My wife and I enjoyed our stay at Punatea Village. Our cabin was close to the beach, so we had the sound of the surf to put us to sleep at night. The hotel is on the windward side of Tahiti iti, which gave us active surf and a cool breeze all day and evening. The best part of our stay was that it is far from the expense and crush of the "tourist" destinations. The only major drawback was the lack of restaurants in the area, so we made do cooking ourselves
The people are friendly and helpful, but it helps to speak a little French,though we managed without it. If you wish to be pampered, this it not a location you would like, but if you are coming to mingle with the locals and enjoy quiet and relaxation, Punatea Village is a good place to spend a week or two. You can always drive back to Papeete if you want a more active (expensive) experience, but know that the traffic on Tahiti is a challenge.
