Papeete: Market, Culture and Nature

If you are planning a hotel stay in Papeete, the city’s different themes can help you choose the focus of your trip. Fautaua Valley with its waterfall, the historic market, memorial sites, and a botanical representation of the archipelagos each showcase a different side of Papeete. Access to Fautaua Valley is permitted only with authorization; at the market, its history, product sections, and visiting hours are useful points of reference. The following places give you specific ideas to help decide which aspects of Papeete you would like to focus on during your stay.

Nature in Papeete: Fautaua Valley and Waterfall

The Fautaua is one of four rivers that supply Papeete with water. In Fautaua Valley there is a 135-meter-high waterfall, reachable after about a two-hour hike over partly steep terrain. Access to the valley is permitted only with authorization. For this nature outing, the approximate walking time, partly steep terrain, and permit requirement all go together; take these points into account when planning.

Marché municipal: History, Sections, and Hours

Papeete’s market was founded in 1847 by Governor Bruat at its current location. The covered Marché municipal Mapuru a Paraita has a mezzanine for handicrafts, as well as sections for fish, meat, fruit and vegetables, flowers, and pareos. Individual stalls may change, so you should not assume that a particular stall will always be there. On Sunday mornings, the Marché de Papeete usually comes to life from 4 a.m. The opening hours listed for the Marché municipal Mapuru a Paraita are 5:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday, until 1 p.m. on Saturday, and 4:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Sunday. The two time references answer different questions: when the market usually becomes lively and the hours listed as its opening times. Check the opening hours with the municipality before visiting, as the schedule may change.

Place Tarahoi: Basin and Remembrance

The Bassin-de-la-Reine, also called Bain-de-la-Reine, Source-de-la-Reine, or Ruisseau-de-la-Reine, is located on Place Tarahoi behind the Assembly of French Polynesia. On Place Tarahoi, a stele in front of the Assembly honors Pouvanaa a Oopa. The basin and the stele also differ in their positions relative to the Assembly: one is behind the building, the other in front. Several trees more than 150 years old stand in the park around the Bassin-de-la-Reine, including a mape (tropical chestnut tree), two banyan trees, and a rubber tree.

Historical and Botanical Perspectives

Tahua Tu-Marama was renamed in 2021 in memory of the historical heroes Tū and Marama. Tū and Marama dedicated this place to peace between the clans and the voyages that shaped Polynesian civilization. Les Jardins de Paofai offer a botanical perspective: the identity of each archipelago of French Polynesia is represented there by symbolic plants. In Papeete, historical remembrance and a representation of the archipelagos through plants come together.

Discover more destinations: To'ahotu, Paea, Maharepa, Papetoai, 'Āfareaitu, Fa'aone, Paopao, Pihaena

For the broader travel overview: Windward Islands.