Review of the Conrad Bora Bora Nui

A visit to the French Polynesian island of Bora Bora had been on our bucket list from a really long time. Just the mention of Bora Bora unfolded images of unbelievable overwater villas and unreal pristine water lagoon.

We finally made it happen in September 2018 😀

How to get there

First thing that came to our mind when planning a trip to Bora Bora was dealing with the really long journey as we were leaving from east coast, USA. Our flight itinerary was as follows:

• BWI –> LAX
• LAX –> PPT
• PPT –> BOB
• BOB –> Resort (Boat Shuttle)

Tip: PPT to BOB was a short one hour flight with two seaters, so each couple gets a window seat to enjoy the beautiful views of the island from above.

Upon entering BOB, there are resort counters with the staff ready to welcome guests. Our resort, Conrad Bora Bora Nui staff welcomed us with fresh garlands and water bottles.

From the airport, our final transit to the resort was a speed boat ride. For this we had two options:

1. Arrange the speed boat transfer directly with the resort – which would have costed us $260 for a two way ride for two people. This is the Conrad Bora Bora Nui rate and I imagine the rate being similar for other resorts as well.
2. We however did not arrange our transfer directly with the resort. Instead, we took a shuttle from BOB to Vaitape town and then from Vaitape town we took another shuttle to our resort which saved us a at least $200.

The shuttle from the airport to Vaitape town is free of charge. Shuttle timings are posted on a board outside the airport. The schedule changes every week based on flights hence, this shuttle is very convenient as it takes off shortly after the flights arrive.

Upon reaching Vaitape town we had to take a final shuttle to Conrad Bora Bora Nui. The resort provides shuttle services from Vaitape town to the resort @ $15 fee for a two way ride per person and the fee varies based on the time. It is more expensive in the evenings @ $22 due to the higher demand of shuttle services. The shuttle takes off from a dock found behind the Robert Wan store which is at a walking distance from the airport.

Tips: 

• Check with your resort if they provide shuttle services from Vaitape town and ask for the shuttle timings.
• Upon welcome, our resort staff at the airport gladly accepted to take our luggage to the resort – this way we were able to freely move around while exploring Vaitape town.
• We bought snacks and soft drinks from Chin Lee’s supermarket at Vaitape. They also sell a good variety of hard and soft liquor. You should stock up on your drinks to enjoy later, as the resort drinks are whooping expensive, at an average of $40 per drink.

It was a 30 hour door to door journey for us but trust me it is TOTALLY worth it when you get there.

Scroll further down for more details on our Bora Bora excursions, if the Conrad Bora Bora Nui resort review below does not relate to you.

Review of Conrad Bora Bora Nui Resort

From the moment you land at Bora Bora Airport, you will start receiving exceptional service from Conrad staff. They were very welcoming, pleasant and helpful throughout our stay.

We had initially booked a basic garden villa, after which Saj called the resort at least 4 times from USA to negotiate a rate for an upgrade to an overwater villa. We got an upgrade at only $150 per night which is very uncommon since the usual upgrade rate is $300 to $400 per night. All in all, we upgraded ourselves to an OVW at $750 for 5 nights.

Upon checking in, we were pleasantly surprised with an upgrade from our over water villa to a Deluxe Over Water Villa. You can check out the Conrad Bora Bora Nui room types here.

Tip: This property is quiet famous for upgrading guests to a higher level room based on availability. Upgrade chances are greater for Hilton Diamond members (which we are).

Below is a tour of our Deluxe Over water Villa #101 overlooking the crystal clear turquoise lagoon:

Personally, we thought Villa 101 is one of the best located villas of the property for the following reasons:

• With 40+ overwater villas in the property, some of them really lack privacy as the villa porch is facing either the front desk area, the Japanese restaurant or is close to the poolside all of which are highly frequented by other guests engaging in the water activities. Villa 101 is a corner villa hence passerby’s are rare. Also, there are only 4 other villas on the same lineament so privacy from this villa is exceptional.

• Villa 101 offers marvelous views of not only the lagoon, but also of famous Mount Otemanu and lush mountain sides.

• The villa is built on shallow waters where there is abundant coral reefs thus attracting plenty of marine life and making it a perfect spot for snorkeling. We saw plenty fishes from above while laying on the hammock.

