French Polynesia, Bali or Fiji

[sap483]

DH and I decided to wait until next year to go on our honeymoon for a variety of reason, but mainly because vacation was tight this year and my dad had been ill. So we''d like to book our honeymoon soon and have it to look forward to! We both envision 2-3 weeks of total relaxation in paradise as our perfect honeymoon.We can''t decide where to go though. We had thought we definitely wanted to do French Polynesia, specifically Tahiti, Bora Bora and Moorea. However, we''d like to keep our out of pockets costs to a minimum. I have enough frequent flyer miles to cover our flights out to pretty much wherever we go. I also have a lot of Starwood points, and all three locations we are considering have some gorgeous Starwood Properties. Here''s the problem.

The rooms in Bora Bora require massive amount of points- it costs the same amount of points to stay in Bora Bora for 5 nights as it does to stay at a comparable resort in Bali for 2.5 months. Fiji is also less expensive than Bora Bora. Thus if we do French Polynesia, we will have to spend more time in Tahiti and Moorea (which are less expensive) and limit our time in Bora Bora to 3 night max. Additionally, the food and drinks in Frency Polynesia are likely to be more expensive than the other islands. If we want to stay for longer, we will have to pay quite a bit out of pocket. From the pictures I''ve seen and stories I''ve heard, it''s amazing though! I haven''t heard as much about Bali or Fiji.

So, with that in mind, where would you go? Is it worth it to spend the extra money? If you''ve been to any of these places I would especially love your input!

 

[fleur-de-lis]

Bora Bora is my favorite spot on earth in its natural beauty (so far

). It is, however, terribly expensive. The luxury resorts are VERY luxurious though, and the island has few less-expensive alternatives because it doesn't need to. If you can afford it, you won't regret experiencing the caressing neon blue waters because it is a *great* life experience, but it can be too pricey for many budgets. Matira Point, Matira Beach, and Matira Bay will blow your mind.

Moorea's nice and shares that wonderful trait of surreal-colored waters behind a protective reef in parts. I found Tahiti poorly tended (beaches coated with coca cola bottles, trash, etc.) and disappointing after having been in the smaller islands, though there certainly are charming elements there too.

Out of curiosity, how many Starwood points does Bora Bora require per night, and at which resort?

f-d-l

 

[sap483]

60,000/night for the cheapest room at the Le Meridien or Bora Bora Nui. 120,000/night for the cheapest room at the St. Regis. If you stay 4 nights you get the 5th for free...

ETA: I have about 270k in points to use. Probably close to 300k if I wait another couple of months to book.

 

[fleur-de-lis]

Date: 9/4/2008 2:23:27 PM
Author: sap483
60,000/night for the cheapest room at the Le Meridien or Bora Bora Nui. 120,000/night for the cheapest room at the St. Regis. If you stay 4 nights you get the 5th for free...


ETA: I have about 270k in points to use. Probably close to 300k if I wait another couple of months to book.

Yeah, that''s hardly the best bang for your buck on Starwood points. A quick search revealed that Le Meridien can be had for about $700 a night for an overwater bungalow (an upgrade that is definitely worth it, BTW).

I''ve not been to the St. Regis there, but it''s pretty easy to take an educated guess at its fabulousness. The cheapest room at the St. Regis goes for about 1200/night (Thanks, Google!). Now if one had access to the "Royal Overwater Bungalow with Swimming Pool" for 120K points, maybe....

 

[chiapet]

I''ve never been to Bora Bora but am DYING to go!!
I''ve been to Bali a few times (I was born and raised in Indonesia) and loved it every single time! I try to go there every time I go back to Indonesia. Look up Sanur, Kuta, and Ubud. Those are my fav places in Bali. Plus, food, shopping, massage, etc... are really cheap.

 

[CourtHorn]

Those were my 3 choices as well. But... I ended up booking our HM to FIJI on Friday! If you are set to use your points for hotels, than i don''t think you should go to Fiji. I don''t think that the Starwood properties in Fiji are the Fiji resorts that most people go to Fiji for. From what I can tell, most people want to get out of Nadi and go out to the smaller, luxury resorts to experience the "Real Fiji." We went with Fiji over FP for a more authentic, intimate feel because the resort that we are going to (Qamea) has a max of like 36 people on the island, and the food and most activities are included. But, if I had a ton of points and wanted to use them for my resort than i would go to Bora Bora and Moorea for sure.

Have fun deciding. Whatever you choose will be fabulous, I''m sure.