Review: St Regis Bora Bora Resort Hotel
The St. Regis is one of the finest luxury hotels Bora Bora has to offer. Located on a motu facing the east coast of Bora Bora, the estate is spacious (with 42-acre grounds) and double-fronted (facing both the ocean and the lagoon) and it has a spa alongside the lagoon (complete with a small private beach), several swimming pools, a total of 91 villas either on the motu or on stilts, some beautiful gardens, and, to top it all off, an elegant ambience. The only downside is the restaurants, which are over-priced, but then you could always head over to the main island of Bora Bora for lunch (a shuttle service is provided during the day, but this will incur an additional charge).
Advantages
- The children's club, which is rare in Bora Bora
- The vast and peaceful grounds
- The vast beach
Disadvantages
- Shuttle service to Vaitape incurs an additional charge
- The swimming pools in the villas built on stilts are slightly overlooked by other villas
Price and availability of the Hotel
The hotel is located on the seafront of motu Tofari, facing the east coast of Bora Bora, level with Fitiu point. The hotel provides a boat transfer service from the airport at a cost of ¤63 return per person, with a journey time of 15 minutes. There is also a boat service between the hotel and Vaitape 3 times a day and this service incurs an additional charge of ¤26 return per person.
For those seeking to keep costs to a minimum, the free Bora Navette shuttle to Vaitape is another option for getting from the airport to the hotel; it arrives at the ferry terminal in 15 minutes. The hotel boat stops 656 ft from the boat terminal, at the pontoon by the Robert Wan pearl boutique, though you may have to wait a little until the next boat arrives, depending on the timetable (during the day).
Open in 2006, the St. Regis is one of Bora Bora's more recent upmarket hotels and it stretches along either side of motu Tofari, with the lagoon on one side and the ocean on the other. The motu itself is located on the coral belt surrounding the island of Bora Bora.
The hotel also has a mini-club, the Kid's Corner, which is open for 5 to 12 year-olds from 8:30 am to 5:30 pm - very practical for parents travelling with children! The accommodation here consists of one category only, namely villas, which can comfortably accommodate 4 people.
Accommodation tip:
The most unusual villas in the category are the 'motu' villas which face the ocean. You can't bathe on this side of the property because the ocean breaks on the reef, but the unexpected panoramic views here are reminiscent of Brittany, or even the Californian coast. If you fancy a dip though, the beach on the lagoon side of the hotel is a 5 to 10-minute walk from the villas.
For prices and reservations please visit www.starwoodhotels.com.
9.5/10
The St. Regis estate is very vast: a sprawling 42 acres of ground, so it may be a good idea to use a bicycle (available free of charge) or even a club-car to get around. The cycling option is probably your best bet, as the motu is flat and plenty of shade is provided by the coconut palms and other tropical trees. You really will feel like you've got the island to yourself for the duration of your stay! Having said that, you are not advised to go walking outside of the hotel, on Tofari motu, as you may come across the local dogs. It is best if you stick to the complex, which extends over a series of little islands connected to each other by strips of land and wooden walkways. The reception area is housed in a typically Polynesian-style building which sets the upmarket tone for the rest of the hotel: chic, refined and decorated with works of art and sculpted wooden posts, created by sculptors from the islands of Raiatea and Marquesas which, along with tikis (wooden deities), are dotted around the rest of the complex, in the restaurants, bar and spa, with a grand total of some 500 throughout the hotel. In terms of leisure facilities, a stroll through the lush green gardens will take you down to the hotel's two 66 x 26 ft swimming pools overlooking the beach, complete with smart and comfortable rattan deckchairs and canvas parasols for those who are content to just laze around. At the centre of the property, near a smaller lagoon which is connected to the main lagoon, you will find the Miri Miri spa, with Balinese-inspired decor inside and lush tropical greenery outside. It also has its own well-equipped beach reserved for the use of those using the spa, giving it a certain air of exclusivity which is particularly worth a mention! As far as prices are concerned, a 50-minute massage starts from ¤126.
