French Polynesia Tourism Statistics

French Polynesia is a South Pacific destination made up of 118 islands and atolls across five archipelagos, with Tahiti, Moorea, Bora Bora, the Tuamotus and the Marquesas among its best-known visitor areas. Tourism is one of the territory’s major external-earning activities, supported by overnight visitors, cruise tourism, hotels, restaurants, transport, excursions and local commerce.

French Polynesia welcomed 281,227 tourists in 2025, up 6.6% from 263,766 tourists in 2024.

• From 2014 to 2025, French Polynesia averaged 199,494 tourists per year.
• Tourist arrivals rose from 180,602 in 2014 to 236,650 in 2019, the main pre-pandemic benchmark.
• Arrivals fell to 77,017 tourists in 2020 and 82,550 in 2021 during the pandemic period.
• Recovery accelerated from 218,750 tourists in 2022 to 261,813 in 2023, 263,766 in 2024 and 281,227 in 2025.
• The 2025 total was 18.8% higher than 2019, calculated from the full official totals.

Note: “Tourists” are visitors who spend at least one night in French Polynesia, either in land-based accommodation or on an intra-Polynesian cruise. “Visitors” also include same-day excursionists, such as passengers on transpacific cruises.

Tourism spending in French Polynesia reached 100.19 billion F.CFP in 2024, up 0.7% from 99.53 billion F.CFP in 2023.

• Tourist spending increased from 41.17 billion F.CFP in 2013 to 50.12 billion F.CFP in 2015, 64.92 billion F.CFP in 2018 and 70.62 billion F.CFP in 2019.
• Spending fell sharply during the pandemic, dropping by 60.2% from 70.62 billion F.CFP in 2019 to 28.12 billion F.CFP in 2020.
• Spending declined slightly again to 26.84 billion F.CFP in 2021, before rebounding to 76.7 billion F.CFP in 2022.
• Tourist spending rose by 29.8% from 76.7 billion F.CFP in 2022 to 99.53 billion F.CFP in 2023.
• The 2024 total was 41.9% higher than 2019, calculated from the full official annual values.
• In 2023, North American tourists generated 50.6 billion F.CFP, while tourists from metropolitan France generated 26.8 billion F.CFP.
• Tourist spending in 2023 was nearly five times the value of French Polynesia’s local product exports.

Note: Tourist spending figures are for French Polynesia. The detailed 2023 visitor-spending survey covers nonresident tourist expenditure in French Polynesia and excludes spending outside the territory, such as international airfare and tour-operator margins. The 2024 figure comes from the official tourism economic-impact dashboard sourced to the Institut de la statistique de la Polynésie française.

The United States and France were the two largest source markets in 2025, together accounting for 69% of tourist arrivals.

• The United States sent 108,503 tourists, or 38.6% of total tourist arrivals.
• France sent 85,574 tourists, or 30.4% of the total.
• Europe excluding France accounted for 39,065 tourists, or 13.9%.
• Pacific markets accounted for 24,170 tourists, while Asia accounted for 9,992 tourists.
• Canada accounted for 9,689 tourists, or 3.4% of total arrivals.

Note: Shares are calculated from the official 2025 tourist total of 281,227. The table separates the United States and Canada from North America, and France from the rest of Europe.

July was the busiest month in 2025, with 30,990 tourists, or 11% of the year’s tourist arrivals.

• January was the quietest month, with 14,105 tourists, or 5% of annual arrivals.
• The main mid-year travel period was strong, with 26,137 tourists in June, 30,990 in July and 25,076 in August.
• September also ranked high, with 28,274 tourists, accounting for 10.1% of annual tourist arrivals.
• November was quieter, with 19,714 tourists, before arrivals rose to 21,454 in December.

French Polynesia’s visitor appeal is centered on its 118 islands and atolls, lagoons, marine landscapes and Polynesian cultural heritage.

• Tahiti is the main gateway and the largest island in French Polynesia.
• Moorea and Bora Bora are among the best-known Society Islands for lagoons, volcanic scenery and resort stays.
• The Tuamotu Archipelago is known for coral atolls, diving and marine biodiversity.
• Taputapuātea on Ra’iātea is a UNESCO World Heritage cultural landscape and seascape.
• Te Henua Enata – The Marquesas Islands is also listed by UNESCO as a mixed cultural and natural World Heritage property.

French Polynesia recorded 4.6 million tourist nights in 2025, up 8% from 4.3 million tourist nights in 2024.

• The average tourist stay was 16.5 days in 2025.
• Paid accommodation accounted for 3.6 million tourist nights, or 78.6% of tourist nights.
• During the third quarter of 2025, international hotels had a 76.5% average occupancy rate.
• The average hotel room revenue was 80,300 F.CFP in the third quarter of 2025.
• Tourism-characteristic businesses employed 14,287 salaried workers in September 2025, equal to 18.7% of total salaried employment in French Polynesia.