Rutaki Passage

Rutaki Passage is a reef passage dive on the south coast of Rarotonga, Cook Islands, featuring steep vertical walls, canyons, and caverns that meet a white sand bottom at around 18 m, with a depth range of 10 m to 20 m. The passage can be dived as a drift starting from inside the reef, or approached from the outside and swimming back into the bowl; both directions offer views into the blue and access to the passage's sculpted topography.

Marine life at the site includes large schools of snapper moving through the canyons and caverns, turtles, and whitetip reef sharks. A sand channel extends out toward the drop-off, and the open-water exposure beyond the passage brings occasional pelagic encounters.

The passage is suitable for all divers except beginners, though entering the passage itself requires experience and some physical stamina. Conditions in the southern passages can turn dangerous, and the site is assessed on each dive day before entering. Currents can run strongly, particularly deeper into the passage, and the difficulty of the dive can be increased by pushing further up into the current for a drift back out.