We are heading to Moorea (Tahiti) for our anniversary....got a great deal at Costco. Any specific recommendations for things to see/do/eat there?
That’s an unusual destination. We were there in November. There is great hiking, snorkeling (with rays) and history. I’n a history buff and James Cook was there in 1768. I suggest you grab a book on Cook’s adventures and read up on his before you go. It will make your visit more meaningful, if you care as I do about the history of the islands.
The shop in Market Mall always has pesos. They are a bit higher price than the Bank but I can get pesos immediately. I've have no problem getting $2000 cdn worth of peso from there. Last time I did this was just before Christmas.
Were you getting a new kidney in Mexico and needed $2k cash?
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We are heading to Moorea (Tahiti) for our anniversary....got a great deal at Costco. Any specific recommendations for things to see/do/eat there?
My info for Moorea is way outdated but the beauty of that island is unmatched. It is absolutely stunning. Great choice of destination.
There used to be a bunch of small food trucks in the waterfront square in Papeete, decent cheap eats there. There was also a cool fish/artisan market in Papeete, I bought some cool carvings while there.
If you feel like adventuring, head to Teahupoo on Tahiti-iti.
We are heading to Moorea (Tahiti) for our anniversary....got a great deal at Costco. Any specific recommendations for things to see/do/eat there?
Some info from a 9 day trip I took to Moorea last April:
It's a beautiful island. Super easy to get to from Tahiti island / Papeete (30 min ferry, cheap). Just one road, takes about an hour to drive around Moorea. Everyone is very friendly.
rental car: Avis is located right across the street from where you get off the ferry in Moorea. Super easy, friendly, no surprises,
nicest beach: I would say Temae beach on the NE side, with the beautiful sand, the turquoise blue water (very warm), and has the classic overwater bungalows jutting out in the distance (Sofitel hotel) that many picture when they think of Tahiti. There's also a great viewpoint (Toatea Lookout) that overlooks it from above.
best snorkelling: Most will do a boat tour that takes you to a few different spots, including the area where you snorkel with stingrays and sharks (there are only harmless species around Moorea). There's also good snorkelling between the two motus (small islands, calm shallow water) near Coco Beach. Captain Taina is a family run company that offers a tour like this. They use a glass bottom boat.
Another popular thing to do is to reserve lunch at Coco Beach restaurant, and it includes a boat transfer. They take you out to Coco Beach, where you can eat, relax all day, snorkel between the motus, or just watch stingrays float by from the beach.
Coco Beach reservations can fill up, so have a look at their website well ahead of time. It's one of the most popular things to do on Moorea.
Alternatively, you can rent kayaks or SUPs at Tipnautic on the beach at Tipaniers Hotel. If you do that, you can paddle/kayak out to Coco Beach & the motus yourself. Or head in the other direction towards the popular stingray/shark viewing area.
The other popular snorkelling spot is at Temae beach mentioned above. Swim towards the Sofitel (the overwater bungalows). Some nice coral and fish.
Sunset cruise with 'Catamaran named Taboo': nice way to see Moorea from a bit offshore. Should only be 8-10 on board at most. The sunsets in Tahiti are awesome.
Tropical garden: very steep hill to get up there, especially at the end. Can be a little dicey in an underpowered manual rental car speaking from
experience. There isn't actually much of a garden, but the view is great, and it had really good food and sorbets. Also supposed to be one of the
better places to buy real Tahitian vanilla.
Hiking: There's a paved road up to Belvedere Lookout, easy to drive up. You can just check out the view from the parking lot, but if you want to get away from the crowd there are also two hikes that start from there: Three Pines and Three Coconuts.
If only doing one I would pick Three Pines. It gets you an even nicer view than the parking lot viewpoint, hopefully to yourself, and a swing. Start early in the morning if hiking in Tahiti to beat the sun and the crowds. The trail is shaded with tropical trees the whole way, but be prepared to sweat a lot with the humidity.
Memorable meals: At the Hilton Moorea you can walk around all the boardwalks that connect all the expensive overwater bungalows. There's also a place there called the Toatea Creperie. Around 8 PM when it's dark out, the water below the creperie is lit up and you can watch sharks circle below you as you eat. But read the reviews of this place first to know what to expect. It can take a *long* time to get your food, which is fine if you're
expecting that, as it's a pretty nice spot to eat a crepe.
And they also expect you to have a reservation, but it's not really clear how to make one if you're not staying there. You might be able to call the Hilton front desk to make one. I just showed up at 7 PM, and they asked if I had a reservation. I said no, and they said to come back at 8.
