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Emily on our Bungalow’s Deck
“Our 2nd Honeymoon in Paradise” Trip Report Index:
- Introduction
- Planning
- A Bad Start & a Few Hours in Los Angeles
- Air France Lounge – Los Angeles
- Air France Business Class – Los Angeles to Papeete
- Getting to Moorea
- Hilton Moorea, Panoramic Overwater Bungalow #87
- An ATV Tour in Moorea
- Whale & Dolphin Watching in Moorea
- Eating in Moorea
- Moorea to Bora Bora
- Bora Bora Airport To InterContinental Thalasso
- Emerald Overwater Bungalow #204 at the InterContinental Thalasso Bora Bora
- Jet-Skiing in Bora Bora
- A 9 Hour Bike Ride Around Bora Bora
- Eating in the InterContinental Thalasso
- InterContinental Thalasso Coral Garden Suite
- Around the InterContinental Thalasso
- Hilton Bora Bora Nui Resort
- Royal Overwater Villa, Hilton Bora Bora Nui
- Dinner at Villa Mahana
- Eating in the Hilton Bora Bora
- Is Food Expensive in Bora Bora?
- A Day in Papeete
- Air Tahiti Nui and Southwest Flights Home
- Conclusion & Blog Giveaway!
Daraius: We reached the hotel at 8:00 am, but it was too early to check-in. I had negotiated an upgrade from a garden bungalow booked for 50,000 Hilton points for 1 night to a Panoramic Overwater bungalow for ~$200 per night. I had requested bungalow #87 which is right at the end, so I was happy to hear that bungalow #87 would be prepared for us once the folks staying in it left.
Bungalow #87 is right at the end and is a bit more private than the other bungalows, but it is also more windy.
We freshened up in a transit bungalow, walked around the hotel and took pictures of the hotel and different room locations, had lunch and then checked into our bungalow at ~12:00 noon.
Hilton Moorea Map (Click for Larger Image)
Here’s a video review of the bungalow and a view of the other bungalows near #87.
Emily Outside Our Bungalow
There was a large living room past the bathroom as you entered.
Emily in the Living Room
Our favorite spot was the deck of our 1st overwater bungalow!
Daraius on the Deck
There was a big deck with beautiful views of the lagoon.
Beautiful Views
There were 2 deck chairs to lounge on.
Emily on the Deck Chairs
With a very peaceful view from them.
The Upper Deck
But the most exciting part of the deck were the stairs leading down to…
Going Down
…a smaller deck…
…And Down…
…with stairs directly into the lagoon!
Straight Into the Water
Daraius: The best part about the room was the view and the private deck where you can go snorkeling or swimming in the ocean! I could have looked at the water forever.
I Could Stare at this Forever!
Emily: There was even a place to shower by the lower deck. Notice the solar panels at the top of the bungalow too.
Time for a Shower
We took a quick peak under the bungalow, and didn’t want to do that again!
Below the Bungalow
Daraius: In terms of privacy, bungalow #87 was right at the end.
Other Bungalow (#86) in the Background
But not entirely private since we could see the deck of bungalow 86 through our living room window. Have a look at the video to see what’s around the bungalow.
Bungalow in the Background
Emily: There was also a table in the main deck – great for eating and gazing into the calm waters.
Breakfast Table
The room was so nice….it had a full bathroom with a rainbath shower…
Shower
…a full bathtub…
Bathtub
… and his and hers sinks.
His & Her Sinks
The bedroom opened into the bathroom, though there is a privacy screen.
View From the Bedroom
The room also had a bed which was very comfortable.
The Bed
The shutters in the bedroom opened which let in a nice breeze.
Bedroom Shutters
There was a living area with a sofa, chair, tv, and a DVD player.
Living Room
There was a glass bottom to see the fish, but we didn’t see any. But it did make for a very pleasant experience.
Bungalow #87 is right at the end, so there are high winds outside. We could hear them at night! The water was also a bit chilly to go swimming in.
We got up at 6:00 am the next morning for our whale and dolphin watching expedition and could see the beautiful sunrise from our room!
Sunrise From our Balcony
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I have earned and redeemed millions of airline miles and hotel points to travel the world for free. Now I'm blogging to help more people do the same! 
Absolutely amazing.
this is the ultimate vacation.
why was the water chilly, what was the temperature ?
I am dying to go now….
Reminds me when we stayed at the Intercontinental Moorea OWB years ago. Trick to view sea life is to feed chunks of croissants from your bungalow – you get everything from fish to turtles to sharks – watr so clear no need to go snorkeling – all the sea life comes to you. On the trip, had the best flight in our life – flew virtually empty 747 by Air New Zealand on Xmas day and the stewards feed us champagne by the bottle and the best New Zealand lamb dinner – only airline food in my life I asked for seconds (and was denied because every meal was eaten). Darious made a big mistake going to so many hotels/islands in such a short time – way too rushed to enjoy such a beautiful place/culture.
