Tanuja Sudra, Travel Counsellor The best time to visit is from April to November, February and March are unpredictable with rainy days and sunny days, but still hot. Tahitians are French citizens with full civil and political rights. They speak French as well as Tahitian, sell French wines in the hotels and prepare French cuisine. Tahitians are really lovely. Papeete is the entry point where most visitors have to overnight before flying off to one of the islands. There isn't a lot to see on Papeete. The islands are idyllic. They are volcanic with mountain ranges, lush green valleys and the most stunning beaches I have ever seen. Moorea and Bora Bora are large islands with several hotels. On Moorea you can swim with dolphins at the Intercontinental and take a four-wheel drive safari. There’s a cultural centre village with traditional food (cooked underground) and Polynesian dancers. The snorkelling is amazing and on Bora Bora you can swim with stingrays. Le Tahaa and Tikehau are smaller, flat islands and totally unspoilt.
Johanna Worcester, Holidaymaker French Polynesia is probably not the best place to go if you have mobility problems. The large hotels are spread out and it’s often a hike from room to restaurant to reception. Wine can be very expensive so we stuck to beer and very large cocktails! Happily we found that tipping wasn’t encouraged. On Moorea we stayed at the privately owned Linareva. It has just eight beach bungalows – not four star luxury but perfectly adequate. The hotel’s Le Bateau restaurant is very good with lovely fresh fish. Take advantage of the free bikes to visit the shop for breakfast foods if you don’t want to bother with room service.
Bora Bora is a great place to fly into because the airport is by the ocean and hotel transfers are by boat. The sea is a fab turquoise colour. The Bora Bora Lagoon Hotel has beautiful large and airy rooms. But we thought the snorkelling disappointing as most of the coral is dead. The hotel restaurant is very expensive but to eat you can visit the mainland - a four-minute boat ride away. The hotel will book for you and the restaurant organises transport. Lunch at the 'famous' Hotel Bora Bora was disappointing. There’s only one road but you can hire a small car very reasonably and driving is quite fun. Rangiroa is a very long and narrow sliver of land surrounding a huge lagoon - too far to see from one side to the other. There’s not much in the way of scenery and not much to do except scuba diving. However the Kia Ora resort hotel is very comfortable.
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