Tahiti, the largest island in French Polynesia, is where the overwater bungalow was reportedly invented in the 1960s by a group of American expatriates, a concept that has since become a symbol of tropical luxury travel worldwide. The island itself, dominated by jagged volcanic peaks draped in dense jungle, serves as the main gateway for onward travel to Bora Bora, Moorea, and the wider archipelago.
Papeete and Volcanic Interior
Papeete, Tahiti's capital, has a lively waterfront market and a genuinely useful base for arranging onward inter-island flights or ferries, though most visitors treat it as a brief stop rather than a primary destination in itself.
Tahiti's interior, rising to over 2,200 metres at Mont Orohena, is accessible via 4x4 tours through jungle valleys, past waterfalls and ancient marae (Polynesian ceremonial platforms) that predate European contact by centuries.
Onward to the Islands
Moorea, a short ferry ride from Tahiti, offers dramatic jagged peaks and a lagoon considered by many to rival Bora Bora's, at a generally lower cost and with fewer crowds, a popular first stop for travellers continuing through French Polynesia.
Bora Bora, further afield but the archipelago's most famous island, holds the classic overwater bungalow resorts surrounding Mount Otemanu's extinct volcanic peak, a scene that has become one of the most recognisable tropical images in the world.
Recommended Stay · Tahiti · Tetiaroa Atoll
The Brando
A private atoll resort once owned by Marlon Brando, powered largely by renewable energy, with villas set directly on the beach rather than over the water.