Man, this brings back memories. We went to Tahiti in 2002 for our honeymoon and we stayed at the Parkroyal Beachcromber in Morea and the Bora Bora Lagoon Resort in Bora Bora. We were fortunate enough to stay in overwater bungalows in both places and we loved the country. I can’t wait to go back one day. Enjoy your trip and honeymoon!
re your:
“We took a quick peak under the bungalow, and didn’t want to do that again!”
Please explain, also,
why cut off her feet in the pics, you KNOW i like to see what kind of shoes she wears on these adventures!
@Ron I’m sure the hotel would love to hear that you drew sharks where their guests were swimming. Slick move.
Great post Daraius, it brings back a lot of memories.
I was just there in January(also NZ) and we had #86, right next to yours. Just as a data point, I negotiated the room to 14000xpf, taxes included. It was a trip of a lifetime and I was only 27 at the time, which makes me amazed and grateful at what this hobby can bring since I started back in 2008. The stingray and shark tour was a blast; being surrounded by dozens of sharks(even if they are only black tip) was quite an adventure.
I’m from Ohio and I find that the Caribbean(think Turks and Caicos) can offer amazing beaches and turquoise water as well and it’s much more accessible for Midwest/East coast travelers. It would take someone wanting to really see French Polynesia for me to go back, even though it was an amazing time. I guess there are just too many places to visit, which is a great problem to have in my mind. Cheers!
@choi – We were there for only 1 day, but it was overcast and started raining later in the day.
@Ron – I would have a much more relaxed pace if I went back.
@NM31 – We can’t wait to go back either!
@karen cagle - We didn’t want to peek underneath again, because the bungalows are prettier over-water. I’ll try to take better pictures next time!
@Kevin F – Thanks for the data point on the room negotiation. It really is a beautiful place and we have much to be grateful for being able to get there using miles and points!
@Daraius, yea, enjoy this trip as much as you can. Time flies in paradise! Morea is a bit bigger than Bora Bora and I think we had a better overall time in Morea.
@Kevin F – I want to go to Turks and Caicos next and I was looking at the Beaches resort since I have my daughter and it will be a family trip. Any advice on things to do there?
@NM31,
Apologize for changing the subject of the post Daraius!
I’ve been to Beaches and it has everything you need for a family. We spent a day there checking out the facilities and it’s right on Grace Bay Beach with basically your own beach(that you’re sharing with everyone that is at the same resort of course). If I had a family, that is definitely where I would take them with their Sesame Street themed resort and plenty of things to do.
We made friends with some locals on the first day and they were working at Seven Stars resort so we spent a lot of time there getting treated like VIP’s! The best part about the trip is the beach and the food. The island is still a “secret” so it’s not very busy or commercialized, which is great and you need to try the Jamaican jerk chicken wraps near the Grace Bay shops; I’m still dreaming about the day I will get back to that and eat them everyday.
Any questions about the island feel free to e-mail me at kevinfuray@gmail.com . Enjoy T&C!
@Kevin F… Thanks for the tips. It looks secluded and relaxing which is one of it’s main draws to me. Apologies to Daraius as well for going off topic.
Darius, thanks for documenting the entire trip for us. i feel a lot more at ease than going and not knowing exactly what to do.
did you guys ever have a mosquito problem on morea or bora bora? when i see an opening hotel window in a tropical location, i get scared.
@Kevin F @NM31 – No worries. Always glad to read other tips.
@dyhppy - We didn’t have a mosquito problem (perhaps a few bites), but we did carry mosquito repellant which he didn’t use. Sunscreen was far more important. That said, I would carry mosquito repellent just in case.
@dyhppy- There was not a mosquito problem. I only got one bite from the whole trip, and it was a small bite. Usually I get all the bites because bugs love me, but not this time! Daraius is right though, sunscreen is very important.
Also, we left the window open but you can close them as well. I don’t think we ever saw bugs in our rooms!
thanks, guys, for the info. do you know if that’s normal for the area or you guys were just smart enough to go during the right time?
@dyhppy – I’m not sure, but the hotels usually do a good job of keeping it mosquito free.
Fantastic pictures but the video was a bit hard to understand due to the wind. This place looks like paradise.
@Jonathan - You’re right – the video was hard to understand.
About how deep is the water around the bungalows? It appears to be 6-8ft but sometimes water that clear is a lot deeper. Does the hotel provide any snorkeling gear?
@Brian W - The hotel does provide snorkeling gear for free. We never went in the water because it was windy, but I’d say 6 to 8 feet sounds right!
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Thank you so much for posting about your trip to the Hilton Moorea – we have a trip planned there in June 2013 for our 1st anniversary and it really helps to see your photos of what to expect. Looks beautiful!
Was the wind seasonal or is it always like that?
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Great trip report. It looks like they put in a new deck on #87 since we were there in May 2011.
http://boardingarea.com/blogs/pointsmilesandmartinis/2011/11/hilton-moorea-review-french-polynesia-trip-report/
That bungalow definitely has the most private deck of all the bungalows.
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