Unexpected French Polynesia Holidays: More Than Bora Bora

When we first planned our year-long word trip, French Polynesia holidays weren't on it at all. That is because it is expensive - I'm telling you right away - and we did have some prejudices like we have with most of the 'paradise honeymoon-destinations'.

Then the pandemic happened, we were travelling around in Belize and all of the sudden, the situation got worse and we didn't have a lot of choices anymore.

One of the few countries still accepting tourists without quarantine was French Polynesia. A destination, so far away from Europe that we probably would have never done it in normal times - partly because of the aforementioned prejudices.

But what we experienced here was the most friendly culture, unbelievably transparent turquoise water, the freshest coconuts and mangoes we've ever tasted and the sweet Polynesian sounds we came to know and love.
However, it comes with a serious price-tag: French Polynesia is not a budget-friendly destination. Midst a few tricks and especially the Air Tahiti Pass, it is doable, though.

Relive our adventures and unexpected French Polynesia holidays with us!

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French Polynesia for beginners

What is French Polynesia and where is it located?

French Polynesia is an overseas collective of 118 islands and atolls located in the South Pacific.

Though the country has an autonomous administration - hence a president - France remains the sovereign state and has a lot of influence on political decisions. This was very obvious when we arrived in February 2020 and the Covid19-safety-measures decided by the French President got imposed to Polynesia as well, even though their situation was entirely different.

French Polynesia in a nutshell

Main island groups in French Polynesia

The 118 islands are divided into five groups:

• The Society Islands archipelago with the Windward ('îles du vent') and Leewards Islands ('îles sous le vent')
• The Tuamotu Archipelago
• The Gambier Islands
• The Marquesas Islands
• The Austral Islands

The Society Islands ('Îles de la Société') group is the most populated one with Tahiti and the capital city Papeete.

'Les Marquises', the Marquesas Islands, are the furthermost group of islands when you arrive at Tahiti. They are therefore the hardest to reach but apparently also the most authentic ones, still carrying traditions of dances and tiki-culture that have long been lost on the other archipelagos.

Sadly, due to a lack of time and financial resources (tickets to fly to the Marquesas are pricey!), we didn't have the opportunity to get there. But: postponed is not abandoned.

The Society and Tuamotu Islands are by far the most visited ones.

French sovereignty & visa-questions

Because of the French sovereignty, the rules for visa-obtention are the same as for France and so it depends on what the application rules are for your country of residence when travelling to France.

EU-passport-holders don't need to apply for visa, neither do holders of biometric passports from certain countries (read here for more information on visas).

If your passport is non-EU but you hold a residence permit valid during the time-span of your whole stay in French Polynesia, you don't need a visa either.

French Polynesian culture

French & Polynesian dialects

The main spoken language is French but doesn't sound exactly like what is spoken in France or in my home country Belgium. Polynesians roll the 'R', which gives a lovely ring to the language.

There are several distinctive Polynesian dialects still spoken on the archipelagos and Polynesian words are thrown into the mix at all times.

Upon our arrival, we immediately noticed something quaint that we absolutely loved but it's kind of hard to explain in English because this just doesn't exist in Shakespeare's language: in French, as well as so many other languages, a distinction is made between the formal and informal address when speaking to someone else.

In France, they take this very seriously and when you first meet someone, you are never ever immediately on first-name terms. In French Polynesia, you are. And this was something very new to me, having been educated with this formal address in French.

Here are a few basic words you will hear a lot and you should try to remember:

• Ia orana: Hello
• Maeva: Welcome
• Mauru'uru: Thank you 
• Nana: Good bye
• Tama'a maitai: Enjoy your meal
• Manuia: Cheers (when drinking)
• Fenua: Country
• Vahine: Woman, girl, girlfriend
• Tane: Man
• Farani: French
• Marite: American

Polynesian greeting

You know that hand sign where you make a fist but extend the thumb and the pinkie? That's the 'shaka'. While I always thought this was reserved for laid-back surfer-type guys because the meaning is something like 'hang loose!', this is actually the common greeting sign in Polynesia. 

Everywhere you go, you will see people 'shakaing' towards each other and don't you fret doing it yourself, they love it when people adapt to their customs.

Polynesian humour

French Polynesians are incredibly friendly and they will welcome you like you are part of their family (except for Bora Bora - but more on that below). They will invite you to share their meals, they will hug you every time you leave and they will always be willing to chat and have a laugh with you.⁠

But they will also laugh at you when you happen to trip in the streets. They will make fun of you right before asking if you're alright, helping you up, even suggesting bringing you to a doctor if needed and inviting you for a drink to get over the shock from falling down. That's how they are. They love to laugh and mock others but at the same time will care for you deeply.

'Tahitians'

Quite honestly, like I mentioned in the introduction, we actually never thought of going on French Polynesian holidays before. So I never really looked into that culture or how these islands work or anything.

