My wife and I stayed at the Conrad Bora Bora the week after Thanksgiving 2019 for four days — since we used the Citi Prestige card for the reservation, we got four nights for the price of three (minus taxes and things).
We had booked the cheapest room there (a King Lagoon View suite) but got upgraded to a King Garden Villa at check-in (we have Hilton Gold status through another credit card).
Getting there
We took Air France from LAX to PPT, then Air Tahiti from PPT to Moorea (where we stayed four nights) and Moorea to Bora Bora. The flight was very scenic — we were told to sit on the right-hand side coming into Bora Bora, but we must have taken a different route because Bora Bora and the lagoon were to the left.
We did not book the Conrad transport from the airport; instead we booked the (much cheaper) shuttle from downtown Bora Bora (actually a jeweler’s shop) to the hotel. That meant taking the Air Tahiti shuttle from the airport — nice and air-conditioned, but the walk from its dock to the jeweler’s dock, dragging suitcases, tired me out and I was perspiring profusely by the time we got there. Since the hotel shuttle was going to be a while, my wife bought some snacks and drinks from a corner store at the gas station up the street. Given our arrival experience, we booked the hotel shuttle on the way back (more convenient, but way more expensive).
Check-in and arrival
A few folks arrived with us, so we were about third in the check-in line, but with welcome drinks and a garland the wait wasn’t bad. Then we were loaded onto a shuttle and driven to our villa (an upgrade, as I mentioned).
Room
The room was fabulous. Modern and well laid out — a big bedroom, separate living room, and a huge bathroom. And we could see the lagoon from our balcony.
The bedroom was well laid out, with reasonable-to-generous closet space and a decent, large TV.
The living room was also big and well laid out, with its own TV.
The bathroom was huge: two sinks, a soaking tub, separate toilet, and a large shower area. Plus Bluetooth music (or TV sound) support — which we did get working once or twice.
Food
There were a couple of restaurants on site with decent comfort food — we mostly had lunch there — and we tried several of the fancier restaurants for dinner. Food was good, service great, prices stratospheric.
Grounds
Our villa was quite high up, giving decent views, but the climb up and down could be an issue for folks with mobility issues (my wife and I are getting there…).
The hotel sits at the south end of the island, facing south (almost southwest). The main Bora Bora island/mountain is in the opposite direction, so you normally get great water views but not the mountain. However, if you walk up to the spa, there are viewing spots with great views of Bora Bora and Mt Otemanu.
The spa also has a great sunset view overlooking the main resort.
The grounds were immaculately maintained. The majority of accommodations seemed to be overwater bungalows — we’d already experienced those in the Maldives, so we weren’t motivated to pay twice the price for one. We tried some of the complimentary non-motorized water sports (kayak and paddle board) but confined ourselves to a shallow lagoon well within the resort. We had booked a boat ride to the edge of the lagoon/reef, but it was windy and rainy that day and it was canceled. We didn’t visit the main island or tour the lagoon (many others did).
Muslim friendliness
There was no qibla direction in any of the rooms, but the internet was serviceable (about 5–6 Mbps up/down), so getting the direction from the phone wasn’t an issue. There were vegetarian selections at breakfast (breakfast was very decent, by the way) and at the various restaurants — and of course seafood was plentiful. We didn’t ask for halal selections.
The bathroom was great for making wudu at the sinks — twin sinks helped, since I tend to be messy and my wife didn’t have to deal with that. The main issue was the flooring: hard wood throughout the bedroom and living room. We used a doubled-up beach towel under the prayer mat, which was fine — except the one day the cleaners took the beach towels away for some reason.
There’s a chapel on the premises (near the spa) in a spectacular setting, but there was no indication it was multi-denominational (no Qurans, no prayer mats, hard floor), so we didn’t use it.
Overall
We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at the Conrad Bora Bora. I have to say we enjoyed the Maldives more (where we also stayed at the Conrad), but the Maldives was much more expensive — and much more awkward to reach from California. Each has its own charm, I suppose.
Originally posted on the old ReviewSity, May 2020.