The Traveler’s Dilemma • TNTV Tahiti Nui Television

Still no good news on the screens: this Tuesday, at Tahiti airport, just like yesterday, tourists who had just arrived in Fenua were desperately looking for solutions to get to Raiatea, Bora Bora or Rangiroa.

Some choose to pay out of pocket for a private jet. For others, you have to organise quickly to go on a trip to the islands.” Air Tahiti just suggested that we try to change our flight to Huahine and then take the ferry from Huahine to Raiatia. Xavier said. For our part, we had expected it. We booked the Apetahhi Express to Raiatia, but only for tomorrow. »

Not everyone was able to board the Apetahi Express on Wednesday morning. All 574 seats on board were sold. Demand had surged since Monday evening. The ship also had no space for Thursday’s departure in Bora Bora.

The Tahitian tourism industry and domestic companies are studying solutions to transport passengers using sea shuttles. “We found out that there were no bookings for lagoon tour providers who could make their boats available and provide transfers from Huahine to Raiatia,” Vaima Deniel, Director of Local Operations at Tahiti Tourisme, announced

This option requires rescheduling flights. In addition to this inconvenience, passengers incur additional costs. For some travelers this is not possible. “The boat from Huahine to Raiatia only leaves on Wednesdays. So they were planning to charter a private boat for 25,000 per person, which was impossible.“Mother Vanessa confided.

The Rangiroa commune provides a municipal boat ride from Tikehau. If transportation was a headache, accommodation was another. The family found an available room at a hotel across the street from the airport, but stayed only for one night. “We arrived yesterday and had no luggage. That was already a problem. Since the flight tonight was also cancelled, there were no seats. We had to change hotels. We had to call to find an alternative solution.”

The hotel has 46 rooms in total, 10 of which were available for booking on Monday evening. The hotel industry committee announced that it will still be able to accommodate tourists in the coming days.