Dream holiday to French Polynesia: everything you need to know
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French Polynesia is a French overseas territory that lies literally on the other side of the world from France, specifically between Australia and the United States. Consequently, the time difference is exactly 12 hours. French Polynesia is an archipelago of 118 islands, 67 of which are inhabited. You may be familiar with 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, a true gem that is less famous than the other two. In any case, French Polynesia is a true paradise, but it is not one of the easiest countries to visit. Below you will find all our tips for your dream holiday to French Polynesia.
How do you get there?
French Polynesia can only be reached by plane and because there is a 12-hour time difference with Europe, you will have to spend a considerable amount of hours on the plane before you can land on the main island of Tahiti.
Flying directly from Europe to French Polynesia is not possible due to the number of flight hours, so it is best to combine this destination with another country so that you don't have to fly such a long distance in one go. Tahiti is easily accessible from New Zealand, but for us, combining it with the United States was the fastest and cheapest option. From Amsterdam or other big cities in Europe, you can fly directly to Los Angeles or San Francisco. To get used to the time difference, we stayed here for a week first before taking a direct flight from San Francisco to Tahiti. There are multiple flights per week from San Francisco and Los Angeles, and these take approximately 8.5 hours.
We flew with French Bee, an airline unknown to us, but since French Polynesia is a French municipality, it is logical that primarily French airlines fly to French Polynesia.
What to visit?
French Polynesia consists of various archipelagos. The best-known and most visited islands of French Polynesia are Tahiti, Moorea, and Bora Bora, and these are all located in the same archipelago. The islands are therefore somewhat easier to combine with each other, but it is also possible to visit other islands from other archipelagos, such as Fakarava and Rangiroa.
We ourselves went straight to Moorea after landing in Tahiti. We stayed there for over a week and then continued on to Bora Bora. We stayed there for just under a week as well, but split it between the mainland of Bora Bora and the resort area. You can find more information about this here!
Transport in French Polynesia
French Polynesia consists of several islands, and to visit a number of these islands, you must travel by ferry or plane. From Tahiti, Moorea is best reached by ferry. You can buy online here, and a one-way trip costs approximately €16,- You can also find the timetable on this website. Every day, 4 to 5 boats travel from Tahiti to Moorea and back to Tahiti. The journey takes around 50 minutes.
To reach Bora Bora or one of the other islands, you need to travel by plane. There are multiple daily flights from Tahiti to these islands, but there are also daily flights from Moorea. Air Moana is one of the airlines that fly between the islands daily. The flight from Moorea to Bora Bora takes just under an hour, and from the plane, you have an amazing view of the islands.
Tip! Sit on the right side of the plane. You'll have an amazing view of Bora Bora as you land.
Tahiti and Moorea are large islands, so having a rental car is very convenient for visiting the sights. You can then explore every side of the islands yourself and come and go as you please. We rented our car in Moorea from Auto Rent Moorea. They picked us up at the ferry and gave us a nice little car that we used to drive around the entire island.
Depending on where you stay in Bora Bora, you may or may not need transportation. If, like us, you first stay a few days on the local island of Bora Bora, a car, scooter, or bicycle is handy. The island is much smaller than Moorea or Tahiti, so you can get quite far by bike. If you stay at a resort, renting transportation is not necessary.
Accommodation
A trip to French Polynesia is not cheap. Accommodation can be very expensive, regardless of which island you stay, but cheaper options are available.
In Moorea, we enjoyed having our own place where we could stay for the whole week. The island is small enough that you don't need to change accommodation to see everything. We stayed in Papetoai on the coast. This is the busier area, and from here you can also do a lot on foot. We rented a nice little chalet and had a great time.
In Bora Bora, you have two options to choose from. Bora Bora consists of an island surrounded by a ring. Located on this ring are a number of large, luxurious resorts featuring overwater villas and the famous view of Mount Otemanu. These are expensive resorts and are not connected to the main island. On the main island, you can find smaller hotels, boutiques, and Airbnbs at a more reasonable price. From there, you can also go on snorkeling tours or other tours at a lower cost.
We first stayed a few nights in a beautiful boutique hotel on the mainland in Bora Bora before leaving for the beautiful InterContinental resort.
Costs
As mentioned, French Polynesia is not cheap, which is not surprising when you literally have to fly to the other side of the world and the islands are so remote that almost everything has to be imported. Nevertheless, we found French Polynesia to be quite reasonable. There are plenty of hotels and other accommodations available in various price ranges, allowing you to keep costs reasonably under control.
Additionally, there is a large supermarket in Moorea where you can get breakfast, lunch, and dinner more cheaply. Because we were staying in a small cottage, we occasionally picked up some extra bread and snacks for lunch there.
Bora Bora was clearly a lot more expensive, especially if you stay at a resort. Intercontinental was not all-inclusive, so for lunch and dinner you go to one of the hotel restaurants. This was quite pricey. Think €25 for a cocktail and €85 for a Polynesian buffet. A bottle of wine, on the other hand, is not too bad; you can get one for as little as €35.
