The 4 Best Moorea Luxury Hotels

There's More in Moorea: Humpback Whales, Tropical Lagoons, and Tahitian Pearls

The small Tahitian island of Moorea is luxury personified. In French Polynesia, you're out on the lagoon more often than not, launching your private boat adrift between motus (small islets) where lunch is grilled fresh and eaten half in the water. In between bites, you snorkel between rays, reef sharks, turtles, and more. If you visit between July and November, you can even swim with humpback whales on exclusive and ethical whale swimming tours.

Back on shore, it's the same energy of exclusivity. You'll stay in overwater bungalows in the best 5-star resorts and hotels in Moorea, where you wake up and slide straight into the sea. Heading inland, you jump on a 4x4 up to Belvedere Lookout and Magic Mountain, before wrestling Tahitian black pearls from their oysters on a private pearl farm tour. A lunch with a view over the lagoon on Coco Beach and a high-end waterfront dinner at Cook's Bay tops off your day with Polynesian seafood or the signature dish of the island, Poisson Cru (raw tuna marinated in lime-infused coconut milk).

The whole scene is tranquil adventure. Island life is never forced. But in Moorea, it is even lighter.