We went to Tahiti for our honeymoon and I must stay that the St Regis Bora Bora offered the best service, the best food, and the best overall experience that we've ever experienced before.
Even before we arrived, I was researching the hotel and activities and I was very impressed with the way that the responses were quickly replied and the detail regarding the activities and things we’ve inquired.
When we arrived, we felt we were welcomed into Paradise.
All employees were always smiling and made us feel very welcomed during our entire stay.
The hotel grounds are very well taken care of. There are flowers blooming everywhere...
One of the greatest highlights of St Regis Bora Bora is the fact that everywhere you go: the pool, the Spa, even out for an activity, they provide Evian Water so you feel hydrated. This was very important for us since we are big water drinkers and this was a great feature that none of the other hotels offered during our hotel researching process.
The activities were well planned and we were able to enjoy each one of them to its fullest (Snuba, Jet Ski, Jeep Safari, Bora Bora island Tour, etc).
The resort has a beautiful lagoon where we spent most of our days snorkeling with the native fauna.
We had total privacy during our stay. Since we were there for our honeymoon, we wanted to make sure we would spend quality time that would create memories for the rest of our lives.
We experienced divine cooking at the Lagoon Restaurant for four nights. The staff at the restaurant is very well trained, attentive and made us feel so welcomed.
We also watched a dinner show one night at the main restaurant at the hotel to experience the Tahitian dance, songs, and culture.
We are looking forward to go back to St Regis Bora Bora one day to celebrate an anniversary and experience Paradise all over again.

My husband and I stayed here for a week during our 3 week honeymoon. I can't even begin to tell you how excited we were to stay her, the St. Regis in San Francisco is EXCELLENT.

From the moment we got there we were SO disappointed with the staff. Yes, the rooms are great, but all the hotels in Bora Bora have over-water villas. The staff was SO rude. They acted like we were infringing on their vacation whenever we requested something. We were paying $1500/night and stayed for 7 days. I could not BELIEVE how rude they were. I signed up for TripAdvisor JUST to write this review and PLEAD with you not to go here. If you are going to Bora Bora, the Four Seasons is opening a resort (that will be open Fall '08) go there instead!

Just a couple of examples: there is a japanese restaurant at the hotel, it only has 5 tables. There were 2 staff members of the hotel dining at the restaurant, and we saw them turn away TEN different couples because they were full. THE STAFF should NOT be taking a table in such a small restaurant with high demand. We waited 1 1/2 hours for them to get our bags when leaving. We finally carried them ourselves to the lobby and they were like OH we are so sorry, we were just busy. We asked to talk to the manager but she was hiding in the back office and would not come and speak to us, they said she was busy but I SAW her peek out!! Unbelievable.

It wasn't just us either, we spoke to 3 different couples at the airport. All are well traveled and stay at nice hotels. They were APPALLED by the staff. One woman complained so much she received a 50% refund on her room. And they were only there 2 nights!!!

The St. Regis was the last stop on our honeymoon and was worth every penny. I'd been a bit hesitant given some of the reviews on Trip Advisor, but we found the Bora Bora resort to be nicer than the St. Regis in NYC but with the same gracious and understated hospitality.

When we arrived, a man was playing the ukelele and singing, and we were greeted with iced tea and leis. Our luggage was whisked away and in our room when we arrived. Check-in was a snap -- done sitting down and more like a conversation than a check-in. We were upgraded to a premier OWB, perhaps because it was our honeymoon or because we are SPG gold members...not sure. The only difference between this and the regular OWB is the view, as we had a great view of Mt. Otemanu from our deck. Our room was not ready so we ate lunch and our butler picked us up from lunch to take us to our room via a golf cart. He was very friendly and warm and got us a good table at the Lagoon restaurant.

The room was thoughtfully designed without being over the top. There were windows and sliding glass doors everywhere, to provide a great view. The rooms are standard with two 42" Sony plasma TVs, an espresso machine, Bose sound system, slippers and robes, snorkeling equipment, etc. -- pretty much anything you could need is in the room. There are two air conditioners that did a good job of keeping the room free of humidity, unlike some of the other hotels we stayed in. The OWB's bathroom had a stand-up shower, two sinks, large bathtub, dresser, vanity, and small glass viewing area for fish. The OWB also has a bedroom and living room, which had the viewing area under the coffee table. The deck has two lounge chairs, a table and chairs, a shower, and an area for jumping off.

There weren't a lot of fish outside our bungalow but we did see some. The water is about 11' deep there. There is also a beach with nice lounge chairs and people are constantly passing out free Evian. The beach was nicely maintained though a bit small. No long romantic walks on the beach unless you like pacing. There is a pool, but beach chairs by the pool fill up quickly. There are hobie cats, canoes, etc. by the beach. There is also a "lagoonarium" area for snorkeling. We did see a lot of fish there, mostly near the stairs where you get in. This area appears to be somewhat manmade and closed off so that you will not encounter any rays here. The gym was of a decent size and there is also a tennis court.