And I also always thought of Tahiti first when someone spoke of French Polynesia, not knowing that this is actually just one of the 118 islands. Granted, it is the most populated one and the capital of French Polynesia, Papeete, is also located here. But in terms of authentic Polynesian lifestyle, Tahiti is not necessarily the most representative.

Because of the capital city being on that island, Polynesians are often referred to as 'Tahitians'. But they're not. They won't be offended if you call them that - not at all - but they will certainly explain what island they are from specifically - and that, with a certain proudness.

Music

So far, I've been to the Kingdom of Tonga and Easter Island in the South Pacific. And just like these Polynesian people, French Polynesians also have music and rhythm embedded in their blood. Be it with the ukulele, by singing or dancing - music is an essential part of their everyday life and is extremely well performed everywhere you go.

Chinese New Year

Due to Chinese migrants arriving in the 1860s to work on the cotton plantations, roughly 5 to 10 % of French Polynesians are of Chinese origin. With a Chinese community that big, it is only natural that certain traits got incorporated into the Polynesian culture.

This is why the Chinese New Year is celebrated every year with big parades on Tahiti and other major islands (not when we went, though: no parades during a pandemic).

Being of Chinese origin or not, people on all the islands will happily decorate their houses with red lanterns and other Chinese symbols when the time comes and families come together to celebrate with lots of food.

French Polynesian food

Fish and fishing

Living on islands implies a bruising fishing activity. That's no different in French Polynesia: huge red or white tuna, swordfish, wahoo but also smaller lagoon fish such as parrot- or squirrelfish, all freshly caught in the morning.

They will most likely be prepared raw ('poisson cru'), either in the form of sashimi (thin slices) or marinated in coconut milk. Sometimes grilled or poached, you might also find it steamed in a 'Tahitian oven' (read below).

Fishing - be it with spearguns or at the line - is so popular among tourists that nearly every pension owning a fishing boat will have this activity on their tourist-menu.

They will most likely head out every morning at dawn and you will have a blast admiring the free-divers holding their breath for several minutes to get as close as possible to their prey in the depth of the lagoon.

Another specialty from French Polynesians is to dive after the huge 'bénitier' (tridacna) clams. These are so beautiful to look at when snorkelling or diving because of their flashy and luminescent colours.

They are usually served marinated in coconut milk but it's a texture you have to get used to first...

Fruit and vegetables

As a vegetarian/vegan, you will struggle a bit. Polynesians mainly consume fish and lots of it. It's freshly caught every morning and super tasty. They will try their outmost best but they don't really know how to replace this protein source by plant-based alternatives. 

Fruit is abundant but vegetables not so much as the climate is too hot and they have to be imported by either ship or plane. Things like salad, for example, only grow on the Marquesas Islands because the climate is colder there. 

Amongst the fruit that you will get to taste by just picking it from the trees, count the sweetest mangoes and huge avocados so full of taste, you won't like them anymore once you're back home (providing 'home' is somewhere in Europe or North America of course). Watermelon, lime and pineapple are also part of the colourful fruit section in Polynesia.

The trees bearing the 'uru' (= breadfruit) are abundant and part of every bigger meal in French Polynesia, due to the starchy consistency resembling the potato. Together with the 'taro', a root vegetable, they will be used as such, too: they can be mashed, cooked in a stew or cut in wedges and fried.

When driving through the countryside of the islands, expect little stalls selling fruit along the road, mostly uru but also smaller ones like the spiky rambutan, which is actually a variety of the lychee that got imported from Southeast Asia but grows pretty well here.

Depending on the season, different kinds of fruit are sold at every corner. 

'Tahitian oven'

The 'Tahitian oven' used to be a family event on a Sunday, where the food was cooked on a 'hima'a', a cooking pit dug into the sand, layered with hot lava stones and banana leaves. The juice from the leaves evaporates with the heat and basically steams the food inside the hole. The stove itself takes an hour to get to the right temperature and then the food cooks for another four hours.

Nowadays, the tradition is still upheld but lots of islands or 'motu' (= smaller reef islands) organise it mostly for tourists. It's still a very interesting experience and it should be part of your French Polynesia holiday experience.

We got spoiled with a big one on one of the island Maupiti's motus, organised by the local chief, where they served chicken, pork, swordfish-sashimi, plantain and uru stew as well as the bénitier clam.

We also got to taste a light version of the 'fafaru', a very particular dish with a strong taste people warned us about. It's (again) raw tuna slices but this time macerated in a mixture of seawater with crushed shrimps that has been left under the sun for a few days. The result is a strong smell of rotten fish but the taste is very particular. 

In our case, the dish was freshly made. So we got the 'soft' version and it was quite tasty. Though they did pour 'mitihue' over the fish, a kind of fermented coconut milk that can also have quite a rank aroma. 

