Gay Papeete

The capital of Tahiti and its second-largest city, Papeete lies on the northwest shore of Tahiti, 10 miles away from the island of Mo'orea. Papeete is the place to be in Tahiti if you're interested in hitting the town at all. The area is the only place in French Polynesia to have an international airport, and the city has one of the main ports of call for all cruise ships coming to the Society Islands. That means almost every person who visits French Polynesia will likely make their way through Papeete at some point. This includes the crew on crusie ships as well as flight attendants, who as we all know, are generally (stereotypically) likely to belong to the LGBT community. This may be the only place in the area you'll find another gay person unless you happened to come in on a gay cruise.

Papeete is known for having some limited gay-themed nightlife options. Le Piano Bar on Rue de Ecoles in central Papeete has a clientele that includes rae rae, drag queens, and local gay men and women—but only after about 1am and only on weekends. The Scorpio Disco behind the Vaima Centre in Papeete is also popular for “popa’a” (western gays) and rae rae, but isn’t distinctly gay by any means. The whole island territory is not homophobic really though, so any venue you happen to find yourself will be fun and friendly. After all, everyone there is likely on vacation themselves! 

A nice little day trip from Papeete is a hike in Mo'orea across the channel. You can go hiking and explore the area, and it could be nice to get away from the city feel that Papeete might give you. Papeete also is a major launching point to other islands such as Bora Bora. If you're just stopping in the city before heading on somewhere else, don't stress about missing out on Papeete—you'll likely have to come back in order to head home and you can make some last minute visits before you leave.






Photos courtesy of Tahiti Tourisme

The Gay Scene in Papeete

View the Gay Scene in Papeete