Raiatea Highlights (Post #15)

RAIATEA HIGHLIGHTS

Our meeting time was 8:15 AM in the theater.  A few minutes after we arrived, they called our tour and we proceeded down to the dock.  The description from the HAL excursion booklet is listed here.  As you can see, they describe the tour as taking place in an open-air vehicle, but the actual vehicle was a standard 40 passengers enclosed and air-conditioned bus.  The bus had two doors and was very comfortable.

If you are interested in this tour, please be aware that you will not actually see the Tiare Apetahi flower, but the mountain where it grows.  This was a little misleading as I assumed we would actually see the flower.  They also mentioned that you will stop at a pearl farm, time permitting.  Trust me, you will have time as every Holland America tour always includes a shopping stop at some point.

VAIRUA PEARL FARM

Our guide, Maria, was interesting and entertaining and she provided good commentary throughout the day.  We headed south after circling the town and made our first stop at the Vairua Pearl Farm.  If you have spent any time in French Polynesia previously you will have visited Pearl farms before as they are a standard stop on virtually every tour.  The owner gave us a 15-minute lecture on how they seed the oysters to start the process of making a pearl and we had a chance to ask a few questions.  Afterward, there is an opportunity to buy pearls from their boutique.

The most interesting thing we learned is that shells from Mississippi are used to make the nucleus in Japan and are then sent to the South Pacific to be inserted into the oysters.

We continued southward for about 45 minutes through the mountains until we reached the coast and then we headed back up north along the coast and stopped at a scenic overlook for a 10-minute photo opportunity.

TAPUTAPUATEA

Fifteen minutes later we would arrive at the main attraction on this tour:  The Taputapuatea place of worship.  This consists of several worship platforms called “marae” that date from the 17^th century.  Several of the platforms have been restored to resemble their original condition.  Maria provided an interesting history of their origins and how they were part of the culture over 200 years ago.  There is a clean restroom at the visitor center.

Our final stop was a short break to sample some of the local fruit.  The fruit was set up buffet-style inside a restaurant that was normally open in the evening.  There were mangoes, grapefruits and plantains in addition to a few other items and it was all very good.

At about 12:30 we arrived back at the port.  Our all aboard time was 4:30 PM so we had a few hours left to explore the town.

EXPLORING UTOROA

There is a grocery store called Champion nearby.  We walked up and down the aisles to see the type of merchandise that was available, and they had a wide variety of what you would expect.  One item we could not resist buying was Tim Tams.  These are cookies from Australia which are very good, and we always buy them when we are in this part of the world.  Tim Tams are now sold in the United States but we think they are made with a different recipe as we don’t think they taste quite as good as the ones from Australia.

The town is quite small, and I spent half an hour walking up and down the streets to see what types of stores were available.  Along the waterfront, there is a variety of tourist-oriented shops selling electronics, artwork, T-shirts, and other similar items.

A couple of musical groups were entertaining the passersby by playing for tips.  There was also an artisan market inside a building near the ship.

There isn’t any cruise terminal so there is no security or anyone checking ID cards before you return to the ship.

We got underway at 5 PM and we would take a meandering route to Bora-Bora, our next port, as it was only 12 miles away.

Raiatéa was an excellent port, with outstanding snorkeling and water-based excursions.  The small town is very convenient and is a good place to pick up some souvenirs and change some money at the ATMs.

Raiatea Highlights (From the HAL Excursion Catalog)

Departs: 8:30 AM Approximately 3½ Hours Adult $119.95; Child $94.95

Board an open-air vehicle for a panoramic drive through the main town of Uturoa — the cultural and administrative center of Raiatea.

Shortly after leaving town, you will see Mount Temehani — endemic home to the Tiare Apetahi. This extremely rare flower grows nowhere else on earth. An amazing fact about this flower is that each morning when the sun touches the flower, the petals open with a slight crackling sound.

From the bus, take in the view of the lagoon that is home to some pearl farms. Your scenic drive will pass the coastline and give you a glimpse of Polynesian daily life.

Raiatea is a very green island, and your guide will point out flowers and fruits along the way. Continue on the inland road of Raiatea, joining the east coast road that leads through a giant bamboo forest to the south of the island.

Pass through the village of Fetuna, whose primary industry is fishing, then pause for refreshments at the district of Vaiau. You will stop at the marae (open-air temple) of Tainuu before heading back to the pier.

Time permitting, you may also stop briefly at a pearl farm along the way.