French Polynesia · cars
Car rentals in Bora Bora
Rent a car at Bora Bora's airports and city pick-up points. Expedia Cars compares rates across every major rental company. Full insurance options at the counter.
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What first-timers get wrong in Bora Bora
The airport sits on Motu Mute and the transfer boat into Vaitape is free with Air Tahiti, while resort transfers are separate and expensive, so confirm which you have actually booked. The currency is the CFP franc, pegged to the euro at a fixed rate, and prices rank among the highest in the Pacific. There is no public transport, so hire a bicycle or scooter in Vaitape. Tipping is not expected.
What's actually worth your time in Bora Bora
The lagoon is the attraction and the island is scenery. Mount Otemanu's 727 metres cannot be summited, because the rock is rotten volcanic breccia and no legal route exists, so the peak stays a photograph. Matira Beach at the southern tip is the only substantial public beach and it is free. A half-day lagoon tour stopping at the coral gardens and the ray and blacktip shallows is what people actually remember.
What things cost in Bora Bora
Expect Pacific-high prices: a roulotte plate of poisson cru or chow mein runs 1,200 to 1,800 CFP, a restaurant main 3,500 to 6,000, and a beer 700 to 1,000. A half-day lagoon tour is roughly 9,000 to 12,000 CFP. Scooter hire costs about 8,000 CFP a day and a bicycle far less. Overwater bungalows start well above 60,000 CFP a night and climb steeply from there.
Bora Bora with kids, realistically
Inside the barrier reef the lagoon is shallow, warm and flat, which makes it about as safe as tropical water gets for small children. Resorts on the motu are isolated, so a child who needs variety will exhaust it — reaching Matira Beach or the Vaitape shops takes a boat shuttle. Stingray and shark feeding tours usually set a minimum age. Bring reef shoes, because coral cuts infect fast.
When the weather turns in Bora Bora
Rain falls mostly November to April in short heavy bursts, and the lagoon stays swimmable straight through. There is nowhere indoors to retreat to — no cinema, no mall, no museum — so the plan becomes a spa, a pareo-tying or coconut-husking demonstration at the resort, or a circuit of the 32-kilometre ring road with a stop at the wartime guns. Overcast skies also flatten the lagoon's colour, which is the real loss.
When to go to Bora Bora
| Best months for cars-in | Avg daily high | Rain days |
|---|---|---|
| August | 23°C / 73°F | 12 days |
| June | 24°C / 75°F | 15 days |
| September | 23°C / 73°F | 15 days |
The month to avoid is January — around 24°C (75°F) with roughly 27 rain days. Prices and crowds track the weather here: August is the sweet spot, January the month most people skip.
Pack for peak season: Summer clothes, plus one light layer for air-con and evenings, Rain gear is non-negotiable — expect rain on roughly 12 days, Comfortable walking shoes — every guide on this site assumes you'll use them.
Where to base yourself in Bora Bora
- Vaitape — Main-island town with the ferry pier, banks, markets, restaurants.
- Matira Beach — The one public swimmable beach on the main island — white sand, calm shallow water.
- Motu Toopua / Motu Piti Aau — The two islet chains ringing the lagoon — where the top resorts sit.