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French Polynesia is an overseas territory of France. It lies in the Pacific Ocean, about 4,500 kilometres south of Hawaii.

The territory is made up of about 120 islands scattered over an area about the size of Western Europe.

These islands consist mainly of the Austral, Gambier, Marquesas, Society, and Tuamotu island groups. Papeete, on Tahiti--one of the Society islands--is the territory's capital.

The term French Polynesia refers to five archipelagoes spread over an expanse of the South Pacific approximately the size of Western Europe (2,000,000 square miles or approximately 5,000,000 square kilometers). The region includes the Marquesas, the Tuamotus, the Society Islands, with Tahiti and Bora Bora as the best known islands, the Australs and the Gambiers. Each of these archipelagoes has its own culture, ethnicity and climate; all of them are unique travel destinations with beaches of unrivaled beauty, many activities and a very friendly population.

French Polynesia was the natural backdrop for the legendary paintings of Paul Gauguin. Like the vast majority of visitors to the region, Gauguin has inspired by French Polynesia's turquoise lagoons, multi-coloured reef fish, volcanic peaks, lush valleys and white-sand beaches.

Main Islands

Tahiti
Pape'ete has something of an image problem. French Polynesia's busy port capital does have heavy rush-hour traffic and ugly concrete developments, but it also has a beautiful waterfront where yachts, ferries and cargo boats come and go, and a thriving market full of South Pacific atmosphere.

The market, Marche du Pape'ete, is colourful and vibrant, and covers a whole city block just back from the waterfront. Originally built in 1847, it was destroyed during WWI. It has been rebuilt since then and is now an airy two-storey structure with produce downstairs, and arts & crafts upstairs.

Bora bora
Bora Bora is as close to paradise as you can get without doing anything really drastic. It is the perfect place to spend a relaxed holiday that is filled with activities at the same time. Hardly surprising, watersports are top notch here. Bora Bora is also packed full of Polynesian sights, smells, and sounds you'll want to experience. Ancient Archeological ruins, leftover World War II bunkers and cannons are found on the island and can be visited on guided tours.

Marquesas
Just south of the equator, the Marquesas Islands are the furthest islands from any continent and are a 3.5 hour flight from Tahiti. Jagged volcanic mountains jut imposingly out of the sea and waves crash against cliff faces. However, the islands are also lushly forested, with an amazing range of flora. Visitors will find plenty of sea and land based activities, including sailing, deep-sea fishing, hiking and horseback riding. They can watch artisans as they create unique works of art.

The islands also have a fascinating archaeological attraction, with ancient ruins and giant tiki, carved in rock like their Easter Island 'neighbours'.

Although there are no hotels, there are some small pensions and home stay accommodation. The island of Hiva Oa, with its deep valleys and lush plateaus covered in dense forest, is popular with 'yachties'. It is home to the graves of artist Paul Gauguin and singer Jaques Brel. Ua Pou island's dramatic skyline gives it the name 'The Pillars' and Ua Huka is known for its range of wildlife - flowers, herbs, birds and sealife. It also has some interesting archaeological sites that include petroglyphs and tiki. Fatu Hiva is known for its unique carving.

Rangiroa
Rangiroa is the second-biggest atoll in the world, behind Kwajalein in Micronesia. It measures 75km by 25km (46mi by 15mi) and is the most populated island in the archipelago. Its lagoon is more like a vast inland sea and dry land exists as a narrow chain of sandy motu encircling this huge waterway.

Something of a mecca for divers, the configuration of the lagoon is such that the rise and fall of the tide causes powerful currents that divers 'surf'. There's a great abundance and diversity of marine life within the lagoon. Pearl farming and production are important to the local economy.

Culture

French Polynesia has a population of 219,521, according to the 1996 census, yielding an average population density of 62 persons per sq km. About three-fifths of the territory's inhabitants live in urban areas, with the largest population concentration in greater Papeete. About a third of the people live in small settlements and rural areas. Polynesians represent about two-thirds of the population of French Polynesia. About 15 percent are of mixed Polynesian-European or Polynesian-Chinese descent, 10 percent are of French origin, and 5 percent are ethnic Chinese.

Although French and Tahitian are both official languages, French is the language used in government and commerce. Various other Malayo-Polynesian dialects are also spoken, particularly in the outer islands, by the indigenous population.

English is widely understood, mainly by islanders accustomed to dealing with foreign visitors.