Tahiti Bora Bora luxury travel centers on a lagoon you have seen in photographs and assumed was edited. It isn't. The coral creates it naturally — the shallow inner lagoon over white sand, the deeper water around the coral barrier reef — and it changes through the day in a sequence that genuinely doesn't flatten out. You can spend an afternoon watching it.
French Polynesia is a collection of 118 islands spread across a sea area roughly the size of Western Europe. Most travelers visit Tahiti (the main island, hub for connecting flights) and Bora Bora. Moorea is 30 minutes by ferry from Tahiti and consistently overlooked — a quieter, greener island with hiking that Bora Bora doesn't offer. The Tuamotu atolls (Rangiroa, Fakarava) attract serious divers chasing the shark and manta ray populations in the passes. This is a destination built for deliberate island-hopping, not a single-resort stay.
Getting Started
Begin planning your customized trip today. Call Breakout Travel Co. or schedule a consultation.
At a Glance
French Polynesia is a French overseas collectivity — French-speaking, with the French Pacific franc (XPF) as currency. The USD is not widely accepted; euros exchange favorably. Tahiti's Faa'a International Airport (PPT) is the hub — all inter-island flights depart from here. Air Tahiti operates the inter-island network. The time zone is UTC-10, 3 hours behind U.S. Pacific Time.
Travel Offerings
- Custom Private Travel
- Island-Hopping Packages
- Diving & Snorkeling
- Sailing & Yacht Charters
- Wellness & Spa Travel
- Cultural Experiences
Travel Guide
- U.S. citizens need a valid passport; no visa required for stays up to 90 days.
- Currency is XPF (CFP franc).
- Book inter-island flights on Air Tahiti (airtahiti.com) well in advance — seats are limited and fill quickly in peak season.
- The overwater bungalow, invented at Bora Bora in the 1960s, is the defining accommodation structure — book 6–12 months in advance for peak windows.
- Travel insurance with medical evacuation is recommended given distance from major medical centers.
- Bora Bora lagoon excursion: a half-day by outrigger canoe or motorized outrigger covers the coral gardens, the shark and ray feeding grounds (black-tip reef sharks and eagle rays in water you can stand in), and the motu (small outer islands) for picnic lunch.
- Mount Otemanu (Bora Bora): the 2,385-foot volcanic core of the island cannot be summited safely — the guided hike to the ridge below it delivers the full lagoon panorama without technical climbing.
- Moorea's Magic Mountain and Belvedere Lookout: on a clear morning, the view of Cook's Bay and Opunohu Bay from 1,000 feet up is the finest landscape view in French Polynesia.
- The Marae of Maeva on Huahine: 36 restored ancient Polynesian temples spread along a lagoon shoreline — the most significant archaeological site in the Society Islands.
- Rangiroa's Tiputa Pass: one of the world's top drift dives, running through the pass on an incoming tide with hundreds of dolphins, silvertip sharks, and schools of barracuda.
French Polynesia follows French law, under which same-sex relationships are legal and recognized. However, the local Polynesian culture is traditionally conservative; LGBTQ+ public life is not prominently visible outside Tahiti's Papeete.
The resort and tourism environment is professionally managed and welcoming. Mahu — a traditional third-gender identity recognized in Polynesian culture for centuries — provides historical and cultural context for a non-binary acceptance that runs deeper than visible infrastructure suggests.
For most travel purposes, the resort-focused nature of French Polynesia makes LGBTQ+ considerations largely a non-issue in practice.
May through October: dry season, cooler temperatures (75–82°F), lower humidity. This is peak season — book accommodations 6–12 months in advance.
November through April: wet season with higher humidity and occasional cyclone risk (peaks January–March). December and January produce the most rainfall; April and October represent the transitional sweet spots.
Water temperature is warm year-round (78–83°F).
The Heiva Festival (July) is the most significant cultural celebration in French Polynesia — traditional dance, outrigger canoe racing, and stone-lifting competitions across the islands.
7-Day Itinerary
Tahiti, Moorea & Bora Bora — 7 Days
Day 1 — Arrive Tahiti / Papeete
Overnight flight from Los Angeles (8 hours). Land early morning. Day to recover and explore Papeete — the Marché de Papeete (the covered market open from 5 a.m., with fresh vanilla, black pearls, pareos, and street food). The waterfront promenade in the late afternoon.
Day 2 — Tahiti Circle Tour
Rent a car or take a guided tour of Tahiti Nui (the main peninsula, 45-mile circuit). The Faarumai Waterfalls. The Arahoho Blowhole. Point Venus, where Captain Cook observed the 1769 Transit of Venus. The Papeari district for the Gauguin Museum (his work in Polynesia, 1891–1901).
Day 3 — Ferry to Moorea
30-minute ferry from Papeete to Moorea. Rent a scooter or car. Belvedere Lookout: the view of Cook's Bay and Opunohu Bay from 1,000 feet — the single best panoramic view in French Polynesia. Snorkel at Temae Beach (the clearest water near the ferry landing). Evening in Moorea.
Day 4 — Moorea Activities
Morning: outrigger canoe excursion in Moorea's lagoon — dolphin watching in the open ocean off the north coast, then stingray and shark encounter in the lagoon (the rays are accustomed to this and approach willingly). Afternoon: walk the Opunohu Valley archaeological trail (marae ruins through secondary forest).
Day 5 — Fly to Bora Bora
Short Air Tahiti flight (45 minutes). Arrive Bora Bora. Boat transfer to motu and check in. The first hour standing in the lagoon is sufficient orientation.
Day 6 — Bora Bora Lagoon
Full-day lagoon excursion: coral garden snorkeling, black-tip reef shark feeding grounds (the sharks are 18 inches to 3 feet — in-water encounter, not dangerous), eagle ray shallows, and picnic on a motu. Sunset drinks with Mount Otemanu as the backdrop.
Day 7 — Depart Bora Bora
Morning: paddleboard across the lagoon. Fly back to PPT, connect to LAX.