For dessert, we had a typical Polynesian dish called the 'po'e' I'll explain below.

French Polynesian dessert

This was actually one of our favourite Polynesian specialties: the 'po'e'. In other parts of Polynesia it's called a 'poke' meaning 'to mix/knead' but the 'k' got replaced by a pause in the word.

The po'e is made of cooked and mashed bananas, mixed to a a starchy flour like arrowroot. It is then baked in the oven until it gets this jelly-like consistency that can be cut into pieces and served with coconut milk or cream.

Nowadays, it's not necessarily banana but any kind of fruit that is used. We had a version made with squash (hence the orange colour) when we went to the Tahitian oven. But we did make the original one with banana at our accommodation - with coconut milk we made ourselves from freshly plucked coconuts.

Foreign influences

Due to French Polynesia being under French sovereignty, there are obviously lots of influences of French cuisine: you will find as many dishes drizzled with coconut milk than with buttery béchamel-sauce.

As you previously read, Chinese people settled in French Polynesia in the middle of the 19th century and their cooking styles did so too. Numerous Chinese restaurants exist, serving variations of 'chao mein' (fried noodles) and roasted duck, flavoured with local ingredients.

Being located quite 'close' to Australia and New Zealand, lamb and beef imported from these countries also found their way into French Polynesian restaurants, served with uru, taro and other local veggies.

If you are a picky eater, there are enough places serving pizza and pasta on the main islands. There's even a McDonald's in Papeete if everything else fails.

Avoid the chicken

If there's one thing we would advise against, it's chicken. You will see and hear them all over the islands, running around like crazy, roosters cawing in the middle of the night. But you won't find these same chicken on your plate. Or their eggs, for that matter.

In fact, if you happen to have poultry on the menu, it is frozen and imported from the US by ship. Same with the eggs. Eggs are actually pretty hard to find on the smaller islands. Despite hundreds of hens clucking all around you.

We tried to find out why that is but the only explanation for the frozen chicken we got was: "it's just easier to have a plucked and ready-to-cook chicken". So it seems to be just laziness. 

If you happen to visit French Polynesia and you find out more about this, please do send us a message or write it in the comment section below - we would love to know more about this.

What to drink in French Polynesia

Believe it or not, but they actually have locally brewed beers. The main one is the Hinano, it's the one displaying a little Tahitian lady with flower dress, a symbol you will see a lot.

Don't go for the imported beer, though, as you will end up getting Heineken. I apologise to our Dutch readers but Heineken is just not a beer. It's beer-water. Belgian talking, sorry.

There is one really cool restaurant/micro-brewery (actually the only one in French Polynesia) not far from the ferry-station in Papeete that has a huge variety of craft-beers, if that's your thing.

For non-alcoholic beverages, coconuts are served almost everywhere. They just make a small hole, put in a straw and it's the freshest and sweetest coconut water you will ever taste.

French Polynesian 'roulottes'

A 'roulotte' is actually the French word for a van. Polynesians love snacks and street food and you will find these kinds of roulottes on every major island, serving smaller dishes like sandwiches, raw fish ('poisson cru') and fish burger.

As restaurant are pretty pricey, this is the cheaper alternative and a guarantee to get amazing food at a reasonable cost.

There is so much more about Polynesian food which is why I dedicated a whole blogpost to this topic:

Read | French Polynesian Cuisine and What to Expect

French Polynesia currency

The local currency in French Polynesia is the 'franc pacifique', or 'CFP franc'. 'CFP' originally comes from 'Colonies Françaises du Pacifique' or 'French colonies in the Pacific'. To loose the colonialist connotation, it got changed into 'Pacific financial community'.

It comes in coins of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 francs and in banknotes of 500, 1000, 5000 and 10.000 francs. For pictures of the banknotes, see here.

The 1 and 2 francs coins will disappear as of September 2021, though, and a new 200 francs coin will be introduced.

Timezone

French Polynesia lies in the same timezone as Hawaï, Alaska, the Cook Islands or American Samoa.

This means UTC-10 for most of the archipelagos except for the Marquesas Islands (les Marquises) that are in the UTC-9.30 and the Gambiers in the UTC-9.00 time zone.

What makes French Polynesia holidays so special?

The cost

It is expensive.

Not only getting there - a trip from Paris for example will take you approximately 24 hours and that is never cheap - but also everything on site, from accommodation to food and clothing.

Bear in mind that a simple (but tasty) burger with fries might easily cost you 18 € / 22 US $ in the capital city.

Accommodation prices vary, depending on the type of course, but for a simple bungalow on Fakarava for example, count about 100 € per night. Even more on tourist hotspots such as Bora Bora.

On suggestions about where to stay without overpaying, head to our itinerary below.

