Rangiroa: French Polynesian Paradise
Get Away From It All On Rangiroa
On our recent trip to French Polynesia, we had the tremendous pleasure of spending a few days on Rangiroa. The warm Polynesian hospitality and laid-back island vibe, added with the incredible wonders of the sea, made this a vacation we’ll never forget.
Before we go any further, I want to let you know that this is NOT a sponsored post. None of the businesses mentioned here were aware of my website or podcast when we visited.
Visiting Rangiroa
Rangiroa is an atoll in French Polynesia. Located about an hour’s flight from Tahiti, this ring of islands covers an area of over 500 square miles, but only about 31 square miles is above water.
Imagine your favorite lake. Now fill it with 85 degree salt water and endless species of sea life. This is the lagoon encircled by Rangiroa’s islands.
Incidentally, these islands are called motu.
Desert Island Life
Because it is so remote and sparsely populated, Rangiroa provides a real desert island experience. Housing and services are only located on two of the 415 motus.
When it comes to guest lodging, Rangiroa offers a variety of options including a couple of resorts, small pensions, guesthouses, and even bunkhouses.
No matter where you stay, Rangiroa’s laid-back atmosphere will transport you far from city life.
Kia Ora Resort
For our stay on Rangiroa, our family choose the Kia Ora resort. The location and services fit our needs, and we expected a limited resort experience since the island is basically in the middle of nowhere, the resort has one restaurant, and the price was much less expensive than our hotel on Bora Bora.
But what we thought were limiting factors were really the essence of what made Kia Ora so enchanting.
Bungalow Living
All the guest rooms at Kia Ora are bungalows. While a handful are located on a pier over the water, most of the bungalows are situated on the hotel’s lushly landscaped property.
Although the resort was at or near capacity during our stay, after a few days I realized that I frequently felt like we were the only guests there. And I think the reason for this sense of solitude was because we all had our own little cabins. It was like the best summer camp ever.
Since there were three of us, we stayed in a two-story bungalow. From the outside, our little house looked like something from Gilligan’s Island. Inside we had loads of space.
The bungalow had two levels – a large bedroom on the top floor, and on the main level we had a sitting room, bedroom, and a bathroom with a huge shower (perfect for rinsing off all our snorkel and dive gear). The bungalow sat basically on the beach, so we could just sit on the little lanai and gaze at the beautiful lagoon.
Dining at Kia Ora
One of our worries about Kia Ora was the lack of dining options. Kia Ora resort just has one restaurant and one bar. And I’m super-allergic to seafood, which makes things even more limiting.
We stayed for four nights and ate in the restaurant for all but one meal, and we were completely satisfied.
Breakfast at Kia Ora is a hearty buffet that offers all the usual options we Americans expect, including bacon, pastries, fruit, and eggs made to order.
The lunch and dinner offerings included fresh local fish, pasta, steak, burgers, salads, and sandwiches. Even though the restaurant is small, the menu was extensive enough that we never duplicated a meal. And the food was great.
Being part of French Polynesia, Rangiroa’s culinary style is French. That means fresh bread with basically every meal, french cooking techniques, and an excellent wine list.
The Bar at Kia Ora Resort
Kia Ora’s bar sits over the water and offers exquisite sunset views. The floor has glass panels so even if you don’t sit next to the water you can still watch the fish swimming by.
And many of the drinks come with spectacular over-the-top-tropical flower garnishes.
Staff Made Us Feel Like Family
After a day we started seeing familiar faces around the resort. We made friends with other travelers and the Kia Ora staff made us feel like family.
The food service team was especially convivial. Their jovial manner created connection despite our occasional language barrier. And it only took a few visits before they had us set up with “our” table.
What To Do on Rangiroa
Rangiroa Scuba Diving
The main reason we went to Rangiroa was for the world-class scuba diving. My husband and daughter are the divers in the family, and they dove with Rangiroa Top Dive.
Several of the world’s best drift-dive sites are located just five minutes from the dock at Kia Ora. On their four dives, Luna and Frank saw countless reef sharks, a school of barracuda, huge bumphead wrasses, dolphins, and a hammerhead shark. Both agreed that just for the diving alone it was worth the trip to Rangiroa.
