Tyler and I just returned from a dream vacation in the French Polynesia celebrating an early 10 year anniversary! Seriously a dream destination that we have always wanted to visit but were waiting for something big to celebrate. I would say 10 years and 3 kids is a fabulous reason! And yes we did still go after Tyler lost his job! We had booked and paid for this trip months ago and honestly Tyler and I needed a vacation and break from reality more than ever. It ended up being perfect timing!
We have been dreaming for years of going to Bora Bora and other French Polynesian islands but honestly I wanted to see them all! So after doing lots of research we booked a 7 night all inclusive cruise on the ms Paul Gauguin. It was a once in a lifetime experience. We spent 2 days in Bora Bora, 1 day on a private motu near Bora Bora, 1 day in Huanie and 2 days in Moorea. The cruise started and ended in Tahiti so we got to see that island as well. All the stops were out of this world amazing! To top it off the food was excellent, the service was unreal and we met some amazing people from all over the world! Seriously the first day all the crew members knew our names and what we preferred to drink.
We arrived in Tahiti around 11:00 pm after a full day of traveling, made it to our ship and were sailing by midnight!
We were randomly put in room 624. Our anniversary is June 24th so this was the perfect sign that this trip was meant to be!
We went to bed and woke up the next morning to this . . . welcome to Bora Bora! Seriously the most beautiful water I have ever seen!
We kicked off our first day with a few cocktails then headed on a snorkel adventure with sharks and stingrays! Yes sharks! Not gonna lie, I was terrified. I swam around with the 4-5 foot black tip sharks but once I laid my eyes on the 8-10 foot lemon sharks I was out. Basically crying my way back to boat. Still an awesome experience! Tyler loved it so much he felt the need to pet the sharks! Of course they aren't going to drop us off with sharks that want to feed on people but you still never know when a freak accident could occur.
We ended the day listening to the cruise band, Santa Rosa, while watching the sunset. Followed by dinner under the stars. Basically this was our nightly routine.
Our second day in Bora Bora we rented bikes in town to tour the island. The main stops on my list were Matira Beach and Bloody Marys. Marked both off the list!
I could ride a bike with this view all day long!
The next day we headed to a private motu owned by Paul Gauguin close to Bora Bora for a fun day in the sun! Literally my favorite day! We had a Polynesian BBQ on the island, laid out, snorkeled, kayaked, drank from floating ocean bars and enjoyed these amazing views. You could literally walk for miles in waist deep crystal clear water. We were greeted on the island with Polynesian music and rum punch.
followed by another fabulous sail away evening as we made our way to the small island of Huahine!
We toured the island of Huahine and then took advantage of the onboard water sports. The back of the ms Paul Gauguin opened up to a water sport marina and you could take out kayaks, paddleboards and wind surfing anytime.
We woke up on our fifth day in beautiful Moorea. Seriously the most scenic and all around beautiful island. Mountainous, jungles, perfect beaches, volcanic . . . seriously every amazing feature you would want to see on an island. Our first day in Moorea we hiked to a peak of one of the mountains for the most fabulous view. The heat and steepness about killed us but the view was worth it, at least in my mind! And that afternoon we toured the rest of the island on an ATV tour. Much easier and relaxing way to see the island!
Made it to the top!
We ended that evening in true Polynsian style making leis, dancing and the most entertaining 3 hour dinner with our new friends!
We met so many interesting people on this cruise. With it being a small cruise (roughly 200 people) we were really able develop great friendships with not only the other passengers but also the crew. These three couples were who we hung out with the most. One couple from Seattle and the other two from Chile. Our Chilean friends were the most intriguing and inspiring people. They have traveled the world and have so many experiences to share. They would keep us on our toes with every story they told. Every evening Tyler and I literally went to bed talking about how they were inspiring us to do so much more, whether it be traveling or just being more adventurous!
Our last day in Moorea and final full day of the cruise we spent relaxing. We traveled to town, enjoyed the pool on the ship and had another perfect dinner under the stars. That evening the professional Tahitian dance group came on board to perform. They even inspired us to do a little dancing of our own! It was either them or the champagne :)
We started dinner with this view . . .
and ended with this view . . .
Sad farewell to the most amazing crew who genuinely wanted each passenger to have the trip of a lifetime!
Our last day we spent exploring Tahiti and preparing for our trek home. We flew out of Tahiti at 11:45 pm Saturday evening and didn't arrive in OKC until 3:30 am Monday morning, thanks to some spring storms. It was a LONG trip home but completely worth it! We even got to spend time in LAX with my aunt and uncle! So fun that we had coinciding layovers!
A big shout out to my in laws for watching the kids while we were gone! We knew they were in amazing hands which made our trip that much more enjoyable. And a big thank you to Steph and Matt for helping out both of the weekends while we were gone. We owe you all a ton!!!
Happy early 10 year anniversary honey! What a perfect way to celebrate the past 10 years! Looking forward to countless more!
