Bora Bora Nui

"Hi Joyce, Sorry for the late reply. You know how it is for us to get back to work after a couple weeks of vacation. Our trip was fantastic. We loved it very much. The atmosphere was very relaxed and people were extremely friendly. Bora Bora is fantastic. The view from the air when we got to Bora Bora was stunning. It was out of this world. We've never seen water that blue before and the Motu Otemanu was majestic in the middle of everything. The amazing experience started at the moment we stepped into the Bora Bora Nui private boat to get to the resort. The reception at the hotel was very unique with all hotel guests waiting at the dock to be welcomed as a two men band played Tahitian music. The welcoming chocolate cake was unforgettable. Although we didn't get the room we requested, we decided to try out another one in the same area. The view from the room was gorgeous. One side is looking straight into the ocean, the other is looking back to the mountain and the resort. The room was opulent in every way. It was one of the most spacious resort rooms we have ever been in. After the first night, we decided to move to another one because of the wind noise. The staff was very nice about it and they got a room all cleaned up for us in the afternoon the next day. This room had an amazing sunset view and the water was not as deep as the first one. It was room #326. Though it is a bit further out from the common area, we liked it much better. It was everything we hoped for. Besides it wasn't a long walk for us since we got carried around a golf cart by resort staff. We got used to that quickly:-) Iriatai, the main restaurant at Bora Bora Nui was great. Its service and food were equivalent to our four star standard restaurants in San Francisco which is a very amazing thing. The staff was most attentive so as the restaurant manager. Therefore, we decided to return on the last night we were there which another amazing story I will tell you shortly. The other nights we went to Bloody Mary and Villa Mahana. Of course, Bloody Mary was touristy as it is supposed to be. Though the made to order seafood was good. However, Villa Mahana took the cake for the best restaurant in French Polynesia. We were lucky enough to get a table out of this seven table only restaurants. When we arrived at the restaurant, it was a nice surprise to see that there was no sign in the front. It was a small path way to a little French cottage in the back. In fact it is the owner's house. The decor was fantastic. We felt like we were in a French country house. The food was the most amazing thing. Brian had steak there and he said "It is the best steak he'd ever had in his life." It is very big compliment as you knew how picky we are coming from San Francisco, a mecca of restaurants. We would highly recommend to reserve a table here if any lucky people get to visit Bora Bora in the future. Back to the story of Iriatai I promised to tell you. One day we ran into the restaurant manager on the beach and he asked how our experience was the first night we had dinner there. We told him that it was great and much better than what we had in Moorea. Then, he asked if we tried their signature appetizer which is foie gras. We told him that we didn't because they didn't have anything on the menu to pair with for entree. He simply asked what we would like to have with foie gras. Of course, I casually told him we would love to have duck with it. The next thing we knew, he promised us to have the chef prepare the duck for us. On our way to the restaurant for dinner that night, we stopped by Robert Wan to pick up my little black pearl choker. The manager came with the chef and asked how we would like to have the duck cooked while we were shopping. We were surprise that he actually meant what he promised. Then, we were the only two people to have the special order with the Chef. The order didn't stop at the entree, we also got the desert to pair with and that wasn't on the menu either. The food tastedgreat, but what made it a special night for us was the service we received. Did I mentioned excellent service at Bora Bora Nui? The services didn't stop at the restaurants. The staff who gave us a ride every day was great as well. They went out of their way to provide us the service that we expected. One night we came back from dinner at Bloody Marys, all the bread for fish feeding at the reception area was gone. We asked if they could get us some. We stopped by the restaurant on the way to our room and they brought out a whole baguette for us. This resort is simply one of the best they have there. Our friends who stayed at Le Meridien were so dissapointed there and envied us for what we got. We were so pampered that we didn't want to leave the room even for excursions. We booked the Lagoon Safari for one day and ended up cancelling it for the canoe breakfast. It was such an amazing place. If we have a chance to go back to French Polynesia, we probably would go straight to Bora Bora and stay at Bora Bora Nui. I know this is a long comment, but I hope you find it useful for other travelers. It is expensive to be there especially in Bora Bora, but it worth every cent. Have a great weekend. Casey " - Casey Nguyen, San Francisco, California, 2007-04-09