The waters

Nearly every island is surrounded by a lagoon that offers a colourful panoply of sea-life to admire on snorkelling and diving trips. 

But the real deal for sea-life-aficionados is the atoll of Fakarava. And more so the South pass: it's basically a giant aquarium and the courant that passes through just lets you float easy-peasy from one side to the other.

It actually rose to some fame when well-known French diver Laurent Ballesta shot a documentary about the triggerfish in the South pass of Fakarava but it got turned into a movie called '700 requins dans la nuit' or '700 sharks in the night'. 

The name says it: hundreds of reef sharks come together in that particular South pass in Fakarava at night to feed on the various smaller fish, the biggest known grouping of sharks on the planet. Commonly referred to as the 'wall of sharks', diving here is simply spectacular.

Night-dives are only for the experimented divers because the presence of aggressive sharks that don't see if there's some human between them and their prey, but also the lack of reference points due to pitch-black surroundings, make this a whole other level. 

If you prefer the thrill of riding the waves, French Polynesia offers some great surfing spots, even if you are a beginner in the process of learning to surf. 

Sunsets & starry skies

Polynesian sunsets are insane. Gorgeous. Breath-taking. Every single evening you get to see all kinds of shades of red, purple and orange, especially when the clouds play around in the skies. It looks like paintings made of fire.

Also, staying on small islands and particularly the 'motus' (reef islands) allows you to see the stars without any kind of light disturbance. 

If you're into astrophotography, French Polynesian skies will definitely spoil you with unreal views of the milky way.

The shot below was our first try at astrophotography. I'm sure we can get the milky way even better next time by playing around with the settings and editing a bit more (using Lightroom Classic).

Unique souvenirs: French Polynesia's 'black pearls', pareos and vanilla

One of the must-buy souvenirs is the black (or grey, greenish, blue, etc.) pearl: the work that goes into breeding these is insane! Make sure you visit one of the numerous pearl farms located on several archipelaogs to get the whole story.

Another great gift to bring for your loved ones are hand-painted 'pareos', a kind of sarong to wrap around the waist or as a dress around the neck. Sarongs are actually called 'pareos' in French and German because of the Polynesian origin of the name.

And if you get the chance to visit the island Taha'a, this is where you want to buy vanilla with a fragrance so yummy, you will never want to buy somewhere else.

Things to know before booking your French Polynesia holidays

Booking accommodations 

When staying in French Polynesia, you will want to look for one of the numerous 'pensions' which are smaller guesthouses with two to three rooms run by local families. It's the most authentic and friendly way to experience the Polynesian culture - please don't go to one of the overrated all-inclusive resorts. This has nothing to do with French Polynesia.

Most of these pensions don't have a website, though, let alone a possibility to book online: you will have to do a lot of phone calls and Whatsapp-communication. But it's worth it!⁠

When you arrive in Papeete, head straight to the Air Tahiti agency. They will gladly hand you a brochure they update every year with all the available pensions regrouped per island/archipelago and they are happy to point out their personal favourites. The prices aren't stated here either but if you're lucky, the Air Tahiti employee will adapt the suggestions to your given budget.

Internet 

I'll tell you right away: internet is suuuuuper slow in French Polynesia! Like unimaginably slow!!

On every island we visited, it was nearly impossible to upload pictures, much less videos. The only island with a decent internet speed we visited was Tahiti. And even there, our hosts only had a prepaid-recharge internet rate. So they had a certain amount of data but every time that data was consumed, they had to get down to the city to buy some more.

Nope, recharging online from the comfort of your own home doesn't exist here.

Also, coverage in general was very bad. If you happen to have wifi and a decent amount of data, it's generally very slow and spotty. 

Sure, you might appreciate the fact that you are not online during your French Polynesian holiday. But it is something to consider if you work remotely, for example.

Bugs, bugs and bugs

Bugs are plentiful. And they are a hungry bunch. The nastiest ones are what the locals call 'nonos': you won't feel the bite in first instance but you will scratch yourself the whole week afterwards!!

If, like me, you get bitten A LOT and if, also like me, you scratch yourself to the blood, Polynesians swear on oils like 𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙤ï to prevent the bites (the bugs get 'stuck' on the oil) and 𝙩𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙪 to heal the skin afterwards.

That last one is also very valuable in case you get attacked by a triggerfish - that actually happened to Sebi and another friend of us. Well, they did disturb their nesting grounds so we can't really blame the fish, can't we? 🙂

Read also | Travel pharmacy: the essentials for the journey

Electricity power and plugs 

The electricity power that can be found in French Polynesia is either 110 V & 60 Hz or 220 V & 60 Hz.

Depending on your country of origin, you will need an adapter as the power plugs and sockets are of the type A, B and E.

Check on World Power Plugs whether you need an adapter depending on your country of origin.

