littlegroo

I'm going to Tahiti in April for my honeymoon (yay!), and I can't decide where to stay on Moorea--the Sheraton or the Intercontinental. We'd stay in an O/W Bungalow either way...we just can't decide between the two. Anyone have any suggestions?

ALSO...

For the first part of the trip, we're doing this new (just started in April, 2003) small "luxury" cruise by Bora Bora Cruises called the Tu Moana. We sail from Bora Bora and go to Taha'a, Huahine and Raiatea, and return to Bora Bora. Overall, we'll have two full days to see Bora Bora. Originally we were planning on then staying another 2 nights on BB and spending 2 nights on Moorea, but decided to forego the extra travel day and go straight to Moorea once the cruise is over. Are we making a mistake by doing that? Will I miss out on anything on BB by not staying in one of the hotels?

Any thoughts or suggestions would be really excellent. Thanks.

LizS

My husband and I spent 5 nights at Le Meridien in Bora Bora and 4 nights at Intercontinental in Moorea for our honeymoon last August. I'll start by saying it was the best trip of our lives. THAT being said, I would not recommend staying at the Intercontinental. The bungalows were very nice as they were recently renovated, but the "beach" bungalows were on the grass and the "overwater" bungalows were mostly on the sand. The pool area was OK, just your average middle of the road hotel pool and the beach was nothing special. We loved Moorea the island, there was so much to do, but I'd stay at the Sheraton if I were you. It's a smaller resort, but it looked better maintained and newer and most of the bungalows were over water. (only passed it a few times by boat and car).

If possible, I'd recommend you stay on Bora Bora. The peace and beauty of the island is really the draw here, it's less activity-oriented than Moorea. So if you can, I would urge you to spend a few days at Le Meridien which is on a Motu along Bora Bora. The bungalows were amazing, glass floors, open air, sun decks, spiral stairs to the water. Pricey food, but that's true of the islands in general...we had a lot of expensive meals, but few were amazing. They give you free kayaks, snorkels. And they have an unbelievable turtle area, where you can swim with sea turtles. They are one of the world's few turtle hospitals...so they have baby ones too. It's quite an experience.

I think there are lots of other great resorts in BB, but I didn't visit many. From what I can tell, BB has the more luxurious resorts compared to Moorea.

Hope this helps!

yankfan

Hi- we just returned from Moorea did not stay at either the Sheraton or Intercontinental, but visited both resorts, had spa treatments at the Sheraton. The Sheraton pool and OWB's looked more "inviting" from a visitor's perspective. Hope you have a great trip!

Debden

Without a doubt the Sheraton OWB!!!
The resort,pool,and bungalows are absolutely gorgeous! You won't be sorry.

Wendy

We stayed at the Sheraton and checked out the IC. We didn't like the location of the IC, it seemed right off the road. Had a very good experience at the Sheraton in our bungalow #99- horizon view.

Don't eat at the restaurant there though. Much better places around the island. Although the beach cafe is good for lunch.

I think your cruise idea sounds heavenly!

Congrats!

msyakee

littlegroo:
My boyfriend & I had a fabulous, romantic, dreamy trip to Polynesia a couple years ago. First we were at the Pearl Beach Resort in Bora Bora for 5 delicious days. I can't say enough good things about this resort. The location, the view, the service, the atmosphere, everything. We stayed in O/W Bunglow with the best location. Ask for #43. Nothing will ever top it. Picture this: our first night. After cocktails in the open air bar, over- looking the main island, we had a relaxing, tasty dinner in the restaurant. We go back to bungalow. Sitting on private deck overlooking lagoon. What's that sound??? It's tropical, decadent drumming coming from another motu hotel from across lagoon! Sounds like erotic beat! Never have we heard anything so sexy, so hedonistic! Need I tell you what happened next on the privacy of our deck? In the middle of the South Pacific? On a moonlite night? To the sounds of the primal drums? You MUST spend as much time a possible on Bora Bora. Period.
Moorea. Sheration. We didn't like it. But that's just us. It had alot of kids and babies in pool. (Not romantic and the whole diaper thing is gross.). We had no privacy in our O/W bungalow deck because it was right next to an 'observation deck' where all the staff came to take a break and everyone came to watch sunsets. The whole place had a more 'American' feel to it. Noisier, ruder, cooler. I don't know. Just different. Food wasn't that great. We would never go back. We would rather stay in a smaller, more 'Tahitian' flavored place.
But when on Moorea, do try Alfredo's restaurant for dinner. The owner, Christophe, is a kick and food is to die for! Like most places in Polynesia, it looks like nothing from outside... but wait til you taste the food and wine.
Also, go to Blue Pineapple, a little roadside snack shack, for lunch. We still rave over the Mahi burgers and fries. A big mammma dishes it with true love.
Don't pass up all the French wine, pastries and good coffee in Tahiti.
Oh..I do admit the snorkeling at Sheration in Moorea, off the bungalow decks, was very good. Think aquarium.
Whatever you do, just remember that Polynesia isn't about nightlife, sports, 24 hour activities, shopping, etc. It's about Gilligans' Island, romance, being amazed at where you are. It's for people who are content to just 'be'.

littlegroo

Wow. Okay, now I'm REALLY confused! I just spoke to my fiance, and he thinks we should just forego Moorea completely and spend the rest of our trip in Bora Bora after the cruise (remember, the cruise goes to Taha'a, Huahine and Raiatea.) The Pearl is where I'd decided I'd want to stay on BB anyway, so I'm glad to know that it gets the thumbs up from a previous visitor. But I'm worried that I'll feel like I'm missing out by not visiting Moorea at all. Will I? I don't know why I feel that way...I guess I always had it in my head that we'd go there. Thoughts from previous travelers?

LordBalfor

Are you staying at all on Tahiti? Most folks do as the international flights in/out of French Polynesia go there. If you spend any decent length of time on Tahiti you can take a day trip over to Moorea (it's a fairly short ferry ride, or a mere 15 minute flight).

Moorea and Bora Bora are often considered to be the 2 most beautiful islands in the South Pacific - but for very different reasons. The island of Moorea is more beautiful than the island of Bora Bora, but Bora Bora's lagoon is more spectacular, so the former island tends to be more about the island itself, while Bora Bora is all about the water.

Ken

Wendy

littlegroo I don't think your going to be able to come up with a for sure answer to this. My husband and I spent our honeymoon in Sept in FP. We almost decided to leave Moorea off our list but were so glad we didn't. We liked it so much better than Bora Bora.

I posted a full trip report:

Trip Report: Back from Honeymoon in Rangiroa, Moorea and Bora Bora!

Whatever you do I'm sure it will be fantastic!

littlegroo

Thanks so much for everyone's input! It has all been so helpful. I think in the end we are going to forego Moorea altogether. At least in terms of staying overnight. Maybe for our last day on our way back to Papeete to fly home we can stop for the afternoon, so we can at least see it for ourselves. But from what I hear, BB is all about the water, and my fiance is a HUGE water person. So since I'm deciding everything else about our wedding, I have to let him make the honeymoon decisions! And his vote is for BB...

LordBalfor

Enjoy your stay (and cruise). Our stay at the BB Pearl Beach was just amazing.

Be prepared though - the South Pacific can be very addictive. The "Tahitian Flu" (as it's sometimes called) affects many visitors and will drive you to return. Folks talk about it in a half-joking manner, but the fact is, it is very real. Once you visit that part of the world, your life may never be the same.

Ken