Motu Tane
Best for. Travellers curious about the most private corner of Bora Bora, happy to take it in from a lagoon boat rather than expecting to step onto the sand.
Best spot. The open lagoon water near the eastern reef, where a passing tour gives you the view of the palms and the estate, then drops you onto a snorkelling stop you can actually swim from.
Know this. Motu Tane is a private island, not a public beach. There is no landing. For sand under your feet, Matira and the lagoon motu picnics are the answer.
Motu Tane is the quiet answer to a question Bora Bora rarely asks aloud. What does true privacy on the lagoon actually look like? The island is a small estate of thatched roof fares on soft sand near the eastern reef, bought by the cosmetics founder Francois Nars in 1997 and held for more than twenty years, then offered for sale as one of the most refined private islands in the South Pacific. It is a beautiful thing to see, and that is precisely the point. This is not a beach you visit. It is a beach you glimpse.
The honest read matters because the name appears on lists of Bora Bora beaches as though you could plan a day there, and you cannot. There is no public landing, no club, no day access. What you get is the view from the water, the palms leaning over a private fringe of sand, the calm lagoon around it, and a sense of how the island looks when one owner has the run of it. As a sight on a lagoon tour it is genuinely interesting, the most exclusive corner of an already exclusive island.
So the useful advice is about where to put your towel instead. The free public sand at Matira gives you the soft beach and the easy swim that Motu Tane only promises from a distance, and a lagoon tour gives you the snorkelling and the picnic on water you can actually enter. Admire Motu Tane for what it is, a private estate of rare beauty, then spend your beach day where the sand is open to you and your money buys a swim rather than a glimpse.
There is no club here, and that is the point
Motu Tane is a private island, so there is no beach club, no daybed hire and no public table on its sand. The honest move is to enjoy the view from a lagoon tour and book your day on the water or at a beach that is open to you. We send you to the Bora Bora directory to arrange it.
The closest thing to a club experience near Motu Tane is a lagoon tour that loops the eastern reef, where you pass the private island, then stop to snorkel and share a motu picnic on water you can actually enter. That is the right way to take in this corner of Bora Bora, and the operators and inclusions are to be confirmed at the time of booking.
For a relaxed lagoonfront table and a real beach day, the public sand at Matira and its handful of casual venues are the established choice, and the resort beaches on nearby Motu Piti Aau hold the polished tables, though their access is largely for guests and any day visit is to be confirmed. Tell us your dates and we will help line up a lagoon day or a beach you can land on.
Eastern lagoon, Bora Bora
Motu Tane lies on the eastern side of the Bora Bora lagoon, a short boat ride from the main island. Because it is private, there is no road, no ferry and no public landing, so the only way to see it is from the water.
A lagoon tour from Vaitape or the resorts is the natural way to pass the island, usually as part of a wider loop with snorkelling stops and a picnic on an open motu. Bring a hat, reef safe sun cover, a mask and water, and treat the island itself as a view rather than a destination.
Photo: Lagoon Service Bora Bora via GoogleBook a beach club
Tell us your dates and party size and we will help arrange a lagoon tour past Motu Tane or a beach day you can land on. We reply by email.
We are an independent editorial resource. Booking requests are passed to clubs and operators, and some may earn us a commission at no cost to you. Prices, availability and opening status are set by the venue and are to be confirmed at the time of booking.
Common questions about Motu Tane
Can you visit Motu Tane in Bora Bora?
No, not as a beach. Motu Tane is a private island estate, not a public beach, so there is no landing or open access. You can admire it from the lagoon on a tour or from the water near the east reef, but the sand itself is private. For a beach you can actually walk onto, head to Matira.
Who owns Motu Tane?
The cosmetics founder Francois Nars bought the island in 1997 and held it for more than twenty years, developing it into a private estate of traditional thatched roof fares. It has since been offered for sale as an ultra luxury private island, so current ownership is to be confirmed, but it has remained a private holding rather than a public resort.
Is there a beach on Motu Tane?
Yes, the island carries its own fringe of soft sand and a calm stretch of lagoon, but it is private and not open to visitors. The beauty is real and the setting is exceptional, which is exactly why it commands its price. From a boat you see the palms and the sand, but you do not step onto them.
Where can you actually swim near Motu Tane?
The honest answer is the public sand at Matira on the main island, and the open lagoon water on a tour. Several operators cross the lagoon near the eastern motu for snorkelling, where the water is calm and clear and the marine life is good, though conditions are typical and never guaranteed and there is no public lifeguard.
Is Motu Tane worth seeing?
As a sight on a lagoon tour, yes, because it shows you what a private Bora Bora island looks like at its most refined. As a beach to plan a day around, no, because you cannot land on it. Treat it as part of the scenery and book your beach day where the sand is open to you.