Getting the best value for your money in French Polynesia

The Air Tahiti multi-islands pass

The Air Tahiti pass: the cost

Prices for the different multi-island passes range from 329,30 € (402,50 US $) during low and 354,50 € (422,30 US $) in high season with the Discovery Pass visiting three islands, to the expensive Marquesas Pass with four islands for 777,70 € (942 US $) in low and 848,90 € (1037,60 US $) during high season.

The indicated prices are those valid from July 1st 2021 with 23 kg (50 lb) baggage allowance. So you see, the differences are quite big.

It depends on how many islands you plan on visiting, which island group and the distance of said group to Tahiti, which baggage allowance you choose (23 or 46 kg / 50 or 100 lb) and if you add an extension (to the Marquesas or Austral Islands) or not.

Seeing the prices like that might not seem very budget-friendly but try to get the same itinerary on separate flights and you will definitely see that getting the Air Tahiti multi-islands pass is worth it.

How to get it

There are two possibilities:

Online | Head over to Air Tahiti and check out the fares. The site has a handy tool that lets you select what archipelagos you want to visit and makes suggestions on which pass to choose.

At the agency | When arriving in Papeete, have your host or a taxi bring you to the Air Tahiti agency in the centre of the city, next to the market. It is much easier as the employees of Air Tahiti are not only super friendly and can give you additional tips, they also know best what is realistic in terms of how many days to spend on which island.

The Air Tahiti pass: the downside

One major disadvantage in our honest opinion is the fact that with the pass, you can only visit each island once. Which also means that you can't even do a stopover on a certain island when you've already set foot (by plane) here. For example, if you want to head up to Fakarava and you started in Tahiti, you can't go back to Tahiti in order to continue to Huahine for example.

There are a few exceptions for stopovers, though, depending on which pass you choose. Head over to Air Tahiti's site to get all the information you need.

In general, your journey has to start in Tahiti (or Moorea) and you will have to set the exact dates for each island beforehand - you obviously loose a lot of flexibility.

The Air Tahiti pass: the advantages

The price, obviously. Yes, flexibility is great but that will also make a serious cut in your total budget.

Booking each flight separately is expensive and during high season, it is highly unlikely that you will get a seat for the specific date and hour you planned. Air Tahiti has tiny airplanes and certain islands only get approached twice a week. 

Which islands to choose?

That's a hard one to answer as we feel we only got to see but a fraction of this brilliant country / island collective.

We met lovely fellow travellers along the way and each one had another favourite that we had to add to our list for a next visit to French Polynesia. Quite frankly, we fell in love with all of them - except Bora Bora. Read all about why that is below.

Hereunder you will find the exact route we took, with the Air Tahiti Pass of course, and our (short) opinion about each. Each one of these islands deserves a separate blogpost and in time, they will get one.

Unexpected French Polynesia holidays: our itinerary

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When it came to choosing the islands we had to rely on blogs we found and read because we booked the flight to Tahiti two days before actually getting on the plane. So there wasn't much time for extensive research. We had a list of about seven different islands and with that, we went to the Air Tahiti agency and they helped planning the details. 

Here is the route we came up with together for our Air Tahiti Multi Islands Pass:

• Start in Tahiti
• Maupiti: five days
• Huahine: three days
• Bora-Bora: two days
• Fakarava: five days

After returning to Tahiti, we took the ferry to get to Moorea where we spent another week.

While I wrote down the price we paid for every accommodation, these might differ from the current situation. We were travelling during uncertain times with very few tourists and therefore had a few advantages.

The pensions we chose were the ones recommended by the Air Tahiti employee because they fit our budget best without being just a camping spot in someone's garden - that is an option (actually a good one!) if your budget is tight and you don't mind sleeping in a tent or sleeping bag on the floor, though.

Also, prices depend on the season and your negotiation skills. 

Maupiti (Leeward Islands, Society archipelago): one of our favourite islands in French Polynesia

Where to stay on Maupiti

We actually stayed in two different places on Maupiti because when we contacted Lu, our supposed host on one of Maupiti's motus, she told us she only had a room for two nights and asked if we were willing to spend the two other nights at her son's pension on the main island.

We gladly accepted as she made a good price for both accommodations by adding breakfast and dinner: we ended up paying 88 € / 107 US $ per person per night (half-board) at the Pension Taravanui and 100 € / 123 US $ per person per night at the Pension Papahani (also half-board).

You see, this is something else than Europen or American prices. But don't forget, here the price include two meals per person. And these weren't small.

What to do and where to go on Maupiti

Go swimming and snorkelling | That's something you can do pretty much everywhere there's water and a beach.

Take the bikes and explore | Every pension we stayed at had some bikes (in a more or less good state, depending) for rent.

