Moorea doesn’t just have incredible underwater life, it also has amazing landscape views of the mountains and pineapple fields! After swimming with all kinds of underwater animals and exploring the ocean by boat and kayak, seeing the luscious greenery and panoramic views (all by ATV), was a welcome change.
There are several companies and tours you can go with for an ATV tour (it’s not uncommon). We decided to go with this company via TripAdvisor. They also do jet ski tours if you’re interested.
Contents
Cost
Since this was both mine and Brea’s first time riding an ATV, we chose to just get 1 ATV for both of us. Getting 1 ATV costs about $215 USD. Getting 2 ATVs doubles the cost. There was no option to get a private tour but luckily for us, on the day that we did this tour there was only 1 other couple with us.
What to Expect
The tour company arranged a ride to pick us up from our hotel lobby at 7:30AM. They also picked up another couple at the same resort (although this other couple did the jet ski tour instead of the ATV tour). When you get to their headquarters in Maharepa, you’ll get your helmet, a water bottle, and a briefing on safety. They will also ask you who will be driving. We put both my name and Brea’s name down even though I drove the whole time.
We had to wait about 20 to 30 minutes before we started on our tour because the other couple doing the ATV tour with us was late from their ferry. Before we started driving, our tour guide went over how to use the ATV. Make sure you pay attention! Driving the ATV took some getting used to. The ATV is very responsive, meaning if I let go of the gas it will just stop completely. If I press down on it, it will jerk forward so you’ll have to ease into it. The ride was a bumpy one to say the least haha.
About 10 minutes into our tour, it started pouring! We stopped once we got off the main road and put on some ponchos that they had in the back of the ATV. Don’t worry though – the rain stopped once we got to our next viewpoint/stopping area.
Since the other couple who went with us only understood French, the tour guide basically had to explain everything twice (once in English for us and again in French for them). While the tour guide was talking to us, the other couple would take their photos and vice versa.
Where You’ll Go
There were several stops during this 3 hour tour and a lot of driving. My hand/right thumb was numb by the end of it.
Some of the notable stops include:
Pineapple Fields
Before going on this tour, a lot of the locals told us about the pineapple fields. Moorea is known for their pineapples. Everyone kept mentioning how we have to go see the fields and it was pretty great! There were layers and layers of pineapples and the greenery just added to the appeal.
Belvedere Lookout
After about an hour of driving around in the ATV, we got to this wonderful lookout point. The view of the mountain was striking!
Magic Mountain
Before we got to our final destination (Magic Mountain), we stopped at a jam shop and was able to test a few of their flavors. We also tried their smoothie which is a combination of 6 different fruits.
This was a nice break before driving up to the top of the mountain. You really go up a steep mountain in the ATV. At one point, you will park the ATV and walk up the rest of the way on stairs. Going down the mountain by ATV was even scarier!
Throughout the tour, our guide would stop randomly and tell us facts about the culture. He would also pick out special flowers and give them to us.
Our guide was very friendly and knowledgeable and was always checking our ATVs to make sure it was on the right setting (changing from 2WD to 4WD when necessary). He also took a lot of pictures of us!
I didn’t realize it but we actually drove through a lot of Moorea. This was a great way to sightsee and also go on an adventure.
