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Every single time we arrived in Bora Bora, it rained. The time of the year did not matter. It also did not matter if it was a heat wave in Papeete, if the sun was shine in Moorea, if the sky was clear in Manihi, or all three. When we climb aboard the twin-engine propeller plane that flies to Bora Bora, everything would be fine. When we landed in Bora Bora, the rain would pour. It never failed. The umbrella stand between the tarmac and the walk to the airport lobby did not stay permanently there without a reason.
Air Tahiti flies to Bora Bora from Papeete and other islands. The airport was built by the US Armed Forces in 1942, is located on its own motu. Upon arrival, passengers need to take a motor launch from the airport to the main village of Vaitape on Bora Bora proper, which is about 20 minutes away. Leave a Comment Theme: Airplane
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A Fun Car is a little two-seater rental vehicle.
The older Fun Car version looks like a broken eggshell; it's a dune-buggy type, with no roof and no sides. There are three wheels -- two regular tires in the front and one in the back. The tire in the back is reinforced with a pair of smaller and narrower "training wheels".
As the name indicated, this is a fun car, but beware that the structure of the vehicle is not the safest one around. Don't let the fun of being exposed to the sun and the wind make you lose your perspective. To avoid being tipped over, please drive slowly especially around the blind curves. Leave a Comment Theme: Car/Motor Home
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In Moorea, you can rent bicycles, scooters, or cars with many companies, but we like Albert because of the convenient locations, the good rate, and the wonderful people.
At Temae Airport, there is a car rental desk if you need to rent one immediately upon arrival.
On the island, they have two locations: in Paopao at the family's motel across from Club Bali Hai, in Maharepa between the airport and Cook's Bay, and in Haapiti (on the west coast) across from Club Med. Leave a Comment Theme: OtherPhone: +689 56.19.28Other Contact: +689 56.30.58
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Manihi Airport consists of a tiny square plus a short strip of concrete for runway in the middle of a barren field. The runway is listed at 3937ft but I doubt it is that long. I know for certain that the landing pad is the size of our inner city rooftop terrace, and we have perhaps the smallest terrace in the city.
The passenger lounge is a thatched roof open area. There are a couple of chairs and a wooden table inside. The sole airport employee arrives to work on his bicycle five minutes before the plane lands, and leaves five minutes after all passengers are gone. There is no gate or marked entrance at the airport, there is nothing to lock up, there is nothing to steal, there is nothing to tamper. Leave a Comment Theme: Airplane
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The newer Fun Car version is a better and safer way to circle the island. The car has four wheels, plus a roof and some sort of roll bar added to the sides, giving it greater stability than the older form.
Note: Never drive off in a Fun Car without checking the brake first. Leave a Comment Theme: Car/Motor Home
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Air Tahiti operates the domestic scheduled flights between the islands of French Polynesia and provides a well-run air service.
They offer four different air passes, allowing you to combine several islands. The restrictions are that one is allowed one stop per island and the pass is valid for 28 days. It is a good service when you are thinking of doing some island hopping. Leave a Comment
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What the Faaa is that?
If you have never been to Tahiti, you will probably look at the title and think "What on earth is that word - Faaa". Faaa is the name of the airport (it is also the name of the closest town). It's an incredibly simple word, but leaves you wondering whether you have actually pronounced it properly or not!
It's quite a pleasant airport, but the duty free prices are criminal, as are all prices in Tahiti, but I think the airport wins, so don't wait to buy anything at the airport.
Also when you leave, you can get some very long queues and waits to get on to your flight. Delayed flights seemed common. If you are heading to the U.S., you will get searched a lot more than if you fly anywhere else (fortuntely I wasn't headed that way...), but the Americans on the checking queue next to me were getting very annoyed at the hoops they had to jump through.
Destinations I can remember are Auckland NZ, Easter Island, the USA and of course France! Leave a Comment Theme: Airplane
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By far the cheapest way to get around any particular island in French Polynesia is to use Le Truck. Le Truck is a bus that basically drives around the island you are on (e.g. Tahiti, Moorea, Bora Bora etc), and you flag it down at a stop, and let the driver know when you need to get off - it can be flexible sometimes although it is supposed to use proper stops.
I can'tremember the exact cost, but it was the only thing I remember in French Polynesia that felt good value. However be aware that Le Truck does run on Tahiti time (i.e. it can be pretty late). If you are doing something to a budget then Le Truck is great. If you are in a hurry, get a car!
However Le Truck can be good for getting to and from the Ferry, as it stops right outside the ferry terminal, and seems to try and coincide its stops with the ferry arriving/departing.
I haven't got picture of Le-Truck myself, so this photo is courtesy of Tahiti Tourisme Leave a Comment Theme: Bus
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Whilst it is not especially cheap to rent a car in French Polynesia, it can work out quite cost effective compared to paying someone else to take you to places (hotels are so expensive you don't tend to be staying long, so everything is done in a hurry, so Le Truck is not always feasible!).
You can rent cars by the day with unlimited mileage, or you can pay less if you are going to do less mileage, with a surcharge for every extra kilometre you drive. If you have a good idea that you are not going to drive too far, this can be a good idea.
This picture shows the car we rented in the grounds of the Tahiti Museum. Leave a Comment Theme: Car/Motor Home
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There are several boats that leave to/from Moorea to Papeete (Papeete is the capital of Tahiti) a few times a day.
Unfortunately they all seem to depart at virtually the same time, so if you miss a boat, you can have several hours wait for the next one, so make sure you know what times the boats leave in advance and get there early as they depart promptly - they don't work on Tahitian time (i.e. late!).
From memory, the boat is around £5 (less than $10 US) for a single to Tahiti (returns are double), which actually maks it quite good value by Polynesian standards! Leave a Comment Theme: Ship/Boat
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on April 7, 2006
on July 20, 2004
on April 22, 2005