The food at the tropical garden was also good as I mentioned, and Casa Vincenzo had really good pizza.
Places to stay: Cook's Bay is one of the most scenic spots on the island and you can find some nice Airbnbs here with views of Cook's Bay. Otherwise, there's a wide range of accommodations on Moorea, from relatively inexpensive all the way up to the overwater bungalows at the Hilton or Sofitel.
Some info from a 9 day trip I took to Moorea last April:
It's a beautiful island. Super easy to get to from Tahiti island / Papeete (30 min ferry, cheap). Just one road, takes about an hour to drive around Moorea. Everyone is very friendly.
rental car: Avis is located right across the street from where you get off the ferry in Moorea. Super easy, friendly, no surprises,
nicest beach: I would say Temae beach on the NE side, with the beautiful sand, the turquoise blue water (very warm), and has the classic overwater bungalows jutting out in the distance (Sofitel hotel) that many picture when they think of Tahiti. There's also a great viewpoint (Toatea Lookout) that overlooks it from above.
best snorkelling: Most will do a boat tour that takes you to a few different spots, including the area where you snorkel with stingrays and sharks (there are only harmless species around Moorea). There's also good snorkelling between the two motus (small islands, calm shallow water) near Coco Beach. Captain Taina is a family run company that offers a tour like this. They use a glass bottom boat.
Another popular thing to do is to reserve lunch at Coco Beach restaurant, and it includes a boat transfer. They take you out to Coco Beach, where you can eat, relax all day, snorkel between the motus, or just watch stingrays float by from the beach.
Coco Beach reservations can fill up, so have a look at their website well ahead of time. It's one of the most popular things to do on Moorea.
Alternatively, you can rent kayaks or SUPs at Tipnautic on the beach at Tipaniers Hotel. If you do that, you can paddle/kayak out to Coco Beach & the motus yourself. Or head in the other direction towards the popular stingray/shark viewing area.
The other popular snorkelling spot is at Temae beach mentioned above. Swim towards the Sofitel (the overwater bungalows). Some nice coral and fish.
Sunset cruise with 'Catamaran named Taboo': nice way to see Moorea from a bit offshore. Should only be 8-10 on board at most. The sunsets in Tahiti are awesome.
Tropical garden: very steep hill to get up there, especially at the end. Can be a little dicey in an underpowered manual rental car speaking from
experience. There isn't actually much of a garden, but the view is great, and it had really good food and sorbets. Also supposed to be one of the
better places to buy real Tahitian vanilla.
Hiking: There's a paved road up to Belvedere Lookout, easy to drive up. You can just check out the view from the parking lot, but if you want to get away from the crowd there are also two hikes that start from there: Three Pines and Three Coconuts.
If only doing one I would pick Three Pines. It gets you an even nicer view than the parking lot viewpoint, hopefully to yourself, and a swing. Start early in the morning if hiking in Tahiti to beat the sun and the crowds. The trail is shaded with tropical trees the whole way, but be prepared to sweat a lot with the humidity.
Memorable meals: At the Hilton Moorea you can walk around all the boardwalks that connect all the expensive overwater bungalows. There's also a place there called the Toatea Creperie. Around 8 PM when it's dark out, the water below the creperie is lit up and you can watch sharks circle below you as you eat. But read the reviews of this place first to know what to expect. It can take a *long* time to get your food, which is fine if you're
expecting that, as it's a pretty nice spot to eat a crepe.
And they also expect you to have a reservation, but it's not really clear how to make one if you're not staying there. You might be able to call the Hilton front desk to make one. I just showed up at 7 PM, and they asked if I had a reservation. I said no, and they said to come back at 8.
The food at the tropical garden was also good as I mentioned, and Casa Vincenzo had really good pizza.
Places to stay: Cook's Bay is one of the most scenic spots on the island and you can find some nice Airbnbs here with views of Cook's Bay. Otherwise, there's a wide range of accommodations on Moorea, from relatively inexpensive all the way up to the overwater bungalows at the Hilton or Sofitel.
May I ask what kind of prices are we talking about to go to Tahiti for a trip?
The deal is a round trip from San Francisco, a night on Tahiti, 7 nights on Moorea at the Sofitel in one of those classic over-water bungalows, all breakfasts, dinners, and transfers included for $8500. A lot, but way less than normal. We didn’t think we’d ever go. We used credits for the YYC-SFO legs and are spending extra time in SF…25th Anniversary.
