- Ship
- 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Within the Polynesian triangle, Raiatea, or Havai’i as it was originally known, is considered the cradle of Polynesian civilisation. As the first island to be populated by seafaring Polynesians,, this is where all migration to New Zealand, Hawaii and Easter Island began. Taputapuatea, a 1,000-year-old large marae complex, or open air temple, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and regarded as the religious and spiritual centre of Eastern Polynesia. From here, navigators and sailors would venture out to settle new lands. Appropriately, Raiatea, with its main town of Uturoa, is the base for many yacht charter companies. Mount Temehani, the island’s most sacred mountain, is home to the tiare apetahi, a flower found nowhere else in the world, which only blooms at dawn.