Tahiti

Hi Amy,
I have traveled to Tahiti, Bora Bora and Moorea and yes, i went on my honeymoon. Mostly it is honeymoon couples but there are also a surprising number of families from France (including little kids), particularly in Moorea. I'd say Bora Bora is almost all couples/honeymooners but there's slightly more of a mix in Moorea and Tahiti itself. I loved it, but it definitely was geared towards the romantic. Hope this helps!

Maya Reply to this

Mel, Tahiti is expensive, but i think worth it for a honeymoon. I have to say, i'm totally spoiled now and when I go to places such as the caribbean i'm not nearly as impressed (maybe this makes me a travel snob, for those of you on that forum! :-) Also, it depends on how you travel when there. There really aren't any opportunities to do it on the cheap (e.g. hostels, 2 star hotels) but you don't have to do the over-water bungalows in every resort either. One of the things that makes it so expensive is that, esp on Bora Bora, there aren't local stores, markets, or even really "quick eat" types of places so you are pretty much eating out at a "nice" (not dressy but good sit-down meal) for every meal. You don't really have the option to pick up some fruit, bread and cheese and sit in a park like you would in Europe. Also, since it's close to pretty much nowhere, flights from just about everywhere are expensive! Reply to this

To be honest, I'm not sure. On bora bora there is one tiny little store where we got a few things like crackers, and people do set up stands on the side of the road but it is very randomly done - i guess it's locally grown so whatever they aren't using, the residents just set up a roadside stand and sell when they have extra. There are a couple of touristy shops (I actually just remembered this) but that's more like souvenir type of things. Perhaps there are places we did not come across, tucked in a little corner somewhere. In Moorea, you can take a 20 min ferry ride to Papaette, Tahiti where there are actually malls and shops and restaurants. Many locals live on Moorea and commute via ferry to papaette for work, so i suspect they stock up when there. That could be done by visitors as well, but i think with the cost of the ferry and the trip into Papaette not being so nice, most honeymooners choose not to. Moorea did have one convenience type store so it was a bit easier there. Bora Bora was the trickiest. I was just thinking that compared to a place like Europe where it's so easy to go out and buy local food, it's definitely trickier in French Polynesia. I suspect you could find more if you really looked there but since almost everyone's on their honeymoon, i think they don't tend to care quite so much if they are spending a bit more on their meals each night! i know we were guilty of that! Reply to this

Thanks for the info Maya 😊

So there are hostels then, even if they cost $50 per night? Reply to this

Sorry to burst everyones bubbles but you can actually find some cheap places on Bora Bora. I was camping there for $15 per night about 3 years ago, also contrary to IUMy23 there are also local stores there at least three from when I counted when biking around the island which I hired for about $10 per day also. The shops are not too expensive baguettes around $1 and the rest around standard european prices ( due to the fact mostly everything is shipped from France), the local beer hinano is about $2 a bottle. Its hard to find cheaper eating out places on Bora Bora as it is catered for the rich so be prepared to cook your own stuff and you can live on the cheap. You can also get there by the shipping boat from Tahiti it takes around 15hours and its not the most comfortable ride but its only about $30. Im not sure if there are hostels on Bora Bora but the islands near there ( huahine / raiatea ) have basic dorms for around $10-$15 per night as well as camping for $10. I ended spending about 1 month on the Polynesian Islands and spent around $600 including everything which included travel to Moorea, Huahine, Raiatea, Bora Bora and Maupiti. Was a magical trip and I definitely recommend it but I think Bora Bora is overrated - go to Huahine its beautiful and there arent so many tourists. PA Leslie is right also Moorea is easy to get too and there are with shared hostels on it and the local supermarket is close.

My Huahine blog
http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/French-Polynesia/Huahine/blog-11532.html
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