Royal Huahine

My stay at the Royal Huahine was so special. I wanted to stay in an over the water bungalow, but I also wanted a “me” experience… I didn’t want to feel like people were serving me or like I was at a fancy Hilton where the towels were starched and I was doing some kind of damage. No trademarks, or pressed white outfits, or fancy deals and advertisements. The Royal Huahine was so lovely! As a solo traveler, I didn’t feel like I was stuck in honeymoon land. But I could also imagine coming back with friends, family, kids. My over the water bungalow was over the clearest of waters, with beautiful fish, and a kayak that I could use to go back-and-forth from the restaurant. I used my camera to take pictures of fish. There is a friendly cat who would come back to my bungalow with me if I tempted him. The sunsets were stunning. Nothing was chlorinated (maybe the pool was, I always swam in the ocean.) The food was so good that one time I literally licked my plate. This is the kind of hotel where some types of five star people will point at a little bit of mold on the grout, or complain about a bug or two. Good for us! This spectacular and quiet lagoon over clear water with fancy rooms can be left for the rest of us. This is the kind of place where the adventurous traveler, or a wonderful family ycould come to find a home away from home. I imagine that if you had younger children, you could stay in the little houses that are on the beach, and your kids could run around the gardens in to the shallow pool. Otherwise, I recommend you stay out, in the overwater bungalows. The hotel is only accessible by boat, and it is on a very quiet island. There is no nightlife to speak of, except for the amazing home-cooked fish, (served at a quiet but very fancy looking restaurant over the water) and the stunning sunsets, and the evening swims in the clearest of waters. In the morning, you can wake up from your bed, and literally jump out your bedroom window into the water!! Then you can swim back to your personal dock and take a shower on the dock with your personal shower! Then sit on your personal deck table and have breakfast looking over the water. I am sure that you would feel the same thing that I did when I was handed a flower and welcomed there. Suddenly luxuriating and spoiled by an old, spectacular, beautiful resort that feels unique, and vintage, and special. It’s a little bit like walking back in time… I imagine if it were 1981, these were the first over the water bungalows, and nothing has changed. I dearly hope I can come back one day…and thank you to all.

I am very disappointed in a property that would accept a reservation in March and wait til two weeks before a trip to inform us that our reservation has been canceled due to renovations. That is something I would expect they have known for a while. It ruins long planned out vacation plans already delayed due to COVID-19