Bora Bora
Covers the six Hawaiian islands, Key West, Nantucket, Hilton Head, Fiji and Bora Bora, plus the passport rules for US citizens.
UpdatedThis page carries dated prices, schedules or seasonal facts checked on the date above, and that window has now passed. Re-check the sources at the foot of the page before you book.
Bora Bora is small. The main island is a ring of road around Mount Otemanu, and the reason you come is the lagoon around it: a wide band of shallow, pale-blue water inside the reef, edged by low sandy islets called motus. Most big resorts sit on those motus, with their bungalows built out over the water.
It is expensive, and our numbers show by how much. On Kayak, the cheapest room rated 3 stars or better was $157 on January 13, 2027 and $207 on July 14, 2027. The cheapest of the big resorts, InterContinental Le Moana, was $865 and $1,467 on the same nights, and the five-star resorts started around $1,700. Bora Bora is a splurge island, and this page is about doing it with your eyes open.
At a glance
- Best for
- Honeymooners and couples marking a big occasion
- Skip it if
- You are watching costs, traveling with kids who need variety, or want a week of sightseeing
- Getting there
- Nonstop from LAX, SFO or HNL to Tahiti (PPT), then Air Tahiti or Air Moana to Bora Bora (BOB)
- Hotel, mid-January
- $157 on January 13, 2027 (cheapest 3-star, taxes and fees in, Kayak); resorts from $865
- Island size
- About 12 sq miles (30.55 sq km), lagoon and motus around it
- Visitors in 2025
- 281,227 tourists to all of French Polynesia; no Bora Bora count published
In this guide
How Bora Bora scores
Six factors, scored 0 to 10 the same way for all 64 islands. Our verdict on this island is “it depends”, which takes 0.4 off the weighted average. There is no island-level visitor count we trust, so crowds are left out and the other five factors are re-weighted. How we score
- WeatherData · 20%8.5
- Beaches & seaEditors · 25%7.5
- Things to doEditors · 25%5.0
- Getting there from the USData · 10%4.1
- ValueData · 10%5.7
- Room to breatheData · 10%Not scored
Weather month by month
Best months by our weather score: July, August, September. Daytime highs, rain and sunshine are 2016–2025 averages at Bora Bora Airport (Open-Meteo historical weather archive); sea temperatures are 2022–2025 averages for the nearest sea area (Open-Meteo marine archive). Months marked in the storm row fall in the South Pacific cyclone season (November 1 to April 30); the score takes that risk into account.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High °F | 82 | 83 | 83 | 83 | 82 | 81 | 80 | 79 | 79 | 80 | 81 | 82 |
| Sea °F | 84 | 84 | 85 | 85 | 84 | 83 | 81 | 81 | 81 | 82 | 82 | 83 |
| Rain (in) | 11.9 | 10.8 | 6.5 | 7.8 | 4.1 | 4.4 | 2.7 | 2.6 | 3.3 | 5.4 | 7.8 | 10.7 |
| Weather score | 5.1 | 4.9 | 6.7 | 6.8 | 8.9 | 8.7 | 9.3 | 9.4 | 9.1 | 8.3 | 7.4 | 5.6 |
| Storm season | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● |
The numbers behind the score
- Gateway airport
- Bora Bora Airport (BOB)
- US nonstops
- None. No US nonstop to BOB; fly via PPT (Papeete, Tahiti), then Air Tahiti or Air Moana to Bora Bora, then a boat from the Motu Mute airport. US nonstops to PPT: LAX (Air Tahiti Nui, Air France), SFO (United, French Bee), HNL (Hawaiian Airlines).
- Distance
- 4,115 mi from Los Angeles, 6,348 mi from New York
- Passport
- Needed for US citizens
- Hotel, one night
- $157 on Jan 13, 2027 · $207 on Jul 14, 2027 (Bora Bora (main island and motus; Kayak lists all under Vaitape))
- Visitors a year
- 281,227 overnight visitors (2025)
- Bringing a dog
- Hard: Rabies-free territory: a prior import permit from the Direction de la Biosecurite for each animal, a health certificate signed by an official veterinarian of the exporting country, and travel as manifested cargo; start well ahead, especially if rabies vaccination is not current.
