We had the GREATEST honeymoon! Truly 13 days of pure bliss from beginning to end. The French Polynesia is such a magical place and looks exactly as you imagine it to be with dreamy sunsets every single day and some of the worlds clearest water. Trust me, you NEED to honeymoon in Bora Bora.
We took this trip July of 2021 for reference however the best months to visit Bora Bora being April to November. The weather this time is perfect between 70s to 80s and its dry season which of course is a plus.
Lets get to the obvious questions we heard when we got back –
Why wouldn’t you honeymoon the Maldives?
For one, from the west coast it could take anywhere from 28 to 41 hours to get to the Maldives!! It is not an easy trip. To get to Bora Bora, there is now a direct flight from LAX or SFO. (on a side note, Air Tahiti Nui airlines just created a direct flight from Paris-oh la la!) We took the Los Angeles flight direct to Papeete, Tahiti on Tahiti Nui-only 8.5 hours. The flight was so bright and colorful and they provided 3 meals with endless alcohol so you’re never hungry. Are you looking for the perfect instagram-able clear water? Bora Bora has got it! Looking for overwater bungalows? Bora Bora has got it!
PRO TIP * If we could go back, we would reconsider upgrading seats to more legroom or business class especially if you’re taking the red eye over. It is a bit tight if you aren’t able to sleep on flights like me.
How long should we stay in the French Polynesian Islands?
We spent a total of 12 days on our honeymoon including travel days and I think it was the perfect amount of time. 2 days worth of red eye flights to and from Tahiti (the main island), 1 overnight in Tahiti to settle, 3 nights in Bora Bora, 4 nights in Moorea, and finished with 2 nights back in Tahiti to end the trip.
Specifically for Bora Bora 3 nights was our sweet spot. You are truly relaxing in paradise but I like a sweet spot between relaxation and activities. Anything less than 3 nights in just too short! Anything beyond 3 nights would be dreamy if you are able to sit still for that long.
How to you even get to Bora Bora?
Bora Bora is so unique in the fact that it is literally an island. I’m sure you’re thinking duh, they are all islands that’s why its called the French Polynesian Islands… But I mean even the airport sits on its own island and the only way to get to your resort in Bora Bora from the Faa’a International Airport (PPT) in Tahiti is on a 30 minute shuttle plane to Motu Mute Airport. Once you land, you’ll have to take a boat taxi from the “airport” to your resort. The biggest (and only) downside of Bora Bora is that they know you are a tourist (even the workers don’t live there) and they take full advantage of it… meaning they charge an arm and a leg for both the 30 minute shuttle flight and the boat taxi. I believe we paid about $600 for the quick flight and $65 for the boat taxi and you don’t have any other option. To us, it was well worth it especially on our honeymoon trip.
PRO TIP * – Take motion sickness meds, the flight is small and bumpy plus a boat ride.
2nd PRO TIP* – You have to carry-on your bag, the maximum size for luggage is so tiny. Want tips? Visit Why You Should Travel With ONLY a Carry-On.
Our trip to the InterContinental Bora Bora Resort Thalasso Spa was about 30 minutes and boy oh boy do they treat you like royalty once you arrive! They greet you at the dock and pick you up in a golf cart for a tour of the entire resort and spa before they check you in.
The InterContinental Bora Bora Resort Thalasso Spa
I am such a fan of staying at InterContinentals over seas. I did an extensive amount of research (so you don’t have to) on which hotel was the best to stay at and landed on this hotel, specifically the Thalasso Spa (There are 2 InterContinental hotels in Bora Bora). There won’t be much leaving the resort because there isn’t much of a town so I made sure to look for a place that had a variety of thing to do within the resort and to eat. There are 3 restaurants and 2 bars which is extremely important to us because we love food! You also have a ton of water activities that are free right off the beach. And we chose this place obviously for the incredible spa. They have different relaxation areas in the spa and you have no time limit so plan to stay the day. When you go in for your massage, it is in a beautiful bungalow (of course) surrounded by glass windows and a glass floor. Instead of falling asleep I watched all the fish.
PRO TIP* – Join the IHG ambassador membership! It’s only $200 but you get free nights and upgrades. Definitely a hack for this trip because we were instantly upgraded all week which saved us almost $1,000 dollars if we were to have just booked the same rooms directly.
DO THE BUNGALOW!
This resort exclusively only offers the overwater bungalows (but even if it didn’t, why would you not? You’re in BORA BORA!) It was epic being able to wake up being surrounded by water and swimming right off the dock. There is so much privacy and space between the bungalows, giant windows and a glass floor.
Extra Activites –
The #1 thing to do in Bora Bora is snorkeling and swimming with stingrays and sharks so of course we had to do it. I’m terrified of really anything in the water but I wanted the experience. We took a tour that lasted half of the day. We first took the boat out to a deep dark area where the tour guide stopped the boat and told us to just jump in… We had no idea why and what we were looking for but once we jumped in we quickly found ourselves staring into the face of TWO 10-ft wide manta rays. It might have been the scariest moment of my life to be honest which made swimming with stingrays and sharks a piece of cake. It was the most amazing sight to be surrounded in stingrays and sharks.
Other popular actives you can book are a catamaran sunset cruise, snorkel cruise, ATV tours, 4WD island tour, and jet ski tour.
Bora Bora was such an experience and I hope you are able to travel there!
A fascinating discussion is definitely worth comment. I do think that you ought to publish more about this topic, it may not be a taboo subject but typically people dont speak about such issues. To the next! Many thanks!!