Travel Diaries - 15 Reasons to Visit Moorea (French Polynesia)

Moorea is a French Polynesian island facing the much bigger and more famous Tahiti island. Compared to the other popular destinations in the Pacific Ocean such as Bora Bora, Moorea is a small hidden gem.

This summer I —quite literally — crossed the world to get lost in this tropical paradise and spent 10 days exploring the turquoise waters and green mountains of Moorea.

How to get to Moorea?

French Polynesia is located somewhere between Australia and South America, making it the furthest travel destination existing for Europeans with a total of 20.5 hours worth of flights (minus the waiting bits!). If you follow me on Instagram you’d know I was already in England for graduation, cutting my trip down from about 2 hours of travel.

I firstly flew from LHR to LAX (11 hours) and then connected from LAX to Papeete in Tahiti (8 hours). My connection was booked with a different company, Tahiti Nui being one of the few airlines flying to Tahiti. This means that I had to get my bag and check it in once again when I reached LAX.

Once arrived in Tahiti, I took a cab (25$) to the ferry station and got on a 30 minutes journey towards Moorea (15$).

How to get around the island?

Once you get to Moorea, the easiest way to go around is by car (60$/day) or scooter (45$/day) which you can easily rent. Bikes are also a fun way to get around although often more expensive. The 62-km main road around the island is all paved and quite wide. However, the smaller roads are tricky and pretty much non-existent.

15 Things to do in Moorea

• Hike from the Belvedere

• Visit the Tropical Garden

• Have a Taro ice cream

• Relax on the beach of Temae and Ta’ahimanu

• Swim with the sharks and stingrays near the Tipaniers beach

• Go snorkelling and find some tropical fishes

• Taste their national dishes: raw tuna with coconut milk and grilled Mahi Mahi

• Find the Afareaitu Waterfalls

• Go on a catamaran tour and explore the lagoon

• Climb the Magic Mountain

• Visit the Lagoonarium

• Discover the marae of Moorea, the island's archaeological site

• Have a traditional Tahitian massage

• Check out the Pineapple fields

• Visit the Lycée Agricole d’Opunohu and taste their jams

Things you should know before visiting French Polynesia

You need a There is no going around the bush here: the islands are expensive. Doing a grocery shop is pretty much as expensive as eating from a local food truck or ‘snack’ as most products are imported from America. Moreover, activities tend to be expensive too since they often require specific equipment (diving, boats, jet skis…).

The currency used is the Pacific Franc and 10,000 XPF = 100 USD. Bigger restaurants and hotels take cards but otherwise, you’ll be mainly paying in cash so make sure to have some.

If you’re not comfortable around nature or a tad adventurous, this is not the holiday for you. Moorea is made for nature lovers with challenging hikes and many water sports available to you. There, the only shops you’ll find will be selling Tahitian black pearls, Monoi and pareos!

People live a slower life over there so forget about grading a quick bite and rushing around. Forget about that western nonsense and relax.