Bagbos travel photo thread! VERY pic heavy! Updated 12/21/11!!

[soccerbag]

I have had a request or two to post some pics of a few trips I have taken over the past few years. I'm not posting to rub it in by any means, but I do enjoy traveling to places where reefs still exist and the beauty above and underwater is always something I love to share. Since there is not a Travel ralated thread on R2R, I fugured I would post it here.

I am asked a lot what it takes to get to some of these places and I hope to answer some of those questions....bear with me. Feel free to ask any questions you have.

First up is the island of Moorea. In order to get to Moorea in French Polynesia, it's an 8 hour flight from LAX. Once you land in Tahiti, you can take either a ferry or a 10 minutes puddle jumper to Moorea.

LAX to Tahiti (Papeete) in this:

And from Tahiti to Moorea in this - redefines puddle jumper - good from the outside - not so good on the inside....lol

A view from a nice resort in Tahiti...Moorea in the background....

And onto Moorea....a long trip...but when you walk into the resort area (Pearl Beach Resort and Spa - Moorea) and this is the first thing you see? It puts your mind at ease a bit...

Of course, the first thing I wanted to do was get in the water - reefs right off shore. This was the first thing I saw as I went under with my camera

It got much better - no room to show everything here but here are just a few

Next stop...Bora Bora!

 

[soccerbag]

Bora Bora - French Polynesia

Bora Bora is another plane ride - directly from Moorea - takes approximately 45 minutes. Much better plane too! Still a prop though. The airport is on the far side of the island so each flight coming in gets to circle the island before landing. It's not really describeable in words so pics will have to do

One of my favorite resorts on Bora Bora is the intercontinental Thalasso Spa. It is very modern but still has a good Tahtian feel to it. Every night, the bars would have different drink specials that they would decorate to entice alcohol consumption...it worked well....

And meals were served here - each chair was carved out of a solid piece of wood - they weighed about 300lbs each!

And some random shots around the resort...
Wedding chapel - it had a glass floor to see the coral below

Spa (you can rent private rooms for the day). It's as expensive as it sounds but you only live once right?

We went on a private excursion one day (swam with and pet stingrays, shark feeding - bread not chum, and then lunch on a private island - one of the highlights of our trip.

Rays

Sharks / Eel

Lunch (fresh caught tuna, shrimp, poisson cru, and fresh fruit)

Lunch table in the water....

And some shots from around the private island - we were there for about 4 hours and I wish I never got back on the boat....

And our guide Alfonz - he played a mean ukulele and sang Tahtian songs all day - it was great...

Later dude....

 

[soccerbag]

Bora Bora continued....

And a few resort shots / sunset shots
View from our bed every AM

Private breakfast one morning

And me on the balcony taking it all in. I'm not a poser....but I do like my Woodford Reserve on the rocks....

Next stop Le Tah'aa....

 

[TopNotchCorals]

Awsome stuff.....need more:dribble:keep em coming Craig,by the way thanks for the thread

 

[soccerbag]

Le Tah'aa Private Island Resort - French Polynesia

The island of Tah'aa is not too far from Bora Bora - about a 20 minute plane ride. There is no airport there so most fly into Raiatea (then boat to Tah'aa) or take a helicopter from Bora Bora directly to the resort.

We flew into Raiatea and the airport was pretty funny. To give you a hint, this is baggage claim...

A few resort shots...

Some underwater pics....

 

[soccerbag]

Le Tah'aa continued...

And a collection of some sunset shots - a lot of them are from the exact same spot but the sun set next to Bora Bora (in the background) and it it was just always the prettiest view....

Next stop Fiji........:bigsmile:

 

[soccerbag]

Fiji - Royal Davui Private Island Resort

Fiji was a ball buster of a trip - at least where we stayed - but well worth it. Air Pacific flies direct from LAX - 10 hours. From there we had a 4 hour car ride and then a 45 minute boat ride. We were exhausted to say the least. Was it worth it? Heck yeah it was! :bigsmile:

The resort we stayed at is a private island in the South Pacific. It is 6 acres - that's it. Only 28 people can stay on the island at a given time so seclusion is guaranteed! It was heaven for me. The island is the centerpiece of a spectacular reef which stretches a 1/2 mile around the island. We just put on our mask, fins, and sorkel, and swam right out to the reef. A prestine, healthy SPS heaven. They DO still exist!! :angel:

I'll show some resort pics first and then will start with the underwater shots. I took over 8,000 pics while there! lol

A view of the island upon arrival

Dining room...

