Whitetip reef shark, Kuata, Yasawa, Fiji (1) - August 2016
Whitetip reef shark, Kuata, Yasawa, Fiji (1) - August 2016 by Rickard Törnblad, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Fiji · Indo-Pacific

Best time to dive Fiji

Diveable year-round. Clearest, coolest water July–December (plankton lowers visibility in the warm months); cyclone season November–March brings swell and rain. At Beqa, November–April has less river run-off.

Peak season: year-round

Book a Fiji LiveaboardUpcoming departures on Divebooker

Overall diving, month by month

Balanced scoring · forecasts include the 2026/27 El Niño outlook

0510Nov 2026: 7.7 (Great)7.7Nov2026Dec 2026: 7.6 (Great)7.6DecJan 2027: 7.5 (Great)7.5Jan2027Feb 2027: 7.5 (Great)7.5FebMar 2027: 7.5 (Great)7.5MarApr 2027: 7.7 (Great)7.7AprMay 2027: 7.7 (Great)7.7MayJun 2027: 7.8 (Great)7.8JunJul 2027: 7.8 (Great)7.8JulAug 2027: 7.8 (Great)7.8AugSep 2027: 7.9 (Great)7.9SepOct 2027: 7.8 (Great)7.8OctNov 2027: 7.7 (Great)7.7NovDec 2027: 7.6 (Great)7.6Dec

Confidence: Nov high · Dec high · Jan medium · Feb medium · Mar medium · Apr medium · May medium · Jun medium · Jul medium · Aug medium · Sep medium · Oct low · Nov low · Dec low

What's good when

Each attribute scored 0–10 for every month

Nov2026DecJan2027FebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Pelagic & big animals88888888888888
Macro life66666666666666
Coral & reef health77666667777777
Visibility87777889999987
Water temperature91010101010988788910
Weather & sea state76666888889976
Operations & access99999999999999

Climate outlook

How this year's forecast differs from a typical year

  • Coral & reef health -0.8 · Reefs recovering from El Niño bleaching (Nov 2026 – December 2027)
  • Coral & reef health -1.6 · Southern-summer bleaching risk during a strong El Niño (Jan 2027 – May 2027)

Water temperature & visibility

MonthWaterVisibility
November 202627.0 °C (81 °F)20–30 m
December 202628.0 °C (82 °F)15–25 m
January 202728.5 °C (83 °F)15–25 m
February 202729.0 °C (84 °F)15–25 m
March 202729.0 °C (84 °F)15–25 m
April 202728.5 °C (83 °F)20–30 m
May 202727.5 °C (82 °F)20–30 m
June 202726.5 °C (80 °F)25–35 m
July 202725.5 °C (78 °F)25–40 m
August 202725.0 °C (77 °F)25–40 m
September 202725.5 °C (78 °F)25–40 m
October 202726.0 °C (79 °F)25–35 m
November 202727.0 °C (81 °F)20–30 m
December 202728.0 °C (82 °F)15–25 m

Marine life calendar

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
bull shark●●●●●●●●●●●●
grey reef shark●●●●●●●●●●●●
tiger shark●●●●●●●●●●●●

Peak = best odds · ● = regularly seen · blank = unlikely. Calendar months, every year.

About the diving

Difficulty
Intermediate
Current strength
3 / 5
Luxury level
5 / 5
Typical depth
5–30 m
Max depth of interest
35 m
Dive styles
Resort, Liveaboard, Day boat
Suggested certification
Advanced Open Water (shark dives)
Nearest airport
NAN
Snorkelling
Good
Known for
bull shark, tiger shark, grey reef shark, soft corals

Famous sites: Beqa Shark Reef · E6 & Mount Mutiny · Great White Wall · Namena

Season notes & sources

  • Diveable year-round. Clearest, coolest water July–December (plankton lowers visibility in the warm months); cyclone season November–March brings swell and rain. At Beqa, November–April has less river run-off.
  • Beqa's shark dive regularly shows 20+ bull sharks alongside reef sharks and occasional tigers.

Sources