Do the te'urafa'atiu-trail | This is a not that long but quite steep hike (2,40 km one way, 323 m in altitude) that gets you to the most magnificent viewpoints on the island. Absolutely worth the struggle!

Experience a 'four tahitien' | That's what I explained earlier where they cook, or rather steam, the food inside a pit dug in the sand with lava stones and banana leaves. It's a bit touristy but you should have experienced this at least once because it still is a traditional way of cooking from several Polynesian tribes. 

Go snorkelling with manta rays | One of the coolest experiences we ever had. We had the pleasure of swimming with them several times during our stay on Maupiti. Either ask your host who will bring you to the best spots by boat (at a cost) or rent a kayak to go there yourself (we did both).

Read also | 7 best things to do on Maupiti, French Polynesia

Huahine (Leeward Islands, Society archipelago): the authentic one

Where to stay on Huahine

Because the accommodations suggested by the lovely lady at the Air Tahiti desk were full, we ended up booking an AirBnB with hosts Stellio and Maeva in Fare, the main town on Huahine. 

It was a lovely bungalow with terrace, a huge kitchen with all the necessary amenities and the best avocados for breakfast we've ever tasted. The terrace was cool because we had a few rain showers during our stay and this enabled us to work outside despite the weather.

The whole family runs a few bungalows in the main town together. Maeva's daughters Manola and Vétéa picked us up from the airport (free shuttle service included) and drove us around town to show the main reference points like the supermarket or the bank. They also lent us a car to explore the rest of the island and everything went super smooth.

We paid 102,70 € / 125 US $ per night, for two this time.

From what we heard from fellow travellers, the Chalet Tipanier and Pension Chez Guynette, both recommended by the Air Tahiti lady, are also very good addresses.

What to do and where to go on Huahine

Go snorkelling and swimming | The lagoon between the main island and the motu Murimaora to the Northeast of the main city Fare is sublime.

Admire the sunsets | With the view on the neighbouring islands Taha'a and Raiatea, this is a spectacular sight.

Observe the 'tupas' | These big crabs are actually considered a plague in French Polynesia because they make holes literally everywhere. We saw SO many on Huahine.

Watch the sacred eels | They have bright blue eyes and certainly look super creepy when lying in the water, barely moving. At least, that's how we saw them because we were probably the only tourists on the island at that time. Normally, there would be locals selling you food to feed the eels and watch them moving and jumping around to catch it.

Head to the town of Parea to buy a ... 'pareo' | They easily cost about 150 € (183 US $) but the quality of these handpainted scarfs is totally worth the price.

Visit a pearl farm | There are several to choose from and you can get better pearls at better prices than on the main island Tahiti.

Visit one of the few 'marae' | Nothing more to see than impressive stone mounts but they are indeed very sacred places.

Relax at 'hana iti' | That beach is a bit secluded and the way to get there is quite difficult because it's actually a private path  belonging to a disaffected hotel. Just ask the locals to point the way.

Bora Bora (Leeward Islands, Society archipelago): the overrated island

The effects of mass-tourism

Here's our brutal and honest opinion: with so many beautiful islands all over French Polynesia, you could easily skip honeymoon/all inclusive/overpriced Bora Bora.

Of all the islands in French Polynesia it's the most expensive and less friendly one. The prices for accommodations and food are even higher here than in average.

It is an island with many problems. If you hear about cases of rising criminality in Polynesia, it's usually because of Bora. When you read about break-ins into bungalows and stuff getting stolen, it's on Bora.

The atoll of Bora Bora is by far the most touristy and crowded one. The main island has to deal with mass tourism by having huge 5-star-resorts and chain hotels built year after year. Locals living on Bora don't really like tourists all that much because these huge resorts are owned by foreigners and generally refuse to employ Polynesians.

Hence: locals here are so much less friendly and welcoming than elsewhere in French Polynesia. 

Another reason for a much colder way of handling guests might be the fact that they don't actually need to be extremely friendly because tourists will keep coming anyway, no matter what.

Still worth to check out - briefly

The crystal clear, turquoise waters can be found in all of the other atolls as well. The same goes for insanely beautiful coral reefs, perfect for snorkelling and diving.

If all-inclusive honeymoon-resort-life is your thing and you have that kind of cash to spare, Bora Bora will absolutely be your dream vacation. For us as budget-backpack-travellers seeking adventure, we found paradise on other islands such as Maupiti and Fakarava.

That being said: if you can afford it, you should still go to Bora to make your own impressions! These are the ones we got but that might also be because we just paid the island a very short visit and only stayed on the main island. Life is certainly a bit different on the surrounding motus.

Where to stay on Bora Bora

We wanted to be able to say that we stayed at an 'overwater-bungalow' on mythical Bora Bora. And yes, we did! Granted, Chez Nono had a much more basic bungalow than those advertised on Bora brochures and we paid quite a high price for just the overnight-stay without breakfast, but we did have a cute little bungalow to ourselves with two pillars in the turquoise water. 

