Visitors Guide For French Polynesia

Visas
 
Only French citizens can enter French Polynesia without a passport and the visa requirements are much the same as for France itself. Western European and Scandinavian citizens are allowed to stay for up to three months without a visa. Citizens of Canada, the USA, Japan, Singapore and New Zealand can stay up to one month without a visa, but all other visitors need a visa to enter.
Health risks: None
Climate: Sunny and pleasant year round. Average 26ºC. Humid weather December-March.
Clothing: Casual. 'Pareus' are popular worn over costumes to the beach or around the pool. Papeete is more cosmopolitan.
Time: GMT minus 10 hours. AEST minus 20 hours. Two hours behind US Pacific Standard time. The Marquesas Islands are a half hour ahead of the rest of French Polynesia.
Electricity: Most hotels use 110 or 220 volts, AC 60 cycles.
Weights & measures: Metric
Currency: Cour de Franc Pacifique (CFP) - fixed rate to the Euro [1 Euro = 119,332 CFP)
Tipping: No tipping.
Departure tax: There is no departure tax.
Money & Costs

Meals
Budget: US$10-15
Mid-range: US$15-30
Top end: US$30 and upwards
Lodging
Budget: US$40-130
Moderate: US$130-200
Top-end: $200 and upwards
The cost of living in French Polynesia is about as expensive as it gets anywhere in the world. There are no taxes levied on personal income, but indirect taxes and import duties are high and, given that almost anything that you can buy is imported (and subject to duties of up to 200% of the product's value!), it's understandable that nothing's going be cheap. There are, however, cheaper accommodation options with some dorms in the larger towns and family-run pensions in the outer areas, and it's also possible to eat relatively cheaply in the snack bars that abound.

If you eat at the cheap snack bars, stay in bottom-end accommodation, catch le truck and fill your days with snorkelling and exploring the archaeological sites and island interiors on foot, you'll probably get by on US$80-100 a day. If, however, you want to eat in restaurants, stay in comfortable rooms, hire a car or scuba equipment, take a tour and dabble in the nightlife, you can easily multiply these numbers by three or four.

The banks are pretty mean when changing currency or travellers' cheques and generally you can expect to loose about 5% with each transaction, although exchange rates and fees vary from bank to bank. There are plenty of automatic teller machines on Tahiti, and other touristy islands will have at least one or two. Your Visa or MasterCard will get you around most of the heavily touristed parts of French Polynesia, but once you go to the smaller motus or out-of-the-way places it's strictly cash.

Tipping is not the usual practice in French Polynesia and you won't be expected pay more for goods and services than the listed price. But neither can you expect to pay less than the listed price - nowhere in the Pacific is bargaining accepted and a vendor would regard it as demeaning for a customer to haggle. Black pearls and expensive jewellery, however, do have some margin for 'discounting'.

When to Go

The month-long Heiva i Tahiti festivities in July are to Tahiti what Carnaval is to Brazil and people come in droves to be part of them. The festival occurs in the drier and cooler June-through-October period which is, perhaps, the best time to visit the territory. Visitors during this period should, however, take into account the maraamu tradewinds which can bring unstable weather from the south between June and August. The weather gets warmer and more humid between November and the end of May. The Northern Hemisphere holiday periods - Christmas to the beginning of January, late February/early March, Easter, early May and the long northern-summer holiday in July-August - are busy times and flights can be hard to get. See also next weeks weather forcast for Tahiti (Papeete) and the Marquisas Islands (Atuona)
Getting There & Away

French Polynesia is readily accessible by air from most parts of the world; the exception is the rest of the Pacific. Qantas, Air New Zealand, Air France, Aircalin, Corsair and AOM shunt most of the visitors, though Lan Chile can provide access from South America and Hawaiian Air flies between Honolulu and Tahiti once a week. All international air traffic comes through Faaa Airport in Papeete, but a US$46 million redevelopment of the airport in the Marquesas island of Nuku Hiva might soon change this situation. There is no departure tax in French Polynesia.

Cruise ships regularly call into the region and it's also a favourite among yachties - crewing positions are sometimes available. There are distinct sailing seasons in this part of the Pacific. Yachts tend to leave the US coast in September or October, and between January and the beginning of March. From Australia and New Zealand, yachts depart after the cyclone season, around March and April.

Getting Around

Getting around the islands of French Polynesia can be done by boat or air, though access to some of the remote islands can be difficult and unreliable. The French government kicks in some financial support so domestic air travel is not as expensive as you might expect, but distances between some island groups are great and these flights are costly. Apart from some small charter operators, domestic flights are handled by Air Tahiti and Air Moorea.

Inter-island boats run regular routes between all of the island groups and can be a great way to travel within the region. Huge catamarans ply between Tahiti and Moorea and the very modern Ono-Ono services the rest of the Society group. Luxury cruises are available on vessels like Bora Bora Cruises, the Aranui Freighter Cruise, Haumana Cruises and Archipel Cruises.

Tahiti and the developed islands operate a local bus service known as le truck which is cheap and reliable. Taxis are available for hire, but they are horribly expensive. Rental cars, scooters and bicycles are good ways to explore, and 4WDs can be hired if you want to head inland on some of the tracks. In the Marquesas many locals and tourists choose to get around on horseback.

Holidays & Festivals

March 5 - Missionaries Day

May 1 - Labour Day

July 14 - Bastille Day

July - Tiurai Fete

September 27 - World Tourism Day

September to October - Floralies/Tree Festival

November 11 - Armistice Day

December 1 - Tiare Tahiti Day  

Events

The Moorea Marathon is held in early February, and there's a re-enactment of the arrival of the first London Missionary Society missionaries at Point Venus in Papeete on 5 March with celebrations in Tahiti's and Moorea's Protestant churches. Tahitians love beauty contests and there are events organised for both men and women throughout most of the year, and these culminate in the prestigious Miss Heiva i Tahiti contest in July. The month-long Heiva i Tahiti festival also features music, dancing, sporting competitions and arts & crafts displays. French Bastille Day, 14 July, falls in the middle of this festival and is the highlight. A four-day golf tournament is held on Tahiti in late June and early July, the Heiva No Te Pahu Nui O Tahaa stone-fishing festival takes place on Tahaa during the last week of October and there's a surfing contest off Tahiti in September.

However, what draws the whole of French Polynesia to a standstill is a canoe race. The Hawaiki Nui canoe race is a three-day, four-island, 116km event, held in early November, that pits about 60 six-man teams from all over the territory and abroad against each other. Burly Polynesian men, often bedecked in traditional tattoos, begin from the island of Huahine and cross 44.5km of open ocean to Raiatea. Day two is a 20km sprint within the lagoon between the twin islands of Raiatea and Tahaa, and day three is a mammoth 52km open-ocean crossing to the island of Bora Bora. The vessels arrive to the rhythm of drummers and cheering supporters, and TV camera crews wade out to get the footage that will be broadcast across the territory on the evening news. In 1994 a German team of Olympic kayakers entered the race and their best result was 18th on the first leg.