Hawaii is home to an extremely large amount of fantastic accommodation options, from those right on the beach to those situated a bit farther back. Unfortunately, you won't find any overwater resorts here. If they could be built on Hawaii's shores, there would be dozens.

However, with bad news comes a bit of good news. There are plenty of great overwater resort choices over on the islands of Tahiti and Moorea. In addition, less than an hour away from those islands, you'll find even more overwater resorts on Bora Bora. Because these islands are more remote than Hawaii, they are a great choice for honeymooners wanting to escape the crowds and enjoy an exotic vacation in a tropical paradise.

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Why are there no overwater bungalows in Hawaii?

If you’re wondering, there are no overwater bungalows in Hawaii. Though this is unfortunate, it is because Hawaii is comprised volcanic islands of a different variety that is less than ideal for a hotel room on stilts above a lagoon. For the bungalows that most people dream of staying in, you need a shallow lagoon that doesn’t see any wave action, with breakwater well away from the beach, as you can see in the photos on this page.

 

These atolls, which are groups of islands, that are suitable for overwater resorts are only found in the South Pacific and in the Maldives, which is just southwest of India, and home to about two-thirds of the water villas (as they are called there) in the world.


Let's go to the South Pacific

  • Los Angeles to Honolulu: 5.5 hours each way
  • Los Angeles to Tahiti: 8.25 hours each way

Overwater Bungalows in Tahiti

With only a few exceptions, you’ll have to travel through the main Tahiti airport in its capital of Pape’ete to reach your overwater bungalow resort.

 

On the island of Tahiti, you’ll find that there are two large resorts with these bungalows, including one that is situated very close to the airport, but for all the best ones you’ll need to take another short flight to a more secluded island, just as most people do after landing in Honolulu in Hawaii. It should be noted that the flights to other islands leave frequently and are reasonably priced. Because of this, many people end up staying at resorts on two or more islands during the course of a honeymoon trip.

>More information about the Overwater Bungalows in Tahiti

Overwater bungalows in Moorea

Getting to Moorea is easy as it’s only a 10 minute flight from Tahiti. If you rather not fly to the island, you also have the option to take a 1 hour ferry ride out of Thaiti’s capital city of Pape’ete. Moorea is actually even more beautiful than Tahiti itself, and it has quite a few lovely clear-water lagoons hosting excellent resorts.

Nearly all the resorts in Moorea are situated such that you can visit restaurants, shops, or activities elsewhere on the island, which is an added bonus for those who like to explore rather than stay put in one place.

>More information about the Overwater bungalows in Moorea

Overwater Bungalows on Bora Bora Island

As Bora Bora is only a 50 minute flight to the northwest from Tahiti, you’ll find that it’s both easy to reach and a great located to find some choice rooms with a stunning view. Many of the resorts are located on small private islands (called motus) that are a few hundred meters off shore from the main island.

 

When staying on Bora Bora, you’ll note pretty quickly how easy it is to visit and eat at one of the off-site restaurants and how one can partake in a nearby activity. On the other hand, if you rather not go anywhere outside of your resort, you’ll find that each resort is very secluded as well.

>More information about the Overwater Bungalows on Bora Bora Island

Overwater bungalows in the South Pacific

Spread around the South Pacific, you’ll find that there are 7 additional overwater bungalow resorts, most of which reside near both Bora Bora and Tahiti. You’ll also want to note that there are a few resorts that are much more remotely located, those being near Fiji and in Samoa.

 

There are some great choices that are very popular with Aussies and Kiwis, that are located closer to New Zealand. With this said, all of these resorts can be reached by a short flight from Tahiti.

>More information about the Overwater bungalows in the South Pacific
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  1. Im interested in know where the overwater bungalows are located. Do they have any that close to Destin Florida?

    Reply

  2. I would love to reserve a week stay in an over the water bungalow including May 16th 2021.
    Our daughter ❤ turns 16 and this is her birthday request,..,.,….,.,

    Reply

    1. Pamela,

      We are simply an online guide to overwater bungalows and we don’t do bookings, but we do provide links to the best places to book each resort on the various information pages of the site. Best of luck! -Roger

      Reply

  3. Hi,
    Looking for New Years deals after December 25th for 5-10days. Any suggestions on last min deals??

    Please let me know. Looking to book asap

    thanks

    Reply

    1. Yanna,

      We are simply an online guide to overwater resorts and we don’t do bookings. We do have booking links for every resort on the site, so booking online is usually your best bet. Best of luck with this. In normal years it would be impossible to get a last-minute deal over Christmas, but this year might be different. I’d check agoda.com as they almost always have the best rates in the Maldives. -Roger

      Reply

  4. Any suggestions as to a nice place for an extended stay? Preferably on a beach, over water and food inclusive. I have heard a rumour about $30 k per couple for a one year stay…any substance to that? We don’t need a year,, but would certainly consider three to five months. We are retired, used to travel a lot, and have homes in Canada and Mexico. We are now a bit bored in Canada and Mexico is a bit dicey.
    Any deals?

    Reply

    1. David,

      I’m not aware of any good deals on overwater bungalows in countries where you can stay for extended periods. The Maldives now has a deal for US$30,000 to stay in a water villa for a whole year, but I believe you can only stay 30 days at a time. It’s a really tough time for anything like this, and hopefully next year it will get better. -Roger

      Reply