The term French Polynesia refers to five archipelagoes spread over an expanse of the South Pacific approximately the size of Western Europe (2,000,000 square miles or approximately 5,000,000 square kilometers). The region includes the Marquesas, the Tuamotus, the Society Islands, with Tahiti and Bora Bora as the best known islands, the Australs and the Gambiers.
Each of these archipelagoes has its own culture, ethnicity and climate; all of them are unique travel destinations with beaches of unrivaled beauty, many activities and a very friendly population.
French Polynesia was the natural backdrop for the legendary paintings of Paul Gauguin. Like the vast majority of visitors to the region, Gauguin has inspired by French Polynesia's turquoise lagoons, multi-coloured reef fish, volcanic peaks, lush valleys and white-sand beaches.
Getting around the islands of French Polynesia can be done by boat or air though access to some of the remote islands can be difficult and unreliable. The French government kicks in some financial support so domestic air travel is not as expensive as you might expect but distances between some island groups are great and these flights are costly. Apart from some small charter operators domestic flights are handled by Air Tahiti and Air Moorea.
Inter-island boats run regular routes between all of the island groups and can be a great way to travel within the region. Huge catamarans ply between Tahiti and Moorea and the very modern Ono-Ono services the rest of the Society group. Luxury cruises are available on vessels like the Wind Song the Arunai and the Club Med 2.
Tahiti and the developed islands operate a local-bus service known as le truck which is cheap and reliable. Taxis are available for hire but they are horribly expensive. Rental cars scooters and bicycles are good ways to explore and 4WDs can be hired if you want to head inland on some of the tracks. In the Marquesas many locals and tourists choose to get around on horseback.
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