Matira Beach - Need First-Hand Recommendations

[beg3yrs]

We are heading to Bora Bora on the Sapphire Princess in November. As we've been to Bora Bora before (but not this beach) we're thinking a nice relaxing day on the beach would be nice. Possibly a stop at Bloody Mary's to wash the salt from our throats on the way back too. It seems transport from Vaitape is pretty easy.

 

Does anyone have first-hand experience at Matira? I understand it is a long beach so specific locations would be nice to know so we don't wander aimlessly!

 

Are there any facilities nearby such as snack bars or just bars? Restrooms? Crowded versus uncrowded? And of course, is it worth it to snorkel from the shore?

 

Thanks in advance!

Scott

[sunsetme]

This beach was over rated at best. You can get there by bus.

[Fletcher]

Matira isn't particularly great and when a big cruise ship arrives it can get unpleasantly crowded. The sand is fairly coarse, too. At the far end is the sad wreckage of the Hotel Bora Bora. There are a few cafes along the beach. It doesn't have a view of Mt Otemanu and there isn't any snorkelling - but there is snorkelling past the Hotel Bora Bora.

 

Bloody Mary's in my view is a terrible tourist trap but many people seem to like it.

 

The best beaches on BB are out on the motus but nowadays most of them have resorts built on them.

[Tikiintahiti]

Usually the ships have transport setup that deliver you to a covered patio at the end of Matira Beach across from the IC Moana. There are a few snack places close by but it will get busy with a big ship like that. Frankly it is shocking to see a ship of that size in Bora Bora, just to big. Ok, back to the task.

 

Your best bet is to get dropped off at the old Hotel Bora Bora and walk east on the beach. Not near as crowed and there is some snorkeling off of the Hotel Bora Bora.

 

Sand is not 'sand' but crushed coral so you will need a pair of shoes

[beg3yrs]

Ok, I very much appreciate your feedback and taking it into consideration, you can probably tell what we're looking for.

 

I'll update my request to say Matira is not required, but if not, what beach would you recommend? Still looking for access, facilities and snackies including adult beverages!

 

Thanks!

Scott

[Tikiintahiti]

Nothing wrong with Matira Beach but if your looking for groomed sand it isn't wasy to find unless your going to fork out the bucks to have a day pass at one of the major hotels.

 

St Regis

Thalasso

Four Seasons

 

They all have wonderful beaches but you will get charged about $100 per person for hangingf around their private motu.

 

This is one of the major perks when your on the Paul Gauguin as they have their own private motus for their guest.

[movc]

Matira is a beautiful beach - white sand, crystal clear water, typically no waves since it is in a lagoon but I have been there when it's windy so there are waves and the water is very high making the beach very narrow and dangerous. Independent shuttles wait at the pier offering one way rides to either Bloody Mary's or Matira beach for $5 USD per person. There is a snack bar on the beach but a good tip is to head to the supermarket in Vaitape first to stock up on beer. Info at cruiseportwiki dot com

 

[beg3yrs]

Matira is a beautiful beach - white sand, crystal clear water, typically no waves since it is in a lagoon but I have been there when it's windy so there are waves and the water is very high making the beach very narrow and dangerous. Independent shuttles wait at the pier offering one way rides to either Bloody Mary's or Matira beach for $5 USD per person. There is a snack bar on the beach but a good tip is to head to the supermarket in Vaitape first to stock up on beer. Info at cruiseportwiki dot com

 

 

Thank you very much. The recommendation on beer is a good one. We typically have a cooler bag with us on cruises. It will come in handy.

[movc]

Forgot to mention the shuttles drop you off near a covered building with washrooms nearby. Intercontinental resort is also in the area.

 

Here's another pic on a nice day.

 

[Tikiintahiti]

 

Here is what I would do:

 

1. grab some goodies at the market in Viatape

2. take the shuttel over the Matira Beach

3. go to the skiff rental place and rent a skiff for 8 hours

4. go out to the "incredible snorkeling' location

5. you can tie off on a bouy

6. go over to the snorkel spot by the old Hotel Bora bora

7. hit the beach just to the right of the old Hotel Bora Bora (won't be busy)

8. take the skiff back

9. go grab the shuttle back to the tender

[beg3yrs]

You folk are awesome. Thanks for the photos and especially for all the GoogleEarth work put in by TikiInTahiti.

 

The "Holy Grail" is one for the travel books - you should add a copyright! Or, at least embed your screen name to get some credit.

 

Again, thanks so much. DW and I spent some time about eight years ago at the now closed Club Med on Bora Bora. It was a lovely trip and our only regret was not taking the Club's generous offer to extend the visit by another week (darn work schedules you know). We very much enjoyed the snorkeling and our beach time then, this will hopefully renew some of those memories.

[Tikiintahiti]

We were there the first year it opened at the current location, about 1991. We were also there that last year it was open :(

 

If you recall the place they would take us on the backside of the Sofitel Motu for snorkeling. That is the place I mentioned on the map posting. Grab a rental skiff and enjoy. Most of the skiffs have a shade cover.

[mustgo]

We were there the first year it opened at the current location, about 1991. We were also there that last year it was open :(

 

If you recall the place they would take us on the backside of the Sofitel Motu for snorkeling. That is the place I mentioned on the map posting. Grab a rental skiff and enjoy. Most of the skiffs have a shade cover.

 

Are you saying to take the skiff over to the pin marked Incredible Snorkel Place?

 

We are headed to Tahiti in a few weeks on Carnival Spirit. I know. I cannot picture a ship that size in Bora Bora. We were there about 30 years ago. Could you describe what a skiff is and approximately the rental cost in very rough numbers. We booked a ship boat tour to a motu and I think I like your idea much better. Thanks

[beg3yrs]

We were there the first year it opened at the current location, about 1991. We were also there that last year it was open :(

 

If you recall the place they would take us on the backside of the Sofitel Motu for snorkeling. That is the place I mentioned on the map posting. Grab a rental skiff and enjoy. Most of the skiffs have a shade cover.