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That’s an unusual destination. We were there in November. There is great hiking, snorkeling (with rays) and history. I’n a history buff and James Cook was there in 1768. I suggest you grab a book on Cook’s adventures and read up on his before you go. It will make your visit more meaningful, if you care as I do about the history of the islands.
Thanks. I’m going to ditch one of my novels to make room for a history book.
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Some info from a 9 day trip I took to Moorea last April:
Tropical garden: very steep hill to get up there, especially at the end. Can be a little dicey in an underpowered manual rental car speaking from
experience. There isn't actually much of a garden, but the view is great, and it had really good food and sorbets. Also supposed to be one of the
better places to buy real Tahitian vanilla.
I was thinking about visiting PPT/Moorea earlier but now I'm going somewhere else. I hadn't heard about the tropical garden though. Were there any special plants or flowers there that are unique to that part of the world? I looked at your map and it looks very close to the ocean road (1 km?) Was the drive really that bad?
The deal is a round trip from San Francisco, a night on Tahiti, 7 nights on Moorea at the Sofitel in one of those classic over-water bungalows, all breakfasts, dinners, and transfers included for $8500. A lot, but way less than normal. We didn’t think we’d ever go. We used credits for the YYC-SFO legs and are spending extra time in SF…25th Anniversary.
That sounds like the trip of a lifetime. Way to go.
I was thinking about visiting PPT/Moorea earlier but now I'm going somewhere else. I hadn't heard about the tropical garden though. Were there any special plants or flowers there that are unique to that part of the world? I looked at your map and it looks very close to the ocean road (1 km?) Was the drive really that bad?
It's possible I was just there at the wrong time of year for flowers, but I don't recall seeing too many. There was basically just a greenhouse with a lot of vanilla plants in it. I definitely wouldn't suggest it as an amazing spot to see tropical flowers. It was mainly all about the great view and food.
The road up is not very long but in rough shape. While taking the catamaran sunset tour we met a couple from the U.S. He was telling us about their drive up to the tropical garden. "We had a manual car, and as we got to near the top, someone was walking on the road in front of me and I had to stop. I have a lot of experience driving manual but the hill was so steep I couldn't help but roll backwards every time I tried to get going forward and it was nearly impossible to get going forward again. We kept rolling back closer and closer to within inches of the large ditch and stone wall behind us and I couldn't figure out how the hell we were going to get out of this, there wasn't room to turn around in reverse."
After he finished I told him, "That's funny, we just had the exact same experience, right down to having someone walk out in front of us near the top."
Moorea being one of those volcanic islands, basically every road outside the one circling the island seems to ascend pretty quickly. There was an unpaved road I tried to take inland to a hike and quickly realized a half-km in that there was no way the rental car would be able to get there without serious damage. But the road up to Belvedere Lookout is perfect pavement.
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We are flying to FLL on Saturday and connecting through YYZ. I wanted to take my kids on the WestJet Dreamliner which is why we are going through YYZ. I hopped on Flight aware this morning to check the stats on the YYC-YYZ flight and I'm pretty shocked to find that the Dreamliner flight has been cancelled on Tuesday and today. Now I'm going to be freaking out for the next two days uncertain about whether or not that flight will happen and what will happen if it does get cancelled.
As much as I love traveling and flying it brings me a fair bit of stress in terms of delays and cancellations.
I really hate how Google Flights is functioning now. I wish the default was to show you the price from the airlines themselves, now it’s just Kiwi showing up when you try to find cheap flights.
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I really hate how Google Flights is functioning now. I wish the default was to show you the price from the airlines themselves, now it’s just Kiwi showing up when you try to find cheap flights.
The airlines might be actively limiting sites like Google Flights from seeing their prices. This video goes into detail about it.
We’re looking for recommendations for accommodations in Palm Springs for two weeks in late March into early April. About six days we’ll need bedrooms for three couples and a child, age 7. The rest of the time we’ll just need one bedroom. The larger group will require a pool and hot tub. Central location is preferred.
My wife says we’ll need a five-bedroom unit as smaller you’re stuck with small bedrooms likely including bunk beds. We don’t want that, especially the bunk beds.
The airlines might be actively limiting sites like Google Flights from seeing their prices. This video goes into detail about it.
I am seeing a few other things lately besides that, especially the number of airport changes and separate tickets per leg that come up. Is separate tickets some kind of insurance policy for airlines so if a flight is delayed they aren’t on the hook?
