Eight Islands on the Half Shell
Unadulterated escapes to turn you on to the South Pacific
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| SOUTHERN COMFORT: A garden path at the Bora Bora Lagoon Resort (Bora Bora Lagoon Resort and Spa) |
Above It All
Bora Bora Lagoon Resort and Spa, Society Islands
WITH AN OPALESCENT BLUE LAGOON, views of a velvety green ancient volcano that juts 2,385 feet into the sky, and a banyan-tree-house spa, the Bora Bora Lagoon Resort and Spa—set on its own 150-acre jungle islet—is the original South Pacific idyll.
THE GOOD LIFE: Fifty Polynesian-style thatch-roofed bungalows stand over the water on stilts. Employees leave a supply of bread near the door so you can feed the fish below. The roomy digs also have private swim platforms from which you can cannonball into the water before breakfast, which arrives via outrigger canoe.
SPORTS ON-SITE: The 160-square-foot infinity swimming pool is the largest in Bora-Bora, perfect for serious laps. Drinking mai tais at the poolside bar should qualify as exercise, too. For salt water, take a complimentary Hobie Cat or kayak for a spin in the lagoon.
BEYOND THE SAND: Check out the shark-feeding excursion. Mask-wearing guests submerge in waist-high water—safely behind a rope—while a wrangler baits the toothy predators.
THE FINE PRINT: Over-water bungalows from $830, garden bungalows from $485; 800-860-4095, www.boraboralagoon.com. Air Tahiti Nui flies direct from both LAX (from $923) and New York (from $1,223) to Tahiti (877 824-4846, www.airtahitinui-usa.com). From there it's a 45-minute flight to Bora-Bora on Air Tahiti (from $320; 800-346-2599, www.airtahiti.aero).
