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Bora Bora is an island group in the Leeward Islands in the South Pacific.

The island’s economy is driven almost entirely by tourism. Several resorts have been built on the motu surrounding the lagoon. Hotel Bora Bora opened in 1961, and nine years later, the first over-water bungalows on stilts over the lagoon were built. Today, overwater bungalows are a standard feature of most Bora Bora resorts.

Tourism

Most of the tourist destinations are sea-oriented; however, there are also tourist attractions on land, such as World War II cannons. Air Tahiti operates five or six flights daily between Tahiti and the Bora Bora Airport on Motu Mute (as well as occasional flights to and from other islands). There is no public transport on the island, so rental cars and bicycles are the recommended means of transport. In addition, there are small, two-seater buggies for hire in Vaitape, and motorboats can be rented to explore the lagoon. Vaitape is a village on the west side of the island and is home to a large part of the island’s population. The village has also become a popular spot for tourism.

Snorkeling and scuba diving in and around Bora Bora’s lagoon are popular activities. Many species of sharks and rays inhabit the surrounding waters, as shark fishing has been banned since 2012, and a few dive operators on the island offer manta-ray and shark dives. In addition to the existing islands of Bora Bora, the artificial island of Motu Marfo was added in the northeastern corner of the lagoon, on the St. Regis Resort property.

Places of interest

The main attraction of Bora Bora is the lagoon with its still-intact underwater world. Using glass-bottom boats, diving, and snorkeling, tourists can explore the reef with thousands of colorful coral fish. In the deep lagoon, tourists can feed barracudas and sharks during guided diving excursions. An attraction for divers is the “Stingray Strait”, an area of the lagoon where several species of stingrays are found in large schools, including numerous manta rays and leopard rays.

Parts of the interior of the island can be explored on jeep safaris. However, the natural beauty of the island is best explored on foot. Several hikes can be done from Vaitape, but it is advisable to rely on a guide to keep one’s bearings. The hike to the top of Mount Pahia, from where, according to legend, the war god Oro descended on a rainbow, leads through orchards, forests, orchid fields and fern-covered crevices. One can also climb Mount Otemanu, which offers a beautiful panoramic view of the atoll. Below the summit is a large grotto where numerous frigate birds nest.

Another attraction is the remains of what were more than 40 marae (ceremonial platforms). The best preserved are Marae Fare Opu in Faanui Bay and Marae Aehau-tai or Temaruteaoa at the eastern end of Vairau Bay. Another large Aboriginal ceremonial site is Marae Marotitini, in the north of the main island, right on the beach. The stone platform of the complex was originally 42 m (138 ft) long and was restored in 1968 by Japanese archaeologist Yosihiko Sinoto. Two stone box tombs of the royal family were found in the area of the complex.

 

Most beaches  and also the numerous hotels are located in the two large bays between Pointe Paopao and Pointe Matira, in the southwest of the island. About five kilometers south of Vaitape, directly on the main road, is Bloody Mary’s, a bar and restaurant frequented by many guests with its own yacht jetty. The two wooden plaques at the entrance list 230 names, including Marlon Brando, Jane Fonda, and Diana Ross.

The back beach areas are fringed with low-lying, heavily vegetated Cordia subcordata and Hibiscus tiliaceus. A cultivated form with a straight trunk and a rounded crown, Hibiscus tiliaceus var. sterilis, is often planted as roadside vegetation. Up to the foot of the steep mountainous region, there is mainly cultivated land, with plantations of coconut palms, breadfruit trees, Tahitian chestnuts (Inocarpus), cassava (Manihot), and tropical fruits, as well as orchid plantations for the decoration of tourist hotels.