Housekeeping was good -- they filled the ice bucket, replenished toiletries and coffee, and were always coming by with towels. They gave us a bottle of champagne and a flower petal turndown.

The St. Regis provides free boat transfers to Vaitape and to the St. Regis dock, where restaurants will pick you up. The St. Regis dock has a little air conditioned room where you can sit while waiting, or just stay outside and look at the sky. The golf cart transportation is helpful, as the property is large.

By the time we got to the St. Regis, we'd been in French Polynesia for nearly 2 weeks and were covered with mosquito bites, but we didn't get a single one at the St. Regis. They treat for mosquitoes regularly and if this isn't sufficient, you can request an additional treatment near your bungalow. We did encounter a few small bugs in the bungalow.

We ate at Lagoon one night and were impressed. Be sure to reserve an outside table if possible. We also at at the beachfront Te Pahu twice, and food there was good as well. Service at both restaurants was good.

The staff was friendly and helpful. They would put a letter under the door to remind us of dinner reservations, call to ask if we wanted to go into town, etc. We felt like they genuinely cared.

Yes, the St. Regis is expensive. However, our stay was worry-free. Food is a little more expensive than at other resorts in French Polynesia but not a lot more. Lunch dishes started at 2300 XPF and entrees at Lagoon started at 4000 XPF -- on par with other places but better quality. Honestly, stuff is not really more expensive here than it would be in NYC, and you have the amazing views everywhere you turn here.

People recommended that we bring a small collapsible cooler which was helpful for our stays at the other resorts. We saved money by buying fruit in the Papeete market and going to the grocery store for some basics and keeping it all in the cooler. Ice was plentiful at all resorts. (I got a backpack style cooler at Target for $10 and it was also great for taking on excursions.) We also brought an inflatable raft, which was fun. I would suggest bringing a lot of bug spray to French Polynesia, and an underwater camera. I bought a great bag for my digital camera tht will turn it into a waterproof camera, and it was only $30 at LL Bean. We brought a pocketknife in our checked luggage and ended up using many of the components during our trip, even if just for food and wine! We brought a converter but didn't need it.

One note to SPG members -- if you book through a travel agent, you will only receive limited StarPoints for the stay. We were told that we would get 500 points per night, but we get triple StarPoints, so we did receive 1500 points per night -- less than half what we would have gotten had we booked through Starwood.

This hotel does not offer free late checkout to SPG members, and check-out is at noon. However, they let us stay in the room a little later and seamlessly checked our luggage so that we could hang out at the resort.

It was a wonderful ending to a great vacation.

Our stay at the St. Regis was absolutely wonderful. We stayed for five nights beginning May 12, 2008. Upon arrival in Bora Bora, we walk up to the St. Regis desk and are greeted by name. My husband heads towards the luggage and while reaching for one of our bags, a man appears from what seems to be nowhere and our bags disappear. We are boarded on a luxury pontoon boat with two other couples and it is approximately a 20 minutes boat ride to our resort. As we arrive we are greeted with Tahitian music, a hot towel and beverage as we are seated in the lobby. We meet our butler and are given a tour of the resort on a club car. Our butler takes us to our room (OWB #102). We are delighted that our room has a direct view of Mt. Otemeau as requested. The room is beautiful with two 42" Plasma tvs which we didn't use. The bathroom is very large with two sinks and a separate toilet. The deck on the room is great and we spent most of our time there. We ate at Lagoon restaurant 4 of the 5 nights and found the service and food absolutely oustanding! Prices are high, but we knew that going in. We took the meal plan at the St. Regis that includes breakfast and three course dinner. We have the 2007 rates of 12565 xpf per person as we booked it at that time. For those not familiar with the food plan, any beverages, including water, are not included in your meal plan. The breakfast buffet is included in the meal plan. If you want to have a meal delivered to your room, there is a charge of $20.00 per person. There is a shuttle into town 4 times each day. It is approximately a 30 minute boat ride into town. There is a manager's cocktail party at the St. Regis on Tuesdays and Thursday’s at 5:30 p.m.. It includes a couple of champagne cocktails, a plate of hors devores and a brief Polynesian show. It was very nice. Tepu (Restaurant) is good but doesn’t compare to Lagoon. The resort has a Lagoonarium stocked with lots of fish and some sea turtles. It is great for snorkeling. We visited three times and only once was there another couple there.
There are a few service flaws. Once we waited 2 hours for ice. We are happy to get our own ice, but there are no ice machines. We thought it a bit much to have to call three times for ice. We also didn't get water replaced in our room three of the five days of our stay. When we asked our maid, she directed us to buy the water from the mini bar.
One drawback to the St. Regis is the view of the sunset from this location is not great. The sun sets behind the island.
All in all, I would stay at the St. Regis again. We loved it there.