After travelling from Los Angeles to Papeete aboard Air Tahiti Nui enterprise class, we proceeded to the following leg of our journey from Papeete to Bora Bora with Air Tahiti.
By advantage of being the first home provider in French Polynesia, Air Tahiti represents one of many one of many solely choices for reaching Bora Bora by way of aircraft. Be aware that Air Tahiti is a completely separate airline from Air Tahiti Nui, the first worldwide provider of the French abroad collectivity, and operates an all-economy fleet of ATR-72 plane.
Air Tahiti – Reserving
We booked our tickets for the intra-island flights immediately on the Air Tahiti web site. Given the remoteness of the territory, flight costs are typically fairly excessive, and you may typically count on costs to start out at round 20,000 XPF ($180 USD) one-way for the one-hour journey between Papeete and Bora Bora.
It’s value noting that smaller startup airways like Air Moorea and constitution airways like Tahiti Air Constitution additionally ply their companies on this route, although on a lot much less frequent schedules.
Moreover, there’s additionally a ferry service often called Apetahi Categorical that operates from Papeete’s principal harbour to Bora Bora, which takes roughly eight hours, so taking a flight with Air Tahiti is essentially the most time-efficient choice.
Air Tahiti – Floor Expertise
Faa’a Worldwide Airport is the first worldwide airport in French Polynesia, working each worldwide flights and home flights that hook up with different locations inside French Polynesia.
Air Tahiti operates out of a separate home part at Papeete Airport, which is separate from the worldwide part you arrive in.
The home terminal is somewhat simplistic, consisting of a single safety checkpoint. When you arrive and clear immigration, stroll to your proper to search out the home check-in counters.
Because the ATR-72 has tiny overhead bins, any belongings apart from private objects wanted to be checked in, so we needed to check-in our carry-on luggage.
After finishing the check-in course of, we waited within the home departures terminal for about an hour and a half. Regardless of the sweltering warmth, the bogs inside the terminal supplied some type of aid with air-con.
What’s extra, there are only a few eating and seating areas to select from, and when you move the safety checkpoint, there’s just one café obtainable.
Earlier than lengthy, boarding was referred to as, and we walked from the terminal to the plane since there aren’t any jet bridges on the airport.
Air Tahiti follows an open-seating coverage, that means that seats aren’t assigned throughout check-in. Fairly, passengers have the liberty to pick out their very own seats onboard.
It’s really helpful to affix the boarding queue as early as attainable to safe fascinating views through the flight, that are usually on the left facet of the aircraft when flying from Tahiti to Bora Bora.
Air Tahiti – Cabin
Our flight to Bora Bora was operated by an ATR-72 plane, particularly the F-ORVS. The ATR-72 are small twin-engine turboprop planes, extensively used for his or her effectivity in regional flights.
The cabin of the ATR-72 options 68 economic system class seats, organized in a 2-2 structure. Every seat within the economic system cabin offers an analogous expertise, with the one notable distinction being the higher views from the left-hand facet of the aircraft.
Air Tahiti – Seat
These Air Tahiti economic system seats provide a reasonably primary degree of consolation with a no-nonsense setup. Seat options encompass a literature pocket on the seat again, in addition to a desk tray which flips down into place.
The tray desk is giant sufficient for a drink or a cellular phone, with out a lot area for an excessive amount of else.
Total, when you don’t have as a lot legroom, space for storing, or lie-flat functionality, it isn’t an excessive amount of of a priority on a fast one-hour flight with dazzling Pacific Ocean views to occupy your consideration.
Air Tahiti – Snack Service
After takeoff, a member of the flight crew got here to carry out in-flight service, which consisted of simply juice and water.
Moreover, there was a snack menu with extra objects obtainable for a cost, together with objects like cookies, chips, and comfortable drinks, which value 220–700 XPF ($2–6 USD).
I spent a lot of this brief flight perusing Air Tahiti’s distinctive in-flight journal. Particularly, I used to be fascinated by the route map, with all of French Polynesia’s islands and atolls unfold out throughout the Pacific Ocean and overlaid on an overview of the European continent for scale.
Unbeknownst to me, the time handed shortly, and out of the blue we had been gracefully descending in the direction of the breathtaking paradise of Bora Bora.
Conclusion
Whereas Air Tahiti’s flight from Papeete to Bora Bora could also be thought-about pretty no-frills, particularly contemplating the value level, it in the end serves as essentially the most sensible choice for travellers seeking to attain Bora Bora.
Upon touchdown in Bora Bora, we had been greeted with breathtaking views of Mount Otemanu. Shortly after, the Conrad Bora Bora’s consultant awaited our arrival, marking the start of the following part of our journey en path to the resort.
