Things to do in Tahiti

Tahiti was the first place that felt like a city after the Marquesas and the Tuamotus, and we were ready for it. We sailed in from Rangiroa on 19 June 2026. I called Papeete Port Control on VHF 12, they cleared us through the pass and past the airport, and they wanted another call five minutes before the airport’s west end. We anchored south of Marina Taina before sunset. We were here until the morning of 6 July, with a few sails over to Moorea and back, a parts run, and the vet visit for the pugs.

The arrival and the weeks here are in the Captain’s Log: Rangiroa and the passage to Tahiti, and the Windward Society Islands.

Dinner, the market, and the coast road From Some Tuesday

Tahiti was the first place that felt like a city after the Marquesas and the Tuamotus. Our first night we landed the dinghy at Marina Taina and took a table at La Casa Bianca. Calamari, a salad for Meghan, a steak for me. We never ate fish in a restaurant in French Polynesia. The reason is on the country page. Live music walked us over to Yellowfin.

Another day we rented a scooter and rode the coast road south. A roulotte along the way did a proper lunch and a great smoothie, and we stopped at a couple of marae. One Monday we took a taxi into the Papeete market. Meghan disappeared into the pareos. Carrefour is about a fifteen-minute walk from Marina Taina.

Heard from Cruisers A marae is an open-air sacred place: a stone platform and a courtyard. People used them for religious ceremonies and offerings, and for gatherings of chiefs and their lineages. In the Society Islands a marae is usually a paved courtyard with a raised platform, the ahu, at one end. Taputapuātea, on Raʻiātea, has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2017. These places are still sacred. Don’t climb on the stones.

Most of this circulates by word of mouth among cruisers. We pulled it together, organized it, and share it free. It is not official guidance, so don’t rely on it as such.

Anchorages and docks

Airport anchorage Heard from Cruisers

The Faa’a airport anchorage is fairly flat in 28-knot gusts. In calms the current swings boats unpredictably. Dinghies and boats drag. Keep a watch.

How long a stay Heard from Cruisers

Long stays at the Faa’a airport anchorage are not tolerated. Short stays for provisioning are.

What we saw there From Some Tuesday

In practice the airport anchorage is widely used, and we never saw visible enforcement. We also anchored near the InterContinental hotel, in what is technically a no-anchor zone, and nobody said anything. It’s important to be courteous, but the written rules are definitely far more stringent than how it really works in practice. The situation is evolving.

The approved spots were full. We motored up and down for over an hour looking for one. The hook went down about 180 feet from the InterContinental’s overwater bungalows, and a few of the guests waved.

Arriving in Papeete Heard from Cruisers

You need Port Authority radio permission to transit past the airport (VHF 12 or 09). The public quay near the marina is first come, first served. Taina moorings have a long waiting list and belong to Marina Taina.

Papeete public quay Heard from Cruisers

The public dock is convenient. Clear loose items and lock hatches. People have boarded boats there. Ferry wake by day is rough for monohulls. There is a rock about 1.8–2 m near the west end, and about 5.2 m in the second berth from that end.

A half-day for parts From Some Tuesday

We tied up for a half-day at the public quay to buy parts at the local Yamaha dealer and at Marine Supplies. Easy in, easy out, and we got what we came for.

Marina Puunui and Phaeton Bay Heard from Cruisers

Marina Puunui, south of Phaeton Bay, is open, and it does not take liveaboards: unoccupied boats only. In Phaeton Bay, a boat-watcher service can watch a boat on a mooring or the anchor.

Tetiaroa moorings Heard from Cruisers

Tetiaroa moorings are privately owned by charter companies, and one broke about a year earlier. Dive and check a mooring before using it.

Dinghy landing

Papeete marina dock Heard from Cruisers

Papeete Marina banned dinghies at its dock after a trash problem, and posted a sign. Dinghies are “next to the bar over the water.” A free dock is still usable for pick-up and drop-off, and a seawall with bollards is also in use.

Airport dinghy landing Heard from Cruisers

Do not walk the road from the airport “harbor” dinghy landing, and do not leave the dinghy unattended. The gate closes around sunset. Night taxi pickup works, and Taxi Avei Tahiti is reliable. The channel is marked by drums. Sight it in daylight. Alternatives: meet at Marina Taina near La Casa Bianca and use the Taina dinghy dock, or Vaitupa Park if you tell the attendant. Airport dinghy dock on NoForeignLand.

