Conrad Bora Bora Nui

I was here last year with my two older children and we had a blast as a family vacation. I really wanted to come back with my husband since he wasn’t able to join last time so we returned for a couple’s trip. It truly is a magical place with stunning water and out of this world scenery. We had Dian as our island host last time and she was so amazing that I requested her again and she did not disappoint. Her service is amazing and she truly will go out of her way to give you the vacation of a lifetime. We keep kosher and our food is a bit complicated and she made sure everything ran like clockwork, our special meals were ready on time and just had everything spot on. They really work hard to please here and each staff member greets with a sincere smile. If they aren’t full they will work to give you a late checkout and just in general try to be accommodating. Thank you Conrad staff and Dian in particular you are all a credit to your hotel and brand! Last time we stayed in a Sunset Pool Villa and this time were in a regular Pool Villa (number 123) and it was also awesome! This villa is literally on the other side of the resort and faces the opposite direction but it was also totally lovely. We got a view of the sunrise and the other islands off in the distance and the truly stunning different shades of water. The water is a lot deeper in this section so you have to swim a little bit to get close to a reef and fish for snorkeling but there are still lots of fish that swim by your deck. I did the half day Ray and Shark snorkeling tour this morning (booked through the concierge) and it was one of the best snorkeling days of my life. We stopped in four spots: one for Manta Rays, one for sharks and sting rays, one for eagle rays, and one on a massive coral reef full of thousands of fish. I highly recommend it. Run, don’t walk to this resort and have the vacation of a lifetime!!

As Bora Bora has always been on my bucket list, I finally can state it "done". I was staying in a Deluxe over water villa and the view was just mind blowing with it's sunset and sunrise. The calmness of my stay was restful and peaceful. Meeting partners and visiting the resort was very exciting. Lunch at the Tamure restaurant was great and our server very pleasant. After a long day with business partners, jumping into the sea water was all I could ask before a sensational dinner discovery at the Banyan restaurant. Chinese cuisine at its finest. I would recommend the Lobster wok and their Vanilla ice tea. Btw the personnalisation of my dinner with the Chef taking good care of his guests was touching. Besides, my room was luxury and comfortable and resting into the bathtub...oh my... From welcoming until departure the staff members was over the top, helpful and very friendly. Mauru'uru Conrad Bora Bora Nui and see you soon.

On our 10th wedding anniversary, we decided to go back to where we spent our Honeymoon. We opted for a different resort this time. From InterContinental Thalasso and spa to the Conrad, it's like we're on a totally different island. We were greeted by our personal concierge from the time we docked on the resort. Check in was pretty smooth and then we were whisked away to our over water bungalow. We like Conrad better for a number of reasons, the service, amenities, size of the resort and quality of food were all a notch better. The other reason we like Conrad is because the bungalows are spread out, you're not on path of villas.....which provides you with prime views and not having to look at your neighbor. We loved it so much that we recommended the same resort to our good friends and prompted them to go and loved it too! Do try the shrimp tempura at the Upa Upa lounge bar while watching the marine life from their glass bottomed floor. Do opt for a private snorkeling tour because they can take you to the Coral Gardens close to the airport which is just other worldly. Sadly, 10 years ago we loved "The Aquarium" snorkeling site but now has been over ran by tourists (due to the fish feeding). You still get to snorkel with the black tip sharks, manta rays (not guaranteed), stingrays, and eagle rays. Last but not least is to book a private lunch at Motu Tapu, Conrad's private islet. You will have the whole island to yourself with a server and not to worry also about restrooms coz they have plumbed toilets on the islet. Ours was made extra special because it was the day of Tahiti Nui Va'a canoe race, Tahiti's biggest event for the year. The resort offered a boat excursion for guests to watch the race at Matira Beach (finish line for the race) for a fee and only comes with drinks and snacks. We had the front row and unobstructed view of the race because the race turns around the Motu Tapu from the pass. It was such a thrill to watch the race and our hearts swelled for the participants considering the herculean effort they had to put into racing/rowing/paddling for 3 days through 3 islands. We happily cheered for everyone passing the island. We really loved our stay at the Conrad and is already planning our return. There's so much to write about for our stay that it might become too long and boring for you guys to read. My recommendation, just book the flight and your stay at the Conrad and you will experience what many of us have been raving about.