• The water depth from this villa is about 3 feet thus making it perfect for non experienced swimmers, like us.

• Finally, Villa 101 is a sunrise villa – and it is a MUST to wake up and watch the magic happen. Bora Bora sunrises stole our breath and left us speechless.

We woke up early every morning to watch sky light up with a mixture of yellow and orange color over the neon blue ocean – It is a blissful feeling that cannot be described.

In-Resort Activities:
Conrad Bora Bora Nui offers plenty of guest activities that made our stay more engaging.

One of our favorite activity was cycling – Bicycles were found all over the resort for guests to transit around as it is a pretty big property.

This actually ended up being one of our most enjoyable activity that easily took up a couple hours of the day and we also got to explore the whole resort which we may not have done otherwise.

There are various complimentary water sport activities provided by the resort such as snorkeling, kayaking, stand-up paddle boards, bicycle boats and hobie cat – all equipment needed for these activities were also provided.

My favorite water sport was kayaking as Saj did most of the paddling and I enjoyed the free ride 😊

As for the leisure activities, there is a tennis court…

mini golf 18 holes,

Billiard table, Board games and foosball table.

There is also a Kids Club featuring an outdoor play structure, while an adjacent room, for ages 8-14, has a selection of games. Babysitting services are also available.

 

When on vacation, a spa experience is always so tempting to unwind and pamper ourselves. We opted for two different spa treatments which we enjoyed a lot:

First was the vanilla body wrap treatment, which was a unique spa experience that had us wrapped up in plastic. The spa villas are so calming with beautiful views.

Following the vanilla body wrap treatment was the traditional Tahitian massage in the eminent Hina View, for which we paid an additional charge as the spa only has one Hina view room, perched on a hilltop offering the finest views of the sunset from the entire resort.

Hina Spa is a haven of comfort and beauty with breathtaking views that make it a perfect spot for pictures. There is a viewpoint at the spa overlooking the glorious Mount Otemanu.

The saying that it is a “Million Dollar View” literally applies to Hina Spa and therefore, even if you are not planning to take any of the spa treatments, a visit to the Hina spa is a must as for it’s excellent picturesque backdrops.

In addition to all the resort activities, there were so many other things that we engaged in that kept us entertained. Such as stargazing, clicking the beach photos….

Swimming in the resort infinity pool with excellent views of the lagoon

Watching heart stopping sunsets 🙂

The resort infinity pool is not west facing and therefore we had to explore the resort to find sunset view points. We found three great spots which did not seem to be popular among guests as they were not crowded at all. We highly recommend trying all three spots.

1. Follow the signs to the presidential suites and you will find a deck between the two presidential villas. This is the perfect spot as sun sets right in the center of the two villas and you get a direct clear view with no obstructions.

2. Just past the tennis courts on the right is another deck which is also a great spot for watching the sunset. This deck is less popular than the prior one and there were days when we were the only ones watching the sunset from here.

3. Sunset from Hina Spa – setting on a hilltop, the spa offers some of the finest views of the sunset from the entire resort.

Resort Restaurants and Food

You can view all the resort restaurants, cuisines and timings here. Food on this resort is quiet expensive – On an average we spent $100 per meal for 2 people. We used to have late breakfast, skip lunch and take an early dinner. The picture below shows the entrance to the restaurants; on the left is a Chinese restaurant and the right is the breakfast buffet area which is converted to a french restaurant in the evenings. The resort also has a Japanese restaurant.

Breakfast buffet includes a wide variety of hot and cold dishes. However, the buffet menu remains the same daily and therefore, towards the end of our stay we got tired of eating same breakfast daily.

• Breakfast is not included and needs to be purchased separately @ $30 per person per meal.
• For us (Diamond members) breakfast buffet was complimentary but any dishes ordered from the à la carte menu need to be paid for separately.

This resort definitely has impeccable service and all the staff are determined at making the guest experience seamlessly exceptional. We mentioned our dietary restrictions (vegetarians, no fish and eggs) upon check in and a meeting was arranged for us with the restaurant manager and a chef who were very patient with us. They prepared special meals for our dinners throughout the stay based on our requests and we were pleasantly surprised. Special meals were decently priced as per the restaurant standards.

