World's Best

The 5 Best Resorts in the South Pacific

The best resorts in the South Pacific, according to Travel + Leisure readers, combine the region’s stunning natural beauty with luxurious accommodations that include top-tier dining and facilities.

By

Chloe Sachdev

Updated on October 14, 2022

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View from the hydrotherapy spa room at the Namale Resort, with views to the water from the floor-to-ceiling windows — Photo: Courtesy of Namale Resort & Spa

The South Pacific continues to entice travelers with its postcard-perfect landscapes. Here, amid the world's biggest ocean, you'll find thousands of islands with white-sand beaches, turquoise lagoons, and vibrant underwater coral forests. The best resorts in the South Pacific, according to Travel + Leisure readers, allow visitors to succumb to their barefoot fantasies but with all the added perks — pampering spas, excellent dining, deeply comfortable bedrooms, and overwater villas.

Every year for our World's Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe — to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise ships, spas, airlines, and more. Hotels (including safari lodges) were rated on their facilities, location, service, food, and overall value. Properties were classified as city hotel, resort, or safari lodge based on their locations and amenities.

The majority of this year's list of the best resorts in the South Pacific are in French Polynesia, an archipelago of 118 islands with rich marine life and glassy waves. Bora-Bora is a firm favorite with T+L readers, with three of the five resorts floating on this volcanic island.

In Tahiti, French Polynesia's largest island, InterContinental Tahiti Resort & Spa earned the No. 5 spot for its lush tropical grounds, infinity pools, and convenient location (just over a mile from the airport and city shopping). "The location is fantastic. The on-site lagoon is simply breathtaking and worth the stay even only for a night," one voter claimed.

On the southwest end of Motu To'opua, the Conrad Bora Bora Nui continues to captivate T+L readers. Contributing to its appeal: sprawling overwater villas with private plunge pools and a plethora of dining options, from breakfast in a canoe to Ahi Ma'a, a traditional style of 12-hour cooking in an underground oven made from coconut leaves and rocks. "Breakfast being brought to our patio by canoe was amazing, and the food was truly incredible," one T+L reader said.

Read on to see which other properties T+L readers deemed the best resorts in the South Pacific — and why the all-inclusive Namale Resort & Spa in Fiji captured the No.1 spot.

1. Namale Resort & Spa, Savusavu, Fiji

View of Namale resort buildings from the water — Courtesy of Namale Resort & Spa

Located on its own private 525 acres on Fiji's northern island of Vanua Levu, this resort has just 22 private bures and villas, with a 4-to-1 staff-to-guest ratio. Guests can swim and dive in gin-clear waters, chase waterfalls, and trek though virgin forests – or do nothing at all. All-inclusive packages cover watersports, horseback riding, kayaking, and more. "Beautiful part of the world and Fiji, some of the world's best diving on the doorstep," one T+L reader claimed. Choose between a sprawling thatched-roof villa with a private pool, Jacuzzi, and deck, or one of the traditionally styled Fijian bures, decked out in local wood and natural stone, which are designed to blend into the tropical background. The resort's spa is a massive 10,000-square-foot space perched on the edge of the Koro Sea, with aromatherapy pools, waterfall massage, sauna, and a cold-plunge pool. "Heaven on Earth," one T+L reader summarized.

Score: 96.64

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