Talk me into Bora Bora....

[bvmjethead]

Bora Bora looks beautiful from Google Earth!

Talked to my travel agent and the prices are pretty high.

Looks like it might have to remain a dream vacation for now as I can take the whole family to the Carribean for twice as long for less than half the price.



Is there anything I might see or do underwater that is special to Bora Bora only? I understand there are Manta's there year round and that sounds nice.

 

[robint]

probably not, especially as a beginner. I would go somewhere that the diving is easy and less expensive until you get more dives under your belt.

just my 2 cents.

robint

 

[BurBunny]

Bora Bora *is* that beautiful, but I'd save it for a special trip with just you and your wife, perhaps. The lagoon is terrific, the mantas very accessible most days, good sea and especially shark life (you'll probably see more species of butterfly fish in one dive, for example, than reside in the entire Caribbean), but it's so incredibly romantic I think I'd do it as a milestone anniversary, perhaps.

Actually, the diving in the lagoon is pretty easy - I wouldn't rule it off your list for experience level at all. Just don't do any pass diving

Even though Bora Bora is more strikingly beautiful with the lagoon (and the mantas), my favorite FP island is Moorea. A tad less expensive. Also fairly easy to do both.

 

[Diver Dave1]

When I was there (Bora Bora)for 2 weeks, 2 yrs ago. The lagoon was so clouded from hotel contruction that you could not do any manta dives with hopes of seeing one. We saw one for about 1 second through the sandy fog. THe divemaster said when he came a few yrs before, you could see many a day. 1 yr before, you could see several a week, he had not seen one in 6 months prior to my arrival.
However, the diving is still nice. You see lemon sharks, I had several within touching distance several times though I did not reach out. Great for photos. Also you see black tip sharks all the time, usually a dozen were in view all the time. There were also clown fish that were great for photos and to watch.

The combination of above water beauty and below water beauty is great. However, I found the diving better on Moorea during my visit there the week before Bora Bora. Moorea is also a lovely place. If you go there, take rent a car one day and drive around.

Both islands are pricey. We stayed at the Pearl at both islands and felt they were the best in both places but also costly. On Moorea, you could walk to the grocery and get bread, cheese and wine easily enough. Its about a 5 min walk. We stayed in the cheapest rooms on Moorea at the pearl and loved them. Stayed over the water on Bora Bora and loved it even more but it costs a lot more.

Bread and cheese and bananas were reasonably priced. Nothing else was...a coke from your room fridge was $5. A local call from the resort was not cheap either at $1 per call. A hamburger at the resort, with fries was $25 for lunch.. did you want a $5 coke with that, sir?

Its the trip of a lifetime with views unmatched... with prices to match all that view.

 

[Shasta_man]

I'd say the place is incredibly beautiful too, but not a destination for the whole family. It is if your whole thing is nature. If you spend all day in the water, then it's a great place but if you want to do anything else, you're limited. You can do island tours, but otherwise the island rolls up.

We're all nature, so we loved it. The overwater bungalows were worth every cent. The whole wall opens to a beautiful sunset. You roll off your deck into the lagoon. Thirsty? Swim over to the deck and the wife hands you your drink. Then she gets in too...

 

[reginold]

i don't know if anyone is still into this thread or not, but i thought i would drop my two cents into the pool.....

i went to moorea and bora bora for my belated honeymoon in march.....

i found the diving in moorea nice...... top dive.... worked out a package through the hotel..... very good price..... with top dive..... lots of fish, lots of sharks.... a real hoot for a cold water diver from vancouver....

bora bora on the other hand was awesome diving.... with top dive.... part of the same parckage..... sharks galore.... manta diving..... eels like mad..... fish all over..... turtles.... and a 6 foot napolean wrass (bumhead wrass) that was so friendly that he came right up and looked into my camera.....

found bora bora a lot more exciting.... worth the extra money.....

interested in pics? i am putting together my video footage (still) but i have hundreds of photos, keepers..... will share information and tips and photos and videos if you want.....

keep it special with a significant other.... the teens i saw were bored to death with their parents.......

t