Dream trip to French Polynesia: everything you need to know
Updated: Aug 21
French Polynesia is a French overseas territory located, for us Europeans, quite literally on the other side of the world, between Australia and the United States. From the Netherlands, there is even a 12-hour time difference! French Polynesia is made up of 118 islands, 67 of which are inhabited. You have probably heard of Bora Bora, one of the most beautiful islands in the world, or Tahiti, the main island of French Polynesia. Another well-known island is Moorea, an absolute gem that is slightly less famous than the other two.
Either way, French Polynesia is a true paradise, but it isn't necessarily the easiest destination to visit. In this French Polynesia travel guide, you'll find all our tips for planning your dream trip to French Polynesia.
How to get to French Polynesia
French Polynesia can only be reached by plane, and with a 12-hour time difference from the Netherlands, you can probably imagine that you'll have to spend quite a few hours in the air before landing on the main island of Tahiti.
Flying directly to French Polynesia from the Netherlands or other European country isn't possible due to the enormous distance, so we found it much nicer to combine this destination with another country. This way, you don't have to travel such a huge distance all at once.
Tahiti is relatively easy to reach from New Zealand, but for us, combining French Polynesia with the United States was the quickest and cheapest option. From Amsterdam, you can fly directly to Los Angeles or San Francisco. To adjust to the time difference, we first spent a week in the United States before taking a direct flight from San Francisco to Tahiti. There are several flights a week from both San Francisco and Los Angeles to Tahiti, and the flight takes approximately 8.5 hours.
We flew with French Bee, an airline we hadn't heard of before. Since French Polynesia is a French overseas territory, however, it makes sense that several French airlines operate flights to the islands.
Best time to visit French Polynesia
French Polynesia has two main seasons: the rainy season from November to April, with December and January being the wettest months, and the dry season from May to October.
The dry season is also the high season, which means prices are generally much higher, but the weather tends to be more stable than during the rainy season. During the rainy season, you can expect regular rain showers, although there are still plenty of beautiful days as well. One major advantage of travelling during this period is that accommodation, in particular, can be considerably cheaper.
If one of the main reasons for your trip to French Polynesia is swimming with humpback whales, plan your visit between July and October. Want to know more? Read our complete guide to swimming with whales in Moorea!
How many days do you need in French Polynesia?
If you want to visit several islands in French Polynesia, we would recommend spending at least two weeks here. Tahiti and Moorea are relatively large islands where you can easily spend several days to a week. Bora Bora is much smaller, but if you want to divide your stay between the main island and one of the luxury resorts, we would recommend staying for at least four nights. Of course, the more islands you want to visit, the more time you'll need. Travelling between the islands also takes time, so try not to squeeze too many different islands into a short trip.
Which islands should you visit in French Polynesia?
French Polynesia consists of several different archipelagos. The best-known and most visited islands are Tahiti, Moorea and Bora Bora, which are all part of the same archipelago. This makes them relatively easy to combine during one trip. However, you can also visit islands in some of the other archipelagos, such as Fakarava and Rangiroa.
After landing in Tahiti, we travelled straight to Moorea, where we stayed for just over a week. We then continued to Bora Bora, where we spent almost another week. We divided our time on Bora Bora between the main island and one of the luxury resorts. You can find more information about staying on Bora Bora's main island versus staying at a resort here.
How to travel between the islands in French Polynesia
French Polynesia consists of many different islands, so to visit several of them you'll need to travel either by ferry or by plane. From Tahiti, the easiest way to reach Moorea is by ferry. You can buy your tickets online in advance, and a one-way ticket costs around €16. You can also find the current timetable online. There are usually four or five ferries a day between Tahiti and Moorea, and the journey takes around 50 minutes.
To reach Bora Bora or many of the other islands, you'll need to fly. There are several flights a day from Tahiti, and there are also daily flights from Moorea. Air Moana is one of the airlines operating inter-island flights, and you can find flights through websites such as Skyscanner. The flight from Moorea to Bora Bora takes just under an hour, and the views of the islands from the plane are incredible.
Tip: Try to get a seat on the right-hand side of the plane when flying to Bora Bora. You'll get an amazing view of the island as you come in to land!
Renting a car in French Polynesia
Tahiti and Moorea are fairly large islands, so having a rental car is very useful if you want to explore the different sights. It gives you the freedom to discover every part of the islands and go wherever you want, whenever you want. In Moorea, we rented our car from Auto Rent Moorea. They picked us up at the ferry terminal and gave us a cute little car that we used to drive all around the island.
Whether you need transportation on Bora Bora depends on where you're staying. If, like us, you first spend a few days on Bora Bora's main island, renting a car, scooter or bicycle can be useful. The island is much smaller than Moorea or Tahiti, so you can actually get quite far by bicycle. If you're staying at one of the resorts, there's no need to rent your own transportation.
Where to stay in French Polynesia
A trip to French Polynesia isn't cheap. Accommodation can be expensive regardless of which island you stay on, although there are definitely more affordable options available.
Where to stay in Moorea
In Moorea, we loved having our own place where we could stay for the entire week. The island is small enough that you don't need to change accommodation to explore different areas. We stayed on the coast in Papetoai. This is one of the livelier parts of the island, and there are quite a few places you can reach on foot. We rented a lovely little chalet and had an amazing time here.
Where to stay in Bora Bora
In Bora Bora, you basically have two options. Bora Bora consists of a main island surrounded by a ring of smaller islets, known as motus. Several large luxury resorts with overwater villas are located on these motus, offering those famous views of Mount Otemanu. These resorts can be very expensive and are separated from the main island. On Bora Bora's main island, you'll find smaller hotels, boutique hotels and Airbnbs at much more reasonable prices. Staying here also makes it easier to book more affordable snorkelling trips and other tours.
We first spent several nights at a beautiful boutique hotel on Bora Bora's main island before moving to the gorgeous InterContinental resort.
Is French Polynesia expensive?
As mentioned earlier, French Polynesia isn't cheap. That's hardly surprising when you consider that, from Europe, you literally have to fly to the other side of the world and that the islands are so remote that almost everything has to be imported. That said, we actually found French Polynesia slightly more affordable than we had expected. There are plenty of hotels and other types of accommodation in different price ranges, which means you can keep your costs somewhat under control.
There is also a large supermarket in Moorea where you can buy breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks for much less than you'd pay at restaurants. Since we were staying in a small house, we occasionally bought some extra bread and snacks here for lunch.
Bora Bora was noticeably more expensive, especially when staying at a resort. The InterContinental wasn't all-inclusive, so we ate lunch and dinner at one of the hotel's restaurants. This was fairly expensive: think around €25 for a cocktail and €85 for a Polynesian buffet. A bottle of wine, on the other hand, wasn't quite as bad and started at around €35.
