France
Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
1,047km²
Area
236km
Coastline
2,241m
Highest point
Mont Orohena
178,133
People
29°C
Warmest sea
March
6,101km
To the mainland
When to go to Tahiti
Best for the beach from May to September.
The sea is warmest in March (29 °C) and coolest in August (26 °C). You can swim comfortably all year (21 °C or more).
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Island in the Southern Pacific Ocean
Tahiti is an volcanic island in France. It covers 1,047 km², with 236 km of coastline. Its highest point, Mont Orohena, rises to 2,241 m. About 178,133 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 6,101 km away.
Getting there
- Fa'a'ā International Airport (PPT)airport on the island, with scheduled flightsCar hire at BES airport (Brest)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- FerriesTuhaa Pae IV
- 6,101 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From May to Septemberbest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
On the island
What you find on Tahiti.
- 22beachesMahana Park, Site public d Oututaihia, Plage publique de Rohotu and 19 more
- 42viewpointsMouillage de Bougainville, Cascade Vaimahuta, Belvédère du Tahara'a and 39 more
- 1lighthousesPhare de la Pointe Vénus
- 8ferry terminalsAranui, Terevau, Vaeara'i and 5 more
- 14marinasMarina Taïna, Yacht Club de Tahiti, Maerere and 11 more
- 140named peaksPitohiti, Aora’i, Pihaiateta and 137 more
- 2volcanoesMont Orohena, Mont Roniu
- 89waterfallsCascade de Vaiuna, Les 3 Cascades, Cascade de la Maroto and 86 more
- 1castles and fortsFort de Taravao
- 12ruins and archaeological sitesMarae Māha'iātea, Marae, Marae Nu’utere and 9 more
- 6dive centresEcole de plongée de Tahiti, Mobydick Tahiti, Tahiti nui diving center and 3 more
- 4surf spots
- 1waymarked walking routesUn territoire d’acteurs au service de l’environnement
- 5campsitesCamping Tahiti Iti, Maui Camping, Entrée de la valée de Te faaiti and 2 more
- 131hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 212restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Tahiti in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Tahiti, each with its own numbers.
2beaches and covesCoastya
2waterfallsCascadyas
Beach with the warmest sea
28.8°C
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
2 waterfalls
on Cascadyas, the waterfall atlas
- Vaimahuta Fall
- Papenoo Valley Waterfalls
Cascadyas is coming soonOpen Cascadyas ↗
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 443 m above the sea. 28 % of it is below 200 m.
- 10 %0–50 m
- 18 %50–200 m
- 34 %200–500 m
- 31 %500–1,000 m
- 7 %1,000–2,000 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
50 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Towns on the island
- Faaa29,851 people
- Papeete26,357 people
- Punaauia25,750 people
- Pirae14,475 people
- Mahina14,369 people
- Paea12,084 people
- Papao10,360 people
- Arue9,458 people
- Afaahiti5,186 people
- Otutara4,609 people
- Taunoa4,131 people
- Tohautu2,842 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 27 |
| Night low (°C) | 26 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 26 |
| Sea (°C) | 28 | 28 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 28 |
| Rain (mm) | 190 | 175 | 134 | 116 | 90 | 69 | 52 | 47 | 40 | 84 | 113 | 221 |
| Wet days | 22 | 20 | 21 | 18 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 15 | 18 | 24 |
| Sun h/day | 7.3 | 7.4 | 7.6 | 7.1 | 6.9 | 6.9 | 7.3 | 7.7 | 8.0 | 8.1 | 8.1 | 7.3 |
| Wind (km/h) | 19 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 20 | 22 | 20 | 19 | 18 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | −0.1 | +0.4 | +0.8 | +0.7 | +0.6 | +0.6 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +0.5 | +0.5 | +0.2 |
| 2021 | ±0.0 | +0.3 | +0.2 | −0.1 | +0.4 | −0.1 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.3 | +0.3 | −0.1 | ±0.0 |
| 2022 | −0.2 | −0.5 | −0.2 | −0.2 | +0.1 | +0.1 | +0.1 | −0.1 | −0.1 | −0.2 | −0.6 | −0.2 |
| 2023 | −0.2 | +0.3 | +0.3 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.2 | +0.3 | +0.4 | −0.3 | ±0.0 | −0.2 | −0.2 |
| 2024 | +0.2 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +0.2 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | +0.1 | +0.3 | +0.1 | −0.2 | +0.1 |
| 2025 | +0.1 | +0.8 | +0.5 | +0.1 | +0.4 | +0.2 | +0.5 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +0.4 | +0.2 | ±0.0 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
About these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q42000) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Coastya, Cascadyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
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