Discover Tahiti’s Best Beaches
September 30, 2007 by Travel Guide Greg
Filed under Tahiti, Travel Guides
Discover Tahiti’s Best Beaches :
Tahiti: the name alone conjures images of lush, exotic private sandy beaches to escape to. If you’re looking for the finest beaches in Tahiti to visit, this article will show you where to find the absolute best Tahiti’s beaches.
There are of course many public beaches in Tahiti, but try the ones found on the west of the island, as these are the best beaches. Between Mahana Park, or Punaauia-PK15, or Paea-PK-19, and Le Meridien Tahiti on the west of the island is where the best are located. Since these are public beaches, they can get crowded on weekends. The best times to visit them are during the week when there are fewer crowds.
Once you reach PK18, there is a small bridge. Near this little bridge you can find some wonderful snorkeling, very safe and quite nice. If you want to leave the white sand behind and do a little swimming, this spot is a very good place to spend some time in the water.
A little way beyond that, just a few hundred meters up from the bridge, is Mahana Park, PK18.5. Native Tahitians like going to this beach. If you’re looking for a little activity, say kicking a soccer ball or tossing a volleyball around, then you’ll want to head over to this beach. You’ll also find a pleasant restaurant there and a snack stand in the parking lot leading to the beach. As always, there is great snorkeling there and everywhere on the island.
The nicest beach on the west coast of Tahiti is probably the one at the Le Meridien Tahiti Hotel. A lovely white sand beach, it has beautiful clear azure waters and provides a little more luxury, like the hotel itself. Restaurant Le Carre sports a deck that looks out over the ocean and beach, and the food is top quality. Indulge yourself and enjoy your meal here, sitting out on the deck, where you can listen to the sounds of the waves and the calls of the exotic birds that surround you. This is one of the very best spots for beach or dining anywhere in Tahiti.
A unique characteristic of Tahiti is the black sand beaches that are found everywhere on the east side of the island. The island of Tahiti owes its existence to the two ancient inactive volcanoes that make up the island. These two together join to make up larger and smaller ends of the island, and where they meet creates the body of the island. Because of the volcanic activity on the island, these incredible black sand beaches can be found almost everywhere on the east coast.
Finally, one of the most alluring and popular areas of the island is Venus Point, appropriate considering that Tahiti itself means “Isle of Big Love.” For visitors staying in Papeete, the capital city, Venus Point is easily reached by traveling along the coast on Le Truck, which is Tahiti’s public transportation system, directly to Venus Point.
