2014.3.13Our flight landed at Tahiti’s Fa’a’ā International Airport at 5am in the morning. It’s a small airport. We walked down the stairs and were welcomed by local music and dancing once we stepped into the airport.
Girls from various hotels standing at the airport exit with flower garlands welcoming their guests. We didn’t have this treatment as we were not going to stay at the island. It’s an open hallway outside of the airport. Shops were not opened yet, but there was a cafe serving food and beverage 24-hour a day. There was a bank ATM at each side of the exit. We got some cash, had some rest, then we headed to the ferry station.
Taxi fare was 2000 XPF ($23). It took about 20 minutes from the airport to Aremiti Ferry Station. The light got brighter and the sky was rendered with the rosy color.
The ferry station is a two-level structure, very close to the center of Papeete, the capital of French Polynesia. The ticket office is at the first floor. The cost of one way ferry is about $18. The second floor is the waiting room. We bought two tickets for Aremiti 5. It’s 6am, the next boat was just about to leave.
The bottom level of the ferry is for cars. The mid-level is for passengers. There are enough space for several hundreds of people. A small cafe in the middle serving snacks and drinks. It was the first ferry of the day. There were not many passengers. The top level is the open deck. The view is nice but it’s windy. Aremiti 5 is a large ferry. There should be no worry to get seasick on board. For only 20 minutes, mountains on Moorea were already clear in our sight.
