Bora Bora and the St. Regis Resort
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Where is Bora Bora?
Bora Bora (part of French Polynesia) is located in the South Pacific, about 3500 miles west of South America, 3000 miles east of Australia, and 4000 miles south of California. This geological oddity is truly one of the most amazing places on our planet. Believe it or not, it only takes about 8-1/2 hours to get there from Los Angeles and is only 2-3 hours behind the Pacific Time Zone (depending on the time of year). Both Air France and Air Tahiti Nui offer direct flights to Papeete, Tahiti from LAX. A smaller (Air Tahiti) propeller plane can take you to Bora Bora in about 30 minutes. The best travel time is roughly April to October in order to avoid really hot weather and lots of rain. During this time the temperature ranges from 70-90 degrees F and it is almost always breezy.
High Islands to Atolls
Bora Bora was formed roughly 7 million years ago by volcanic eruption forming Mt Otemanu, the once active volcano and main feature on the island. As time passed, the volcano became extinct and collapsed on itself. Year after year, the island began to sink (due to subsidence) and coral reefs began to grow around the perimeter and form a reef. As the island continued to sink, the reefs continued to grow, expand, and erode. The eroding coral became brilliant white sand with the same consistency as finely milled flour and filled the lagoon between the island and reef. At certain points, the while sand piled up on top of old reef sections to form a low island, or motu. Bora Bora has 20 (or so) motus where most of the hi-end resorts have built their decadent retreats. My wife and I were lucky enough to spend our honeymoon at the St. Regis Resort, on motu Ome, this past September.
Arriving at the St. Regis
When we arrived on the island, we were quickly whisked away by a small speedboat to the St. Regis Resort. The multi-cultural staff was young and extremely eager to please. After a quick check-in, we were taken to our bungalow by golf cart.
Overwater bungalows
Inside the bungalow
What to eat
What to do - Sailing
What to do - Tourist stuff
The staff at St. Regis was very anxious to plan any sort of tourist excursion for us. Since this was a packaged honeymoon deal, we had a few trips included with our stay. We first went on an island 4x4 jeep safari which takes you on a several hour ride around and through the island. Once you travel a hundred feet above sea level, the views of the island and surrounding motus are breathtaking. Our driver and guide gave us a good history lesson on the island and Tahitian people.
We also took part in a stingray and shark feeding and short snorkeling trip to the ocean side of the reef. I must admit that the stingray and shark feeding was extremely cheesy and a bit unethical. After so many years of conducting these feeding excursions, the local stingray and sharks (most lemon sharks about 5' long) have grown accustomed to getting fed by humans instead of hunting for themselves. If these trips had not already been included in our package, I would definitely not have paid for them.
The Night Life
Conclusions
There is just too much to describe about Bora Bora and our stay at the St. Regis for this hubpage. It was definitely the trip of a lifetime. We will have the images, smells, and sounds burned into our memory forever. There is really no place like it on earth.
If you are considering a trip to Bora Bora, you can use a travel agent (much easier but more expensive) or plan the trip yourself (harder but cheaper). We were not able to find any books or travel guides specifically about Bora Bora. The travel books and guides were either about Tahiti and/or all of French Polynesia, with no more than 10 pages devoted to Bora Bora. There are a bunch of tourism related links online regarding Bora Bora and French Polynesia. If you have any specific questions, feel free to leave a comment or attempt to email me. I'll do my best to respond. Thanks for looking.
Here are a few helpful links...
