Cheapest way to fly to Tahiti from U.S.?

Is there any secret to getting even a remotely affordable flight from the U.S. to Tahiti? Certain time of the year? Certain airline to check? When I search Expedia it is shockingly expensive.

I've been looking at flights to Tahiti too. I places several deal alerts on several websites, i.e Kayak, Expedia, etc. Keep checking often.

Ha... if you think it's expensive to get there you oughta check out the cost to stay and eat there. It's one of the most expensive destinations in the South Pacific!

Bora Bora is THE most expensive holiday destination in the world at an average Rs 39,000 a night. Moorea ranks the second most expensive costing a paltry Rs 25,000.

see: http://luxpresso.com/photogallery-indulge/the-worlds-most-expensive-travel-destinations/8419/2

Flights to French Polynesia are expensive. As travelmaven suggested on #1, you could set alerts to see if by chance a special is made and suits you but don't be surprised if you don't find such special. If you had FF miles, you could try to use them to get there.

Airlines flying from the USA to Papeete include: Air France (out of Los Angeles), Air Tahiti Nui (out of Los Angeles) and Hawaiian Airlines (out of Honolulu). Depending where in the USA you live, it could be a good idea to make a separate booking for the leg from your departure point to Los Angeles (or Honolulu).

What are some comparable places to Tahiti in the South Pacific that might be either cheaper to get to and/or cheaper food and lodging when I get there? Samoa? Fiji?

Fiji is a good option. We went last October, and had a wonderful time. The flight from LAX cost us $1176 pp, but that included round trip airfare to Port Vila, Vanuatu, another great destination. Without the Vanuatu add-on, the flight to Fiji would have been $998 pp, including all taxes and fees. Mind you, this was in the fall. Summer travel might be more expensive. Again, sign up for deal alerts.

Once we got to Fiji, costs were relatively inexpensive. We stayed on the main island Viti Levu in the Pacific Harbour area, which is about a 3 hour bus ride from Nadi International Airport. The bus ride cost only about $6 USD. Transportation is cheap, and there are many options. We found Pacific Transport and Sunbeam buses the most economical and easy.

The resort we stayed in The Pearl was a very good option. Located right on the beach, I got a rate of $68.41 per night. We stayed 6 nights, and took the bus everywhere.

Of course, if you stay at one of the outer islands, your costs will be a lot more, including getting to and from the island.

Once inside the resort, they also have free activities every day. The stay includes a full buffet breakfast also.

We enjoyed Fiji so much that we are thinking of going to Fiji again this year.

Thanks travelmaven for the excellent info about Fiji:) That is a very good price you got on lodging, that is very do-able for the average person.

LAX is probably your best bet-- lots of LA to Tahiti flights for $1250 roundtrip. Fiji runs a little less, but you'll
save tons of money on the ground in Fiji.