Le Taha'a Private Island & Spa - Trip Report

I just got back from Le Taha’a Private Island & Spa and I do believe it gets more beautiful each time I see it. This truly is a deluxe resort.

People always ask me which is the best bungalow category? And the good news is literally every single bungalow is great. All of the bungalows are exactly the same in terms of size & layout. I will however tell you that, of the Overwater Bungalows, the “best” would be one of the 3 Premium Overwater Bungalows. They would be the bungalows at the end of the pontoon so you have total privacy. But realize we are talking in degrees here. Every bungalow is designed to provide maximum privacy.
Beyond the 3 premium, my preference would actually be the least expensive Taha’a Overwater category. I like having the main island of Tahaa to look at. For me it is more interesting than just looking at the Horizon. The bungalows that look primarily at the horizon are the Sunset Bungalows. Of course, as the name states you do get the Sunset view (however many of the Taha’a also face in the direction of the sunset, you just can’t guarantee it). Just keep in mind, the Sunset Bungalows also get hot afternoon sun. The Bora Bora Bungalows are named because they get the view of Bora Bora. You do need to realize, it is not a straight view. Bora Bora is off to the left and can often be obscured by clouds. While it is a lovely view, it is personally not worth the upgrade to me from the Taha’a OWB’s. In addition, the Bora Bora Bungalows get more wind than the others.


Next are the Beach Villas and they are fantastic. There are 12 and they are fully enclosed within a gorgeous rock wall. The have an outdoor bath (very romantic) off of a huge bathroom. On the other side of the garden off of the living room is a large plunge pool and fare pote for outdoor dining. The entire bungalow opens up to the beach. My preference are the beach bungalows to the left of reception on the opposite side of the spa.

Normally when I’m here, I spend much of my free time underwater scuba diving with Stephan of Blue Nui but this time I had way too much work to do and decided to pamper myself in the spa. First let me tell you that the Manea Spa here is idyllic. The massage fare totally opens up to a saltwater lake. The atmosphere is so incredibly serene. I decided on the vanilla massage and Hohoa Patitifa facial. I was originally going to go for the massage in the lagoon but opted out at the last minute for something a bit more private. My massage therapist was Nadia and she was fantastic. Nice firm touch and so fluid. I was completely unaware of when the massage ended and the facial began. The facial was so lovely. She used things like milk with hibiscus & rose, there was a pineapple face pack and other things using locally produced vanilla. When Nadia was finished working on me, I sat up to see the sun setting behind the reef. The rays of the sun filled the sky in a vision of pale pink & blue. In between was the calm of the salt water lake. It was a magical moment and wouldn’t you know my camera had just run out of batteries!


At Le Taha’a I always find myself admiring the architecture and storing up ideas for the home we are hopefully going to begin construction on by the end of the year. The restaurant is built up in the trees so you have this wonderful view of the resort and lagoon beyond. There are 3 restaurants at the resort and all are excellent.


I decided to have lunch delivered to my overwater bungalow. I had a Caesar’s salad and it was happy to see an authentic Caesar. They brought it to my fare pote (thatched seating area on the outdoor terrace) and the setting was just gorgeous. The sun sparkled diamonds on the lagoon. I could see the point in the lagoon where it suddenly gets much deeper. The mark is distinct as the colors change from turquoise to sapphire and just beyond was the main island of Tahaa.

One of my favorite things to do when staying at Le Taha’a is to kayak over to the coral garden. Well maybe I should rephrase that: One of my favorite things to do is to have James paddle us over to the coral garden. Since he wasn’t with me, I opted out. But really, it is something you should do if you ever make it out here.


My one complaint with the resort and damn I wish I didn’t have to say this, because I have always considered Le Taha’a the best of the deluxe 5-star resorts, is that this time around the service of the staff behind the front desk was inconsistent. Some were so helpful (exactly what I would expect of a resort of this caliber) while others had reached that level of “fiu” were they just couldn’t be bothered. It really is a pity as staff at the front desk is so important because of the contact they have with guests. But I don’t want to place too much emphasis on a couple of bad apples as overall the service was excellent. My phone wasn’t working properly and maintenance was right there with a new phone. Room service was prompt in delivering lunch and also prompt in retrieving the dishes which is great because I really do hate seeing dirty dishes sitting around for ages. As I mentioned earlier, Nadia and everyone at the spa was so charming and extremely helpful in helping me to decide which spa services to get. I did get to spend some time with Stephan the manager of the Blue Nui Dive Center and he continues to remain so friendly and accommodating.

As I finish up this report, I am on Air Tahiti heading home to Moorea. I’m anxious to get home to my babies.