Hotel prices: Cheapest 3-star-or-better double, 1 night, 2 adults, Kayak 'Nightly total - including all taxes + fees' view, checked 2026-10-20. January: Kukuriaz Fare (3 stars). July: Villa Yrondi (4 stars). Only 10 qualifying properties listed. Cheapest large resort: InterContinental Bora Bora Le Moana, $865 January and $1,467 July.. Visitor figures: ISPF (Institut de la statistique de la Polynesie francaise), Tableau de bord Tourisme 2025-T4.
Who Bora Bora suits, and who should skip it
Bora Bora is for couples. It belongs on any honeymoon shortlist, because the view from an overwater deck is the experience you are paying for.
Skip it if you want variety. There are a few good days of lagoon tours and one great public beach, then you are back at the resort. Families and active travelers get more from Fiji, which also has nonstop flights from the US. If you want overwater villas with a stronger reef for diving, compare the Maldives.
Where to stay: motu resort or main island
Motu resorts. The big names sit on the islets around the lagoon and reach the main island by boat. On our test nights the cheapest was InterContinental Le Moana at $865 in January and $1,467 in July. Le Bora Bora by Pearl Resorts, Conrad Bora Bora Nui, Four Seasons, The St. Regis and The Westin all came in higher, between $1,365 and $3,638 a night, taxes and fees in.
Main island. Pensions, small hotels and villas near Vaitape and Matira. Kayak's cheapest 3-star-or-better double was Kukuriaz Fare at $157 for Wednesday, January 13, 2027, and Villa Yrondi at $207 for Wednesday, July 14, 2027. Only ten properties rated 3 stars or better showed up at all, so book early for peak dates.
Beaches and the lagoon
Matira Beach, on the main island's southern point, is the public beach worth crossing the lagoon for: soft white sand sloping very gently into shallow, calm water. It is good for small children and for wading out a long way.
Most other sand belongs to motu resorts, where the beach is private to guests. The real attraction is the lagoon itself: calm, shallow and protected by the reef, with coral gardens near the motus. Outside the reef, the ocean is rougher and only for boats and divers.
Things to do: a short, good list
- Lagoon tours by boat or outrigger canoe, usually with snorkeling stops among rays and blacktip reef sharks and a picnic on a motu.
- Diving outside the reef and in the pass.
- 4x4 tours of the main island's interior and viewpoints of Mount Otemanu.
- Vaitape, the main village, for the small market and black pearl shops.
That is two or three full days. After that, the resort, the spa and the deck are the plan. A popular fix is to split the trip with a few nights on Tahiti, where you land anyway, or on a quieter neighboring island in the Air Tahiti network, such as Raiatea or Huahine, which both have direct flights to Bora Bora. Tours are priced by operators, and we have not listed figures we could not confirm.
When to go, and the 2026-27 cyclone outlook
Météo-France describes the Southern Hemisphere cyclone season as November to April, sometimes into May. The cooler, drier months from about May to October are the classic time to go, and the price gap shows the demand: the InterContinental cost 70 percent more on our July date than in January.
This season deserves extra caution. The Fiji Meteorological Service, which runs the regional cyclone center for the South Pacific, forecasts eight to ten tropical cyclones east of the Dateline for November 2026 to April 2027, against a long-term average of about four, with four to five severe ones against an average of two. It ties this to a strong El Niño. If you book for this summer, buy insurance with a hurricane clause. More in our cyclone season guide.
Getting there from the US, and entry rules
No US flight lands on Bora Bora. You fly nonstop to Faa'a International Airport (PPT) on Tahiti, then connect. US nonstops to PPT run from Los Angeles (Air Tahiti Nui and Air France), San Francisco (United and French Bee) and Honolulu (Hawaiian Airlines). From Papeete, Air Tahiti and Air Moana fly to Bora Bora Airport (BOB).
BOB sits on Motu Mute, an islet in the lagoon, so you finish the trip by boat to the main island or your resort. Plan a buffer: international arrivals and the island hop do not always line up on the same day.
French Polynesia is part of France but follows its own entry rules. The State Department says Americans can stay up to 90 days in any six months without a visa, need a passport with six months' validity and a return ticket, and cannot use a 12-page emergency passport for visa-free entry. Our passport guide has more.
