FRENCH POLYNESIAN ADVENTURE

by Guest Contributor - JO KOPKE

I flew into Papeete on the main island of Tahiti. My arrival was at night, and I took a cab to the Mahana Lodge Hostel & Backpacker which was downtown, near the ferry terminal. There is a bus that runs from the airport to downtown but it stops running in the early evening.

The following morning I took the frequent ferry over to the neighboring island of Mo’orea. From the ferry terminal I took another expensive taxi to the hostel named Tema’e Beach House. The hostel was just 3 miles from the ferry terminal but it was just too hot to walk. I found the hostels I stayed in on booking.com.

Tema’e Beach House was a quick walk to a beautiful beach. I snorkeled off the beach and saw a huge stingray along with lots of tropical, colorful fish. I had read online that there is bus service on the island. There isn't. The owner of the hostel suggested hitch hiking, saying “Everyone does it.” So… I hitched for the next 5 days - everywhere! The locals that picked me up were kind, helpful, and interesting. I really enjoyed getting the chance to visit with them. Other tourists did not pick me up, they just drove by in their rental cars.

I went on one hike that I had found on the AllTrails app. This was an extremely difficult hike and I hike all the time at home in the Colorado mountains! The trail was so steep that on both sides of the mountain pass they had installed ropes connected to trees for you to hang onto. It was beautiful, but one hike was enough for me.

Tahiti is very expensive, but the hostel had kitchen facilities so I was able to do some easy meals on the cheap. I went in December, which is their rainy season. It poured buckets a few times, but I also had some sunny days. There were quite a few mosquitos, so bring bug spray.