Lonely Planet™ · Thorn Tree Forum · 2020 |

# How to get to the Marquesas Islands Country forums / Pacific Islands & Papua New Guinea / Tahiti & French Polynesia
IamEarth 10:23 UTC 29 Aug 2018 | Dear travellers, I'm a young Dutch backpacker and I need some help: Since I've heard of the Marquesas Islands I can't seem to let go of the hunger to get there. I would like to go in April 2019, travelling from probably Costa Rica or one of it's neighbours. I know I could go to LA, USA and fly to Papeete and then the Marquesas, but this would cost too much I am afraid. I would like to find a ship departing from the Pacific shores of Latin America, but since I am not an experienced sailor, I don't feel like I might have a chance sailing with a crew. Any idea on how to get there as cheap as possible would be wonderful. Just some brainstorm type of reply is also appreciated! Thank you and safe wandering, Jord |
adrdilauro 01:15 UTC 09 Sep 2018 | The only cheap way to access Tahiti is from Auckland. You can also go from Lima / Santiago with LAN, but it costs between 1000 and 1500 eur one way, so thats worth only if you are really interested in seeing Easter Island. In both cases, it's not convenient to travel there only to see Marquisas, it has to be part of a longer trip otherwise you'll end up waisting A LOT of money for a short visit. From Papeete to the main Marquisas islands the flights cost a fixed price if around 700 eur return. I don't know the price of the boat, if you want to look for it I suggest googling in French rather than English. Sorry, I don't know which boats go to the Marquisas from central America. Maybe you should ask somebody who works with cargoes in Panama. Overall my suggestion is: if you are really determined to go, you should make it a longer trip, passing via Auckland or Easter Island depending on your interests and budget. Then buy a return flight from Papeete with a lot of time in the Marquisas. Finally, be prepared for rough tourism while you are there, like camping, asking hospitality, etc. Because everything is expensive there. Fyi there are cheap communal bungalows in Atuona, Hiva Oa. Around 20 eur per night. Good luck! | 1
adrdilauro 01:17 UTC 09 Sep 2018 | Generally, it's a very good idea to google things in French, you find a lot more things | 2
IamEarth 10:44 UTC 09 Sep 2018 | Thank you so much. I will google in French from now on. For your idea: I’m a 20 year old backpacker who’s mostly camping with a hammock when there’s no place to work at so I can sleep for free, or something equally valuable to that. Considering my budget on which I try to remain below 300 euro for a single flight I believe I should look for a boat from mainland | 3
adrdilauro 20:33 UTC 09 Sep 2018 | I am flying Auckland - Tahiti next month and I paid 200 eur one way. I think if you look for offers you can even find cheaper. You can look for boats from mainland (I personally suggest Panama), but if you see it's difficult remember that there is the easier path: you can get a cheapish flight to Auckland, maybe from L. A., get a work holiday visa so you can stay there for a while and earn some money, tgen flight to Tahiti. And in Tahiti it's much more likely you'll be able to find a boat or even boat hitchhike to Marquisas. The Pacific is a special place. Even if you backpack and camp, there are cases in which you just cannot avoid paying a higher amount of money to reach a place. | 4
Thorn Tree 01:00 UTC 10 Sep 2019 | This topic has been automatically locked due to inactivity. Email community@lonelyplanet.com if you would like to add to this topic and we'll unlock it for you. | 5