The
Bora Bora Nui Resort and Spa
The
Starwood Bora Bora Nui was completed in September of 2002.
This large
property is on the ocean side of motu Toopua (the same motu as the Lagoon
Resort, but on the other side), a hilly islet located across the lagoon
from the main town of Vaitape.
Guest are
picked at the airport and taken by boat for a 20 minute ride to the
resort. The shuttle will dock at the large hotel reception located overwater.
After check-in you will be taken to your bungalow by golf cart.
The 16
acres resort is nested against the side of the hill facing the ocean
and therefore doesn't offer any view of the island of Bora Bora or the
inner lagoon.
A broad
white sand beach of over 600 yards long was created from sand pumped
up from the lagoon and borders the length of the property.
Accommodations:
The
120 luxury suites are located off the beach over the water, or on the
terraced hillside. All suites are air-conditioned.
The overwater
bungalows:
- Eighty two Horizon Overwater Suites with a view of
the reef and the ocean, and
-
sixteen Lagoon View Overwater Suites
facing the beach and the resort against the hillside
- Twelve Beach Bungalow Suites, each 915 square ft, are located on the
grassy area above the beach.
- Seven Hillside
Lagoon View Bungalow Suites are nestled into Motu Toopua's steep
slopes. These are joined by a Hillside Lagoon View Royal Suite.
All the
bungalows are almost identical (except for the Royal Suites) and all
are appointed with rich natural woods with all possible amenities. The
bedroom has a 4 poster bed with a mosquito net and is separated by a
sliding panel from a small sitting room with a couch for a 3rd person
facing a TV and a small stereo.
The bathrooms
are large with 2 sinks, a separate shower, toilet, marble tiles and
French bath fixtures and bathtub.
Bars and Restaurants:
-
The Panoramic Restaurant is located in a large building next to the
pool overlooking the beach and the overwater bungalows. This handsome
restaurant has an open terrace and a tall roof of woven pandanus over
a traditional wood frame. This is where the buffet breakfast is served
daily as well as a menu of international and local cuisine.
- The Beach Fare Grill - an outdoor beach and poolside-dining venue
offering lunch service.
- Over Water Bar - convenient location near the boat landing and guest
check-in.
- Beach Bar - casual, relaxed outdoor cocktails.
- Panoramic Bar - nestled between thatched-roof bungalows and looking
out over the lagoon. 24-hour room service.
- Canoe Breakfast - available to be delivered to the overwater bungalows.
Amenities:
There is a work-out room under the restaurant just off the beach with
a selection of exercise machines as well as free weights.
On the
same level behind the restaurant are a Black Pearl jeweler as well as
the typical hotel boutique.
The large
infinity pool sits above the beach and has a deck with chairs and umbrellas.
The activity
desk will furnish you with mask and snorkels as well as with paddles
for the ocean kayaks and outrigger canoes.
The Mandara Spa offers various massages and treatments.
There is
an hourly shuttle to and from the town of Vaitape for daily visits to
Bora Bora or for dinner at local restaurants. The hotel front desk can
arrange for taxis or restaurant pick-up.
| Facilities: |
Room
Amenities: |
Free
activities: |
2 Restaurants
3 Bars
Mandara spa
Fitness center
Tours and Travel desk
Business services
Internet access
Laundry and dry cleaning
Beauty salon
Heliport |
Individual A/C units
Ceiling fans
CD player
2 satellite color TV
Direct dial phone
Computer data ports
Fax machine
In-room safe
Mini bar
Glass floor panels (over water bungalows)
Iron and ironing board
24h room service |
Swimming pool
Water sports activities |
Meal Rates: (P.P.) Tax, Service
& Tip Included
Meal Plan (Brkfst./Dinner) : $130
Buffet Breakfast: $35
Continental Breakfast: $29
Published Room Rates:
$965 to $1,910 per night for 2 people.
When you book through TahitiTravel,
you always pay less than the published rate
(by TahitiTravel clients)
We just got back from the Bora Bora Nui for 8 days and I can easily tell you that it is the best vacation I have ever had. When we were booking our trip, we were planning to go to the Le Meridian because of the view and the lagoonarium. The dates we wanted were not available so we started looking at other options. The Nui was available and we only had one concern, the view was of the ocean.....we made the right choice. We had a perfect view of the sunset facing the ocean, and unlike all the other hotels on the island, we had very little water craft traffic in front of us. Just the transport shuttle for the hotel. If you want a view of the island from the Nui, ask for bungalow 103, 104, 105 or 106. They all face a portion of the island and offer a partial view of the mountains thru a shallow channel. We had 211 and 212. I would ask for 212 if I went back, it's at the end of a dock and offers the ultimate in privacy.
The water under our OWB was about 25' deep and clear enough to see to the bottom. We had some fun jumping off the deck and swimming. The shower on the swim deck at water level made for a nice rinse after a dip.
The shuttle from the hotel to the island is free during the day, but a fee is charged @ night. We found it convenient. It only took about 15 minutes to get there. The shopping on the island is fun, but as far as meals go, I'd stay at the resort. Breakfast is a very nice buffet, but we had the meal plan for dinner at the hotel and it was very worth the money. Food and drinks are VERY expensive everywhere, so the meal plan helped.
