Hilton Moorea Lagoon Resort and Spa

The last time we were here (over a decade ago), the hotel was an Intercontinental. A completely different experience - it’s unsettling and unpleasant to see how far this place has fallen. There is no longer a lagoon to snorkel in, the room we were in was in need of significant maintenance, and the dining choices were fair to poor. The staff tries hard, and is consistently pleasant and upbeat, but they don’t have much to work with. The staff also appear to be working twelve hour shifts, which impacts their ability to provide consistent service and is unacceptable to me to see as a guest. It’s surprising that Hilton even allows their name to be used on this resort, given the amount of deferred maintenance needed - deck boards that are unfastened and trip hazards, wall coverings peeling off the walls, toilets that don’t flush properly, exterior lighting not functioning, internet and television service that goes down daily and Is spotty at best, restrooms on property that are not in service, the list goes on. There is a lot of history to the Intercontinental shutting down during pre-COVID, but to reopen it without a full remodel left a haphazard lodging experience. Not recommended

this review is for the spa only as i have previously reviewed the resort. The ladies staffing the spa are 1st rate and show a very caring attitude toward their guests ...my wife's hip was giving her trouble from the long flight...she made an initial appt. w/ the spa to seek help w/ the discomfort. They made a follow-up appt then. The massage therapist was very competent. The result being 85% resolution of her pain and loss of movement, which is quite significant....Afterward the spa front desk called w/ a wellness checkup....we are very pleased

the hilton moorea is a five star resort that offers really good service...their restuarants are all above average in food quality...the polynesian dinners shows w/ buffet are quite good and very entertaining...the overwater bungelos (65 or so) are anchored by 6-8 cement concreate pylons each, these structures are perfect platforms for the coral gardens w/in the bungulo complex to propigate....there are many varieties of coral growing in the 2 acre area of the over water resort area....as expected, the coral garden is a haven for reef fish...i snorkel on a high level and counted 45 varieties of fish over our 8 day stay...it is that good...the water some days is very clear, depending on the wind..if you are a strong swimmer and like to snorkel, this is the best place on the island to take fish pictures and be close to marine life....every night, schoolsof black tip sharks migrate into the resort to hunt, during the day they are absent..the front desk is very helpful, should you want to take a tour or rent a car....we rented a compact car for $70/ day from albert's, on our own....highly recommended

I'll preface my review by saying two things that might make my review bias. I've traveled to a lot of tropical locations (Bali, Seychelles, Bora Bora, Hawaii, Maldives, Thailand, etc) and Moorea is BY FAR my favorite place. I used points to book our stay and then paid out of pocket to upgrade our room (Lagoon and Premier overwater). So my price per night was much cheaper than the going rates. Pros: - The location is wonderful - The beach is beautiful and the OWBs don't completely block you in (I went to the dive shop at the Manava and the OWB feel like a cage) - The coral is good (excellent compared to most hotel reefs) - The employees were friendly and inviting (though I get that from everyone in FP) - The resort is compact without feeling too small and not so big it feels like a compound - Wifi was better than expected (enough to stream a Youtube video on our phone) - There is a restaurant on the pier where you can see sharks at night - The minibar has free drinks that get refilled each day (soda, water, and beer). - They have a few friendly cats that roam. Cons: - The rooms need some maintenance if not upgraded. It's one of those rooms that you say, "This was probably luxurious 20 years ago". They're overall still nice so some extra maintenance would go a long way. The paint on the decks is pretty ragged and one of the rooms we had the deck privacy wall had come out at the bottom. - They suggest not going past some buoys due to possible jet skies and boats. The buoys aren't that far out from the OWB and I always feel weird swimming right outside people's rooms. It also meant we had a fair number of kayaks and paddle boards passing by our OWB during the day. - The resort is compact so annoying neighbors can be a problem. We only had one night with mildly annoying neighbors (low country music one side, smoking the other side). - The restaurant on the pier was fun to watch the fish and sharks at night but it only served crepes which were by far our least favorite dishes there (I normally like sweet and savory crepes). - The activities booth didn't have defogger. They said I needed to buy it in the gift shop. The shop wanted ~$40 for it (typically you use baby shampoo). Neither Pro/Con: - Food was never terrible but was never that great. I can't blame the hotel. I don't have high expectations for food on tropical islands (sourcing fresh ingredients). I also think as an American I'm used to overly salty and sweet tastes (which is probably why the burger and club sandwhich were leaps and bounds better than the crepes). - Staffing seemed like an issue. We came at the end of the busy season so maybe they were winding down but it seemed like most of the employees were new. They also just might have issues getting staff (like a lot of hotels) For example the employees in the activities/towel station seemed to be doing double duty getting drinks and food. - We stayed near the Sofitel last year and I much prefer the big public beach there. The coral was farther out but much better (IMO). - Beach chicken attempted to steal a french fry right off my plate. The staff typically shoo it away if they see it and I never saw him do that to anyone else. It was comical.

My husband and I went to Tahiti for our honeymoon. We made our travel arrangements through Venure Tahiti and spent 9 nights on 3 different islands. In Moorea, we stayed at the Hilton Moorea Lagoon and Spa Resort. It was absolutely gorgeous! The hotel was quiet and the water was insanely beautiful (like glass.) The bungalows were a dream and they have a crepe restaurant on the water which was our favorite. We could see the fish while we were dining. I woke up each morning and went paddle boarding right outside our bungalow. It was truly a dream! We will 100% go back:-)