www.tahitifilms.com

Tahiti enjoys a warm and humid subtropical climate year-round, with air/sea temperatures between 24° C and 32° C (75° F to 90° F) thanks to great sun exposure of all Polynesian islands. Eastern trade winds blow all year long and bad weather is quite rare : when the winds weaken, it gets hotter and more humid, then rain sweeps in and brings back the sun. The southermost archipelagos, Austral and Gambier, enjoy cooler temperatures (10° C less than in the other islands, from June to September). There are two seasons in Polynesia, the warm season from November to March (approx. 23° C to 30° C – 73° F or 86° F in Tahiti) and the cool season from April to October (approx. 21° C to 29° C or 69° F to 84° F) with possible variations of + 2° C in the Marquesas and – 6° C in the Australs.

Population
French Polynesia has more than 250,000 inhabitants ; two-thirds live on the islands of Tahiti, and half are under 25 years old.

Languages
French and Tahitian are the two official languages and English is widespread, particularly in tourist areas. You will also discover in daily life an informal language of signs and gestures : a nod of the head to say hello, a rise of the eyebrows to say yes, a frown or a shrug to express surprise or to apologize.

Packing for Polynesia
Protect yourself from the ever-present sunshine with a hat, sunscreen and sunglasses. Bring plastic shoes to walk on the reef and prevent stonefish stings and coral wounds. The climate calls for light clothes. In the evenings, even receptions are quite casual. A sweater will be useful at night, when it can get a little cool, or for air-conditioned places.

Health
French Polynesia enjoys a high-quality health system with excellent medical and dental care, pharmacies, private clinics and a large public hospital. Moreover, specific agreements for international and domestic medical evacuation ensure that any emergency can be met.

Opening hours and time zones
Banks are open nonstop from 7.45am to 3.30pm, some until 5pm, Monday to Friday. Offices and shops generally open 8am-12 and 1.30-5pm, Monday to Friday and Saturday mornings. Some businesses open nonstop and close on Saturdays, but downtown shops are usually open on Saturdays. The Papeete market is open daily from 5am to 6pm (4-11am on Sunday). Tahiti is at GMT – 10 hours. It is 11 hours behind Paris winter time, 12 hours behind in summer. It is 2 hrs behind Los Angeles (3 hours in summer) and 5 hours ahead of, but 1 day behind Tokyo.

Tips
Tipping is not customary in Polynesian culture and is not expected. However, tipping is welcomed for exemplary service.


Currency
The local currency is the “Franc Pacifique”, which has a fixed parity to the euro : 1 euro = 119.33 XPF.
1000 XPF=8,38 euros
Most major credit cards are accepted in hotels, restaurants and shops.

Water and Power
Papeete tap water is potable. In other islands, please check before drinking it.

Power is 220V, 60Hz and electrical outlets are the same as in France. In some islands, generators may supply a different voltage, please check locally.

Hazards
There are no dangerous land animals in Polynesia. Against mosquitoes and biting gnats (« nonos »), use insect repellent and spirals or electric socket devices. If you’re out of luck, you might meet a 20-cm centipede, the « cent pieds », while walking barefoot in untreated gardens, whose bite is very painful but not dangerous. In the lagoon you will encounter « black-tip » sharks, very small, very timid and totally harmless. More dangerous, the well-camouflaged stonefish can inflict a very painful sting. To protect yourself, when you’re wading in the water or on the barrier reef, wear plastic shoes. And if you scrape yourself on coral, immediately disinfect the wound with alcohol or lime juice.

Time Difference
The islands are just two hours behind Pacific Standard Time. During Daylight-Saving Time (April to late October) they are three hours behind. Time in the Marquesas is half an hour ahead of the rest of the islands.

Telephone
The international country code for French Polynesia is 689, and local numbers have 6 digits. To call abroad from Polynesia, dial 00 before the country code.

Some mobile phones retailers rent mobile phones by the day, by the week or by the month. All you have to do is buy a prepaid SIM card (in most tobacco stores, service stations and self-services in the islands and in all OPT (Post & Telephone) offices) to make local or international calls, or to be contacted.

If you wish to use your own mobile phone, Tikiphone is, at this time, the only mobile telephone operator in French Polynesia and it operates in GSM 900 MHz.

We recommend that before you leave, you verify that your phone has the Worldwide option and that your operator is a partner of Tikiphone.

Remember to bring the number of your Customer Service and make sure that it is accessible from overseas..

For more information: www.vini.pf .vini.pf


Internet access
International class hotels are all equipped with Internet access. Nevertheless some islands are less equipped, we therefore recommend that you verify when making your reservation.

Speed varies with the service offered. Your choice of connection is therefore very important if you wish to do sizeable downloading or uploading.
Thus, for individual users, the maximum throughput is 512 KB with a volume limitation of 15 GB, while some professional offers can go up to 2 MB with no volume limitation.

You can also connect to Internet through a WiFi connection by using ManaSPOT, which is a prepaid Internet access service, accessible from an Internet Hotspot, or from any device equipped with a WiFi reception card (computer, PDA, IP telephone, etc.)

ManaSPOT Service offers its users High Speed access through a WiFi connection that can reach a maximum of 2 MBs with no volume limitation.
Without subscription or obligation, you can connect where and when you wish 24h a day, 7 days a week.

Prepaid cards
The ManaSPOT card is a prepaid card with a unit value of 1, 3 or 10 hours, which lets you use the Internet Access Services provided by Mana in all its Hotspots in Polynesia.

WiFi Internet Access 1 Hour: 990 F XPF (8.2 €)
WiFi Internet Access 3 Hours: 1,980 F XPF (16.5 €)
WiFi Internet Access 10 Hours: 5,280 F XPF (44.2€)
The amount corresponding to the price of these cards will be debited from them as they are used.
Each prepaid Mana Card is valid for six months from the date of its first connection. On the other hand, when the validity of each card expires, any unused prepaid amount to access Internet will be lost.

