Bora Bora is a super popular tourist destination famous for white sandy beaches and crystal clear waters.
Each year more and more people look to visit this island paradise but where is Bora Bora? Is Bora Bora in Hawaii?
In this post we’ll debunk the geography myths about Bora Bora to help you plan your trip.
Is Bora Bora in Hawaii?
The short answer is no, Bora Bora is not in Hawaii.
Hawaii, which is a US state, is a group of islands located in the central Pacific Ocean off the coast of the United States, whereas Bora Bora, which is part of French Polynesia, is located in the South Pacific Ocean off the coast of South America.
Some confusion may come from the fact that the indigenous people of both islands are Polynesians.
Polynesian people are the native peoples of over 1,000 islands scattered throughout both the central and southern Pacific Ocean.
This means that the indigenous people of both Bora Bora and Hawaii are closely related. They descended from the same ancestors and have similar languages and culture (but they are also uniquely different).
In fact, the Polynesian people all came originally (in prehistoric times) from South East Asia and Taiwan.
This group explored the Pacific Ocean by canoe (yep, over 3,000 years ago) using just the stars, the currents and the birds to guide them.
They eventually settled on various different islands throughout the Pacific Ocean including French Polynesia, Hawaii, New Zealand, Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, the Cook Islands and more.
Over the last couple thousand years, a lot has changed for the various Polynesian groups which settled on different islands, however there are still many similarities between them which remain.
Is Bora Bora Close to Hawaii?
Bora Bora is not close to Hawaii at all. In fact, the distance from Bora Bora to Hawaii is 4,066km (2,526 miles).
Check out the map below which shows where Bora Bora is in relation to Hawaii:
Bora Bora and Hawaii are both located in the Pacific Ocean and are both part of the Oceania continent however they are not close in distance.
Flights to Bora Bora from Hawaii
Whilst Bora Bora and Hawaii sit in the same ocean and the same continent, it does still take a while to get from one to the other.
A flight from Bora Bora to Hawaii would take approximately 7 hours.
The main issue with this route is that you’ll struggle to find any direct flights. In fact, Bora Bora doesn’t receive any international flights at all.
To get to Bora Bora from Hawaii, you would have to fly into Tahiti then take another flight from Tahiti to Bora Bora.
Here’s an overview of the flight route:
An additional issue is that you may struggle to find any direct flights from Hawaii to Tahiti (they do exist but are very limited).
Hawaiian Airlines have a few direct flights from Honolulu to Tahiti.
The flight from Hawaii to Tahiti takes 6 hours then you’ll have to take another 50 minute flight from Tahiti to Bora Bora so around 7 hours total.
Which Country is Bora Bora in? Is Bora Bora a Country?
Bora Bora isn’t a country. Bora Bora is an island within French Polynesia which is a country that is an overseas collectivity of France.
There’s a bit more to it than that though…
Bora Bora is a small island group that forms part of the Society Islands. The Society Islands form the western part of French Polynesia.
French Polynesia is a country in the South Pacific Ocean which is made up of 121 islands. The most famous islands of French Polynesia are Bora Bora and Tahiti.
French Polynesia is described as an overseas collectivity of France. This essentially means that French Polynesia is its own country, has its own government and even its own president.
It is still, however, considered a division of France.
FAQs
Is Bora Bora in the USA?
No, Bora Bora is not part of the USA.
Bora Bora is an island within French Polynesia which is an overseas collectivity of France.
Should I Visit Bora Bora or Hawaii?
This is really up to you. Both would make a fantastic vacation destination however they are uniquely different in several ways.
To help you decide, I actually wrote an entire guide comparing Bora Bora vs Hawaii.
And that’s it!
Thanks for reading this post on if Bora Bora is in Hawaii.
Hopefully it answered some questions and debunked some myths about where Bora Bora is in the world.
Thinking of visiting Bora Bora?
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