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 Lagoonarium Price List by easyoar
When we asked at our hotel, we were told it would cost at least 7,500 per person to go. A man on a boat would take us from the hotel and bring us back, and we would be there for about an hour, they also said it wasn't open everyday.
HOWEVER, we drove past the Lagoonarium (well we drove past a little kiosk, as the Lagoonarium is actually on a little Motu [small island] out to sea). If you stop at the kiosk, there is a radio in there, and you can call them up, so I tried, and had a conversation in French/English, where it turned out that it cost 2,300 per person to get in (checkout that markup!!!), and that included a man coming over on the island in a boat to pick you up (and later bring you back) - he comes when you radio in. You were free to stay as long as you liked (within reason!).
For the money you can swim with sharks, turtles etc. You can borrow snorkels, flippers and canoes. It is very good value. The reason they can guarantee sharks and turtles etc is because they have an area in the sea that is surrounded with mesh, so keeping the fish in.
I think one of the reasons that it is good value is that it seems to be looked after by a bunch of hippies that live on the island and aren't very materially minded. They are all very friendly and decent, and just make enough money to be comfortable on the island. They are therefore divorced to degree from the crazily priced Moorea.
I highly recommend this place, it is not to be missed! Leave a Comment
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 Society Islands by Helga67
These are the islands of Tahiti, Moorea, Huahine, Raiatea, Tahaa, Bora Bora and Maupiti. On most of these islands you can explore the valleys, waterfalls and marae stone temples on a safari tour, you can swim, snorkel, scuba dive, paddle an outrigger canoe, feed the sharks and rays, go sailing and picnic on the motu. Leave a Comment
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 The Tiki Village Theatre on
Moorea. by easyoar
It puts on a show in the evenings that has Polynesian dancing, fire dancing, a Polynesian feast where you see them cooking the food too. See some of my Must See tips for these.
You are led to believe that the Polynesians there all live in the village, and perhaps they do. They certainly practice crafts like tattooing, carving etc there, and there is living accommodation there too.
Talking to some of the performing artists there, they had worked in Spain before in Port Aventura (now called Terra Mitica I think), as they have a Polynesian land there and have dancing etc going on.
Whilst the evening was excellent (although very pricey), the one thing that disappointed me at the end was when a French guy was introduced as the man who had made it all possible. Up to that point I had thought the Polynesians had set it all up themselves. It disappointed me somewhat. Leave a Comment
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 Barier reef island by Helga67
Evolution:
First there is a volcanic island. Coral begins to grow around this island. The formation of a coral reef is very slow, it rises from 0,5 to 2 meters in a hundred year. It is made of coral polyps, shells and skeletal remains of marine plants and animals. Due to erosion after a million of years the soft volcanic stone starts to sink into the ocean where it becomes a barrier reef island (coral reef with lagoon and a volcanic island in the middle), and finally only the coral reef is left, which is called an atoll. Leave a Comment
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 Sea Turtle in French Polynesia by easyoar
If you don't pull on a mask and a snorkel you will really miss out. The waters are clear and warm(ish). The reefs around these islands protect the waters just off the coastline and the water tends to be very shallow and typically pretty calm so it is a great place to swim and dive. Of course if you can scuba dive, then all the better!
The Lagoonarium on Moorea made exploring the sea very easy in a very sheltered environment. Please see separate tips for more info on this. Leave a Comment
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 Dove Nesting In Bananas
in Tahiti by easyoar
When I was visiting the Tomb of King Pomare V in Tahiti, I was walking past a bunch of bananas (they are all over the place in Tahiti, so you stop paying too much attention to them), when something caught my eye and I took a better look at them. There right by my head was a dove nesting in the actual bunch of bananas on the plant!
Needless to say my camera came out, and being careful not to disturb the bird I took a few pictures. Whilst it didn't appered to be overjoyed to see me, it didn't really appear that fussed by my presence, but then it hadn't exactly chosen a quiet place for nesting... Leave a Comment
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 Church in Raiatea by Helga67Leave a Comment
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 Coconut Trees on Moorea by ATXtraveler
Scientific Name: Cocos Nucifera
Description: Cultivated food crop, tall palm, trunks often curved, leaves 6 m long or longer, pinnae roughly 1 meter long, inflorescence up to 2 meters long, staminate flowers yellow, pistillate flowers thick and globose, fruit orange at maturity.
Notes: Staple food, former cash crop for Moorea, coconut "milk", copra (meat), and oil (pressed from copra) all used in a variety of ways; oil used for massage, hair, and tanning oils, essential ingredient of "monoi" oils produced in the Society Islands; milk used as base for many medicines; roots used for various ailments. The variety called "ahuahupuru" has a sweet edible husk and is used in some medicinal preparations as well.
http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/moorea/monocots.html Leave a Comment
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 Hibiscus by ATXtraveler
Description: Abundant tree, found from the ocean up to the highest points on Moorea, trunks of soft white wood, leaves up to 30 cm long, cordate with acuminate apices, sepals 5, petals 5, yellow to yellow-orange with dark maroon-purple basally, the yellow fading to pink-red with age, stamens fused into staminal column, can be observed growing in a mangrove-like fashion.
Notes: The wood is used for carving, boat making, floats, firewood, fibers used for rope and net making; medicinal value mostly topical for sores and cuts.
Photos: 1-2 - The most common form; 3-4 - other leaf varieties commonly seen
Information courtesy of UC Berkeley
http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/moorea/dicots2.html Leave a Comment
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 Bright flowers on Moorea by easyoar
They seem to grow all the year around, as I guess the seasons are not really so apparent when you have tropical type weather. There is certainly no frost to kill off the flowering buds!
Flowers to look out for are the Hibiscus and Tiare (emblem of Tahiti.) as well as many others too numerous to mention (or for me to even know their names!) Leave a Comment
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