French Polynesia, Tahiti, Moorea

Travel Plan

When we were in Baltimore for Mickey and Allies wedding in February Steve suggested a family travel to French Polynesia in the fall. Steve and Sandy, Diane and Dave, and Kathryn and I said Yes!! Unfortunately, Lorri and Keith were not able to make it.

Steve and Sandy suggested the island of Moorea staying in bungalows over the water. Steve did all the heavy lifting planning the trip with Costco Travel. We settled on a plan and Steve and Sandy booked their itinerary with Costco. All Diane and I had to do was call Costco travel and have them copy their itinerary, Nice!

We all did our own travel arrangements to and from LAX:
11/3- Fly to LAX;
Stay One Night Hyatt Place near LAX airport;
11/12- Fly LAX to St. Charles.

The Costco plan had all the rest of the details (11/4 - 11/11):
Fly Air Tahiti LAX to Tahiti;
Shuttle from airport to Hilton Tahiti;
Stay two nights Hilton Tahiti;
Shuttle from hotel to ferry;
Ferry from Tahiti to Moorea;
Shuttle from Ferry dock to Manava Resort;
Stay 5 nights Manava Resort;
Shuttle Manava resort to Ferry dock;
Ferry Moorea to Tahiti;
Shuttle Ferry dock to airport;
Fly Tahiti Air to LAX.

Thanks again Steve for doing all the planning!

Friday (11/3) Travel Day St. Charles to LA

Weather: 50s, no rain, good for travel.

Took a mid afternoon flight to LAX and arrived around 4:30. Shuttled to the Hyatt Place just a few minutes from the airport. The hotel was very nice and looks recently remodeled. We are staying here just one night.

In the evening we met up for drinks and dinner in the hotel restaurant. It was nice catching up with everyone.

Saturday (11/4) Travel Day LA to Tahiti

Weather warm and sunny in LA

Had a relaxing morning and the breakfast buffet out on the patio. Happened to meet up with Diane and Dave. Our flight was not until 5:23 (originally it was 2:23 but Air Tahiti changed us about a month ago to the later flight). So we checked out at 12:00 and shuttled back to the airport.

A long time at the airport then A LONG flight to Pape'ete, Tahiti. Tahiti is in the South Pacific about 4100 miles from LA and 17Deg South Latitude. Arrived in Pape'ete and shuttled to the Tahiti Hilton arriving around midnight.

The hotel was nice, Staying two nights. They gave us nice leis which gave the hotel room a sweet fresh smell.

Sunday (11/5) Tahiti - Hilton Hotel

Weather 80, humid, overcast, rainy

Kathryn and I slept late and met up with everyone else by the pool around 11:30. Sandy booked a Cabana by the pool and we spent a casual afternoon, hanging out, having a few drinks and relaxing by the pool. It was nice to have the Cabana because we did have some rain off and on in the afternoon but it didn't bother us! Kathryn and I had a simple lunch at the pool side restaurant.

We all met up for dinner at the hotel restaurant.

A very relaxing day on Tahiti Nui.

Monday (11/6) Tahiti to Moorea

Weather 80, warm, humid, rain and wind!

Kathryn and I had picked up bread, cheese, and yogurt at the market yesterday so just hung out on the balcony this morning and ate our breakfast, enjoyed the view, the birds and the calm.

Hilton Tahiti Deck View

Met everyone in the lobby and shuttled to the ferry at 11:30. At 12:30 took the ferry from Tahiti to Moorea (about an hour). Half way to Moorea it started storming (Monsoon Season). When we arrived at Moorea it was pouring and a bit of chaos getting our luggage in the rain. They just wheel out carts stacked with all the bags and it's a free for all for everyone to find their bags in the pile (fun?!).

Shuttled to the Manava Resort and Spa and settled into our Premium Bungalow over the water around 3pm. Sweet! If you look at the map of the Manava Resort (below) I marked our Bungalows on the map, pretty sweet!

Manava Resort Map and Pictures (from the resort's web site)

Manava Resort - Rainy First Day

Met up with everyone for dinner in the evening at Autera'a's (the casual restaurant at the resort). That night it stormed like crazy with strong winds. You could feel the Bungalow rocking gently in the wind.

Tuesday (11/7)

Weather: Excellent! Originally it was supposed to be rainy most of the week but, to our pleasant surprise, the remainder of the week was mostly sunny.

Breakfast buffet at the Mahana'i restaurant on the resort. Lots of good food to start each day at the resort for the remainder of the week. Tasty!

After breakfast we made the short 10 min walk to the local grocery store in town and picked up wine, snacks, bread (fresh and cheap!) and cheese.

