Polynesia - Rangiroa and Moorea

continues from the California trip

TOUR OPERATOR: CLUB PARADISO. I strongly advise against it. Unprofessional and unreliable.

FLIGHT: Los Angeles-Papeete-Los Angeles / airline AIR TAHITI NUI Papeete-Rangiroa-Papeete AIR TAHITI AIRLINES Papeete-Moorea-Papeete AIR TAHITI AIRLINES

The America-Polynesia-America flight is very comfortable (you travel at night), the staff are extremely kind and the welcome on board is very evocative... they offer you the tiare, the typical Polynesian flower, sooooooooooooooooooo fragrant

The internal flights are less well organised. You can buy passes depending on the islands you want to visit. At check-in in Papeete they are very strict about the weight you can carry on board, to the point of charging you for excess weight both for hand luggage and hold luggage. It's worth finding out in advance about the various types of packages and travel solutions. N.B. at check-in in Rangiroa and Moorea they didn't charge any fee for excess weight (a few extra kg)... go figure.

HOTEL: Rangiroa - Kia Ora Hotel. Very elegant and well organised. Quiet and discreet. Helpful staff. The restaurant is welcoming but the menu is a bit anonymous and the portions minimal.

Moorea - Sofitel. I STRONGLY ADVISE AGAINST IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I hope they've renovated it

RANGIROA: It's a beautiful and very large lagoon. There are two villages where the main activities are concentrated. Many activities/excursions are organised. It seems to be the main atoll for diving and snorkelling, but I didn't see much wildlife either in front of the resort or in a pass. The excursions are very expensive but very beautiful from a naturalistic point of view. At night you hear the sound of the waves breaking on the reef... soooo close. It doesn't have wide, snow-white beaches like the Maldives; you have to go on an excursion to find them. Often the over-water bungalows disfigure the landscape.....

MOOREA: it's a VERY VERY GREEN island!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! the vegetation is explosive. Naturally, from a naturalistic point of view it's rich in activities. You can hire scooters, cars or bikes and go round it as you please. Be careful, the boutiques close very early.

TIPS: Think carefully about what you want from this destination and check that it matches your dreams. Polynesia is very often considered an earthly paradise, but you have to understand what is meant by paradise.......and then times change and travellers are no longer welcomed as they once were, perhaps travellers have changed too, they're more intrusive, but there are travellers and travellers, just as there are hotels and hotels, etc, etc. Indeed, a further tip: think carefully about the tour operator!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Organise a trip to the market in Tahiti, where you can find handicraft items and various foods. Bear in mind that you can leave your luggage at the airport; there's a little hut right in front of the entrance, behind the building/hut of the ladies who sell shell or flower necklaces. These ladies turn up around the intercontinental arrivals and departures, so late in the evening or at dawn. Tahiti is worth discovering too. It's certainly a more modern and polluted little city (believe it or not), but at least you can better understand how Polynesians live today outside the artificial paradise of tourist resorts

Well, in light of the facts, perhaps I'd experience this place differently and have different expectations from when I first went, and perhaps I'd appreciate the places and the people much more!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!