Location-wise, it was the dream: right next to one of the most famous beaches on Bora Bora, Matira Beach. Right behind us was the gorgeous Intercontinental Le Moana Bora Bora (closed at that moment) so the spot was incredible.

Chez Nono has two other, bigger bungalows that can accommodate whole families.

And here is why we can't stretch enough how much better it is to plan your trip right at the Air Tahiti agency: this was also a tip from the lovely lady, she literally helped us find an overwater-bungalow that was within our price range. We actually paid 'only' 126 € / 154 US $ for one night for the both of us - that's a bargain in French Polynesia.

Read also | Bora Bora Holidays: was it really worth the cost?

Fakarava (Tuamotu archipelago): a diver's dream

Where to stay on Fakarava

Knowing that Fakarava is an atoll that stretches on one single long line of mini-islands, it depends on which end you want to stay: near the South or the North pass.

Both are charming but if you are time-limited, I'd suggest to head to the very South because that is the spot where you will find the incredible 'wall of sharks' I talked about earlier!

Though planning a few nights in the South and the North is the best of both world, of course.

For the South pass, we stayed at Tetamanu Village and it was our absolute favourite accommodation on our whole French Polynesia holiday. Everything was just spot-on: from the pretty bungalows right next to the lagoon from where you could literally jump in to snorkel in that giant natural aquarium, over the yummy and freshly prepared food every single day to the friendliness of the staff and the diving instructors as well as the general vibe with fellow travellers. We had an absolute blast and are dying to go back one day.

The Tetamanu Village has several options for different budgets: either a bungalow like we had (which was a bit more luxurious but still kind of basic in the amenities) right next to the pass, over a bungalow on the whole other side of the motu to a simple camping spot in one of the community areas.

Tetamanu is also a professional diving center, offering day- and night-dives as well as baptisms and formations of all levels. In addition, you can participate in excursions and activities such as visiting the pink sand beach or go line-fishing early in the morning.

For the North pass, our lovely travel companions from France and Switzerland we met at Tetamanu raved about the Relais Marama.

Read also | 7 reasons why you should consider visiting Fakarava, French Polynesia

What to do and where to go on Fakarava

Snorkel and dive in the South pass | Watching this many types of sharks (black- and white-tip reef sharks, grey and lemon sharks), huge Napoleon-fish and tons of other beautiful creatures swirling around in that gorgeous natural aquarium is the most impressive sight we had during our French Polynesian holiday.

Visit the pink sand beaches | They aren't as pink as elsewhere in the world but the fact that this spot is a sand-bank with palm trees in the middle of the bright blue water makes it a little piece of paradise where you will feel at peace.

Go fishing | Line- or harpoon-fishing might seem cruel but it's necessary for the survival of the island-people. Though we didn't participate ourselves, watching Polynesians do it is apparently fascinating.

Biking on the North side | There are plenty of snorkelling and diving opportunities on the North side as well but it's also a very pleasant area to do some bike tours.

Sunset watching | Find someone with a ukulele (we did), grab a beer and enjoy the magnificent sunset.

Back to Papeete, Tahiti (Windward Islands, Society archipelago)

After our two-weeks island tour by plane, we headed back to Tahiti to spend a few days in the capital. We didn't take much time to explore it when we first arrived so we had to catch up.

Where to stay on Tahiti

Every time we came to Papeete, in total three times during our four week French Polynesian holiday, we stayed at the same AirBnB we had found at the beginning. We had a private room (each time a different one) with bathroom in the house of the lovely Opuhinano and her family, on a hill not far from Papeete's airport with a gorgeous sunset-view.

We paid about 35 € / 43 US $ a night but had to pay extra for their shuttle service (which is normal, I guess). They also had bikes for rent which was handy as Papeete's center would have been more than only 10 minutes away if we had to walk.

If you want to travel even more budget-friendly, they offer a camping spot in their beautiful garden in a tent for 15 € / 18,30 US $ a night.

But there are so many great options in Papeete, be it hotel, AirBnB or camping: we only heard good things about Tahiti.

What to do and where to go on Tahiti

Visit Papeete's historical market | Starting at 4 am, this 19th century market hall sells everything from local fruit, vegetables, fresh fish, over pearls, handmade flower crowns and clothing to all kinds of souvenirs possibly imaginable.

Go pearl shopping | We bought some lovely jewellery at two stores I highly recommend because they don't sell the things you practically see everywhere in Tahiti. The jewels they make are a tad more original: Matira Creation (next to the Centre Vaima in Papeete) and Julie Pearl inside the market hall. If you want to have something really unique but with a heavier price tag: the Tahiti Pearl Market in Papeete's center is the place to be.

