You’ve cracked, your tickets are taken, the dream hotel reserved, the holidays put off: it’s the great departure for paradise!
Ah, but now, once you arrive at the hotel, how do you get around? To go to the beach, to the market, buy pearls and sarongs, to the caravans, to walk in the evening, etc … very good question!
We are here to advise you.
Getting around Tahiti
First of all, know that nothing is really far in Polynesia.
Tahiti is 200 km of road, a single road (the only one in all of Polynesia) limited to 90 km / h which is called RDO and about 2 hours to go around the island. Suffice to say that you will not spend your life in your car and so much the better!
Your Activity in Tahiti
Then you will certainly want to see a sandy beach, either white sand which you will find at PK18 (PK – Kilometric Points) 20 minutes by car east of Papeete, or black sand which you will find 20 minutes to the west from Papeete and you will see the surfers.
You also have the essential tour of the island to see the waterfalls, the Taravao plateau, maybe go for a hike? There it will take almost the day and a lunch break in Taravao.
In summary, you will drive between 5 minutes and 1 hour 30 minutes maximum to go to your different activities, and for that here are the different transport available.
Transport in Tahiti
The bus
There are several bus lines in Tahiti that run all over the island. You will find the map below with the stops served.
The advantage is that it is very local, you will not come across 5 tourists, on the other hand it will be necessary to be patient, a good opportunity to learn the expression « Je suis Fiu » (I’m tired of it) …).
Find all the information in this brochure.
The taxi
You will find several taxi stations on the map below and you can ask your hotel or host to call you one. Taxi in Tahiti is expensive for short distances and you would prefer to have it for your airport transfers or to the port of Papeete.
The tuk-tuk
Recently set up, they allow travel in downtown Papeete.
The boat
Ideal for going to Moorea or strolling on the lagoon, but you will not yet find a taxi boat to take you through the urban jungle, although the main trips are all along the coasts.
You will find two companies to take you to Moorea, Aremiti and Terevau (Vodafone).
The bike
There are a few bicycle rental companies and you can ask your hosts to provide them. Be aware that there are few bike paths and that traffic can be heavy on the urban area of Tahiti, so be careful.
Another detail, there are some climbs to cross, and even if you are very fit, it is 35 °C … so prefer an electric bike, but above all equip yourself with water and a cap 😊
I summarize: taxis are expensive, random buses, tuktuk cover 4 streets and biking in the sun is dangerous. So you of course have car and scooter rental to go where you want!