French Polynesia
Do you want to spend time on the water, whether for romance, sport, or family time? Take a siesta under the clouds and coconut trees and take advantage of YOUR very own boat. You can tour the bay and lagoons and visit the uninhabited beaches of the white sand motus. Or, get your surfboard and see how you measure up against the waves just off the lagoon at Fare...
French Polynesia is a French overseas territory located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. It is made up of several groups of islands, the largest and most populated of which is Tahiti. The islands of French Polynesia are a selection of volcanic islands and atolls strewn across the eastern South Pacific.
These islands have allured, inspired and enamoured visitors since the time the islands were first discovered. Visiting these islands is a special experience. The lure of these islands is not only due to the hospitable Polynesian people, and their spectacularly beautiful islands. There is real ambiance here - from the warmth of the air, scented heavily with tropical flowers through to fiery romantic sunsets that signal the end of another fabulous Tahitian day. Although most of today's visitors arrive by scheduled airline flights - from all over the world - the Tahitian welcome is still very much the same, warm, friendly, and genuine.
The island of Tahiti is the largest of the 118 islands and atolls that make up French Polynesia.
The 402 sq. miles of Tahiti's surface area consists of mountain peaks reaching over 7,353 ft into a lei of wispy clouds. The deep green valleys are covered with rainforests and soft ferns, with waterfalls cascading into cool rivers and streams leading to flat coastal land, with fields of taro and flowers.
Around Tahiti-Nui (big Tahiti), a 71 miles road winds between the mountains and the sea. And on the peninsula of Tahiti-Iti (little Tahiti) the road continues down each coast for 12 miles. An interior road leads past dairy farms and citrus groves to a panoramic view on the Plateau of Taravao -- the isthmus that connects the two islands.
Although the geography and environment of Tahiti is very attractive and comparable to the other islands, the large local population and all that implies doesn't make this island an ideal vacation destination for longer than a couple of days.
The other islands nearby (Moorea, Bora Bora, Huahine) are peaceful oasis of beauty and romance far more suitable for vacations or honeymoons than Tahiti.
Tahiti, however, offers enough interesting excursions and sites to make it worth a short stay.
You can visit the Harrison Smith Botanical Gardens, learn something of the history of the islands at the Museum of Tahiti and Her Islands, view the undersea world at the Lagoonarium and go to he Gauguin Museum were you'll see a displays of some of the artist's paintings. The museum is open everyday from 9 am to 5 pm.
Activities include golf at Tahiti's spectacular American designed championship golf course, island adventure tours , helicopter excursions , horseback riding , tennis , snorkeling , scuba diving , sailing , surfing , wind surfing , deep sea fishing ,water skiing and day trips to the atoll of Tetiaroa (Marlon Brando's) to name just a few.
Papeete, the capital and commercial hub of French Polynesia, hosts the government offices, hospitals, banks, airline and travel agencies, boutiques and black pearl shops, etc..
The Central Market (Marché Central) is a must, located 1 block behind the waterfront. You will see traditional Tahitian crafts, flowers, fruits, fish, etc..
The waterfront is attractive, with a tree lined promenade along a marina with an international yachting community.
International cargo freighters, copra ships, luxury liners and sailing yachts share the harbor.
There are several excellent restaurants (this is a little France after all) with menus featuring French , Italian, Chinese, Vietnamese and American choices (there is now a MacDonald :-( , in addition to local specialties (upstairs in the Central Market, nice lunch fare with a local band - a popular place). Prices vary to fit just about any budget, starting at about US$12 for a main course.
If you are on a budget or want to get into some local color, there is also some good food to be had on the waterfront parking lot in the center of town. This is where, after 6 pm, you will find the "roulottes", about 2 dozen licensed food trucks offering a variety of inexpensive but fresh and well prepared dishes. This is funky dinning on hard stools amongst locals, tourists, airline crews etc..where the sights are almost as good as the food.
A busy small city, Papeete hums with happy sounds in a tropical atmosphere with French flavor and a Tahitian easygoing disposition.
Moorea - the second touristic destination in French Polynesia after the island of Tahiti. Rising like a shark's jaw from the sea, Moorea's jagged profile beckons. To her sister island of Tahiti, Moorea presents a fresh young face in the pink glow of dawn. In late afternoon she becomes even more enticing and inviting, crowned with a majestic headdress of fleecy cumulus clouds of snowy white, upon which the infinite colors of the sunset play.
Huahine is located 175 km North-West of Tahiti within the Leeward Islands. Comprised of Huahine Nui (big Huahine) and Huahine-Iti (little Huahine), the two islands are joined by a narrow isthmus and are enclosed within a protective necklace of coral.
Huahine is covered with lush dense rainforests and huge trees growing on the slopes of a very varied and dramatic geography.
Offshore motu islets lie inside the barrier reef, providing sheltered gardens for Huahine's watermelon and cantaloupe industry. A very scenic road, mostly non-paved, winds through green canopies and beautiful vistas for 32 km (20 miles) around the two islands, passing through small villages where a total of 4,480 inhabitants live in colorful, modest homes.
The lagoon, bordered by white sand beaches, is rich with sea life, and Maeva Village is a wealth of archaeological sites that go back to a 1000 years.
The little town of Fare slumbers under the shade of almond and acacia trees, and is reminiscent of a quaint colonial town.
Bora Bora - the island of all dreams, where the castle-like Mount Otemanu pierces the sky above the crystal lagoon with its unique over the water bungalows that offer a magical oneness with this extraordinary island.
Lush tropical slopes and valleys blossom with hibiscus, while palm-covered motu circle the lagoon like a delicate necklace. Perfect white-sand beaches give way to emerald waters where impossibly colored fish animate the coral gardens. So much has been written about Bora Bora, and yet it is hard to find the right words to describe the magic that emanates from this island.
Seen from the air, Bora Bora has been compared to that of "a tiny emerald in a setting of turquoise, encircled by a sheltering necklace of sparkling pearls".
The airport, built by the US forces in 1942, is located on a palm fringed motu about 20 minutes by boat from the main village of Vaitape.
Some other remnant of the US presence are 2 large cannons hidden in the lush hills overlooking the lagoon.
Bora Bora itself is rather small, and can be circled by car in about an hour.
The lagoon is 3 times the size of the land mass and offers an amazing range of hues of blue and turquoise as you navigate its crystal waters.
To the southeast of the island is the Coral Garden, a natural underwater park where all types of fish and corals are found.
Bora Bora lagoon offers a multitude of activities and excursions, one of the most popular being the Shark feeding where from chest-deep water you watch local divers feed 4' to 5' reef sharks by hand. It's a lot of fun and totally safe.