Spent the day relaxing on our deck and swimming right from our Bungalow.

In the evening we met up with Steve and Sandy and went across the street to a casual local restaurant (Manuia) for some wine and dinner. Kathryn and I shared our entrees of Swordfish and Mahi Mahi. Both were good. After dinner had some wine on the deck, fed the fish, saw one bigger shark, a few lemon sharks and gazed at the stars. A great day on Moorea in our Bungalow in the South Pacific!

Tuesday at the Manava Resort

Wednesday (11/8)

Weather: Perfect. Don't let the clouds fool you in the pictures. The mountain is in the clouds but, by the ocean, clear skies.

We're settling into our island routine. Sleep in, breakfast buffet, short walk to the local grocery store, spend the day relaxing, reading, napping and snorkeling at our Bungalow. The bungalows are just on the edge of the reef so you see lots and lots of fish including Sea Cucumbers, Sea Urchins, Sharks, Turtles and all colors and shapes of schools of fish. Pretty sweet place to snorkel. The water was super warm too!

In the evening we met up with Diane and Dave and walked 5 minutes down the road to a family restaurant Diane picked out (Kiefi). Kathryn had Grouper and I had Mahi Mahi. A really cool, unassuming restaurant with great food. Back to the bungalow for a glass of wine on the deck star gazing and watching the fish jump to finish another nice day on Moorea.

Wednesday at the Manava Resort - Dinner at KE'iKi

Thursday (11/9)

Weather: Perfect!.

Sleep in, breakfast buffet.

Kathryn, Sandy and Diane went Black Pearl shopping in the morning. Kathryn bought nice Christmas gifts for Brit and Jake.

Spent the day relaxing, reading, napping and snorkeling (hung out with a sea turtle for awhile).

On our deck we saw a baby humpback whale break the surface only 30' from us (WOW!). As we continued to watch a shark swam by. Then, the huge Mama whale surfaced maybe 150' out (?), amazing! We watched as the two stayed on the surface for 20 minutes, the baby circling the mom. The mama whale was huge (40'-50'?). Very cool. Can't see much in the pictures but there is a sea turtle in the fifth picture and the whales in the 4th, 6th and 7th.

Thursday at the Manava Resort

In the evening we met up with everyone and took the restaurant shuttle to the(Moorea Beach Resort) that promised the best sunsets. We were seated right next to the beach and the view did not disappoint. A really good meal with wine, seafood and fish entrees we all enjoyed. YUM!

Moorea Beach Restaurant

After dinner we did some stargazing on a really clear night. Jupiter was big and bright in the sky and it was fun to watch the constellation Orion rise above the horizon. Unlike seeing it at home in the northern hemisphere, seeing it from so close to the equator Orion appears on his side. Cool.

Friday (11/10)

Weather: Again perfect!.

Sleep in, breakfast buffet with Steve and Sandy. After breakfast Steve and I walked to the grocery store with a stop at the gift store to buy a Moorea t-shirt.

More lounging on the deck and in the afternoon we went out on a Kayak and did some exploring more to the East of the bungalows in some shallow water. Hung out with a Sea Turtle for a while.

Did some more snorkeling later in the afternoon and when i got back, Steve, Sandy and Kathryn were gathered on the boardwalk watching something in the water. Quickly I joined them along with a group of people forming. Steve had spotted two Octopuses in the very shallow reefs. When still they look just like the coral reef they are in but, when they move you see their long tentacles and a bluish tinted web between them. We all watched them for about 15 minutes, It was fascinating.

Friday at the Manava Resort

Early in the evening we joined everyone for drinks and a casual dinner at the pool side bar. Diane treated me to a sweet birthday dessert (a day early). Thanks! Another fine day on Moorea.

Saturday (11/11) - Sunday (11/12)

Weather: Perfect.

Our last day and last breakfast buffet!

Packed up and checked out at 11:00a. Our shuttle to the Ferry dock wasn't until 4:45 so we still had time for a relaxing afternoon hanging out by the pool. The resort did a nice service and let us use an unoccupied room for 30 mins for a quick shower and change before we had to catch the ferry. That way we could be fresh for the trip home.

Saturday at the Manava Infinity Pool

At 4:45p we started our journey home. Took the shuttle to the Ferry dock. At 5:30 the Ferry left Moorea arriving to Tahiti at 6:30 and then shuttled to the airport arriving about 7:30p. Now a long wait at the airport for our flight to LA scheduled for 11:45p. Flight was delayed about an hour and took off around 12:45am. Flew overnight (about 7 1/2 hrs) arriving in LA around 9:30 (losing 2 hrs). Another long airport wait until our flight to Chicago. Departed for Chicago around 2:30 arrived O'hare around 8:30p (losing another 2 hrs). Limo back to our house arriving about 9p Sunday night. I hadn't slept more than a few minutes and Kathryn not much more so we were bushed but....