Bringing a dog, and what a trip costs
A dog is hard. French Polynesia is free of rabies, and its Direction de la Biosécurité requires a prior import permit for each animal, a health certificate signed by an official veterinarian of the exporting country, and travel as manifested cargo, not in the cabin. The agency advises starting well ahead, especially if rabies shots are not current. See our dog-friendly islands for easier choices.
For money, the room is the trip. Five nights at the cheapest big resort would run $4,325 in January or $7,335 in July at the rates we found, before flights, the island hop, boat transfers and meals.
Tickets and tours you can book
Full Day Lagoon Group Tour in Bora Bora with Lunch
Snorkel gear, towels, drinks and lunch are included; pickup from select points. Lagoon Service runs its own boats.
Rating as shown on Viator
Half day Snorkeling Shared Boat Tour in Bora Bora
Pickup and water are included; reviewers suggest bringing your own snorkel gear and water shoes.
Rating as shown on Viator
Bora Bora: Full day Lagoon Safari & Lunch on a Motu - ST
Pickup, snorkel gear, drinks, towel and lunch are included.
Rating as shown on GetYourGuide
Booking through these links supports this site at no cost to you. Prices move by date, so we do not print them here; the official prices we checked are in the page above.
Frequently asked questions
Are there direct flights from the US to Bora Bora?
No. Nonstops from Los Angeles, San Francisco and Honolulu go to Papeete (PPT) on Tahiti. From there, Air Tahiti or Air Moana fly to Bora Bora, and a boat takes you from the airport islet to the main island or your resort.
How much does a night in Bora Bora cost?
On Kayak, the cheapest 3-star room was $157 on January 13, 2027 and $207 on July 14, 2027. The cheapest big resort, InterContinental Le Moana, was $865 and $1,467 on those nights, taxes in.
Do US citizens need a visa for Bora Bora?
No, for stays up to 90 days in any six-month period. You need a passport with six months' validity and a return ticket, according to the State Department.
When is cyclone season in Bora Bora?
November to April, sometimes into May, per Météo-France. For 2026-27 the Fiji Meteorological Service forecasts above-average cyclone activity east of the Dateline because of a strong El Niño.
Is Bora Bora worth it?
For a honeymoon in an overwater bungalow, yes. For a family trip or a week of variety, Fiji gives more beaches and more to do at a fraction of the room price.
Further reading
Official sources
- ISPF (Institut de la statistique de la Polynésie française) - Tableau de bord Tourisme 2025-T4 – 281,227 tourists January to December 2025 (+6.6%); fourth-quarter detail; checked October 20, 2026
- ISPF - Le bilan du tourisme de l'année 2024 – 263,766 tourists in 2024, 20% of them cruise tourists; checked October 20, 2026
- Wikipedia - Faa'a International Airport, Airlines and destinations – US nonstops: Air France and Air Tahiti Nui (Los Angeles), French Bee and United (San Francisco), Hawaiian (Honolulu); page edited October 1, 2026; checked October 20, 2026
- Wikipedia - Bora Bora Airport – Airport on Motu Mute, boat transfer to the main island; Air Tahiti and Air Moana to Papeete; checked October 20, 2026
- US State Department - French Polynesia International Travel Information – Visa-free up to 90 days in six months; six months' passport validity; return ticket; emergency passport not valid; checked October 20, 2026
- Direction de la Biosécurité de la Polynésie française - Pet import permit by air (Mes-Démarches) – Prior import permit, official veterinary health certificate, manifested cargo; rabies-free territory; checked October 20, 2026
- Météo-France Polynésie - Qu'est-ce qu'un cyclone ? – Southern Hemisphere cyclone season November to April, sometimes May; checked October 20, 2026
- Fiji Meteorological Service (RSMC Nadi) - 2026-27 Tropical Cyclone Seasonal Outlook – Eight to ten TCs east of the Dateline (average about four), four to five severe (average two), strong El Niño; checked October 20, 2026
- Kayak - Bora Bora (Vaitape) hotels, January 13-14, 2027 – Kukuriaz Fare $157; InterContinental Le Moana $865; nightly totals including taxes and fees; checked October 20, 2026
- Kayak - Bora Bora (Vaitape) hotels, July 14-15, 2027 – Villa Yrondi $207; InterContinental Le Moana $1,467; St. Regis $3,638; nightly totals including taxes and fees; checked October 20, 2026