Nightly drink special....

Breakfast menu...mmmmmmm

View from the balcony of our "Bure" - you can see our nice plunge pool on the right

Where we ate most of our meals...

 

[soccerbag]

Fiji - Royal Davui continued...

I didn't cause this, but it was funny none-the-less - you can see the eel next to him....

 

[firsttime]

I am so jealous , awesome pics....really very awesome...

 

[underwaterfirefighter]

WOW! That's all I can say. Awsome trip. Thanks for sharing Craig.

Dave

 

[sexycorals]

Great photos craig!! Great to see that you love to enjoy life!! LIfes too short!! LIVE LIKE SOCCERBAG.. :bigsmile:

 

[Demonic]

So which of those would you recommend for someone looking to go on vacation. The wife and I had plans to go to Florida but no way I am doing that now with the oil so we were trying to find a replacement vacation. Once she sees these pics I think she will agree with me, that this is way better than our original plans.

 

[soccerbag]

So which of those would you recommend for someone looking to go on vacation. The wife and I had plans to go to Florida but no way I am doing that now with the oil so we were trying to find a replacement vacation. Once she sees these pics I think she will agree with me, that this is way better than our original plans.

Thanks for the comments everyone. Demonic, if you're gonna go with the wife, Bora Bora would be at the top of my recommendation list. Moorea would be less expensive but that would be like traveling to San Francisco and not seeing the Bay Bridge....

There are lots of resorts in Bora Bora and most are pricey. However, you only live once. We work out butts off and we might as well enjoy our time off. It's a real shame what's going on in the Gulf right now. It makes me sick to my stomach but that another thread all together - don't get me started : )

Airfare will be the kicker if you want to go to French Polynesia - if you can find decent airfare (decent would be $800-900/pp), it would allow you to stay at a nicer resort. Feel free to pm me if you have more specific questions. It depends what your budget is and when you're looking to go.

Of course, once I post our pics from Fiji, you may have a change of heart....lol

 

[iReefer]

W o w beautitul shots.

 

[TopNotchCorals]

Thanks for the comments everyone. Demonic, if you're gonna go with the wife, Bora Bora would be at the top of my recommendation list. Moorea would be less expensive but that would be like traveling to San Francisco and not seeing the Bay Bridge....

There are lots of resorts in Bora Bora and most are pricey. However, you only live once. We work out butts off and we might as well enjoy our time off. It's a real shame what's going on in the Gulf right now. It makes me sick to my stomach but that another thread all together - don't get me started : )

Airfare will be the kicker if you want to go to French Polynesia - if you can find decent airfare (decent would be $800-900/pp), it would allow you to stay at a nicer resort. Feel free to pm me if you have more specific questions. It depends what your budget is and when you're looking to go.

Of course, once I post our pics from Fiji, you may have a change of heart....lol

I am living through your experiences and photos on my livingroom couch Craig no need for me to go anywhere.Feet kicked up, BBQ grilling ,and Corona in hand and plenty more in the fridge very nice Craig very nice.I knew it would be a cool thread.

 

[Supreme Reefs]

Now that is paradise!!

 

[Breakin Newz]

Man, I have not been out of state since 1997, wish I could go on vacation!

 

[litenyaup]

oh my goodness!!! i think i have fallen in love! this is where my wife and i are going to go on our 5 year anniversary. pm me if you could with some of the details....

 

[dtpollard]

Looks like a great time Craig. A little jealous and wondering who tank sat.
lol.

 

[Mr E Wrasse]

Nice Craig! I guess I'll have to get my Philippine honeymoon pics up now! thanks for the inspiration