Marcie,

We just got home last night from 19 days in French Polynesia. My typing is suffering from jet lag! We did the Land & Sea Safari and it included just enough hill climbing to satisfy my needs along with some great snorkeling - particularly at the end when the crew tossed pineapple rinds overboard for the fish. Our tour was only offered in the afternoon and so we saw no eels as they had been fed in the am and were not interested in being lured out of their hiding places in the pm.

We also did the Shark & Ray Feeding. It was one of my favorite activities. You get to stand in the water with the rays swimming all around you and you may hand feed them fish (carefully) with the guide's direction. You can pet the rays and they will rub against you. The sharks will swim near you but stay just out of reach. One young honeymooning couple got a big surprise when two black tip reef sharks swam up to just about two feet away from their faces before turning away. My husband and I were standing in the water at the time and I said to Bill "Chris is in for a big surprise". The next thing we heard was "Holy S#*!" When he and Ava stood up he started telling us about this big shark that swam right up to "this close" and about five of us were laughing and said we knew all about it. That's when he learned that we could hear his exclamation through his snorkel.

Rob (Robbo1) and Mary did the Off Road Adventure in four-wheel drive vehicle. Mary said it was more than any amusement park ride she has ever been on. They were hanging on for dear life and had a "star sighting" in another 4 wheeler - Pierce Brosnan and his wife Keely Shaye Smith, riding 007 style: riding while standing up with arms up in the air! We had learned that Pierce and Keeley had arrived on Bora Bora the day before the PG arrived.

As Richard mentioned, if the private motu is available on your Bora Bora itinerary it is paradise on a clear day. Our first week we did not get there because we had the Land & Sea activity on day 1 and showers on day 2 (so we just tendered ashore and bought pearls!). On week 2 we did the shark & ray feeding on day 1 and were on the first tender over to the motu on day 2 with our snorkeling gear and box lunches (request the day before) and had a wonderful relaxing time. The snorkeling was great, there were plenty of palm trees for shade if desired, a free bar and tender service every 30 minutes in case you needed anything you left back on the ship.

I know everyone who enjoys waverunners rate that activity highly. Unfortunately on August 24 they had a problem on Bora Bora with water in the gas. They did not know this until all the waverunners kept breaking down. One teenager had to change waverunners more than a dozen times! The entire group kept getting stranded out on the water while one vehicle after another would stop running and the company would have to send out replacements. They ended up staying out on the water for more than a hour longer than scheduled. One waverunner tipped completely over. But no one was hurt and everyone's money was completely refunded. The next week the waverunners were fine.