La Perle de Tahaa

We stayed in a backpacker room one night and then moved to a flowers bungalow. The backpacker room was pretty small, but the shared kitchen and 2 bathrooms were large and comfortable. Our bungalow was also quite pleasant; we had a nice kitchen (although I borrowed some items from the backpacker’s better-furnished kitchen) a comfortable bed, and nice bath. Since Tahaa is a small island with few markets, we brought breakfast and lunch food with us, planning to eat dinners out. This worked out pretty well, although the only restaurants close by were pizza and a food truck, both of which were pretty good and FAR less expensive than the $50pp dinner offered at La Perle. Roberto, the owner, charges for every extra, but we rented bikes for the week at a reasonable cost, and so we were able to bike to town for dinner, to the pearl farm, and the local distillery. The bikes for our rental were in poor repair, and the first day Roberto said we could use some better bikes he was reserving for customers in the higher-end bungalows. But later he yelled at us for using those bikes, til we reminded him he had given permission. We did not find Roberto to be friendly, perhaps because we don’t speak any French, and we encountered several culture clashes. For example, we had recently stayed in a small inn with a lovely common room. My husband observed that up the steps marked “Reception” was a porch sitting area, so he went there to read. This greatly upset Roberto, who told my husband that this was part of his home. My husband of course apologized and left, but this experience made us feel quite wary of making mistakes...not a great feeling when on vacation. Nonetheless, we enjoyed the location, across the lagoon from one of the best drift snorkel experiences in the world. And at 1/10 of the cost of the hotel on the other side of the lagoon. One day we made a lunch reservation at exclusive Hotel Tahaa, and we hopped the hotel’s boat across the lagoon to enjoy the drift snorkel through the coral garden plus a lovely lunch. Another day we kayaked across for a final trip down the coral river. Fab!

My sister and i had booked two rooms for my wedding stay and I booked both our stays on my accounts. Robert the owner sent an email and said he was sleeping and is overbooked and cannot accommodate my sister and her husband, I called him and told him if this was the case then we must cancel as well as we are all four traveling together. he said ' yes, yes , no problem I understand", which he then used against me and said later to Hotels.com rep that his english was not good and he will not refund our money, He refused to cancel my booking, he ruined my plans, cost me money and a lot of paper work as we'll as having to cancel my credit card. hotels and bookings.com agreed that he was in the wrong but since it was booked directly with him he had the final say and all I can do is cancel my card. He refused to accept anymore emailS from us and was rude. beware before booking he will scam you!

We arrived during a rainstorm and were greatly welcomed by Roberto, who was very friendly. Because we had issues with our bungalow, he immediately upgraded us to a sea front bungalow which was much nicer. Bungalows are very close to the road but this is the way the islands are designed. Bed was too big for the room (king bed), making the room too tiny. the bathroom was nicely decorated, however, there is no full separation between bedroom and bathroom and we found that there was not much privacy. The rest was good but remember that we were upgraded.... We took all diners at the lodge, which were good on the first day, but average on day 2 (we were proposed to eat lobster for an extra 10$). I thought the lobster was too small and too dry. Nothing much to eat for 75$ each (bf and diner for one person) , I believe that was no right. I recommend to skip on the lobster unless you crave for it. stick to regular meals, they are very good. for Breakfast, nothing fancy but good fruits and great coffee. As for activities, we didn't do much, due to the rain. the water front is well equipped but all activities are billed, therefore nobody was doing anything. My opinion is that at this price, bikes and Canoes should be offered for free like all the others places we have been. I wonder why Roberto insists so much to make a buck.. I cant tell about Vanilla factory, or anything on the island because we decided to relax inside the bungalow and did nothing. Location: know that Perle de Tahaa is a bit far from anything, we felt that without Bikes or a Vehicle this place was remote and I will not advise to stay very long. Also prices for activities are a bit high . For instance 1000F for a 2mn ride to the ferry seemed hefty.

We spent 15 idyllic days in July 2017 at this small family run waterfront resort on the island of Taha'a which shares a large lagoon with the neighbouring island of Raiatea. We found Roberto, Lily and staff very considerate and helpful in dealing with a reservations error by our travel agent. They provide a very instructive tour of the island with emphasis on a vanilla plantation and a pearl farm and also transport you when required for supermarket shopping. The cottages are self conta ined and well appointed and just over the road the family run a small restaurant right over the water with excellent food especially lobster. Snorkelling in the Coral Gardens must be amongst the best in the world. Just the type of vacation we needed without the hordes of tourists encountered on the better known islands. Take earplugs if you can't stand roosters crowing and dogs barking at all hours of the night as is common on every Polynesian island we have visited.

