Polynesia: Instructions for Use (2009 revision) - Organising and Choosing Your Trip

ORGANISING AND CHOOSING YOUR TRIP First of all you need to be clear about what you expect and what you want from this trip. Once that's decided, the road is all downhill. If you are used to travelling "all inclusive" and can't be bothered to organise your trip yourself... Then walk into an agency and delegate everything to it, but even in this case, be clear about what you want to do, so you help the travel agent offer you what they know and what comes closest to your wishes. Luckily, in Italy there are one or two agencies specialising in the Polynesia destination that personally know what they're offering, so they'll be able to advise you. Personally, I have to say that some of my best travel memories are the unexpected events. Read and inform yourself as best you can: the Lonely Planet guide is, in this case, a goldmine of information.

For family guesthouses, budget between 10,000 and 15,000 Fcp half board and, not rarely, full board too. You can book with your agency, by phone or, increasingly often, by email. Book only when you are 100% sure you'll go. A few years ago they didn't ask for deposits or advance payments, then a few no-shows rightly made them warier. Point out that you're calling from Italy and already have your flight booked. If you stop on Bora Bora for 3 or 4 days and couldn't fit Maupiti into your trip due to flight connections or other issues (but if at all possible include it), take advantage of the Maupiti Express shuttle to do at least a day trip: it's really worth it. The shuttle leaves every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from Bora at 8 and departs again from Maupiti at 16.00.

On Maupiti, as soon as you get off the shuttle, you can hire a bike and calmly do the whole circuit of the island, stopping to swim on enchanting beaches. For anyone wanting to get off the beaten, more "touristy" routes, I'd recommend precisely Maupiti, Tahaa and Raiatea in the leeward islands, and Ahe and Fakarava in the Tuamotu, but I'd also give a thought to the Austral Islands, which only in recent years are opening up to tourism and are, as they say, "still untouched". On Rurutu, from June to October, the whales pass through and you can observe them by snorkelling: it's an unforgettable experience! Almost nobody takes advantage of a unique opportunity while in Polynesia: Rapanui, that is, Easter Island. From Tahiti, it's the most favourable and inexpensive chance to go there.

Lan Chile connects it twice a week, on Monday and Thursday, and if you want, they'll even book the guesthouse for the three days. A round-trip flight + 3 days full board, transfers and excursions included, costs around 90,000 Fcp, so around 750 Euros. If you consider that 3 days in a guesthouse in Polynesia with a few excursions costs you roughly 450 Euros, I'd say it's really worth it, and you'll discover a legendary corner of the world that is part of the famous Polynesian Triangle, or rather Mah'oi. A valid alternative could be to arrive in Polynesia not via the USA but via Chile: so Madrid, Santiago, Rapanui and Tahiti. That way you have Easter Island included in your outbound flight or, better still, your return. Once again: Be Curious, never take anything for granted and don't be in a hurry to "consume", and you'll have a splendid journey among lands, sea and peoples.

If you like being on a boat, this is the best way to get around the Society Islands and, doing the maths, also economical, or at any rate no more expensive than a traditional stay in family guesthouses with excursions. You can find individual berths for around 200/250 Euros a day. Running the classic back-of-the-envelope calculations, we have the guesthouse at around 100/120 euros, an excursion costs no less than 50, add the airfare to move between the islands and various transfers, and the total is quickly done, but you'll have the privilege of sleeping and staying in the most beautiful corners right by the lagoon, much better than a bungalow with your feet in the sea; the holiday becomes a continuous excursion and the transfers from one place to another in the lagoon and between the islands a pleasure rather than a matter of packing and unpacking bags, planes, cars etc.

I'm obviously not talking about the wonderful experience that can come of it; that I'll leave for you to discover. Try doing the maths yourself. ONCE IN TAHITI With Air Tahiti Nui, most of the time you'll arrive in the evening around 22.00, and here, if your itinerary calls for departure the following morning, you have to choose whether to wander/sleep at the airport or go to sleep in some nearby guesthouse. The closest are the Airport Motel, or the Airport Lodge. The Airport Motel is a stone's throw away and was recently built, and the Lodge you call as soon as you arrive and they come to pick you up by car.

In any case, once you've come out through the customs glass doors you'll find, on your left, the bank for changing or withdrawing Pacific Francs! Next to the bank there's the Post Office (OPT), where you can get a phone card, and going 20m further you'll find public phones that work both with a phone card and with 100Fcp coins. Here in Polynesia, every phone box displays its phone number, so the most practical thing to do is to call Italy giving the number and have them call you back (00689 + box number). Here that's quite usual, given the high cost of the phone. On your right you'll find the bar, the car-hire agencies, the Air Tahiti office and, for the next day, the Air Tahiti counters for domestic check-in.

Should you arrive during the day and have several hours available - but this could apply to the return too - as soon as you come out of the airport canopy you'll find a building with a large portico where Polynesian mamas sell and weave necklaces of flowers and shells (flowers for arrival and shells for departure); behind it is the left-luggage office. You can leave your luggage there without any problem. In any case, even late in the evening, it always reopens three hours before every international check-in. You go up to the upper road level via the staircases, cross the road and wait there for a Truck (Polynesian collective bus) to take you to Papeete (20 min). There are no timetables but, on average, one passes every half hour.

The fare is 130Fcp during the day (01.00-18.00) and 200Fcp at night (18.00-01.00); don't be surprised by the night-time schedule, because here at 18.00 the shops are already closed, those who work have already finished and are at the table with their family, so there's almost nobody around for Papeete. In Papeete the truck will stop in the centre, on the seafront at the level of the market, which is one cross-street further inland. Even if it's evening, drop by, because the flower market is open all night, and if you're heading back to Italy, buy a bunch of Tiarè wrapped in a banana leaf: they'll stay fresh all the way to Italy and even a week later if you keep them in their leaf in the fridge.

In the evening you can eat at the food trucks in Piazza Vaiete and then catch the truck again, which stops behind the market: be patient and it will come! It's an experience I'd recommend if you have the time. In any case, if you take a taxi it won't cost you less than 2000/2500Fcp. If you stop for a couple of days in Tahiti, don't forget that Tahiti is not Papeete and has just as much charm. N