Hello everyone,

Long time reader, first time poster. GREAT COMMUNITY!^ Anyway, I'm planning on going to Bora Bora this summer and was wondering if someone can recommend the best hotel? Are the FS & St Regis worth the price difference from Le Meridien? Given the economical crises, how can I get a good deal on these properties and on the airfare?

Thanks a million!

Don't know about the air fare, but the best resort is the recently opened Four Seasons Bora Bora. You cannot compare it with le Meridien - different league. General Manager at FS is Sebastien Carre, ex Four Seasons Provence, who used to work in the islands before he joined FS - very good guy indeed.

I had a site inspection of Le Meridien, and I would call it adequate - but not luxury. FS and XR (St. Regis) are over the top for luxury.

A resort to consider to save some money is Bora Bora Lagoon (where I spent three nights). It's a bit older, maybe a dozen years old, but I really enjoyed my stay there. The rooms are smaller and not as plus as some others, but perfectly fine - and definitely superior to Le Meridien. This resort has some of the best snorkeling because of the coral reefs off its beach. The newer hotels (FS, XR, Le Meridien) are built in a section of the lagoon with a sandy bottom � beautiful aquamarine water, but not as many fish.

I see that Bora Bora Nui is now a Hilton. It was a beautiful property when I saw it, but I don't know what's become of it now that it's been rebranded.

The trouble with Bora Bora Lagoon Resort, which is an Orient-Express Hotel, is that it attracts a lot of package tourists and Japanese honeymooners, who are relatively undemanding of the staff, so service can be a problem. I think that its location is wonderful - very much of the islands and with sensational views - and if you stay in an overwater, then also quite romantic with the glass-bottomed coffee table that looks straight down to the fish in the lagoon, BUT this is a very old and overly rustic resort and it does show. Whatever you do, avoid the inland accommodation here.

The best 'deals' are points redemptions at the Hilton Bora Bora Nui (wow -- 175k HHonors points for 6 nights albeit not in overwater bungalow, but without capacity restrictions... and you can transfer for example AA miles at 1:2) and at the Intercontinental Thalasso (40k Priority Club points/night) and join at least Ambassador... do two non-points nights over a weekend using your weekend buy one get one free cert.

Neither is the luxury route because neither provides overwater accomodations with points redemptions (as a guarantee). But that's a frugal way to do Bora Bora.

For over the top luxe, neither the FS nor SRBB were open when I was there last (wow -- it's been 3.5+ years!). But if I were in a position to pay I'd definitely select one of those two properties, preferably the FS.

I think Le Meridien cannot be compared with FS and St. Regis...

St. Regis is a bit older then FS, which opened about a year ago...they are in a very close proximity.
The advantage of St. Regis, if you look at it on google map, is that it is located in a corner location of the lagoon... this, generate a very private feeling, especially with the beach and the lagoon side owb. Most of the resorts, i noticed, they have many boats passing by most of the time... while at st. regis there is almost a complete secluded feeling as it is not on the path of anyone, excluding those coming to the resort.
As a negative side, at St.Regis there is no snorkeling at all, in case you care for it.

At St. Regis i reserved a beach villa, and they upgraded me on owb. I still believe the beach villa was a very nice choice. there are only few of them ( i think 5) and you have a great privacy.
Great Spa and very good terapist. it is worth the money i believe.

feel free to ask for additional information

The_Daddy

I'm trying to decide between FS and St Regis as well... There seems to be plus and minuses to both properties.. would love to hear from someone who has been to both..

I stayed at the Le Merridien in Oct of 07. True, it's not as luxurious as the St. Regis but my wife and I loved it. The service was quite honestly the best I've ever had at any hotel in the world. The food was ok but didn't compare to the service.

We had dinner twice at the St Regis and took some time to look at the property. It's very nice but it didn't seem to have a Polynesian feel to it. I felt disappointed and was happy we made the choice we did.

For comparison purposes, my wife does special events for a well known luxury brand. She is responsible for corporate events and trips about 6 times a year for between 200 and 600 rooms. When her company "slumed" it due to the economy this past fall they stayed at the Grand Hyatt in Kuai'i. Typical trips are to FS and above. She's used to over the top pampering as she's a huge source of revenue and she even agreed how excellent the service was at the LM.

The FS was not yet open at the time but looked nice. Although, again, it seemed to miss the point of being in Bora Bora.

Our family of 4 ( 2 well behaved teenagers included) are considering a trip to Bora Bora in 2011 for 7- 8 days. We are undecided as whether to stay at the Four Seasons or the St. Regis. I have read the reviews on both properties onTrip Advisor, but most reviews are based on couples experiences or families with young children. Are these resorts too sedate for water sport loving families?

The problem with St. Regis is that while the resort is stunning - rooms worthy of a cover on Architectural Digest - it really did not feel Polynesian to me while I was there. I would think Four Seasons would be preferable...

http://www.fourseasons.com/borabora/...ll_island.html
http://www.fourseasons.com/borabora/value/
http://www.fourseasons.com/borabora/...ctivities.html

FS allows 4 in 1BR. not sure st regis does. also, 2BR start a lot less at FS.
OTOH there might be 2 great upgrade possibilities at st regis.

no reports here, but pics thanks to Big_Foot >
http://www.lightandpictures.com/FS_BoraBora/ (incl macarons in chocolate box )
http://www.lightandpictures.com/BoraBora3/

dont recall if vuittonsofstyle posted any other details.

re children - FS as a company is extremely well regarded here, dont think anyone else competes.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/12788422-post4.html

although aman is also well regarded.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/12378394-post877.html

(last links are in sticky.)

I've stayed at both. Both were lovely in their own way.

One thing I noticed is that at the St. Regis the staff (at least restaurants/front office) is mostly brought over from France while the Four Season has hired more local people.

I enjoyed the more Polynesian atmosphere of the staff at the Four Seasons and their warm friendliness.

One of the very attractive staff members at the St. Regis told me all the kids (in their 20's) come over from Paris on contracts thinking it will be cool to work in paradise.

They get there and realize there is absolutely nothing to do when they do have time off and get bored to tears really quickly.

I'm not sure this is true, but it was explained to me like this.

For some reason paying $12 for ice tea is a bit easier when it is served with a warm style and no attitude.

Thank you everyone for the quick responses. After our wonderful stays at the Four Seasons in Langkawi and Hong Kong this past year, I was leaning to
the FS Bora Bora.

Slightly off topic. Will Hotel Bora Bora ever reopen?

Only when the economy brightens. Currently no money for the re-build.