The Ultimate French Polynesia Grand Tour

After breakfast, transfer to the Papeete ferry terminal for the short crossing to Moorea, around thirty minutes and widely considered the most scenic inter-island journey in French Polynesia, with Tahiti’s peaks receding as Moorea’s jagged silhouette comes into focus ahead. You will be met on arrival and transferred to your resort on Temae Beach, the island’s longest stretch of white sand.

Moorea rewards a slower pace than its neighbors. Spend a morning on the water by outrigger canoe, paddleboard, or private snorkeling excursion into the lagoon’s marine reserve, home to reef sharks, rays, and an abundance of tropical fish, and an afternoon inland among pineapple plantations and lookout points over Cook’s Bay and Opunohu Bay. A traditional Polynesian dance performance is worth catching one evening, and between July and October, humpback whales pass through Moorea’s waters to calve.

Stay at: Sofitel Moorea Kia Ora Beach Resort

Fly from Moorea to Raiatea, a journey of well under an hour, then transfer by your resort’s own shuttle boat to Taha’a, known as the Vanilla Island for the plantations that supply a significant share of the world’s vanilla. The resort sits on its own private islet, with views across the water to Taha’a on one side and Bora Bora’s silhouette on the other.

Spend a morning drift snorkeling through the coral garden directly in front of the resort, one of the best accessible reef sites in French Polynesia, and an afternoon at a working vanilla plantation, where growers explain the hand-pollination process behind Tahitian vanilla. On a quieter day, the resort’s own spa faces an inland lagoon lined with water lilies, and the sacred island of Raiatea, home to the UNESCO-listed Taputapuatea marae complex, is a short boat ride away.

Stay at: Le Taha’a by Pearl Resorts

Depart Taha’a by boat back to Raiatea, then continue on to Bora Bora, either by short inter-island flight or, for a more memorable crossing, by helicopter directly from the resort, a fourteen-minute flight over some of the most photographed lagoons on earth. You will be transferred to your resort by private boat on arrival.

Bora Bora is where French Polynesia’s reputation for overwater luxury was born, and the lagoon remains the main event. Spend your days here on the water: a half-day snorkeling excursion around Mount Otemanu typically includes stops among stingrays and blacktip reef sharks, and a lagoon tour by traditional outrigger canoe or private boat can stop at a motu, or small islet, for a picnic lunch.

Many resorts host a traditional dance and fire performance worth catching at least once, and a scenic flight or jet ski tour around the barrier reef offers a different perspective on the island before your final day, best spent simply on your private deck or in the water in front of your villa.

Stay at: St. Regis Bora Bora Resort

Fly from Bora Bora back to Tahiti, connecting onward to Rangiroa in the Tuamotu Archipelago, roughly an hour’s flight, with appropriate connection time built into your routing. One of the largest atolls in the world, Rangiroa marks a dramatic shift in landscape from the mountainous Society Islands to a low coral ring, visible from the air alone.

Rangiroa’s reputation among divers is well earned. Spend a day drift snorkeling through the Tiputa Pass, where incoming tides carry you gently across a coral garden alongside manta rays, sharks, and the occasional pod of dolphins, a route non-divers can join at a slower pace.

Round out your stay with a visit to a local pearl farm, a boat trip to the shallow, sand-bottomed Blue Lagoon, or a half-day cultural tour through the atoll’s two main villages, Avatoru and Tiputa, before closing the trip at the resort’s overwater bar for one final sunset.

Stay at: Hotel Kia Ora Resort & Spa

Transfer to Rangiroa’s airport for your flight back to Tahiti, where you will connect to your international departure.

Depending on your onward routing and the time difference, you may arrive home the same evening or the following day.