Rent a jeep and do a tour of the island | There are still some very wild corners on Tahiti that we unfortunately didn't get to visit but our friends told us about how cool this tour was.

Check out what else there is to do in and from Papeete below:

Moorea (Windward Islands, Society archipelago)

Moorea is one of the only islands you don't need to fly to from Tahiti as there are several ferries going back and forth between both islands every day, costing approximately 12,30 € / 15 US $ one way and taking about 30 minutes to get to the destination.

After some souvenir-shopping in Papeete we decided to spend approximately one week on Moorea in order to do our Open Water Diving license at a certified diving center, the Nemoz Dive Center (recommended by a fellow traveller). Fakarava had us longing for more!

Our instructor, Xavier, was incredibly patient! Especially since I suffer from surgery-related panic attacks from time to time and so knowing that I would depend on an oxygen device under water was kind of a challenge. 

Also, the fact that I constantly try to avoid getting seasick played a huge part in my anxiety.

But everything went well and Sebi and I discovered a new passion that we ended up renewing by going for a few dive sessions in the Red Sea while backpacking in Jordan a few weeks later.

Where to stay on Moorea

Our Swiss friends we met in Fakarava headed to Moorea shortly before we did and so they managed to find a perfectly located (and huge) apartment where the owner put several rooms for rent. So it is kind of a shared place but we only had one night with people we didn't know and that was that. The rest of the time, we had this big place to ourselves, the four of us.

La Maison Orange is located right in front of the Nemoz Dive Center which was perfect as we had to be there every morning at 7.30. Very spacious kitchen/living room, about seven rooms, some of them with their own bathroom.

The host was very friendly and had some great tips and the cutest 'sausage dogs' ever 🙂

What to do and where to go on Moorea

Go hiking | There are several beautiful hikes to do on the island Moorea. Some of them are quite strenuous but with incredible views totally making up for the struggle. Check out the ones suggested by Mike and Laura.

Go diving | Moorea is known to be a perfect diving spot and especially when doing all kinds of certifications. There are professional diving centres all around the island.

Go kayaking | The lagoons around Moorea have perfectly calm waters to spend the day kayaking from one beach to the next. Kayaks come in normal or glass-bottom-version.

Swim with whales | Whale season is from July to October and they get so close to the island, that you can actually dive in and go for a swim with baby humpback whales. How cool is that?

Other islands to visit

Here are a few other islands our fellow travellers recommended and which we unfortunately didn't get to visit:

Taha'a (Leeward Islands, Society archipelago)

Our French friend who taught us to make coconut milk was completely blown away by this island. There are only eight villages on Taha'a and some of the most beautiful motus in Polynesia. Taha'a is also called 'the vanilla island' - guess why.

Where to stay | La Pirogue Api, though a bit more luxurious than what we're used to. But it comes highly recommended.

Raiatea (Leeward Islands, Society archipelago)

Idyllic motus, a rich lagoon and wild nature but also traces of the Polynesian past with the biggest marae (ceremonial place) in Polynesia protected by the Unesco and which gives it the additional name of 'the sacred island'.

Where to stay | Bouddha Villa in Uturoa.

Hiva Oa (Marquesas Islands)

This is where painter Paul Gauguin and Belgian singer Jacques Brel spent the last years of their lives. They fell in love with the Marquesas and specifically Hiva Oa.

Where to stay | Simplicités Marquises, calm and with a wonderful view

Tikehau (Tuamotu archipelago)

The atoll forms a huge natural aquarium with 28 km in diameter, surrounded by magnificent white and pink sand beaches. This island isn't that touristy yet so don't expect amenities like elsewhere but raw beauty.

Where to stay | Ninamu Resort, a private island paradise.

Is a French Polynesia holiday worth the cost?

Depending on where you go: Yes. Absolutely.

We fell in love with the paradise turquoise waters, the warm and charming Polynesians, their romantic sounding French, the tasty cuisine, the mangoes and avocados and the overall flair of the island-lifestyle.

It is far, especially when your starting point is Europe. It is expensive, to get and to stay there. But it is worth saving up a bit more to experience a totally different vibe than elsewhere in the world.

Skip Bora Bora if budget is tighter anyway, there is nothing on Bora you won't find on less touristy and much cheaper islands.

The best way to save money is to just be yourself and get to know the locals. That way, you might get invited to eat with them, stay with them, go on fishing trips with them - all without paying the activities tourists get horrendously charged for.

Maupiti and Fakarava were our absolute highlights! And it's also here that we found like-minded travellers that grew close to our hearts in a very short time.

Our French Polynesia holiday ranks certainly amongst the best experiences we had during our year-long world trip.

Feel free to ask if there is information missing or comment if there are things you experienced differently.

Also don't hesitate to pin and share this post to support us and to get the word out there.

As ever

xx

Cyn

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