Bora Bora lies 240 km (150 miles) northwest of Tahiti in the Leeward Society Islands. The main island, home to 4,225 inhabitants, is in the center of a multicolored lagoon, surrounded by off-shore motu islets inside a protective necklace of coral.
There is only one navigable pass, facing the principal village of Vaitape. A 29 km. (18-mile) partially paved road circles the island, passing colorful villages, archeological sites, old army bunkers and cannon left over the World War II, when 5,000 American G.I.'s made a friendly invasion.
Matira beach has white sand and warm shallow water. Bora Bora's lagoon is world famous for its beauty.