The best way to experience the lagoon — a full-day private boat tour with a local guide visiting the shark and ray feeding spots, The Aquarium coral garden, the outer reef, a motu picnic on a deserted sandbar, and the complete Mount Otemanu circuit by water. The view of Otemanu from the center of the lagoon is the defining Bora Bora image.
Why It’s Worth Your Time
A private lagoon boat tour with a local Polynesian guide is the most rewarding day available in Bora Bora — far superior to the shared group tours. Departing in a speedboat, you visit the shark feeding area (local guides enter the water with blacktip sharks circling; you snorkel alongside), The Aquarium (the finest coral garden in the lagoon), a secluded motu sandbar for a picnic of fresh poisson cru and grilled fish, the outer reef pass, and the complete circuit of the lagoon by water — seeing all five motu resorts from the water, all the passes, and the mountain from every angle. The view of Mount Otemanu from the center of the lagoon — reflected in the perfectly still water between coral bommies, the resorts barely visible in the distance — is the definitive Bora Bora photograph and memory. Private tours ~$400–600 for 6–8 people for the day.
What Stands Out
- Best day experience in Bora Bora
- Private speedboat with a local Polynesian guide
- Shark feeding — snorkel with black-tip reef sharks
- Stop at “The Aquarium” coral garden
- Motu sandbar picnic with fresh poisson cru and grilled fish
- Full lagoon circuit around the island
- Mount Otemanu reflected in still lagoon water — the defining view
- See all five motu resorts from the water
- ~$400–600 total for a private group (6–8 people)