagle rays
- Mobula rays
- Sea turtles
Best dive sites in Beqa Lagoon
- 1
Shark Reef Marine Reserve
Site of the baited shark dive, a sanctuary since 2004 and a National Marine Park since 2014.
- 2
Caesar's Rock
Five current-swept pinnacles rising from 30 m (100 ft) to 5 m (15 ft) below the surface.
- 3
Frigates Walls
Vertical walls on the outer barrier reef with eagle rays, mobula rays and green turtles.
- 4
Seven Sisters
Seven pinnacles beside the Tasu II, a long-liner sitting upright in 28 m (90 ft).
- 5
Rusi's Pinnacle
The largest wreck in the lagoon, upright on the seabed at 32 m (110 ft).
- 6
Carpet Cove
Soft-coral pinnacles beside a wreck guarded by schools of chevron barracuda and trevally.
Site guides
Pinnacle
Five current-swept pinnacles cut by tunnels and swim-throughs.
Wall
Vertical outer-reef walls where eagle rays and mobulas pass.
Pinnacle
A 30 m fishing boat on the sand beside seven coral pinnacles.
Up to 100 bull sharks over the baited arena at 30 m.
How to get to Beqa Lagoon
Nadi is Fiji's international airport, and Pacific Harbour is about two and a half hours' drive along the Queens Highway on the south coast of Viti Levu. Aqua-Trek and Beqa Adventure Divers operate from Pacific Harbour, while the resorts on Beqa Island are reached by their own transfer boats, which run only in daylight.
Photos from Beqa Lagoon
catlin.wolfard · CC BY-SA 3.0
Debra Baker · CC BY 4.0
Debra Baker · CC BY 4.0
Debra Baker · CC BY 4.0
Dive videos
Diving with the Largest Bull Sharks in the World: Fiji's Shark Reef Marine Reserve · Luke Duggan on YouTube
Cathedral Shark Dive in Beqa Lagoon, Fiji · Scuba Diving Magazine on YouTube
Questions divers ask
What certification is needed for the Beqa shark dive?+
Open Water Diver or equivalent; PADI Scuba Diver does not count as a full Open Water certification. Depth is the reason: the sharks are fed at 25 to 30 m on a reef ledge, so every diver must be certified.
Is there a fee for diving Shark Reef Marine Reserve?+
Yes. Every diver on the shark dive pays the Shark Reef Marine Reserve Levy, in exchange for the village of Galoa giving up its fishing rights on the reef, and the money funds local education programmes and community improvements.
Which sharks turn up at Shark Reef Marine Reserve?+
The regular population covers eight species: whitetip, blacktip and grey reef sharks, tawny nurse, sicklefin lemon and silvertip sharks, and the bull and tiger sharks.
Sources
- Beqa Lagoon and Pacific Harbour — Diveplanit
- Coral Dives - Dive Sites — Beqa Adventure Divers
- Wreck Dives — Beqa Adventure Divers
- Shark Species — Beqa Adventure Divers
- Shark Reef Marine Reserve — Beqa Adventure Divers
- Safety — Beqa Adventure Divers
- Frigates Walls — Waidroka Bay Resort
- Cesar's Rock — Waidroka Bay Resort
- Beqa Lagoon (Fiji): Sharks And Soft Corals — The Underwater Club
- Beqa Lagoon Fiji: Shark Diving and Coral Reef Adventures — Divernet
- Everything You Need to Know About Scuba Diving Viti Levu — Scuba Diving
- Shark Dive Fiji — Destinationless Travel
Photo credits
- Turquoise reef flats stretch toward Beqa Island's forested peaks under a clear sky by catlin.wolfard, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- A painted spiny lobster with long banded antennae rests on a reef ledge in Beqa Lagoon by Debra Baker, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- A crescent-tail bigeye hovers near coral in the waters off Beqa Lagoon by Debra Baker, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Branching Acropora coral spreads across a shallow reef bommie in Beqa Lagoon by Debra Baker, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- A feather star grips a tan gorgonian sea fan on a Beqa Lagoon reef wall by Jay Brasher, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
In The Logbook
- Where to dive with tiger, bull and white sharksBig animals · 14 min read
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