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Encore Tropical Beach Jigsaw Puzzle Bora Bora Polynesia
Current Bid: $.99
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1000pc.BIG BEN "BORA BORA,FRENCH POLYNESIA" JIGSAW PUZZ
Current Bid: $7.55
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Bora Bora French Polynesia South Pacific Pi Print 0291
Current Bid: $12.39
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Bora- Bora Island French Polynesia Wall Clock NEW
Current Bid: $.99
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Moon Tahiti (Moon Handbooks)
Price: $11.68
List Price: $19.95 |
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Frommer's Tahiti & French Polynesia (Frommer's Portable)
Price: $9.82
List Price: $18.99 |
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Hidden Tahiti and French Polynesia: Including Moorea, Bora Bora, and the Society, Austral, Gambier, Tuamotu, and Marquesas Islands (Hidden Travel)
Price: $13.57
List Price: $19.95 |
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Tahiti & French Polynesia Guide: Open Road Publishing's Best-Selling Guide to Tahiti! (Open Road Travel Guides Tahiti and French Polynesia Guide)
Price: $12.27
List Price: $19.95 |
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If it weren't for your pictures, I wouldn't believe that a place like this could exist.
Wow, this place looks gorgeous. One thing, the images on the website are far glossier then your real-time photos. One question, my fiance and i are both vegetarians, do they offer a good selection of vegetarian food? Did you visit any other resorts in the area and think, if only we stayed here instead? all your help is much appreciated as i want to provide the best honeymoon ever.
Ketzel, thanks for your comment. Hubpages provides this service for free. I think that they compress the images so that the resolution and file size is smaller. I can email you more pictures (glossier and higher resolution) if you want. Honestly, the water and surroundings look better than any photo you will find. As far as vegetarian options.... Each restaurant had at least 1 veggie option. The St. Regis was hi-scale enough that if you ask the chef or room service to prepare a vegetarian meal, they will do it, and it will be good. You can always email them and find out. I had emailed them before our visit and they wrote back quickly.Last, there were no other places that looked nicer (in our opinion) than the St. Regis. You are welcome at nearly all the resorts to eat meals and hang out, although we didn't. Let me know if you have any other ?'s and congratulations on the upcoming wedding/honeymoon!
thanks for all the great feedback. i've been trying to choose a place in Bora Bora and your review really helps. i do have a question though...i keep reading about the construction for the new Four Seasons going on near the St. Regis. Was this something that you noticed? Was it noisy? or did the construction seem "ugly" in your otherwise perfect location? I have construction going on near where i live, and the thought of that while on vacation, ugh! Also, what about the privacy? i read that there are other resorts nearby and that some people didn't feel much privacy because of that...what is your feeling on that?
Thanks so much for any feedback.
First, I want to apologize to Ketz (I spelled your name wrong and can't seem to edit it). hannahb, We did see the new 4 seasons being built. Luckily our bungalow did not face out towards the construction. We noticed it on the sailboat as we drifted by. The sound of the wind and breeze kills almost any type of sound further than 50 feet away. It would have been nice not to see the construction as you approach the St. Regis, but once we got into our room, it was the last thing on our minds. There are other parts of the main island that look much more industrial than the 4 seasons. The privacy at St. Regis is very good. We hardly saw any other guests during our visit (mainly at meals in the restuarant or pool). I think St. Regis has done an excellent job in controlling the number of visitors and even in the design and layout of the resort. It is very secluded and you have many opportunities to be alone. It also has a different feel (compared to the other resorts) that felt much less touristy. We went on a few excursions where we picked up other people from other resorts, and all the others felt more like epcot center. Email me if you have any other questions. Thanks!
So Bora-Bora was created by volcanic eruptions 7 million years ago. That makes it 7 million years old right? or younger? and what about the time periods or eras? wheres that? So if it was 7 million years ago there shouldn't be any time period or era. Does anyone know where i can find any information? thanks!
Olivia, 7 million years old was a rough estimate provided by the Lonely Planet travel guide. I am not a geologist, so I don't have specific data. If 7 millions years is correct, this would fall in the Miocene Epoch. You can find out more information on geological eras here: http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/help/timeform.html
Hi. my fiance' and i are planning a trip to the st. regis resort for our honeymoon in july 08. I was wondering, did u use a travel agent, or book yourself? and which do you recommend?
