Le Nuku Hiva, run by Pearl Resorts, is a lodge on a hillside garden above Taiohae Bay, the small seaside town that is the administrative centre of the Marquesas. Its 20 bungalows, 19 with a bay view and one premium bay-view bungalow, combine modern comfort with local materials, many of them carved or decorated by Marquesan artists. A walk leads down to a warm black-sand beach and into Taiohae, about ten minutes away by car. The lodge has a restaurant, a bar and lounge, an infinity pool, a gift shop of Marquesan crafts, free bicycles and free wifi, and it arranges excursions and carving classes. The house aims for an authentic, unhurried stay in keeping with the island's way of life. Beyond the lodge, Nuku Hiva is an island of raw nature, where wild horses, goats and boar are a common sight, the Hakaui waterfall drops about a thousand feet, and most islanders live in the three villages of Taiohae, Taipivai and Hatiheu, many working in wood or stone carving, hunting and fishing. The airport is about an hour and a half's drive away.
- Nearest airport
- Nuku Hiva airport, about an hour and a half by road
- Rooms
- 20 bungalows
Insider tip Book one of the carving classes the lodge arranges; carving in wood and stone is still a living trade on the island.
Why I choose it A small lodge of carved wooden bungalows above Taiohae Bay, the natural base for the Marquesas.