Rubbish Heard from Cruisers

Do not leave rubbish by the public bins at Papeete marina. NoForeignLand lists legal disposal points.

Fuel and gas

CO2 and butane Heard from Cruisers

Food-grade CO2 is at Gazpac in Tipaerui. An account is required, and renting a CO2 tank from Gazpac works. A butane regulator is at Mr Bricolage.

Markets and groceries

Shops Heard from Cruisers

Wholemeal flour is sometimes at the Carrefour near Taina, and there is little bread flour. Trolleys can be walked to Taina and left at the bank near the main road, not at the dinghy dock. There are no free boxes. Easy Market at Prince Hinoï in Papeete has a bio section. Bio Pacifique, E’lien, and Natural shop have organic food.

Carrefour and the market From Some Tuesday

Carrefour is about a fifteen-minute walk from Marina Taina, and they let us roll the carts back that way. The wheels spin all the way around, which is great in the aisles and a workout on the sidewalk. One Monday we took a taxi into the Papeete market. Meghan disappeared into the pareos. I found a cold beer and waited her out.

Repairs and services

Chandlery Heard from Cruisers

SOPOM for Racor filters, watermaker membranes, Jabsco kits, and Onan parts (SOPOM on NoForeignLand); Nautisport as a Volvo Penta dealer, with a dinghy dock at the Papeete store, and marine aluminium at the Taravao shipyard; Marine Supplies at Taina and near Papeete Marina, plus a small shop at Opunohu marina on Moorea; STH Marine at Taina; Ocean 2000 for pumps; Ace Hardware on the Papeete marina side for PVC cement; Tahiti Sails for zippers; Yune Tung and L’appro for electrical; Decathlon.

Marine Supplies From Some Tuesday

Marine Supplies was a great experience. They were very helpful replacing the battens I broke on the Pacific passage. The ones I needed were in stock at their shop by Marina Taina. I cut and fitted them, and bought a spare. A staffer also sketched a better way to rig a reef after one of my reef lines chafed through, and I picked up a bilge pump for the dinghy. On a later Monday they had generator coolant when Carrefour didn’t, about $25 a liter.

A spare dinghy prop From Some Tuesday

After we spun a dinghy propeller over at Moorea, we came back to Tahiti and found two in stock. I bought both.

Rigging and alternators Heard from Cruisers

PRS made a shroud overnight. Dieselec, a Bosch workshop in Papeete / Arue, does not take Balmar alternators. A separate local handles Balmar. Lewmar windlass parts are unavailable in Tahiti (Lofrans parts are). An order from Kiwi Yachting in New Zealand via Tahiti Crew takes about two weeks.

Doctors, taxis, books, parcels Heard from Cruisers

Dr David Prevost, near Papeete Marina, works in English, with a pharmacy next door. Book on rendezvous.pf. Dermatologists: Dr Bernadat, opposite Champion, and Dr Jean-Marc Picault. Reliable taxis: Taxi Fanfan for a 4 a.m. pickup, Taxi Rosalie, Taxi Mana, and Taxi Avei. The Marina Taina water taxi is unreliable. English book swaps are in the Taina laundry room under the capitainerie, in the Papeete Marina wifi and shower room, and outside Carrefour Taina (mostly French). An AliExpress parcel to Papeete post office general delivery takes about 12 days via DHL, and is collected at the DHL counter in Faa’a.

Dinner, the coast road, and marae

Dinner, then the coast road From Some Tuesday

Our first night we landed the dinghy at Marina Taina and took a table at La Casa Bianca. Calamari, a salad for Meghan, a steak for me. We never ate fish in a restaurant in French Polynesia. The reason is on the country page. After the outer islands it felt like a party. Live music walked us over to Yellowfin. The owner invited us to tie the boat behind his house the next day. Perfect idea at midnight. Much less perfect in the morning, so we didn’t.

Another day we rented a scooter and rode the coast road south. Meghan is six feet, I’m six-three, and we both got onto a yellow Aprilia. Drivers were patient. A roulotte along the way did a proper lunch and a great smoothie, and we stopped at a couple of marae.

Also in this group: the Society Islands · Moorea · Bora Bora and Maupiha’a · Internet and SIM · Clearing in