Best of the Best

I’d highly recommend spending two (or more) years cruising French Polynesia. If that kind of time is just not feasible, then the lovely Leewards offer a perfect bite-size taste of the best of the larger island group. They have clear, calm lagoons like in the Tuamotus, but with lush green mountains rising from the center, reminiscent of the Marquesas.

After 18,000 miles of coastal gunkholing and passagemaking, we recently found the sweet spot of cruising life in a little square of tropical ocean. It covers an area smaller than Denver, but has the perfect balance of endless blue seas and vibrant green mountains, of calm coral-protected anchorages and sporty navigational challenges, of totally secluded bays and fancy cheeses at the grocery store.

Affectionately called “the Leewards” in this part of the world, this group of nine islands is part of French Polynesia’s Society Islands, so named by Capt. James Cook for their