I usually don't leave reviews, but this time I wanted to provide some insight for people considering spending a significant amount on this luxurious resort. Contrary to their "welcome to paradise" greeting, my five-day stay at the Conrad Bora Bora was far from paradise. Here are the reasons: 1. Check-in: We arrived early due to our flight schedule, but were made to wait until after 3 PM, the official check-in time. With no way to charge our devices and limited activities available, we were forced to idle away the time. Additionally, the welcome drink we were initially offered was inexplicably removed before we could enjoy it. 2. Cockroaches: This was the most shocking aspect of our trip. It's absurd to return from a "paradise" resort only to be plagued by giant cockroaches. We could even hear their footsteps. When we first encountered one, we requested assistance from the concierge. We had to monitor the situation for an hour, as we didn't want to miss the service person's arrival. When they finally arrived after ONE HOUR of waiting, the cockroach was gone, and we were left to sleep uneasily. On the second day, another cockroach appeared, and the concierge's response was both dismissive and unprofessional. They joked about local superstitions on cockroaches rather than taking the issue seriously. We had to point out the cockroach to the service person, who then reluctantly attempted to remove it. The next day, we found yet another cockroach, leaving us feeling paranoid and disgusted. 3. WiFi: The WiFi is terrible. It's unstable and keeps cutting in and out randomly. If you have important meetings to attend during your stay, you might have difficulty joining them. 4. Hygiene: The snorkeling gear we borrowed was moldy, raising serious concerns about the cleanliness standards of the resort. This is the gear you put in your mouth! 5. Isolation and Cost: The island is quite isolated, and there are limited options for activities and dining. The resort's taxi service is exorbitantly priced, and the free shuttle runs on a very limited schedule. This means that any off-site activity comes at a significant cost. 6. Poor Time Management: Everything seems to run behind schedule. Restaurant reservations are often delayed, check-in times are not adhered to, and even breakfast service starts late. We had to wait when we arrived at 6:30 for breakfast, which was the official start time of the breakfast buffet. 7. Lack of Refrigeration: It's a tropical area, and you don't have a fridge. There is a minibar, and they allow you to use it after removing all the stuff inside. But the minibar is just 4-5 degrees cooler than room temperature. If you put water in it and take it out after overnight, you still don't see any condensation on the surface of the water bottle because it’s not cold enough! 8. Subpar Dining: The Upa Upa Lounge is a disappointment. Never get food from this restaurant. They have a very beautiful ocean view, so you may consider it as your dinner place. Their sushi was TERRIBLE. It's the worst sushi roll in my whole life. Convenience store-style sushi rolls sold in regular grocery stores in the US would be better than theirs. The rice was not cooked well, so it was hard. And the miso soup had no flavor. It was literally the taste you would get if you put tofu in boiled water. When we said the rice was not cooked well to the server, she was laughing and said we could go to the kitchen and talk to the chef. What? Are you serious? 9. Maintenance Issues: There was a bicycle in front of our door when we first checked in. And it was there forever. No one moved it to the bicycle rack where it was supposed to be. I had to move it myself because I didn't want people to think we were monopolizing it. 10. No sound proof: We stayed in an overwater bungalow. It was hilarious to hear our right-side neighbor coughing and our left-side neighbor responding, "Bless you." There was absolutely no privacy. I hate to be this complaining person because I'm not that kind of person, of course there were good things too. For example, the local employees were very kind and nice. Every time I made eye contact, they said "Yorana" (the local language for "Hi") with a smile. The beauty of nature was stunning. The food options inside the resort were pretty much good quality and value (I could be biased because we're from one of the most expensive cities in the world). But I'm still writing this review because our experience was very different from what you would expect from a five-star hotel with a ~$1300/night price. With that price point, I think they have to be way better than this.

We were extremely excited to visit Bora bora and stay at the Conrad. A few days before arrival I received notification through the Hilton app that I had been upgraded to a villa (I’m a diamond member). The day of arrival I get a notification that I had been upgraded again. I go to the app and it states congratulations you have been upgraded then shows my original room booking (I was happy with my original booking but don’t tell me I’m getting upgraded then downgrade me a day later). We get there and checkin and are told our luggage will be sent to the room shortly and that we will also receive a text with all of the hotel information and that we will be able to make dinner reservations through the text. I waited a few hours never received the text so I went to the checkin area and had them set up my reservations and was again told I would receive all the information soon. I still to this day have never received the information I had to go to the concierge every time I needed reservations/departure information/etc. Four hours after arriving we still did not have our luggage (we had friends there too that had not received theirs either) we went to concierge asking about it. They called several people not knowing where it was finally they told us to go to the main building and wait by a closet door. About 15 minutes later a guy shows up (would not talk to us) but went into the closet and loaded his cart with suitcases including ours and about 30 minutes later we finally had luggage just in time to quickly change and make our dinner reservations. Our room was only serviced one day that we were there. One day we put our name down to eat at the beach restaurant for lunch (we wanted a specific table). We hung out at the pool in eye view of the table. Two hours later we saw the people leaving so we went and checked in. The lady told us it would be a few minutes for them to clean the table. At that time we noticed another family walk up to a bar server and pointed to the table that we were waiting on and she told them to take it. We walked to her with our server and told her we were on the list for that table and she shrugged her shoulders and walked off. Our server said sorry and that we could wait for another table to finish. I just found the lack of services, urgency, and care to be horribly insufficient for a luxury property. Definitely made a bucket list trip a big disappointment.