For more information: www.mana.pf
www.manaspot.pf

The Tahiti Film Office is the reception organization for all types of filming, in charge of the development of television and film production in French Polynesia.

A public agency operating under the direct supervision of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the role of the Tahiti Film Office is to develop the siting of shootings in French Polynesia and to receive shooting crews while offering free-of-charge operational assistance.

The Tahiti Film Office helps you in your administrative proceedings (securing permits, meeting institutional actors, etc…), location scouting, logistic assistance and will accompany the production crews in the best possible conditions throughout their shoot in French Polynesia.

The Tahiti Film Office fosters privileged contact between local professionals (executive production, production directors, casting directors, assistant directors, technicians), various service providers (lodging, transportation, etc..) and the shooting crews.

The Tahiti Film Office provides information on the various incentives proposed by the country and their modes of application.

The goals of the Tahiti Film Office are :

1.The long-term development of a quality film industry in French Polynesia
by operating as a network with other film offices on the national and international levels,
by strengthening the existing industry through the rise in volume of business,
by fostering the transfer of know-how through the multiplication of shoot locations in our islands,
by being a resource and information center for local and foreign professionals ;

2.The contribution to economic activity through the creation of novel business opportunities and of direct and indirect jobs generated by productions ;

3.The enhancement of the image of Tahiti and her islands throughout the world and thus the increase of its notoriety as an exceptional tourist destination.
Contact :

Tahiti Film Office - Tahiti Invest - Presidency of French Polynesia – Building D - Papeete - Tahiti
P.O. box 504 – 98713 Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia
Tél. : (689) 47 22 20
Fax : (689) 47 22 26
[courrier@tahiti-film.org]mail: courrier@tahiti-film.org
www.tahiti-film.org

Around 4000 BC, a great migration began from Southeast Asia across open ocean to settle the Pacific Islands. Many researchers conclude that Tonga and Samoa were settled around 1300 BC and from here colonization voyages were launched to the Marquesas Islands in about 200 BC. Over the next several centuries, great migrations to colonize all the Tahitian islands and virtually the entire South Pacific took place.

This area of the Pacific ocean is now called the “Polynesian Triangle” and includes Hawaii to the north, Easter Island to the southeast, and New Zealand to the southwest. As a result of these migrations, the native Hawaiians and the Maoris of New Zealand all originate from common ancestors and speak a similar language collectively known as Maohi.

The era of European exploration began in the 1500s when “ships without outriggers” began to arrive. In 1521, Magellan spotted the atoll of Pukapuka in what is now the Tuamotu Atolls and, in 1595, the Spanish explorer Mendaña visited Fatu Hiva Island in the Marquesas. More than 170 years later, Captain Samuel Wallis and the H.M.S. Dolphin was the first to visit the island of Tahiti during his journey to discover terra australis incognita, a mythical landmass below the equator thought to balance the northern hemisphere. Wallis named the island of Tahiti “King George III Island” and claimed it for England. Soon after and unaware of Wallis’ arrival, French navigator Louis-Antoine de Bougainville, landed on the opposite side of Tahiti and claimed it for the King of France.

European fascination with the islands grew as news spread of both the mutiny of Capt. William Bligh’s crew aboard the H.M.S. Bounty and of tales of tropical beauty and the warm nature of the Tahitian people. Knowledge of Tahiti and the South Pacific continued to grow as Capt. James Cook brought back thousands of illustrations of Tahitian flora and fauna as well as the first map of the islands of the Pacific. In the 1800s, the arrival of whalers, British missionaries, and French military expeditions forever changed the way of life on Tahiti and created a French-British rivalry for control of the islands. The Pomare Dynasty ruled Tahiti until 1847 when Queen Pomare finally accepted French protection of the islands of Tahiti and Moorea.

In 1880, following the queen’s death, King Pomare V was persuaded to cede Tahiti and most of its dependencies to France. In 1957, all the islands of Tahiti were reconstituted as the overseas French territory called French Polynesia. Since 1984, a statue of autonomy was implemented and, in 1998, French Polynesia became an overseas country with greater self-governing powers through their own Assembly and President. With these powers, the country is now negotiating international agreements with foreign states in matters of commerce and investment.


www.tahiti-tourisme.com

Learn a few useful words and phrases

Even though English is spoken and understood in most hotels, restaurants, and shops, learning a few Tahitian words and phrases is encouraged and appreciated.

It can also be helpful, but not mandatory, to brush up on a few basic French phrases as French and Tahitian are the official languages and both are commonly used.

The Tahitian alphabet contains only thirteen letters. Vowels: a as in car, e as in may, i as in machine, o as in cold, and u as in salute.
Consonants: f,h,m,n,p,r,t,v pronounced as in English with the exceptions of theh pronounced sh when preceded by i or followed by o and the r sometimes having a trill sound.

hello, good day, friendly greeting – ia orana
goodbye – nana
welcome – maeva
thank you – mauru'uru
no problem!, no worries! – aita pe'ape'a
how are you? – eaha te huru?
good! – maita'i
to your health, toast – manuia
house – fare
bank – fare moni
church – fare pure
post office – fare rata
hospital – fare ma’i
store – fare toa
doctor – taote
police – muto’i
man – tane
woman – vahine
child – tamarii
yes – e, oia
no – aita
small – iti
big, large – nui
islet in the lagoon – motu
ancient temple – marae
traditional quilts – tifaifai
traditional dance – tamurei
fenua – land
flower – tiare
ocean – moana
sun – mahana
moon – avae
star – fetia
earth oven – himaa
feast – tamaaraa
morning – poipoi
evening – ahiahi