Tahiti
On this episode of The Travel Bug I’m jetting off to the pearl of the Pacific, le magnifique island paradise of French Polynesia. Often referred to as Tahiti, it’s arguably the most well-known holiday destination in the world, and rightly so! With spectacular landscapes of azure lagoons, white sandy beaches and volcanic peaks, the scenery is unrivalled. While there’s over a hundred islands to explore, I’m visiting three of the best. First it’s off to Tahiti Nui before taking a quick ferry trip across to Moorea. Then finally, I’m heading to the spectacular Bora Bora.
My first stop on this holiday of a lifetime is the capital and business centre of Papeete. For most travellers lucky enough to find themselves in Tahiti, Papeete is just a quick stopover before jumping on another flight to the lesser populated outer islands. But if you can spare a couple of days to check out the city, you’ll quickly learn that there’s plenty to see and do.
Leaving the capital I hopped on board a ferry to head across to the nearby Moorea Island. The boat trip takes around 30 minutes and once on Moorea you’ll quickly see why it’s a favourite with tourists. It’s a little bit more relaxed than Tahiti Nui and doesn’t have nearly as much development. Though you’ll find plenty of resorts, attractions and even a world-class golf course. But, as is the case with most of Tahiti, it’s the spectacular natural environment of the island that’s its greatest drawcards. And one of the best ways to take a look around this picturesque place, is on a quad bike tour.
I went on a trip with Manuel, from ATV Moorea Tours. It was unreal, and took me from the dusty farmland of the islands interior and to amazing coastal lookouts. It is more than just a site seeing trip. The tour is also a great adventure and really educational.
Next stop was the Moorea Dolphin Centre, located in the grounds of the Hotel Intercontinental. Here I was lucky enough to take part in their interactive program, where I not only got up close and personal with a dolphin, I also learnt a lot about them. This isn’t one of those activities that only a TV show presenter gets to do. It’s actually available to anyone, but it’s popular, so you’ll have to book well in advance!
From the dolphin centre I headed across to the nearby Turtle Sanctuary for another special experience. There I met a marine biologist called
Matheau who explained that the research they conduct here helps them understand the development of turtles so that they can better manage them in the wild. They also run a breeding program on the site that has been a great success.
Later on I went on an island tour with a guy called Leeuwin from Moorea Mahana Tours. He showed me not only how to make a local dish called Poisson Cru, but also took me to a spot where I could swim with stingrays and reef sharks.
The following day I boarded the world’s shortest commercial, all of seven minutes! It took me back to Papeete, where I was drawn to the interior of Tahiti Nui on a hiking trip into the lava tubes that spread like arteries within many of Tahiti’s volcanic mountains.
In the drivers seat of the tour was Hervé, from Mato-Nui excursions. He was a wealth of knowledge about everything, from the plants and animals of Tahiti, to the beautiful Polynesian culture. The atmosphere of the lava tube was thick with moisture and the water that flowed through the tunnel was crisp and cold. The environment was prehistoric and looked more like a set from Jurassic Park, than a scene I’d expected to see in Tahiti. There were several cascading waterfalls that created a magical scene and the trip finished with a swim in a waterhole deep within the mountain.
The next leg of my journey was a 40-minute flight to the island paradise of Bora Bora, the place where all of the iconic images of an island paradise come from. A walk around the island is the best way to get familiar with your surrounds and burn off some of those resort buffet calories.
From my resort I went on a short and scenic boat trip across the lagoon to go diving with a manta ray. Once in the water I was surrounded by hundreds of tiny and inquisitive fish and before I had a chance to explore the coral gardens, something approached from the distance. After a while the manta became more comfortable in our presence, allowing us to get closer and closer with every pass it made. And just as it emerged from the depths for us to enjoy its company, so to did it glide away into the deep blue – What an experience!
The next day I went on a cruise around the lagoon to take in the beautiful scenery. The captain of the ship had the typical relaxed Polynesian attitude – while steering the boat with his feet he was playing the ukulele, all the while safely navigating us through the reef.
Just like on Moorea, we went to a beautiful place where stingrays flocked to the boat as soon as we stopped. They brought with them a few friendly reef sharks that circled at a distance as we waded through the water. The afternoon ended with a traditional Tahitian barbecue on a remote island. The backdrop for the meal was something you’d find on a postcard.