We drove around the island once and had lunch on the island (the drive was fun thou) We did a lot right from the hotel, and had a great time. If you want to do anything special, you'll need to travel where ever you stay.
C.
The Bora Bora Nui is built on the ocean side of the big motu
opposite the main village of Vaitape and offers no view of the island,
only a view of the reef and the ocean in the distance. The beach is
fairly long and wide and was created from sand pumped up from the lagoon.
However, the view of the ocean from the beach (and the beach Bungalows)
is almost non existent thanks to the rows of the over the water bungalows.
The large and upscale front desk/reception area is located overwater
at the end of a pontoon where the boat shuttle lands. The concierge
service as well as the activity desk are there, as well as an Internet
terminal for use by the guests.
The main (large) restaurant is on the first floor of the common building
overlooking the beach and the ocean.
It is a sprawling 120 room resort with two main dining areas, a large
infinity pool, spa, an exercise room, black pearl shop
and misc. other small boutiques, etc...
We are accustomed to -- and prefer -- more understated properties ...
so our first glance was a bit of a shock to us. Everything here has
been done to look impressive with no expenses spared, but it reminded
us more of a style of hotel one would find in the Caribbean or perhaps
Hawaii.
We settled into our Horizon Overwater bungalow and sipped our welcome
drink. All the bungalows (the Beach Bungalows are identical) are large,
nicely decorated in rich dark woods with a feeling of lushness. They
are all "mini" suites, divided into a den/lounge area complete
with fridge/coffee maker/TV/CD player, with on the other side of a sliding
partition, a small bedroom with a 4 poster bed draped with white filmy
fabric facing a second TV. Both of these areas look out onto the spacious
deck. There are 3 areas where there is a small glass viewing area of
the lagoon which we found rather useless. The bathroom was very large
... marble floors, 2 sinks (one across from the other), large tub, separate
large shower and separate toilet and bidet, but it lacks privacy as
there are many louver windows which need to be kept closed unless you
want to be popular with your neighbors. There was actually little privacy
either from the deck or from the bungalows due to the windows on all
sides of the bungalows.
Strangely enough it was a little difficult for us to get really comfortable
here. The layout was kind of awkward and there was not enough space
to unpack and put our things away. The lighting was too dark making
it difficult to find things in the closet.
The deck was large, mostly shaded, with a table and two chairs and 2
steamer lounges that didn't recline enough so you could lay down. We
had to take the padding off of the chaise and lay down on the deck.
The overwater bungalows are built rather high above the lagoon and the
water was a fair way down, a little murky in our area and not so inviting.
We did see some pretty shallows with with coral and fish. The other
category of overwater bungalows are called the "Hillside OW"
which means they face the hill (East) rather than the ocean and are
basically in the shade all day. As for the Beach Bungalows, they are
more garden than beach as many of them are half way up the hill. There
are also some Lanai Suites in a 2 story building on the other side of
the restaurant.
As mentioned earlier this resort spared no expense but is also one of the most
expensive in terms of rooms (rack rate on our bungalow is over $1600/night)
as well as food, drinks and activities. We didn't care to eat other
meals at the hotel beside the buffet breakfast (t'was ok) so we cannot
qualify the food. But the prices of what we saw on the menu was higher
than most restaurants in Bora Bora.
The hotel has a water shuttle into Vaitape which leaves and returns
about every 30 minutes ($20 pp). We used this often and tried out some of the
other restaurants on Bora Bora including Top Dive (disappointing food
and bad service -- we are not sure what happened here as our previous
visit had been memorable) and the Bora Bora Yacht Club (good and reasonable).
Cynthia, Los Angeles
The Bora Bora Nui is on the south end of its own private Motu. The Bora Bora Lagoon,
I believe, is on the north end of the Motu, but there is a approx. 1000
foot high cliff/ hill that separate the two, so it is very private.
The bungalows were richly appointed and huge. I would recommend the
one we stayed in #108 (Horizon). It had very limited view of a portion
of BB, Tahaa, and small motu and the horizon. The sunsets were quite
spectacular. We really loved the Nui. It was, to us, a little more upscale
than some other hotels. I just saw it written up in Elle and Vogue, for
example, if that means anything. The Motu looked very nice to us as
well, but the beach didn't look great and it definitely was smaller
(not in a bad way). The Nui has a long beach. The one complaint is that they built too many bungalows
in front of the beach, so you can hardly get any view of the ocean.
But, the beach seemed to be the widest and longest in Bora Bora. I did see
the Hotel Bora Bora and snorkeled and ate lunch there. The grounds there are
very lush and it is a very nice hotel. The beach is somewhat narrow
and short, but the views are very nice and there is some really nice
snorkeling right off of the beach. I would say that it is a very nice
place, but the Nui seemed a bit more upscale to me in terms of its appointments
and service.
George, NY
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Hotel features and amenities subject to change without notice. Prices and rates may vary with foreign exchange rates and are indicative only.
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