This guide helps travelers prepare the documents, connections and practical details for departure.
Why this deserves a place in the plan
A checklist works when it reflects the actual route, traveler and dates. French Polynesia trips may combine international travel, domestic flights, boats and remote stays.
Choose the experience first
Organize passport and entry checks, insurance, bookings, payment access, medication and emergency contacts. Then add island-specific equipment and clothing.
Build it into the itinerary
Review each travel day from door to door. Store confirmations offline, divide essential items between bags and leave room for schedule changes.
Go through the checklist about a month before departure, and again a few days before, so there is time to renew documents or change bookings if needed.
Details to verify before booking
Reconfirm official entry guidance, airline baggage, transfers, accommodation, activities and weather close to departure. Verify names match travel documents.
Three months out: documents and entry
Start with the passport. The Government of Canada’s advice for French Polynesia says a regular Canadian passport must be valid for at least three months beyond the date you expect to leave, and that Canadians don’t need a tourist visa for stays of up to 90 days. Officials may ask to see a return or onward ticket and proof of sufficient funds, so keep the return booking with your passport. French Polynesia is a French overseas collectivity but sits outside the Schengen area, so Schengen day counts don’t apply to a trip here. Travellers of other nationalities should check our visa and entry guide and French consular guidance.
If the route connects through the United States, you clear US border control at the first US airport even when you are only changing planes, and you usually recheck bags. Make sure each traveller holds the US entry document their nationality requires, and leave a generous connection.
- Passport validity checked for every traveller, children included
- Names on every ticket matching the passport exactly
- Consent letter for any child travelling without both parents
- Travel insurance certificate and the insurer’s 24-hour assistance number
- Offline copies of flights, ferry tickets, accommodation and transfer confirmations
One to two months out: bookings and connections
Walk through every travel day from door to door. International flights land at Tahiti-Faa’a (PPT), about 5 km west of Papeete; domestic flights are run by Air Tahiti and Air Moana, and ferries cross to Moorea in about 30 minutes, according to Tahiti Tourisme’s island-to-island page. Long-haul arrivals often land late at night, so confirm that your transfer or hotel desk operates at that hour. For three or more islands, compare a multi-island Air Tahiti pass with separate fares.
Pack to the domestic baggage limit rather than the long-haul one. Tahiti Tourisme gives 23 kg (50 lb) of checked baggage on both domestic airlines, with an extra 5 kg (11 lb) for divers carrying their gear; check the exact allowance printed on each ticket. The small aircraft also have little overhead space. Faa’a airport has a luggage storage counter if you want to leave a city bag behind while you visit the outer islands; our Tahiti airport guide covers the terminal.
Reconfirm anything that runs on a fixed timetable in the final week: domestic flights, ferry crossings, resort boat pickups and early excursions. Domestic schedules can shift by an hour or more, and a changed flight time often means the resort boat or airport transfer also needs moving. Keep each provider’s phone number with the booking, not only an email address.
Money, phones and power
The currency is the CFP franc (XPF). Tahiti Tourisme notes an exchange office at the airport that opens around international flights, ATMs in Papeete and the main towns, and card acceptance at hotels, restaurants and supermarkets on the main islands. US dollars are not accepted in shops. Carry cash for markets, roulottes (food trucks), small pensions and the outer islands, where card machines may be absent, and tell your bank where you are going. A service charge is already included in hotel and restaurant prices, so tipping is not expected.
Mobile coverage reaches most inhabited islands through local providers such as Vini and Vodafone. Check your home plan’s roaming rate, or arrange a local SIM or eSIM. Wi-Fi on remote atolls can be slow, so download maps, boarding passes and confirmations before leaving Tahiti. Sockets are the French two-pin type; bring an adapter and check that chargers accept the local voltage.
The final two weeks: health and packing
No vaccination is required for entry unless you arrive from, or transit through, a country where yellow fever occurs. Canada’s advice recommends up-to-date routine vaccines and lists hepatitis A and B, and dengue is present, so repellent belongs on the list. Keep prescription medicines in their original containers in your carry-on, with a copy of the prescription.
- Reef shoes, a hat and a long-sleeved swim top
- Mineral sunscreen, plus insect repellent
- A light rain jacket, especially from November to April
- A dry bag for boat days and a small torch for evenings
- A modest cover-up for villages and churches
- A little XPF cash for the first day’s taxi or snack
Our French Polynesia packing list covers clothing in more detail. At arrival, all goods must be declared to customs, and French Polynesia applies biosecurity rules to plants, food and animal products, so leave fresh fruit, seeds and plant cuttings at home.
Make the visit respectful
Pack to reduce waste and follow local rules for reefs, wildlife and cultural sites. Bring only equipment that can be used safely and legally.
Common planning mistakes
Avoid copying a universal packing list without checking airline limits and planned activities. Do not pack valuables or documents in checked baggage.
Accessibility and individual needs
Families should add children’s documents, medications, sun protection and any consent letters needed when a child travels with only one parent.
After booking
Recheck each booking’s date, time and traveler name against the passports, and save the latest version of every confirmation offline.
On the day
Pack a light rain layer and a day’s essentials in carry-on bags so a rainy day or a delayed bag does not stop the trip.