What to See in French Polynesia

last edited Dec 11, 2019

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Location Map of French Polynesia

French Polynesia Open the interactive map

UNESCO World Heritage Site

French Polynesia has one site listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site:

Raiatea (2017)
This "sacred" island, with its ancestral places of worship (including the UNESCO-listed marae of Taputapuatea), offers quite beautiful landscapes and terrain. Hiking, water sports, and sea excursions are all popular here. It is one of the most visited islands in French Polynesia, thanks to its marina and role as a cruise stopover.

Austral Islands

Raivavae
A stunningly wild little island southeast of Tubuai, home to just a thousand inhabitants spread across five villages around a beautiful lagoon best explored by outrigger canoe.

Rapa
It is the most remote and isolated of the Austral Islands and the "little sister" of Easter Island (Rapa Nui). Like on the latter, you can see various archaeological traces of its past in a setting quite different from the rest of Polynesia.

Rimatara
This tiny island is the westernmost in the archipelago. Its thousand or so inhabitants live quite cut off from the world.

Rurutu
This island, which is gradually opening up to tourism, is unique in that it has no lagoon but cliffs that drop straight into the sea. You can dive, hike, explore its many caves, or even watch whales between July and October.

Tubuai
This volcanic land is the capital of the Austral Islands. Though it sees few tourists, visitors come for hiking, diving, and whale watching. Tubuai also has several ancestral places of worship (marae).

Gambier Islands

Akamaru
A tiny island with a few inhabitants and a church built in the mid-19th century.

Aukena
A beautiful beach and some remnants from the missionary era on this island near Mangareva.

Mangareva
The main island of the Gambier Islands; the other inhabited ones are just a few kilometres away. Mangareva has a cathedral and various traces of the missionary era, along with a few beaches.

Taravai
A pretty little almost uninhabited island 2 km southwest of Mangareva. You can see a church built in the mid-19th century.

Marquesas Islands

Southern Group

Fatu Hiva
This small volcanic island, with its lush vegetation, is the southernmost in the archipelago. It is striking for its magnificent, rugged relief, rising over 1,000 m at its center. Various archaeological remains can be found here.

Hiva Oa
It is the largest and best-known of the "Southern Marquesas". Gauguin and Brel lived and are buried here. It is also the island with the most "tiki" and archaeological remains in all of Polynesia. Hiva Oa is also popular with nature lovers for the superb hikes available.

Tahuata
Right next to Hiva Oa, it is the smallest of the inhabited islands, yet it still boasts peaks over 1,000 m in its center. It has a beautiful beach, several churches, and a few archaeological sites.

Northern Group

Nuku Hiva
This beautiful volcanic island, whose highest point exceeds 1,200 m, is the capital of the Marquesas. In addition to a still-very-present local culture, it offers visitors stunning landscapes with tall waterfalls, trekking and diving opportunities, and various traces of its past.

Ua Huka
With its lush valleys and semi-desert hills, the island is one of the wildest in the archipelago. You can see several hundred wild horses (and go horseback trekking), countless birds, sea turtles, and a significant aquatic fauna.

Ua Pou
This large island in the "Northern Marquesas" has a very rugged relief that gives it a certain character.

Society Islands

Windward Islands

Maiao
The population of this island, west of Tahiti, has decided to ban access to all outsiders except by invitation or for administrative, health, or other essential reasons.

Mehetia
East of Tahiti, the place is private, uninhabited, and access is regulated.

Moorea
This stunning mountainous island with numerous waterfalls is accessible by ferry from Tahiti. Visitors come for landscapes just as they imagine in Polynesia, hiking, beaches, surfing, diving, and canoe trips in the lagoon. Moorea is home to several all-inclusive resorts and is the second most visited destination in French Polynesia after Tahiti.

Tahiti
This is the main island of Polynesia, home to its "capital" (Papeete), the international airport, and over half of the Polynesian population. For tourists, the island mainly serves as a gateway, though it offers beaches, surfing and diving spots, some stunning mountainous landscapes, and various archaeological sites dating from before the arrival of Europeans.

Papeete
It is the administrative capital of French Polynesia, housing the main services and infrastructure of the Territory. While not particularly touristy in itself, the city remains an almost obligatory stop for any visitor.

Tetiaroa
North of Tahiti, this private island with stunning beaches belongs to Marlon Brando’s family. Day trips are organised from Tahiti, and a large hotel project is also more or less under consideration.

Leeward Islands

Bora Bora
With its extinct volcano and stunning lagoon, it is one of the most beautiful islands in French Polynesia. It hosts several large hotels, either "all-inclusive" or clusters of "overwater bungalows". Every year, thousands of visitors come to admire the location and enjoy the available water activities. It is also a highly popular destination for honeymoon trips.

Huahine
These are two mountainous twin islands with lush vegetation, located just under 200 km northwest of Tahiti. Beyond its beaches, water activities, and stunning wild landscapes, Huahine boasts several significant archaeological sites dating from before the arrival of Europeans.

Maupiti
This small, isolated island west of the Society Islands offers a stunning lagoon perfect for diving, lush vegetation ideal for hiking, and archaeological traces of its past. Unlike many other islands, you won’t find large hotels here—just small guesthouses or homestays.

Maupihaa
A small atoll inhabited by around fifteen people, roughly 150 km west of Maupiti. Completely off the tourist trail and resupplied irregularly, the island is nonetheless a favorite stopover for sailors.

Raiatea
This "sacred" island, with its ancestral places of worship (including the UNESCO-listed marae of Taputapuatea), offers quite beautiful landscapes and terrain. Hiking, water sports, and sea excursions are all popular here. It is one of the most visited islands in French Polynesia, thanks to its marina and role as a cruise stopover.

Tahaa
Opposite Raiatea, this tranquil island boasts lush vegetation with an ancient volcano at its center. You can hike, take canoe trips, or enjoy various water activities.

Tuamotu Archipelago

Anaa
Around 500 people live on this atoll, home to a stunning lagoon with crystal-clear waters.

Arutua
A stunning lagoon and pearl farms are the main attractions of this place, where the few hundred inhabitants still maintain a "traditional" way of life.

Fakarava
It is one of the largest atolls in the archipelago. Thanks to its stunning marine life, it is internationally renowned for diving.

Hao
One of the largest atolls in French Polynesia. Until a few years ago, it was also the main base for French nuclear tests in the Pacific.

Makemo
This atoll is renowned for scuba diving.

Manihi
Like many others in the region, this island primarily lives off the pearls produced in pearl farms that you can visit. You can also enjoy superb diving here. About ten kilometres away, another island, Ahe, is popular with divers.

Mataiva
It is one of the islands rich in marine life and ideal for diving in the Tuamotu Archipelago.

Rangiroa
This is the second-largest atoll in the world. It boasts stunning beaches and, above all, an incredibly rich marine life, making it an excellent spot for diving or boat trips. Among all the Tuamotu Islands, Rangiroa has developed tourism the most.

Tikehau
A quiet little island where you can dive, enjoy the beaches, observe birds, or visit a pearl farm.

Toau
Just next to Fakarava, Toau, with its few dozen inhabitants, is a remote spot where visitors can only appreciate the tranquility and paradise-like beaches.