To visit several islands in French Polynesia, the most practical solution is to buy an Air Tahiti Multi-islands Pass. This is an automatically generated combination of flights to one or more Polynesian islands. In spite of very strict conditions, Air Tahiti Passes are a great opportunity.
Air Tahiti Multi-Islands Pass: Advantages & Limitations
How Does an Air Tahiti Multi-Islands Pass Look Like?
The Air Tahiti Pass is a series of combined flights whose price and availability is automatically calculated on the Air Tahiti booking interface. In other words, you do not buy an Air Tahiti Pass directly: you propose an itinerary which, if it meets the conditions, entitles you to the preferential rate.
Combined flights are more economical than single flights purchased individually. Most importantly, the automatic calculation guarantees you the lowest fare if it appears that a Pass would be more expensive than traditional flights.
On the other hand, the itinerary requirements are so strict that the slightest inaccuracy invalidates the booking process. This means that unless you want to pay for very expensive flights, you’ll have to start your booking from scratch without knowing where the error was.
Itinerary Conditions
To validate an Air Tahiti Multi-islands Pass, your flight combination must respect certain rules. You can only visit each island once and a return to Tahiti in the middle of your itinerary, even for a few hours transit, is impossible. Except for the Lagoon Pass, any stop on an island is counted as a stopover.
Passes are valid for 28 days from the date of the first flight. You do not have to visit all the islands listed on a Pass. However, a minimum of two stopovers is required. In the case of an itinerary grouping two archipelagos, you will not be able to return to the first archipelago after visiting the second: you will visit one archipelago after the other.
The absence of technical stops, the prohibition of a return to Tahiti during the itinerary and the respect of rotations make the margin of error low. You will have to be patient in order to validate the Pass of your choice and benefit from the preferential rate.
Theory & Practice
Air Tahiti Passes theoretically give you the possibility to visit the islands at the time and in the order you wish. This freedom is questionable because in practice, you will have to make many concessions. Even if some Air Tahiti Passes offer it, it will be very difficult to visit Huahine and Maupiti in the same itinerary. The goal will be to find a smart route plan to visit the islands for the time you want.
Some islands are poorly served and flights are often fully booked. If you want to keep your itinerary, you’ll be on a waiting list hoping someone’s cancellation. In addition, you will have to respect the Air Tahiti rotations so as not to transit through Tahiti, which would count as a stopover and invalidate the Pass. In other words, you choose an itinerary according to its feasibility and the availability on board.
Choose Your Air Tahiti Multi-Islands Pass
Each Air Tahiti Pass offers several destinations, plus a departure and return to Tahiti. The price depends on the number of islands served, the distances and the seasonal rates (high or low period). As a reminder, the average time to discover an island is three days. On the other hand, divers must wait 12 hours for a domestic flight and 24 hours for an international flight after the last dive.
Air Tahiti Pass for a 15-Day Stay
First possible combination, the Discovery Pass (Huahine, Raiatea and Moorea) is an initiation to French Polynesia. Inexpensive and very accessible, it is the ideal offer to discover the islands in depth and in complete tranquility. Note that once on Raiatea, you can visit the neighboring island of Tahaa during a day trip.
The Bora Bora Pass (Huahine, Raiatea, Moorea, Bora Bora and Maupiti) is particularly well suited for a complete stay. You will stay in the Society Islands and in contact with the main tourist and cultural destinations. Above all, you will be able to visit the two most beautiful beaches of French Polynesia in Bora Bora and Maupiti.
Divers can subscribe to the Lagoon Pass (Moorea, Rangiroa, Tikehau and Fakarava) which links the Windward Islands to the Tuamotus. This is the only pass allowing a stopover in Tahiti on the way from Moorea.
Air Tahiti Pass for a 21-Day Stay
The Bora-Tuamotu Pass is the most complete offer from Air Tahiti. If the length of your stay allows it, you can visit seven Society Islands and three atolls in the Tuamotu archipelago. You will be able to hike in the mountains, discover the cultural life of the islands, enjoy the beauty of the lagoons and of course, enjoy the most beautiful diving in French Polynesia.
To make your route plan easier, you should start with the Society Islands and finish with the Tuamotus. Indeed, flights from Rangiroa, Tikehau and Fakarava atolls must return to Tahiti.
