Car Rentals in Tahiti and Moorea

Hello all -

Just finished our 7 day Wind Surf cruise and are now in Moorea on our own for three nights.

Several past threads have asked questions about car rentals, their relatively high cost, bringing a Papeete rental car on the ferry to Moorea, etc. So I thought I would share our real world experience hoping it helps one or more of you.

Since we extended our stay in Tahiti we needed ground transportation in Papeete, Moorea and back to the airport. Thought the pricing was prohibitive in Moorea so we did a car rental in Papeete and took the car on the Aremeti 2 ferry to Moorea (and back).

First the price [with Hertz (you cannot book this with any other carrier)]. 9,204 FCPs without collision damage waiver (we used our enhanced credit card) and no mileage allotment for a four day rental. Mileage is an additional .45 FCPs/km. But Moorea isn't large so the mileage surcharge won't be outrageous (I hope). That's under $22 U.S./day compared to the competition at $85-$90 U.S./day.

Next is the ferry cost for both you and the vehicle to/from Moorea. 8,660 FCPs for the vehicle (if you have a small vehicle under 3.65m), round trip. The fare/person (Armeti 2) is an additional 3,000 FCP round trip. However if you purchase a Passport Gourmande card [from Avis (at 11,100 FCP)], the cost of the vehicle transport drops to 7,970 FCPs, and the cost of the per person transport drops to 1,900 FCPs. And you get various discounts with the card at restaurants/activities/hotels too boot!

Next is the location of the ferry. It is the next birth over from where your Windstar cruise departs/returns. Very, very close walking distance.

Next is the timing. You need to be OFF the ship no later than 8:45 A.M. on your return to Papeete. Hertz will pick you up at the pier and transport you to their city office (don't make a booking out of the airport since you're paying extra for mileage). The distance of the city office is about 1km from the ferry. There is an 11:00 A.M. departure to Moorea so if you get your car rental at anytime up until about 10:00 A.M., you will have more than sufficient time to drive the 1km to the ferry building (Armeti wants you there with your vehicle by 10:30 A.M.) to catch the 11:00 A.M. ferry.

If you're doing your trip to Moorea before your Windstar Cruise, although the cruise leaves at 6:00 P.M., you can begin boarding as early as 1:00 P.M. (and not the 12 noon we thought beforehand). Most people had boarded our cruise by 3:00 P.M.

Depending upon your return to Tahiti, there are several return ferry crossings from Moorea. So if you return from Moorea on the 1:45 P.M. ferry, you'll have plenty of time to drop off the vehicle and get a shuttle back to the port.

The Ferry - very modern, a very smooth ride, and a 45 minute "cruise" in each direction. And there's free internet on the ferry to boot (cafeteria style food as well if you're interested)!

Purchasing your Armeti ferry tickets. You can do this ahead of your cruise with Windstar. We did ours the morning of our departure so no pressure on your precise date of your ferry to Moorea.

Conclusion - very doable and compared to multiple conventional rentals at $90 U.S./day, quite a bit less. And when you return to the airport to catch your flight home, simply drop the car off at the airport so you don't have to pay pricey transfers.

So that's it. Like I said, I hope this info helps. Will post some more info about our cruise that may answer some of your other questions as time permits. Best to all.

Thanks for the nice update.

We did 4 days in Moorea pre-cruise with car rental at Albert (in Moorea). Did not have to bring the car over (we took the ferry) . We needed an automatic so it was somewhat more expensive and we used our own CC insurance. Cost: 30.000cfp (they picked-us and dropped us at the ferry Terminal). Good service. Nice little car.

Back in Papeete, we rented at AvisPacificar for a day. Also close to the pier. Expensive at 11 815 XPF but next door to our Airbnb. We rented last minute.

There are two ferries, Arameti and Terevau. They have different schedule but both very good. Word of caution It can happen (depending of time of year) that they have to cancel some ferry departure due to weather. If you are coming back from Moorea to take the Wind Spirit, make sure you can make it. Check weather the day before your return. You don't want to be stranded in Moorea on the day the WS is leaving for the cruise.

Cheers

We are also sailing on the Wind Spirit (assuming the O.P. meant Wind Spirit) in November and have reserved a car with Albert's on Moorea. Good to know about the cost and options for renting on Tahiti and taking it on the ferry, though. Sounds like something we would definitely consider if we go back on our own!