The time had come to leave Moorea and get to our next and final stop in French Polynesia, the Island of Bora Bora. We had high exceptions for this well-known destination considered to be “the” place to visit in the South Pacific, plus, we’re pushing the boat out for accommodation so the stakes are pretty high.
We left Moorea via the ferry back to Tahiti and once back on dry land, we got picked up by our transfer bus and were brought to the airport to catch our flight to Bora Bora. It’s a short flight taking less than 50 minutes. It was obvious as we approached the island that there’s a reason they call it the Pearl of the Pacific, it looked spectacular.
Once landed, we were greeted by our transfer “team” and after picking out our bags and handing them over to the staff, we boarded our vessel to bring us to our home for the next few days. Most of the transfers from the airport are by boat and ours was no different, it looked pretty cool, a lot like the boats that cruise up and down the canals in Venice.
The colour of the lagoon was fantastic as we sped towards our resort. Most of the accommodation options in Bora Bora are fancy resorts – all the big players are here – but for us we’re staying at what’s considered the best of them all, the Four Seasons Resort Bora Bora.
On arrival, you’re greeted by a member of staff with a fresh mango juice drink to get things started. They go over the usual formalities when checking in and outline the details of what can be arranged for your stay. On an interesting side note, we were informed of maintenance work being done around the resort and due to the inconvenience, we get a voucher every day to spend on any of the activities that they offer. It works out at about 100 euro a day.
Just like before, we’d arrived early, so our room would be ready in just over an hour. As it was near lunch time, we headed towards the beach restaurant (there are four restaurants on the property) to grab a bite to eat.
We both opted for the Caesar salads and felt it was a great idea to wash it down with a special cocktail called Pacific Spritz which was terrific. Soon after lunch we were brought to our room on a golf cart. They use these to ferry guests around the resort and they are available 24/7 for your convenience to go anywhere and get picked up anywhere, at any time.
So we get to our digs for the next few days and ours is one of the newly refurbished ones, actually as we enter one of the staff members is fitting a new lampshade. So here’s some photos of our overwater villa.
Once we got unpacked and familiarised ourselves with the surroundings, all that was left to do was dive into the blue lagoon waters and splash around for a bit – it was fantastic.
After swimming, we relaxed for a while then made our way to the concierge to arrange a few activities for the next few day.
The next day we had an early start so we were at the breakfast buffet for opening at 7:00am. The breakfast like most places (yes I go on about this a lot) was the usual buffet but it was a lot more upscale with a really good choice of fresh fruits, smoked fish, charcuterie and freshly baked pastries etc. although you still had to toast your own bread :-).
Our first activity of the day was a private talk and snorkel with their on-site marine biologist. After a talk about all things coral, eco systems, environment effects on things like the great barrier reef, it was into the lagoon for some fish spotting. This area of the lagoon on the hotel property is man-made and designed to encourage coral growth. The plus of having someone who knows what they’re talking about is pretty interesting, you’re not just looking at fish, you’re learning all about why they are the colour they are, who eats who, what things to avoid, such as the Moray eel who lurks in the lagoon and why you can (sometimes) safely swim with sharks.
After swimming with fishes, our next give it a go thing was something C had been wanting to do for a while now, SUP, short for Stand Up Paddle boarding. So we headed over to the main lagoon area where the water activity desk is located and got ourselves sorted with our boards and paddles. The lagoon was a tad choppy but we soon got the hang of it, well C was much better than me at it, I spent most of the time falling off and into the water, still though, it was fantastic fun.
After a morning of water based shenanigans we had less than an hour to kill, our next outing of the day was a trip over to the main part of the Island. We got the hotel boat over to one of the main towns Vaitape, which is one of the larger towns on the island, it had one supermarket, a visitor centre, gift shops and a church, it’s tiny.
From there and as we had already planned on doing it we went to a place called Bloody Mary’s, it’s not just the most famous watering hole in Bora Bora, it’s probably one of the most famous in the entire South Pacific.
Outside they have names of the dozens of celebrities who have visited over the years and as it was lunch time, it wasn’t busy. To be fair I really don’t see what all the fuss is about, however, our lunch choices, burger for me, smoked tuna salad for C were fantastic, we also treated ourselves to the chocolate lava cake which was very tasty, easily some of the best food we’ve had so far on this trip.
After a lazy lunch we headed back towards Vaitape and checked out a few of the tourist shops and fancy gift shops, with a lot of it geared towards the high-rollers, very fancy but very expensive, we were happy with our little fridge magnet and Christmas ornament we bought :-).
