Our French Polynesia Plan | Five and No Moss

This December the five of us (Jonathan, Kara, Abbey, David and Caleb) are going to French Polynesia. We will be there December 17–28, 2026, which means we will spend Christmas there. This post is the plan as it stands today. Plans like this change, and on a boat they change with the wind, so think of it as what we hope to do.

A white sailing catamaran in a turquoise lagoon below a green volcanic peak — What we are picturing: a catamaran in a Leeward Islands lagoon. (AI-generated illustration, not our photo.)

The shape of the trip

We fly into Tahiti, to Papeete, and spend one night there. The next day a short Air Tahiti hop takes us to Raiatea, where we step onto a sailing catamaran for a week. It comes with a skipper and a hostess who cooks, so the navigating and the cooking are in good hands. The week starts and ends at Raiatea, and we will be on board for Christmas.

After the boat we go back to Tahiti for a couple of nights, in a house on the west coast, before the flight home.

Where we hope to sail

Raiatea and Taha'a share one lagoon inside a single barrier reef, so the boat can move between them in sheltered water.

A catamaran at anchor inside a turquoise lagoon, with the barrier reef and open ocean beyond — Inside the lagoon, with the reef holding back the ocean. (AI-generated illustration, not our photo.)

There is no fixed route. The skipper and we will agree on each day's plan based on the wind. Trade winds there are typically easterly, around 15 to 20 knots. The crossing from Bora Bora back toward Taha'a can get bumpy in a big swell, so we are planning fewer, shorter hops rather than one big loop.

Our hoped-for route: Raiatea to Taha'a to Bora Bora and back, with an optional leg to Huahine. Tahiti is off the map to the south-east. — The hoped-for route. The dashed line is the plan, the dotted line is the maybe. Coastline from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL); stops are approximate and the route will change with the wind.

Here is what is on the wish list:

Taha'a's coral garden. We would like to snorkel in the current between two motus.
The Faaroa river on Raiatea. It is the only navigable river in French Polynesia, and we want to kayak or paddleboard up it.
A few nights in Bora Bora's lagoon. There is no anchoring there, so the boat will use moorings.
Huahine, if the wind allows.

Colourful coral and small fish in clear, shallow water — The kind of coral garden we hope to snorkel at Taha'a. (AI-generated illustration, not our photo.)

A catamaran on a mooring in a calm lagoon below a tall green peak — Bora Bora, where boats tie up to moorings instead of anchoring. (AI-generated illustration, not our photo.)

On board

The boat will have kayaks, paddleboards, snorkel gear and fishing gear, so there is no shortage of ways to get in the water. Abbey, David and Jonathan are Open Water certified scuba divers, and Caleb snorkels.

An inflatable dinghy pulled up on a white-sand beach, with a catamaran anchored offshore — The dinghy is how we will get from the boat to the beach. (AI-generated illustration, not our photo.)

Christmas

Most shops and tours are closed on the 25th, which is fine, because we will be on the boat.

Christmas Eve is the part we are excited about. In Polynesia the churches fill with himene, traditional harmony singing with no instruments. If we happen to be near a village that night, we would love to hear it.

A small white church with a steeple among palm trees at the water's edge at dusk — A village church at dusk, where Christmas Eve himene is sung. (AI-generated illustration, not our photo.)

Following along

Internet on the boat will be slow, so we will post as we go when we have signal, and we will write proper recaps after we are home.