Cocktail in hand, lying on a beach is forever a mood right. To kick off this series what better place is there to dream about than Bora Bora? If you’re like me, you have heard and seen a lot about Bora Bora out there. The most noteworthy being of course when Kim Kardashian lost her earring whilst vacationing in Bora Bora. Now the word on the street is that Bora Bora is an expensive destination to go on vacation, is this true? Can you really go to Bora Bora on a budget? If yes, then what’s the definition of budget?
First things first, you probably don’t know where on earth Bora Bora is. Okay, no, my readers are more knowledgeable than that, so allow me to rephrase myself. You know where Bora Bora is, but you’ve forgotten, so let me give you a refresher right?
Where is Bora Bora?
To make this geographically easy for you, below the equator, somewhere between Australia and South America, in the middle of the South Pacific Ocean in French Polynesia. The other country closest/ part of to French Polynesia is Tahiti, in fact, it’s only about 230 km Northwest of Papeete, the capital of Tahiti. The people who live on the island are Polynesian with some European (French) and Chinese descent. The official language spoken on the islands is French and Tahitian but English is widely spoken being a touristic destination.
Why is Bora Bora expensive?
Firstly being an island it doesn’t help that Bora Bora is in the middle of nowhere. The flights to reach French Polynesia are only through Tahiti. The flight route to Bora Bora is also monopolized by Air Tahiti, and you know what lack of competition means. Actually, there are only a total of 4 to 5 flights a day to Tahiti. And finally, accommodation in Bora Bora is pretty expensive. It attracts honeymooners and A-listers and usually, in both cases the budgets are more flexible than usual.
Firstly – when should you go to Bora Bora?
The best time to go to Bora Bora is between May and October. These are the dry months, rain is rare and has cool temperatures. A-amazing, but then comes the hefty price tag.
The off-season time to go to Bora Bora is between the months of October to about March. This is because the weather is not optimal and you might have to brave the heat, especially in Feb and March. But for us cheapskates, this is the time to pack our bags and go because prices always dip during the off-season.
How to get to Bora Bora?
This is where the plot gets thicker. Your biggest challenge and expense is undoubtedly the flights to Bora Bora. Now as mentioned earlier, as you search for flights your first destination should be Papeete, the capital city of Tahiti. Check Sky Scanner and Google flights to optimise your departing airport. For example, if you live in Germany, instead of flying out from Frankfurt, try other cities like Hamburg. Or if you know you can really get cheap flights from wherever you stay to Australia or even Los Angeles, then figure out that second leg of the journey. Below are some screenshots that I’ve found, I have to say the flights aren’t for the faint-hearted nor the shallow pocketed (like me). Lol
Now hypothetically speaking, if we were to go to Bora Bora in November and would depart from Frankfurt the return ticket would cost $1400 per person but would be for 44 hours. But if we would depart from Los Angelos International Airport, it would take 10 hours and would cost $885 for the same time period. On the other hand, if we were to depart from Cape Town, the return ticket would cost $1750 per person and the flight would be for 46 hours. So in this regard, it would really be about where you depart from.
But that’s only ⅔ of the story. Now that you’ve made your way to Papeete, Tahiti you would need to connect to Bora Bora. The flight from Papeete to Bora Bora is about 30mins long and annoyingly expensive. They average about $350 per person. But if you want to island-hop, you could end up paying $400 to visit about 7 islands (eg Maupiti, Raiatea, Huahine), if that’s something you would be up to doing. That would make your flight in and out of Bora Bora about $60.
Where to stay in Bora Bora?
For the accommodation, I truly got you. There are plenty of affordable options. To be fair, for such a beautiful place, you don’t even need 5-star accommodation, because you’ll probably spend most of your time outdoors anyway. Check out this Village Temanuata for $1350 for 5 nights, two adults. If you really want to save more, then there are a lot of Airbnbs for about $100 a night. Like this bungalow which is $101 a night.
Most of the cheaper options are great because you’ll be staying with the locals so you can get a more authentic experience. Whilst it’s not in the overwater bungalows, you’ll probably learn more and have a more wholesome experience.
But if you all of a sudden meet your rich uncle, then why not stay at the Four Seasons Resort Bora Bora for about $1200 a night, I mean, why not right?
If you really want the budget version of accommodation, there are a couple of hostels available and you can stay there for as little as $55 per night. But at the end of the day, hostels are hostels and you’re not going to get the privacy that you might want.
When it comes to the experiences and activities, I feel that I am not the best person to be telling you guys what and what to do since I haven’t been here personally.
So to sum it all up here is a minimum budget that would need to go to Bora Bora for 5 nights without food costs included for two people.
| Description | Amount |
| Flights for 2 to Papeete(from Capetown) | 3500 |
| Flights for 2 to Bora Bora (from Papeete) | 700 |
| Accomodation (for 5 nights) | 600 |
| Total | 4800 |
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