Tahiti and Tuamotus: Tahiti – our final port of call

Tahiti (NASA Image)

Our 10-day Tahiti and Tuamotus cruise aboard Windstar’s Wind Spirit began and ended in Tahiti,  largest of the 118 islands and atolls that make up French Polynesia and largest of the Society Islands that include Moorea, Bora Bora, Huahine, Raiatea and Taha’a.

This is the last in a series of posts on our cruise, which began with Tahiti and Tuamotus: Choosing to Cruise and has continued with posts on every port visited (see links at bottom). The Wind Spirit didn’t have far to travel from Moorea — just 24 nautical miles — to reach our final destination. Visitors and residents can travel between the two islands by ferry or one of many 15-minute daily flights.

This was the view from our room at Le Méridien Tahiti.

After reluctantly leaving our luxurious quarters aboard ship (sigh…could we reboard and do it all over again?), we were transported to Le Méridien Tahiti, for a one-night post-cruise stay. Since our flight back to the U.S. wasn’t scheduled to leave until the following evening just before midnight, we had plenty of time to relax and enjoy our final port of call — Tahiti.

I picked up a flyer about a half-day Circle Island Tour during our pre-cruise night at Le Méridien Tahiti. As soon as we settled in to our room, we signed up for the morning tour with Kevai Tours, along with two other couples who had been on the cruise.

The four-hour tour covers 72 miles around the island in a comfortable, air-conditioned van, with stops at the Fern Grotto, Vaipahi Gardens, the Great Waterfall, the Blow Hole and Venus Point Lighthouse.

In doing post-trip research, I learned that our guide, William Leeteg, is the son of Edgar Leeteg, “an artist who is often referred to as the American Gaugin for his idyllic rendering of the Tahitian people in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Leeteg is best known for his discovery and mastery of the age old technique of painting on velvet. Long lost in the shadows of art history, the paintings of Edgar Leeteg are now recognized as the archetype for modern velvet paintings – one of the more popular and enduring art mediums in the world.” You can find a book of his paintings on Amazon: Leeteg of Tahiti.

Our first stop was at the Fern Grotto, where ferns have grown over the top of a cave. The French painter, Paul Gauguin, is said to have enjoyed swimming in the cold water of the grotto in the early 1900s. It is sometimes called the “upside down fern cave” for obvious reasons (see photo below).

Next stop: Vaipahi Gardens (meaning “splashing waters”). They are open to the public and contain a plethora of tropical flowers, plants and trees, as well as this beautiful waterfall.

Waterfall at Vaipahi Gardens

Red torch ginger

On the east coast of Tahiti, we stopped next at what are known as the Great Waterfalls…

…and then the Blow Hole. In Tahitian, it’s called “Arahoho,” which means the wave that makes the sound “HoHo.” The wave is compressed into a cave located under the road and shoots up in the air like a geyser. It also blows water on the side of the road through a lava tube.

Sometimes, the blow hole delivers an unexpected shower! (My husband, Stephen, and a fellow passenger on the tour, got very wet!)

The Venus Point Lighthouse was supposed to be the last stop on our tour but we didn’t make it there. The guide gave those on the tour a choice of going to the lighthouse or to an overlook, due to time constraints, and the majority won out. I did get to visit it on my 2010 trip but I love lighthouses and wished we could have made it there again.

After our tour, we had the rest of that day to relax and explore the grounds of our hotel. Le Méridien Tahiti is a part of Marriott Hotels International. Its 142 rooms include 12 recently renovated overwater bungalows and six suites. The regular rooms are on six floors, with a unique design incorporating an elevated water garden filled with water lilies and koi fish. We dined that evening in the Le Carre French restaurant and had breakfast, which was included in our package, in the more casual La Plantation.

Twelve overwater bungalows, closed for renovations during our stay in late 2017, have now reopened.

A daytime view of the overwater bungalows and beach.

Le Méridien Tahiti has the South Pacific’s largest sand-bottom lagoon swimming pool.

SLIDESHOW – LE MÉRIDIEN TAHITI:

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Sunset view from our room.

Panoramic shot of the sunset from the beach. Wow!

The next day, we shared a taxi with new friends we’d made from the cruise to go into Papeete to do some shopping at the large public market, Le Marché, located one block from the waterfront.

It is the best place to find gifts like locally made “monoi” oil and scented soaps, which are inexpensive and easy to pack, as well as hats, bags, and jewelry.

Don’t forget to step outside the market and browse the vendors set up there, too. That’s where I found the best buys on less expensive Tahitian pearl jewelry. See the Slideshow below for photos of the jewelry and other gift items in the market.

SLIDESHOW – LE MARCHÉ PUBLIC MARKET:

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Our shopping group outside Le Marché Public Market.

The rest of our last day was spent resting, repacking, and taking a last stroll through the resort before meeting our new Canadian friends, Terry and Carol, for a quick bite at the hotel’s La Plantation restaurant before we boarded the bus to the airport.

Our final meal at Le Méridien with new friends Carol and Terri from Vancouver.

On the way out of the restaurant, we walked by a large ice bucket filled with bottles of wine. For those of you who have been following this series of posts on our cruise, you may recall my story of the “coral wine” — Vin de Tahiti — made from grapes grown on Rangiroa, an atoll in the Tuamotus.

(If you missed it, you can read about how I sought out the “coral wine” that Windstar’s destination manager covered in her port talk the evening before we visited Rangiroa. Read about how I was able to find and taste it, but was unsuccessful in being allowed to photograph the bottle: Tahiti and Tuamotus: Rangiroa – our second port of call.)

Lo and behold, there it was, the elusive Blanc de Corail, VIn de Tahiti! If I had only known it was available at the Le Méridien hotel, I could have ordered a glass while we were there and possibly even asked for an empty bottle or a cork! But now the bus was waiting to transport us to the airport.

And so ended our 12 days in the most beautiful part of our world that I yet have seen… French Polynesia. Like the elusive Blanc de Corail wine, which I briefly tasted on Rangiroa, the South Pacific is just that — indefinable, almost untouchable. My missed opportunity with the “coral wine” quickly faded as we settled into our seats on our Air Tahiti flight to LAX and I began to relive highlights of this very special trip, which was the fulfillment of a dream. To have had the privilege of visiting these islands, including the Tuamotus, is one I’ll carry with me until I can (perhaps?) return.

One of my favorite quotes is: “Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.” There were many of those for me…on our Tahiti and Tuamotus cruise. Maururu, Tahiti! Thank you…

(All photos © Debbra Dunning Brouillette unless otherwise credited.)

Links to earlier posts in the series:

Tahiti and Tuamotus: Choosing to cruise
Tahiti and Tuamotus: On board Windstar’s Wind Spirit
Tahiti and Tuamotus: Fakarava — our first port of call
Tahiti and Tuamotus: Rangiroa — our second port of call
Tahiti and Tuamotus: Taha’a and Motu Mahaea
Tahiti and Tuamotus: Huahine
Tahiti and Tuamotus: Bora Bora
Tahiti and Tuamotus: Moorea

For more information on Tahiti cruises, visit: Windstar Cruises website