9.25/10
Accommodation at the St. Regis consists of 91 villas, which is the term used by Polynesian hotels to refer to independent bungalows, with a bedroom, lounge area and bathroom but no kitchen, and which can be built directly on the ground or on stilts (77 of the 91 at the St. Regis are built on stilts and offer direct access to the lagoon from the terrace). These villas are very spacious (1,550 sq ft for the standard villas and 12,917 sq ft for the royal villas) and luxuriously laid out, with glass flooring that looks right onto the sandy seabed, as there is virtually no coral at all in this part of the lagoon. Not all of the villas built on stilts overlook the open part of the lagoon, facing Mount Otemanu; some overlook the smaller lagoon which is connected to the main one, and whilst 5 of the villas on stilts have a swimming pool on the terrace, 8 have an outdoor jacuzzi. There is one drawback with those that have their own pool though, the terraces of these villas, which extend out over the lagoon, are partially overlooked by other villas. Those built directly on the ground, however, are wonderful, both inside (the bathroom extends out into the garden) and out (the terrace overlooks either the reef and the ocean or the beach). There are 7 'ocean' villas and 7 'lagoon' villas, the latter enjoying their own private section of beach, complete with a hammock suspended between the trees. The 'lagoon' villas also have a private swimming pool of around 65 sq ft, which makes this the ultimate accommodation category at the St. Regis. In terms of amenities, all the high-tech and luxury facilities you could need are to hand, including a panoramic-screen television, an espresso machine (complimentary coffee), air-conditioning, a ceiling fan, a telephone, a safe, a minibar and tea and coffee-making facilities, whilst the bathroom comes complete with parquet flooring, bathrobes, a hair-dryer and 70ml Remède hospitality products
7.75/10
There are 3 restaurants in the hotel, all of which are pleasant enough, but if you really want to feel like you're on holiday head for the Tepahu - it overlooks the beach! All three meals of the day are served in this 'open design' restaurant and whilst the copious breakfast buffet, complete with the show-cooking preparation of omelettes, crepes and pancakes will certainly whet your appetite, the lunch and dinner prices will soon bring you back down to Earth. Even a rather basic dish like a club sandwich will set you back around ¤23, whilst the raw Tahiti-style fish, which would usually cost around ¤15 in a hotel restaurant, is priced at ¤25 here. Italian dishes such as risotto and pasta are available at around ¤28 and local products are no cheaper, with the misto (selection) of fish from the lagoon costing around ¤33. In our view, this is the major drawback of the restaurant services at the St. Regis - there is nowhere you can eat at a more reasonable price and motu Tofari has no restaurants other than those at the hotel. In the daytime, you can take the shuttle (which incurs an additional charge) across to Vaitape for lunch though, whilst in the evening, and budget-permitting, you might like to head to the Také sushi restaurant (which is located in a small room with no terrace), or really push your card to the limit at gourmet restaurant called 'Lagoon' which is built on stilts and enjoys soft lighting similar to candle-light.
8.25/10
The beach runs for over half a mile along a bay which enjoys a quiet location, away from passing boats, making it the ideal place to laze around, have a swim or go for a paddle (with a mask and snorkel!) without being disturbed. The motu's natural beach largely consists of white coral debris, so the hotel has laid fine sand on top of this to try and improve it. The communal (and equipped) part of the beach is the section between the Tepahu restaurant and the second swimming pool, by the pontoon with the villas on stilts. Rattan deckchairs are laid out on an area of around 656 x 230 ft of beach. A little further along, near the 'lagoon' villas, the beach is reserved for the use of guests staying in these villas only, and whilst you can walk along the water's edge, there are no deckchairs there so you can't get too comfortable! The hammocks that you will see between the trees are part of the amenities provided for the 'lagoon' villas. There is some flat coral in the water here, but it is clearly visible so you don't really need to wear plastic sandals or rubber shoes or anything along those lines. In terms of water sports; kayaks, Polynesian pirogue boats and small sailboats can be borrowed from the hotel and they are ideal for exploring the most natural, unspoilt part of Bora Bora - its lagoon.
© 2001-2012 Easyvoyage - 71 rue Desnouettes - 75015 Paris France - Tel: 00 33 (0)1 44 25 94 00 - fax: 00 33 (0)1 44 25 94 01
Contact