After our main island visit it was back in the boat for the return journey which takes about 40 minutes and offers amazing views of the Island. Once back at the hotel we grabbed a drink and went for a walk, we also visited the outskirts of the property which is near the spa and gym area.
Our next activity that evening was something we’d never done before – stargazing. One of the members of staff who just happens to have a penchant for all things stars and Polynesian culture gives a talk about why back in ye olde days, stars were so important for navigation and how over time, different cultures (although all Polynesian) found different and better ways to travel further and longer around the Pacific. It was surprisingly interesting.
All that was left to do was grab a drink and a bite to eat at the Sunset bar, which is their Japanese themed restaurant. To start we had spring rolls, Sushi and pork dumplings, for our mains C opted for the chicken noodle stir-fry I went with sweet n sour pork. The starters were pretty decent and my pork was very nice.
We finished up with a drink sitting right beside the lagoon which was nice, however, off in the distance a storm was looming as we’d spotted some lightning just as we were finishing up for the evening.
The next day we woke to torrential rain, the first we’d seen. However it was still really warm and it was only 7:00am. We called reception to arrange our little golf cart to pick us up for breakfast, which it did. For the day we had arranged a jeep safari similar to the one we did on Moorea over on the main island. However, while we were having breakfast one of the managers came over to our table and informed us that due to the rain, the tour had to be cancelled. So we were a tad disappointed but safety first I guess. So a relaxing breakfast became a very relaxing breakfast – more pastries and coffee please. The rain had stopped by the time we finished.
To pass the morning we splashed around the lagoon for a bit and went for a walk around the resort. Our next activity of the day was jet skis, we enjoyed it so much on Moorea we arranged a spin around the lagoon, just an hour this time, but again it was great fun.After jet skiing a late lunch was next on the cards so we dined at the beach bar which was nice followed by a quick dip in the pool.
Our last day rolls around and we were fortunate to be here on one of the biggest sporting days in French Polynesia and event that’s know as Hawaiki nui Va’a, which takes place just once a year. Basically it’s a rowing race but on a marathon scale of endurance, stamina and skill. It’s run over three days stating on the Island of Huahine and the last leg of the race is from Tahiti to the finish line at Bora Bora.
The resort arranges the trip out to meet the rowers on the outskirts of the lagoon in the deep sea. So we hopped on board the Four Seasons fancy catamaran along with about 20 other guests. They have music playing by two lads, I guess the Foster and Allen of Polynesia, who also join us on the boat to sing and play as we race across the lagoon to rendezvous with the rowers.
It was an overcast day and by the time we got out to our waiting point there was not much to see, about half a dozen boats of various size and a few people on jet skis. So all that is left to do is wait, our skipper informed us it’d be about 45 minutes before they come into view so for now just sit back and relax.
Sure enough after about 45 minutes the lead rowing team came into view and a lot more boats had shown up and as it is a big sporting evening as they got closer, even more boats were arriving including Tahitian TV. In what seemed like the blink of an eye, we were travelling alongside all the boats with the lead rowing team close by. Way back there was a battle for 2ndand 3rdplace with other teams further back. At this point the skies had cleared, the sun was shining and we were heading towards the finish line where literally hundreds of boats and thousands of spectators were waiting for the arrival of the teams, it was a fantastic sight.
We dropped anchor in the lagoon and it was time to get into the water for a bit of swimming and get a closer view as the rowers paddled in. Just on a side note, these lads have been rowing for over five nonstop hours at this stage.
After an hour or so it was time to get back on our vessel for the return journey home. A fantastic day to say the least. The island of Tahiti had the top five places. There were 60 teams in all.
Once back to the resort a late lunch was next on the cards and after we headed back to our little bungalow for a splash around the lagoon for once last time :-(.
Before dinner we grabbed a drink at the Sunset bar then we headed over to a small staging area to watch a traditional Polynesian show which takes place at the resort two nights a week. While the dancing was pretty good, it was the fire eaters that stole the show, it was really impressive.
Our dinner that evening was in the fancy Arii Moana restaurant which was nice. Then all that was left to do was arrange our little golf cart to take us back. However on the return trip back to our bungalow, one of the staff hopped on and played guitar and sang as we returned, it was a fitting end to a fantastic trip.
By far and away there’s a reason people travel so far to the island of Bora Bora and stay in a fancy resort, the lagoon is astounding, the view is amazing, the people of the island are so friendly and it always seems to feel as if you have the entire place to yourself.
Until next time.
C&J
cjfoodandtravel 