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Read MorePapeete Town
Papeete is the main town on the big island of Tahiti. It is a small place of which the main areas can easily be walked around. It consists of a center with low rise buildings (nothing over 4 storys high), a freight and passenger port, and a marina for private yachts. At the center of Papeete is a tiny yet pretty yellow Cathedral. As you go...
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Read MoreFood Trucks
Papeete, and Tahiti in general is famous for its food trucks, known locally as Roulottes (which in French means something like cart). The food trucks these days usually consist of a large truck of some kind, fitted out with all kinds of cooking equipment capable of making quite an array of food. The trucks are not content with just selling take-away snacks to passers by, but...
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Read MoreMahana Park and Beach
Mahana Park and Beach is just a few kilometers further down the road than the nearby PK18 beach. What this beach has going for it is much fewer people and thus a better chance of parking. The park itself is small with lots of grass and nice palm trees providing natural shade. On the shoreline, the beach is not sand but rather small pebbles. Good for...
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Read MorePK 18 Vaiava Beach
This beach, which is known locally as PK18 because it is near the distance marker meaning 18kms from Papeete center, is pretty much the best white sand beach on the main island of Tahiti Nui. If you’ve been to other premier beaches around the world, or even the nearby islands of Bora Bora, you would not actually consider the sand at PK18 to be white, but...
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Read MoreVaipahi Gardens
This is a place found on the south coast of Tahiti Nui. It is quite a trek from Papeete and on the way to Tahiti Iti (the small island at the back of Tahiti Nui). It is a free tropical garden with lots of plants and trees which are named with plaques. There is also some lakes and a river running through it. There is even...
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Read MorePapeete Local Market
One of the most interesting places for a tourist to visit in Papeete is the local market which is located near the center of the town in a large open plan covered area. Its a nicely designed building with lots of natural light and a second floor which only exists in the central part, leaving the two ends with a very tall ceiling. In the market...
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Money and Banking
The money used in Tahiti is called the French Pacific Franc or Polynesian Franc. The notes are very colorful with beautiful pictures, and the coins are large and seem like something from the treasure chest of a sunken Spanish Galleon. The code for the currency is XPF or CPF.
The currency exchange rate is locked to the European Euro although, banks will alter that rate in order to make their service fee.
One thing to remember about this currency is that it is not transferable on world markets. You will not be able to buy any in your home country’s …
Car License Plates
Around 1973, French Polynesia started issuing license plates for private vehicles in the form of a number followed by the letter P, for Private. e.g.
00001 P
As more and more cars were registered, the number was simply incremented sequentially. So these days, you can easily see roughly how old a car is, or whether its newer than your neighbors by comparing numbers.
Whilst you’re in Tahiti it is a lot of fun to see which is the oldest and the newest car you can spot on the islands.
It is now 2016, and the new car number plates are …
Flowers
Tahiti is a tropical island filled with all kinds of fragrant flowers. One of the most notable is the Tiare (or Tahitian Gardenia). The Gardenia is present around the world with 5 to 9 petals, but the majority of the Tahiti variety have exactly 7 petals. It was first recorded around 1770 during Captain Cooks voyage.
The Tiare flower is now the National Flower of both Tahiti and the Cook Islands and you can see it prominently displayed on the tail of Tahiti Nui airlines planes.
Just like Hawaii and other areas of Polynesia, Tahiti has a tradition of wearing …
Papeete Town
Papeete is the main town on the big island of Tahiti. It is a small place of which the main areas can easily be walked around. It consists of a center with low rise buildings (nothing over 4 storys high), a freight and passenger port, and a marina for private yachts.
At the center of Papeete is a tiny yet pretty yellow Cathedral. As you go around the island you will see distance markers from Papeete which are measured from this point.
Near the Cathedral is a local market, which is a large 2 story building containing people selling all …
Internet Access
Internet access on Tahiti is not as common as you would find in most of the world, its more of a rare luxury.
You will not find it in every single restaurant or bar that you go to, and even at the places that do have it, such as the airport, you will find that it is often charged for by the hour or day. Some hotels do offer free wifi, so pay attention when you book. On your mobile phone its also not usual and expensive.
The main and pretty much only telephone company in Tahiti is called Vini. It is such …
Languages Spoken
The official languages of Tahiti are French and Tahitian. Many people do speak English, but if you can speak French you will feel much more comfortable.
Tahitian is an interesting language and is used in particular for place names and anything to do with Polynesian culture.
Here is a list of some useful words in the Tahitian language.
o, oia – yes, correct
aita – no, not
ia ora na – good morning
mauruuru roa – thank you very much
manava – welcome
vahine – woman, wife
tane – man, husband
motu – …
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