 

Yes, I do recall and thanks for confirming my suspicion that was the spot the Club used. Sure wish the Club would reopen.

 

I've already got your recommended locations locked into my GPS. Yes, I can be a geek.

 

I did a bit of web searching and read the skiffs are rented out near the Le Matai hotel, which is about 0.2 miles from the location you've marked on the photo. That should narrow down my search so I don't like like a dufus to DW.

 

I just hope with the hordes disembarking, there will be enough skiffs available for this little gem of a day trip.

[boat anchor]

OK.... "How deep is the water at "incredable snorkelling"? Looking for a "shallow water" snorkeling spot. And is there also a beach there? And.. If you go onto the beach there are you liable to get run off by the locals? From what I am getting from this there really isn't much snorkeling off of Matai beach exept over by old hotel bora bora.

 

Thanks

[Tikiintahiti]

The water off the Sofitel Motu where the good coral is would be 10 - 15 feet deep. You can't really hang on the motu as it is privately owned by Sofitel.

 

Yes, the only good snorkeling off of Matria Beach would be around the old Hotel Bora Bora. If you walk with one foot in the water around the Hotel Bora Bora nobody should give you a problem as the beach on the waters edge on the main island is open to the public.

[beg3yrs]

Thank you so much for helping us have a successful day on our own in Bora Bora!

 

Got off the Sapphire Princess and found our way to Chin Lee market to purchase seven half-litre cans of Hinano beer plus some snacks. Seemed expensive but was still cheaper than purchasing it on the ship. We got seven cans as we wanted to pay with a credit card and the minimum purchase for credit card is 2,000 XPF. The extra can put us over - nobody complained, imagine that!

 

Grabbed a Le Truck down to Matira Beach which dropped us off right in front of the Intercontinental Hotel (ICH). Had to wait a while for the transport as many had been hired by ship passengers for day-tours.

 

We ended up using the concierge at the ICH to book our motorboats. There were four people in our party. All the four-person boats were out but they still had two two-person boats left so we worked a deal. Both boats for four hours worked out to $150 per boat US dollars.

 

The boat rental place is not at the ICH. I'm sorry but I neglected to get the name of the outfit. We were quickly picked up in a van and taken to the rental location. I suspect we ended up paying a premium to rent through the hotel, I heard this rental outfit has an office or kiosk up in Vaitape to and from which they'll also transport you as part of the rental deal.

 

Basic instruction for operation was provided by the staff. We received a basic map outlining where we could and could not go (too shallow or tall coral heads) and off we went. TikiInTahiti's map was perfect. Didn't really need the GPS as if one pays attention to landmarks, navigation is pretty simple.

 

Drinking alcohol in the boat was prohibited so we found one of the few isolated public beaches, anchored the boats in shallow water, stepped out and enjoyed our local adult beverages.

 

We ended up snorkeling twice at the "Incredible Snorkeling" location and skipping the "Good Snorkeling" location as we were running out of time. After returning the boats we were transported back to Vaitape as part of the rental deal. We were all tired but very happy!

 

I'm including a Google Earth screen-shot of the area with our GPS tracks overlaid. The Skiff Rental icon is very accurate and is a little further north-north-east from what I'd originally estimated. Latitude 16° 32.007'S, Longitude 151° 44.103'W. Tiki's locations regarding snorkeling locations are spot-on!

[Tikiintahiti]

Thanks for the update where the skiff rental now is located. At one time they were within a few hundred yards of the IC.

 

Yes the area you went to has very good snorkeling :)

 

Did you see Mr eel?

[beg3yrs]

Thanks for the update where the skiff rental now is located. At one time they were within a few hundred yards of the IC.

 

Yes the area you went to has very good snorkeling :)

 

Did you see Mr eel?

 

Lots of hotels and resorts in Bora Bora have shut down since the economic downturn. That may have something to do with the skiff rental relocation. The new spot seems to be a small building which is part of a larger closed hotel complex.

 

Mr. Eel did not make an appearance this time. However, I did see him (or his ancestor) back in January of 2003! Big fella was cruising between coral heads - very impressive! We did see sting rays at the public beach.

[boat anchor]

If you rent a car how is the parking somewhere between old Hotel Bora Bora and Matria beach?

thanks

[Tikiintahiti]

Matira Beach is almost a mile long, there are places to park here and there. Towards the area close to the the end (IC hotel side) there is actually a small parking lot area but then again that's a mile from the old Hotel Bora Bora. I think you will find a place close to the Hotel to park.

[boat anchor]

Thanks for your reply. Don't think would park by the IC hotel. Wouldn't look forward to the mile hike to and mile hike back from the hotel bora bora. Will just hope there is a spot close..

Thanks

[islanders07]

Hi Guys

 

Saw the following on another website;

 

"An interesting walking trail, starting from the eastern side of Matira Beach, enables you to hike up to a strategic location where coastal defence guns were placed by the US military during WWII. They never had to be fired. From here you have a stunning view across the lagoon to Mount Otemanu and Motu Toopua. "

Anyone know anything about this??

[Tikiintahiti]

The road/trail starts about 200 meters before you get to Bloody Mary's.

[islanders07]

The road/trail starts about 200 meters before you get to Bloody Mary's.

 

 

Thanks for this. Is it worth doing? Safe? Good view from the top? We like to walk about in ports and take in the ambience. We are thinking of picking up some supplies at the market, taking a shuttle to the beach, spending some time there and maybe doing the trail.