Off the Beaten Track Destinations
For adventurers and divers, the Austral Pass takes you to unknown lands in the heart of a wild and largely preserved archipelago. You can experience this complete disconnection in the islands of Raivavae, Rimatara, Tubuai and especially Rurutu.
For an even more remote and atypical trip, the Marquesas Pass (Hiva Oa, Nuku Hiva) takes you more than 1500km north of Tahiti to discover islands with an incredibly rich cultural heritage.
You can visit the Marquesas and the Austral Islands with an Air Tahiti Pass extension. The general conditions remain the same, except that you can make a 24-hour stopover in Tahiti. Extensions are purchased at the same time as the Pass and must be done before or after the Pass. The validity of a Pass+extension remains 28 days.
Air Tahiti Multi-Islands Pass: Booking & Modification
How to Make a Reservation Online?
Go to the Air Tahiti online website on the multi-island pass page. Then choose your pass and validate to start the reservation request. Please note the name of the islands served on the pass you have chosen as well as their exact number and enter them on the form according to the desired dates.
To avoid a mistake, here are some rules to follow. The island of departure and return must be Tahiti. Decide your itinerary according to the destinations proposed in the drop-down menus. If you have chosen the Bora-Tuamotu Pass, validate Raiatea or Bora Bora as the last stopover before the Tuamotus to avoid a return to Tahiti. Once you have entered your data, you will be able to choose your flight times. Be sure to check the duration of each flight and make sure they are all direct and non-stop.
Last but not least, the high season ends on October 31. If you take a pass from October 30 to November 28, you will have to pay the highest prices. With a little flexibility in your travel dates, you can save a lot of money, especially if you travel in a group.
At the end of the reservation request, indicate your arrival dates in Polynesia as well as your different places of accommodation. These are basic precautions in case of urgent changes. Please note: if you buy a pass online, you will not be able to modify it after payment.
Call on Air Tahiti Travel Customer Service
Even so, the task may seem insurmountable. In this case, you can request a quote by filling out a special assistance form. Once you receive confirmation of your itinerary, you will have several weeks to proceed with payment. In case of delay, do not hesitate to contact them again.
You can also call Air Tahiti customer service (+689/40.86.42.42). You will speak directly with a consultant who will be able to advise you on the feasibility of your itinerary. Due to the number of requests and the time difference, it is better to prepare your call well in order to arrive at a clear and precise solution.
Air Tahiti has tightened its conditions for changes and cancellations. After the pass has been issued, no changes can be made and requests for refunds in case of unforeseen circumstances are no longer processed. Therefore, it is preferable to book your pass with the help of a customer advisor, not to proceed immediately to payment and to continue organizing your stay until the deadline.
Final Tips for an Air Tahiti Multi-islands Pass
Consider Boat Stopovers
Establishing an itinerary while respecting all the conditions can be tedious. Sometimes you will have to shorten your stay on an island to ensure your route plan. You may not be able to visit all the islands you want and you may have to choose between two destinations.
To simplify your itinerary, you can remove Moorea from the stops list. Indeed, this island is very easily accessible thanks to the Tahiti-Moorea shuttle which makes the connection in 30 minutes. This practical solution will save you one stop on your Air Tahiti Pass. You can visit Moorea before or after your multi-island flights.
Moreover, Tahaa, accessible only by boat from Raiatea, is also an economical solution for those who do not have the budget to visit all the islands. This stopover can be included in the Discovery Pass.
Consider Your Hotel Bookings
While planning your itinerary in French Polynesia, we advise you to make a list of hotels that you might like. Indeed, some islands have limited capacity and the best accommodations quickly fill up, especially during the high season.
Once your Air Tahiti Multi-islands Pass is confirmed, use the few weeks before payment to contact your favorite guesthouses and hotels. In the worst case, you will still be able to modify your pass according to availability.
Accommodation and transportation are closely linked and equally important. Indeed, the lack of available rooms can lead to shorten the duration of a stopover. It is therefore important to make your reservations as soon as possible. And why not choose according to the best activities in French Polynesia?
Discover Tahiti and Her Islands
Air Tahiti Multi-islands Passes require time and a substantial budget. However, they are the famous sesame you will need to visit the South Pacific islands. What is the best time to visit French Polynesia? Choose your favorite season and contact us to organize your activities.
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