Home Sweet Home.

Summary

LA: A good plan to fly the day before the flight to Tahiti just in case there were delays. The Hyatt Place close to the airport was a nice hotel.

Flight to Tahiti: Air Tahiti, although a bit disorganized for boarding, is a good airline. The 8 hour flight in coach was, of course, a bit long and uncomfortable but just need to keep yourself occupied (or sleep!). They did serve a meal and then a snack on the flight.

Tahiti: Had a full day at the Hilton Tahiti pool side and was a nice start to a relaxing vacation.

Moorea Manava Resort and Spa Premium Bungalow:: Awesome! Super relaxing, great to be right out on the ocean and spent much of our time on the deck. The breakfast buffet was tasty with lots of variety and the staff were very friendly. Dinners were all good with lots of fresh seafood. We especially liked the local restaurants we visited.

Costco Travel: Thank you again Steve for doing the detailed planning. Once he set their itinerary with Costco we just had to call and copy to ours. Costco provided all the details and took care of all the transfer arrangements. Super easy. Will definitely use them again.

Family Trip: Kathryn and I enjoyed traveling with Steve, Sandy, Diane and Dave. It was fun and we all mostly did our own thing during the day and then got together in the evening for dinner. We look forward to doing it again!

Overall: Great experience and an awesome destination in the South Pacific.

Fun Facts

Tahiti is the largest island of the Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is located in the central part of the Pacific Ocean and the nearest major landmass is Australia. Divided into two parts, Tahiti Nui and Tahiti Iti, the island was formed from volcanic activity; it is high and mountainous with surrounding coral reefs. Its population was 189,517 in 2017, making it by far the most populous island in French Polynesia and accounting for 68.7% of its total population; the 2022 Census resulted in a population of 191,779. Tahiti is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity and an overseas country of the French Republic. The capital of French Polynesia, Papeʻete, is located on the northwest coast of Tahiti. The only international airport in the region, Faʻaʻā International Airport, is on Tahiti near Papeʻete. Wikipedia

Moorea, also spelled Moorea, is a volcanic island in French Polynesia. It is one of the Windward Islands, a group that is part of the Society Islands, 17 kilometres northwest of Tahiti. The name comes from the Tahitian word Moʻoreʻa, meaning "yellow lizard": Moʻo = lizard ; Reʻa = yellow. An older name for the island is ʻAimeho, sometimes spelled ʻAimeo or ʻEimeo. Wikipedia

Manava Resort and Spa. This traditional Polynesian style resort is a perfect blend of luxury and serenity for couples, honeymooners, divers and families… Manava Beach Resort & Spa Moorea is nestled on the island shore, just by the village of Maharepa in an ideal location, near the majestic Cook’s Bay and the Golf of Moorea.

This traditional and contemporary Polynesian style resort offers 90 rooms and bungalows, as well as one restaurant, two friendly bars, an infinity edge pool, an on-site spa, a meeting room, a boutique and an on-site diving center. As part of Manava Beach Resort & Spa Moorea commitment for the protection of the environment, a coral nursery called To’a Nui has been installed. This park allows a colony of corals to regenerate in perfect ecological conditions. Wikipedia

The humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) is a species of cetacean belonging to the family of baleen whales, Balaenopteridae. Commonly, this species is known as the rorqual and in adulthood, it can reach lengths of between 46-56 ft. Like other baleen whales, humpback whales have baleen plates instead of conical teeth. Humpback whales have a cosmopolitan distribution, that is to say, they can be found in all major oceans, except for closed seas and some regions in the Arctic. This species feeds near continental shelves and coastlines. Humpback whales can make long annual migrations to spend the winter months in tropical areas, where they find an abundance of krill and fish to feed on. study.com

An octopus (pl.: octopuses or octopodes[a]) is a soft-bodied, eight-limbed mollusc of the order Octopoda (/ɒkˈtɒpədə/, ok-TOP-ə-də[3]). The order consists of some 300 species and is grouped within the class Cephalopoda with squids, cuttlefish, and nautiloids. Like other cephalopods, an octopus is bilaterally symmetric with two eyes and a beaked mouth at the center point of the eight limbs.[b] The soft body can radically alter its shape, enabling octopuses to squeeze through small gaps. They trail their eight appendages behind them as they swim. The siphon is used both for respiration and for locomotion, by expelling a jet of water. Octopuses have a complex nervous system and excellent sight, and are among the most intelligent and behaviourally diverse of all invertebrates. Wikipedia