S&J, congratulations! As I wrote above, you can do either. Travel agent is easier and more expensive. Booking yourself is cheaper, harder, but you will get more for your money. We used Tahiti Legends, http://www.tahitilegends.com. However, from their website, it looks like they don't even book trips to St. Regis anymore. If we were going again, we would definitely take the time to book the trip ourselves. Email me if you have any other questions.
Hi,
we are going to Bora Bora - staying at ST regis mid septemeber 07. What will teh weather be like?
Also we are staying at the beach villa. Are these all the same? Are there any with better views?
Hi Jo. We were in Bora Bora around the same time as you were. Temperature ranged from around 65 degrees at night to 90 degrees in the sun with no wind. With the wind, the temperature seems to always be around 75-80 degrees. The beach villas we saw faced out towards the ocean and looked onto trees and seemed more secluded than the overwater bungalows. Some had small pools on the backside. You should email the St. Regis for more details about your reserved room.
thanks for this wonderful, informative, and candid write up. when you find something like this after hours of cheesy info from the hotels/agents, it's like discovering a gem in a mine. thanks again.
We were in Bora Bora March 2005 and will never forget this magical place. The St. Regis wasn't there yet and we stayed at the BB Lagoon Resort. I 've read countless reviews of Bora Bora Hotels and the people who complain the most about this place just didn't do the research or get an expert accounting of what to expect. Yes everything is very expensive, that should be your first clue. Since you're going to spend a ton of money anyway, why not stay at the best place and knowing the St. Regis brand we can't wait to go back. Don't expect too much, just relish in the fact that this place may be the closest that some people may ever get to heaven. Pictures will never paint an accurate picture and you will see ranges of the color blue found only in dreams. This place is definitely for lovers, albeit it honeymoon, anniversary or just to get away with the one you love, do go to bed early and do watch the glorious sunrise every morning.
Going to BB in Sep 2007, but can't decide on West side or East side of the main island. Does anyone havea preference, or do you not think it matters.
Going Bora bora - St regis sept 07, cant decide between over water bungalow or beach villas? Has anyone stayed at both to compare the two? which interior is better? Which is more private?
I guess I have a new place to add to my list of 'future vacations'. Thanks for the useful information.
Hi Cityplus! Just wanted to say Thank you for your hub. I was in born in Tahiti, spend most of my 14 years there, before my dad choose to come back to his country, Philippines. But nevertheless, I miss French Polynesia so much. And I'm glad you like Bora Bora too. It makes me so happy. Have you tried to visit Moorea? They have great resorts too there. And Tahiti is so beautiful too. Thank you a lot Cityplus! (^^,)
Great shots of the bungalows! My dream vacation is to be there for a week, get up every morning, eat breakfast, and roll off the edge into the water where'd I'd snorkel all day. Ahh,someday...
Wow! One more place to see before I die. I'm putting it on the list :)
So fantastic ! It is my first time to see such beautiful pics. Thank you for share.Maybe later I should put some Chinese pics in my hubpages for share...
Thank you for giving us some good information about this topic. I will be reading this hub more than once.
Guys, thanks for taking the time to post all this info. My girlfiend and I have booked travel to the resort for a week in June, and I'm trying to do my homework on what to expect, what to plan, and what to bring. You're kind energy has added to our preparation and anticipation. Thank you!!!
Nice! Reminds me that I planned on going last year for a reward to myself for certain accomplishments. Things don't always turn out as planned...but 2008 may be the year of Bora Bora for yours truly! Thanks for the reminder to take pleasure now :)
Wonderful place, wonderful photos, wonderful relaxing holidays. And the very name of Bora-Bora sounds so very cool and wild
Wow! This is a great hub! Looking at those beautiful pictures inspired me to work hard and go there for relaxation soon. Thank you.
An excellent hub, now that I see what a hub should look like I will try to write one.Thanks for such a good example.
working
vic says:
2 years ago
This place is heavenly.... Now, all I have to do is to save some money and get over my flying phobia and I'll be set to do it!