We stayed in one of the archipelago bungalows and had a great time. I think going into this place with the right expectations helped us, I definitely recommend reading some reviews so you get a feel for what it's like. The bungalow was beautiful and clean. It has a well equipped kitchenette with a microwave, fridge and 2 gas burners - good for cooking your own food. The bathroom has a nice large shower - the hot/cold water balance is a bit difficult to master though. We used the main bed and one of the couch beds. There are 2 couches which are the size of a single bed, they have proper mattresses and are very comfortable to sleep on (bedding available on request), as is the main bed. The staff are friendly and helpful. Roberto (the owner) speaks limited English, his children who were working with him when we visited speak very good English. Roberto arranged transfers to and from Raiatea for us (on request), and takes guests to do things around the island. We went on a tour with him to see a pearl farm and vanilla farm - both very interesting. Another time he drove us to a food truck in one of the towns which served delicious food. Yes, he does charge for all these extra bits and pieces, although he doesn't explicitly tell you at the time, so go into it with this expectation. They have bicycles, kayaks and snorkel gear available for use. They do charge a hire fee, added to your bill at the end. You can snorkel/swim right off their jetty, and see some nice coral and fish, but the real beauty is the coral garden. You can kayak across the lagoon to the motu (small island) where the Tahaa resort is, and find the coral garden between that motu and the one next door. Definitely worth doing! You can bike or walk to the nearby village Tapuamu where there is a small grocery store, a food truck and Ma'a Viti Pizza (great food!). They serve breakfast at 8am if you want it, which was baguette with jams and fresh fruit - nothing fancy/special. They also do dinners at the "restaurant" - which is a set menu. We ate there once and it was nice to meet some of the other guests and also hear some live local music. The food was simple but nice. Again, the cost for these meals is added on to your bill at the end. This is a lovely place to stay, but I think what it really needs is a hotel compendium/information book with prices of everything, a map of the island, info about the restaurant etc. The hardest bit of our stay was all the ambiguity, made harder by the language barrier.

The rooms are good with plenty of room, small kitchens with a microwave and stove, etc. The worst aspect is that the mosquitoes can be voracious pretty well all day when sitting outside the room. There are screens on all the windows, though, so inside is insect free. A ceiling fan provides cooling (no AC). The hotel leads to its own wharf. Snorkelling is good around the end of the wharf with a good variety of fish. The water is a little more cloudy there than across in the Coral Gardens. The coral Gardens are two km across the water and Roberto will organise a trip over (for a fee). The coral gardens are amazing (see separate review). An island tour can be arranged by Roberto which takes in a Pearl factory and Vanilla growing as well as other sites. There are no Restaurants nearby (other than a food truck and a good pizza place about 2 km down the road), but Roberto provides dinner each night of local caught sea food (a fixed menu of starters, main meal, dessert and wine) at the restaurant on the water. Breakfast can be had at the Reception up the hill - part of the owners house. Internet was intermittent, and several of us could connect OK but not able to get email.

I give La Perle de Tahaa two stars instead of zero because 1) there are really beautiful things to do there (kayaks are available for free to snorkel at the stunning coral reef, and you can take a tour of the gorgeous island, vanilla farms, black pearl farms, etc) and 2) Roberto picked us up at the ferry and brought an extra fan to our room. But this place is really not well designed for the island, at least for the majority of the year. I wonder if the owners have ever tried staying in the rooms. While their house is atop the hill and all open, catching the ocean breezes, the rooms are down below with zero ventilation and are like little greenhouses. It's hard to enjoy the lovely decor in the bungalows when you're baking. You can try to escape the heat by going to the little beach area, but there are no cushions for the wooden chaise lounges, and it's loud with cars and motorcycles constantly going by behind the fence. There's no restaurant for breakfast or lunch, so you're on your own. We didn't even try the expensive dinner. If you need anything as you're suffering down below (say to organize a tour, or try to find a different place to stay!), you can hope you can connect to the convoluted internet connection (it took us several tries) and that you have skype credit (no phones in the bungalow). Otherwise you have to walk up the hill and find the owners. No one will come down to check on you or even to clean your bungalow, a minor luxury I would expect for the price of the accommodation. I'd look for another place to stay.

The accommodation was really good and Roberto was very helpful! Kayaks were available to go across to the beautiful coral garden and there was a good pizza place and food truck a short bike ride away! There was mosquito nets around the bed and the small kitchen had everything you need for basic meals. There was warm water for showers. We had a wonderful time here on our honeymoon and I highly recommend staying here.

I was a solo traveler and Roberto and his wife personally greeted me at their dock when arrived. Although I was tired from flights, their warm welcome and hospitality cheered me up in no time. Couple of main points. 1. Talk to Roberto, he speaks pretty good english and gave me a alot of tips about what to do, locations, and great ideals. He's very accommodating with activities. 2. The location is fantastic, its on the side of the island where you can see beautiful sunsets hit Bora Bora in the distance. There is some pretty good snorkeling right at the dock in front of their property, since it goes from shallow to quite deep (20 ft). I spent hours just relaxing on the dock watching the many fish below and gazing above to see Bora Bora. 3. Make sure you communicate with Roberto clearly about your arrival since you have to take a motu taxi from the airport in Raiatea, which takes about 45 minutes. The equipment (such as bikes) are in pretty decent shape, unlike some places where they have bikes, but are all rusted with busted wheels. The rooms are very clean and modern, Roberto was in the furniture business before so he has beautiful decorations and furniture in the rooms. Quick notes: Go to the food truck and order the steak frites, they were delicious and gave so so many french fries!