Preparing your trip:

What is the time difference?

Tahiti and her Islands are 10 hours different from GMT. This is a 12-hour summertime or 11-hour wintertime difference from Paris, 2 hour different from the United States Pacific Coast, 6 hour from Santiago de Chile, 19 hour from Tokyo and Sydney and 22 hour different from Auckland.

Currency exchange/Buy rates

1 Euro = . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119,33 FCFP
1 USD = . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 FCFP
1 NZD = . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 FCFP
1 AUD = . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 FCFP
(Foreign exchange rates as at 6/6/2007).
The following forms of payment are accepted: all legal bank notes, international credit cards, and traveler’s checks (an exchange commission is charged on the latter). The international banks with foreign exchange offices on Tahiti and on the most frequently visited islands are the Bank of Tahiti, the Bank of Polynesia and Socredo. International hotels also provide this service but a word of warning: some atolls and islands in the Austral and Gambier group have no banking facilities. At the Tahiti-Faa’a International Airport, two foreign exhange offices (Banque de Polynésie and Socredo) are open in conjunction with international departures and arrivals. In Papeete, the overseas passenger office on the waterfront is open from 8:45 am to 4:45 pm, Monday to Sunday.
Closed Tuesday.

Cost of living

The following table presents the approximate prices of some basic grocery
items:
Bread (French baguette) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 FCFP
Mineral water (1.5l) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 FCFP
Today’s special in a snack bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . approximately 700 FCFP
Today’s special in a restaurant . . . . . . . . . . . . . approximately 1 500 FCFP
Fruit juice, soda (can) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250 FCFP
Fresh fruit juice (glass) in a bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . approximately 350 FCFP
Sandwich . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . approximately 200 FCFP
Coffee in a bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . from 200 FCFP
Croissant and other pastries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150 FCFP
Bananas (per kilo) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . around 220 FCFP
Local tuna fish (per kilo) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . from 900 FCFP
Pineapple (per kilo). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . around 150 FCFP
Local beer (bottle of 33cl, shop) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190 FCFP

What to pack?

Bring summer clothes, beachwear, sports wear and boat wear, all preferably in cotton. Have something warm available for the evenings which are sometimes cooler (lagoon side, boat trips and in the mountains). Footwear: sandals, sneakers, boat shoes. Essential: swimming costumes, sunglasses, hat, sunblock creams (intense reflection of the lagoons) and a powerful anti-mosquito lotion (useful in the islands in certain seasons).

Business Hours

Shops are open from Monday to Friday 7:30 am to 11:30 am and from 1:30 pm to 5 pm/6 pm. Saturdays from 7:30 am to 11:30 am. Some shops are also open afternoons. Most places are closed on Sunday including many restaurants except for the Papeete market, which is very busy from 5 in the morning. There you can find a wide variety of flowers, food, pareos, hats, mother of pearl, art objects and a variety of souvenirs.

Postal and telecommunication services

Papeete’s Central Post Office, located near the yacht wharf and Bougainville Park, is open weekdays from 7 am to 6 pm and on Saturdays from 8 am to 11 am. There is a philatelic center at the Post Office. There are many international card-operated phone booths throughout most of the islands.

Water and electricity

Tap water in Papeete and Bora Bora is safe to drink; enquire locally on the other islands. If in doubt, use mineral water in sealed bottles. Electricity: 110 or 220 volts (60Hz) depending on the island and type of accommodation. Check before plugging in.

Health

No vaccines are required except for passengers from high-risk countries (this information can be obtained from your airline). On the island of Tahiti, good sanitary facilities and health services are available. The cities of Papeete, Taravao (peninsula of Tahiti) and Uturoa ( Raiatea) have fully equipped hospitals. Other tourist islands at least possess a hospital or a clinic.

Which language?

French and Tahitian are the two official languages. English is also widely spoken particularly in tourist areas.