The restaurant manager also offered us to order any items from the à la carte menu free of charge throughout our stay, which we appreciated a lot, as the buffet has limited vegetarian options.

Here is a sneak peak of all the food we savored during our stay!

Bora Bora Excursions

Bora Bora is rich with a wide range of excursions to suit varying needs. Click here to see the full list Bora Bora excursions.

During our stay we explored the Aquabike adventure, Jet skiing and Snorkeling with sharks and sting rays.

Excursion 1 – Combo Jet Ski Tour with Lunch at Bloody Mary’s, and Shark & Stingray Snorkel Cruise

This was a 6.5 hour combo tour that we booked directly with the tour company, Moana Adventures, @ 175 euros per person with hotel pick up/drop off included.

After all guests had been picked up, we had a short boat ride towards the jet ski location, which is the first excursion of this full day tour. Safety briefing and life jackets were provided and are mandatory for all.

The tour entailed two hours of a guided jet ski ride around the island with awesome views of Mt. Oteamanu, scenic bays and lush mountain sides; along with 20 minutes of free riding.

The jet ski tour typically entails 3 jet skis per guide.

After the first hour, the guide made a stop at a bay which was a great break from the heat. During this stop, the guide pointed out some cultural landmarks and provided a short tour of coral reef where we saw tropical fishes and an eel.

This stop also included a coconut husking demonstration which was followed by plenty of refreshing coconut water and coconut milk.

Tips:

• Do not wear sunglasses and hats as there is a risk of losing them – you will be riding the jet ski at almost 40-50 MPH
• Take an underwater camera – we took Olympia TG5
• Wear sunscreen/sunblock
• Avoid taking any unnecessary items with you on the jet ski to enjoy a care free experience

Next we had a 1.5 hour stop at Bloody Mary’s, a famous restaurant in Bora Bora known to have been visited by plenty of celebrities. At the restaurant entrance, you will find boards with names of all the celebrities that have visited the restaurant.

The restaurant is decently priced, ambiance is great, and provide vegetarian options too.
Tip: Lunch cost is not included in the tour IF booked via tour company directly. Bookings via viator, includes the lunch cost too.

Below is the Bloody Mary Restaurant menu.

Just across the street from Bloody Mary’s is a dock where we were picked up for our next excursion – snorkeling with Sharks and Sting Rays.

This excursion includes snorkeling at three spots:

Stop 1 – snorkeling with lemon sharks, water depth 50 ft
Stop 2 – snorkeling with black tip reef sharks and sting rays, water depth 5 ft
Stop 3 – snorkeling with tropical marine life and fishes, water depth 25 ft

Tips:

• Did we mention to take your underwater camera? 🙂
• Each stop is for about 20 to 30 minutes – overcome your fears and get in the water sooner for more snorkeling time.
• Snorkeling equipment, fins and life jackets are provided by the tour company.
• For non-experienced swimmers, we recommend taking the life jackets from your resort as they are of a much better quality and you will be able to enjoy better without worrying about your snorkeling equipment hitting the life jacket air pump.
  • For Conrad Bora Bora Nui guests take the life jackets provided for water sport activities, they are better than the one’s provided in the rooms.

Below is a glimpse of what you will be experiencing on this astonishing excursion:

Excursion 2 – Aquabike Venture
We highly recommend this rare underwater adventure, as this unique mini submarine experience is only available at two places in the world, Bora Bora and Mauritius. We booked our adventure directly from the company website which cost us 220 euros per couple – the submarine/scooter is a two seater.  Each group is limited to 6 guests/3 sub marines per dive thus making it a more personalized experience.

Tips:

• Diving suits are provided and highly recommended to wear for this excursion.
• You do not need to know how to swim for this adventure.
• Face remains dry and you can wear prescription glasses, if needed.
• Take an underwater camera to capture this unbelievable experience.
• For better rates, book the tour and photo/video package online in advance.

Below is an trimmed version of the video we purchased. Captured by a GoPro the photos and videos are of a good quality:

 

Pictures are a great way of capturing memories and we are camera lovers – click here to see more of our photos and portraits!!!