a_smerage

Hi,

I'm trying to plan an August '06 honeymoon to Tahit and FP, but am open to other areas as well. I don't know a lot about the islands, except that they all look so beautiful!

I've looked at a couple package deals, which seem reasonable, but I am wondering what islands to go to. We're planning on at least 10 days, so maybe 3 islands, and a night in Papeete for our flight.

I'm interested in some snorkeling and diving, and plain old lounging around. If you have any imput I would appreciate it!

Thanks,
Amanda

CheBird

Hi, Amanda -

We honeymooned in Moorea. We stayed at the Beachcomber Park Royal. Our hut was on stilts in the water and our little deck had a ladder that went right into the lagoon. It was paradise. The service was wonderul. You can have breakfast brought to your deck by a waiter in a canoe.

The hotel has dolphins and they let them swim and play in the lagoon. Because our hut was in the lagoon, we were able to get a canoe ride with the dolphin trainer and "teach" the dolphin new tricks.

The cook-out on the beach was amazing. I've never seen so much food in my life. If they're still offering that, definitely do it.

We spent most of our sunbathing time at the pool, but the hotel also has a beach.

As for excursions, my husband went on a chartered fishing boat for a day. We rented a canoe and explored a bit on another day. Snorkels and diving masks were provided in our hut, so we spent a lot of time underwater off of our deck.

Moorea is very expensive ($15 for a ham and cheese sandwich at a roadside hut; $12 for the only English magazine I could find on the island). We pre-paid for 3 dinners at our hotel in our package, figuring we'd find local restaurants the other 4 nights. Turns out there wasn't a lot to choose from on the island and we wish we'd have pre-paid for more hotel dinners.

The island iteself is small and there's not a whole lot to do. The hotel is the place to be - there's really no reason to leave the hotel other than to go exploring a bit or maybe find a little food shop. Renting the car for only 4 hours was expensive, too. I think it was around $80.

It's truly paradise, though! Bring plenty to read; my husband and I both finished our books mid-way through the week, and couldn't find any books in English on the island.

I can't really give you any tips on Tahiti itself, though. We only flew in and out of Papeete and took the ferry to Moorea (take Dramamine if you get sea sick easily!).

Hope that helps a bit. Have fun!

geori

You don't want to stay on Tahiti. Papeete is a large city. The barrier reefs have backwash around the city. Go to Moorea if you want an easy trip, or if you have some $$$ go to Bora Bora or Tahaa. If you dive, you'll want to go to BB or Raitea.

Beware that there are no sandy beaches anywhere. All the beaches are natural, consisting of sand and chipped coral.

a_smerage

Thanks for the reply's!

After much internet hunting, we are thinking Bora Bora, Moorea and Rangoria. Does anyone think we'd be missing out on not going to Taha'a? I wanted to do a couple nights at La Taha'a, but it looks like it will put us over budget.

Any input for hotels would be much appreciated.

Also, when you booked your vacation to FP did you use an agent or do it online? I'm lost for what to do next...

Amanda

Abby43

Hi Amanda-
I went to Tahiti this summer by myself (nothing like a solo honeymoon) but really b/c I had a free stopover and had already been to Fiji and Hawaii. Anyway, it was great. I spent the first and last night in Papeete b/c of my flights and it was disgusting. It's just a big port city so don't stay there unless you have to catch an early flight or get in late.

I went to Moorea for 4 days and stayed at the Moorea Pearl Beach Resort, which I loved. It was the perfect mix of just right and not too fancy. The food was fabulous, great infinity pool, and my garden room was great and the overwater bungalows were also very nice. The best part was the location-it was about 3 city blocks from a shopping center (not too big) and you can get incidentals there like water, soda, etc and don't have to spend heaps of money.

There is not much going on in Moorea or Tahiti for that matter. So therefore if you want a totally relaxing honeymoon I would imagine it's great, but really I spent the entire day at the pool reading a book, which after a while got me restless. One morning I took a tour of the island which was fun and one day I rented a car right down the road from the Pearl Resort and drove the 37 miles around the island.

I met other couples who were going to Bora Bora, Rangiora, and Ta'haa. My personal rec is to visit a few islands, at least it gives you something to do if you get bored. I know a honeymoon is not supposed to be boring but after a few days I got restless just lying around and was wishing there was more going on. Then again, I was alone so what can I expect??? I did meet some nice people so that was fun and the fresh seafood was astounding. But, if you are looking for a lot to do then Tahiti is not it. Then again, it was beautiful and relaxing and I loved it!

I used pacific-for-less.com and thought they were great, as were the prices. Have a great time and congratulations.
Abby

hotmamma

Hi Amanda,
I think you have made a good choice on your island choices. Tahiti is just the most beautiful place on earth! Do try to get dinner included in the price if possible. I would use an agent who has been there. Get a package with all transfers included and you will not have to worry about anything. An overnight in Papeete is OK, don't worry about that. Get an overwater on Moorea if you can swing it. Pearl and Intercontinentals are nice. Happy honeymoon!

kamahinaohoku

You might want to check out the bulletin board on this website:
http://www.tahiti-explorer.com/

The BB is located below the circular picture on the center of the home page. Lots of information re hotels, etc.

wlzmatilida

Amanda,

You should call a travel agent who specializes in Tahiti,called a Tiare agent as they have toured all the resorts and can direct you to the best one that fits your budget and wishes.

Here's a link for you.

http://www.tahiti-tourisme.com/plann...pecialists.asp

Regards,

Melodie

bmcc

I went to Moorea and Bora Bora for my honeymoon in Sept 2005. Loved every minute of it. We snorkeled, kayaked, explored, and more. We had a garden room with private punge pool in Moorea that was fantastic. Whoever said there are not a lot of restaurants in Moorea must not have ventured out of the hotel much. But then, my husband and I like to explore and would never eat every meal at our hotel - we did it once and decided it wasn't that good and way over-prices. We found a different place every night and the food was out of this world. If you call ahead, all of the restaurants will come pick you up and return you to your hotel. We even ate at a roulotte one night and it was excellent. A roulotte is a roadside stand basically, and locals bring tupperware in for carry-out. It's cheap too. Le Coquetier (spelling?) was my fave, and I had the best mahi mahi I have ever had. Dinner was expensive though - approx $100 per night for 2. We did grocery shop though and ate all our lunches by our private pool.

In Bora Bora, the food was more expensive. However, we found an unbelievebale deal that room service breakfast at the Bora Bora Pearl was just like American prices for some odd reason. It was the most reasonable deal in Tahiti so we ordered every day there. Anyway, hope some of this helps you. I found tons of useful info here when planning my trip last fall.

jcena

As others have said, Tahiti is a great place to go for a honeymoon, IF you just want to sit around and do nothing but relax. Because there's really not much to see and do on the islands. I think it's a great place for a honeymoon because you're going to WANT to relax and do nothing after all the stress from the wedding!!

But also be aware that it's not cheap there! It can be expensive to go there and expensive to eat and do things there.

judilie

A cruise is actually a fairly reasonable way to see the Tahitian Islands - you get around to various islands and don't have to pay for exorbitant restaurant food. The ship's excursions seemed reasonably priced and in some ports you could see the sights or get to a snorkeleing beach on your own (walking or public transportation). The Tahitian Princess brought on local entertainment almost everywhere we stopped. You can also add a few nights on one of the islands (e.g., Moorea) before or after the cruise for a change of pace.