Aranui 5 moored in Hane, Ua Huka island. Photo / Olly Beckett
French Polynesia’s Marquesas Islands are culturally and naturally unique - and best seen in a way that is both accessible and luxe, writes Olly Beckett.
When humans sailed to Polynesia more than 3000 years ago, one of the last archipelagos they reached were the Marquesas Islands. French Polynesia’s most isolated island group is a two-day sail from Tahiti, flights from Papeete take three hours but are expensive, and so most locals, who speak dreamily of this distant place, have never visited.
Aranui 5, one of the few ships sailing to the Marquesas, is an unusual craft, being half cruise ship, half cargo ship. Its predecessors have taken passengers to these islands since 1984, providing vital links to the rest of French Polynesia and a means of cruising there in comfort. In contrast to the ramshackle cargo at Aranui 5’s front, the rear is 10 orderly decks of public areas and cabins ranging from large suites to 4- and 8-bed dormitories. The cultural experience begins the moment you step aboard: Aranui is a locally owned company, Marquesans get discounted travel between islands, and the vast majority of crew is French Polynesian.
At dawn on the cruise’s third day, Nuku Hiva loomed from the vast ocean. At 340sq km, this is the archipelago’s largest island and, with 3161 people, the most populous. Aranui 5 docks at Taiohae village where 4x4s take us up a steep road close to 1224m Tekao mountain and over a pass where I feel a slight chill in the breeze. No such chill down in Taipivei, a small village where Herman Melville deserted his whaling ship in 1842, spending five days in the wild before being captured by the local Tai Pī tribe. Thinking he’d be eaten – it’s believed that people were cannibalised here to gain their power – his captors instead befriended him.
Beyond Taipivei is the Marquesas’ most remarkable archaeological site and one that makes it clear why, in 2024, the archipelago was recognised by Unesco as a unique natural and cultural treasure. Kamuihei was once home to 10,000 people living on large areas of flat ground dug from the hillside and supported by giant boulder walls. Here grows a 600-year-old banyan tree. Beneath its 45m-high canopy, we were treated to traditional dance performances with haka-like chants.
Five hundred years ago, Kamuihei was a place of ritual and royalty. Europeans arrived in 1595; subsequent centuries brought explorers, missionaries and diseases, annihilating populations and destroying traditions. Many of those traditions have since been revived and everywhere we went in these islands, there were dancers, musicians and artists. Tikis in statue and souvenir form abound.
After days of getting to know the mystic Marquesas in temperatures that hovered around 30C and air so humid I could almost drink it, I was relieved to return to Aranui 5’s air-conditioned luxury. I travelled in a spacious suite, from the balcony of which I marvelled at the vivid blue ocean that, on this route, plunges to more than 5km deep.
This being a ship that accommodates up to 230 people (123 during my low-season cruise), there’s freedom to visit the bridge on deck 10; a perfect place for watching busy cargo operations and manoeuvrings into small bays. Building materials, parcels, fuel barrels and myriad other goods are deposited everywhere we go; copra and fresh fruit are among the few pieces of cargo loaded for the long journey back.
Meals on board were a highlight; the standard of cuisine is high, at lunch and dinner, wine was included and poured generously. We occasionally visited friendly local restaurants where lunches of goat, raw tuna with coconut milk, and pork marinated in rum were served alongside breadfruit and other local produce.
One “pinch me” moment was a visit to Ua Pou island, where immense basalt pinnacles spear the sky. A morning walk to a viewpoint above Hakahau village ended with sightings of Aranui 5 far below, as well as those pinnacles, the peaks of which were mostly covered in cloud, a common occurrence in these islands. Needing to walk off that delicious food, I hiked further towards those mountains. At 340m above sea level, the forest-shaded track looped around and, sweaty but satisfied, I marched back towards the ship having finally glimpsed the 1230m Oave mountain.
There’s a small spa onboard where massages – and expensive tattoos – are available. In the deck 9 lounge, hot drinks, cookies and 270-degree views (and free Wi-Fi from 3-9pm) were available. The small pool was ideal for keeping cool, and the bar served good-value food should you tire of fresh fish. After hot and exhausting hours on land, there’s sufficient on-board indulgences to restore energy for the next day’s adventures.
Also on board is Pascal Erhel Hatuuku who lectured on the traditions, history and geography of his home islands, linking them with nations across the Pacific, including Aotearoa.
In one lecture, Pascal described the local belief that the night sky is one half of an eggshell where gods and stars reside and the other half is the physical world we inhabit; we learned how ancient Polynesians navigated using the stars. Pascal has sailed the Pacific on watercraft fashioned after those used centuries ago; achievements that felt even more impressive when we were hundreds of kilometres from land.
In total, Aranui 5 visited six islands in the Marquesas, each slightly different in feel. Tahuata, for example, is covered in steamy forest, whereas arid Ua Huka is home to 1200 wild horses. On craggy Fatu Hiva, I hiked 15km from Omoa village to Hanavave village, an excursion supported by chefs and waiters from the ship who met hikers in the mountains with a delicious lunch. The route went from sea level to 668m and was a challenge, but the rewards were incredible views of lush mountainous landscapes shaped by volcanoes.
Paul Gauguin lived his final years on Hiva Oa island. Above Atuona village his grave is shaded by frangipani trees, in full view of the islands’ highest peak: 1266m Temetiu, a triangular titan which, when I visited, remained clear of clouds. Reproductions of Gaugin’s works and correspondence – and a replica of his House of Pleasure – are displayed in Atuona’s excellent Gauguin Museum.
By the end of our Marquesas cruise, I was in need of rest and grateful for another sea day. Staring across that vast ocean, I marvelled at how early navigators found their way to those islands, and how they’d created a civilisation amid dense forests and towering mountains. From the comfort of Aranui 5, I felt as though I’d briefly sailed into a mystical realm where the influence and ingenuity of those ancient people were never far away.
The journalist travelled courtesy of Aranui, with flights provided by Air Tahiti Nui.