Tahuata

Tahuata lies south of Hiva Oa across a channel that runs hard, and it has no airstrip, so everything comes by boat. It was the first Marquesan island Europeans landed on, in 1595, and later the first the French claimed. The main village, Vaitahu, has a church with a carved interior and a small museum, and the island has a reputation across the archipelago for bone, wood and stone carving. It shares a named UNESCO component with Hiva Oa.

History

Tahuata was inhabited by Polynesians as early as AD 200, and in later pre-European times its tribes were allied with the Nuku province of Hiva Oa. The Spanish expedition of Álvaro de Mendaña sighted it on 22 July 1595, named it Santa Cristina and landed at Vaitahu, and James Cook visited in 1774. In 1842, with the island united under the chief Iotete, the French admiral Dupetit-Thouars had him sign a declaration on 1 May recognising French sovereignty over the southern Marquesas; when Iotete realised he had lost his authority he took to the mountains, fighting broke out on 18 September 1842, killing 24 French sailors and two officers, and peace was signed on 23 September. As French interest moved to Tahiti, the garrison at Vaitahu dwindled and was abandoned in 1847 (Wikipedia, Tahuata).

What's there

• The carving tradition - bone, wood and stone work the island is known for.
• The Vaitahu church - the carved interior of the village church.
• The white sand bays - Hanamoenoa and others on the western coast.
• The 1595 landfall - the first European landing in the Marquesas.

When to go

May to October is the dry season and calmest for the crossing. The Bordelais channel runs hard and crossings are cancelled in swell. Boats must be arranged.

What to expect

There is no airstrip and the channel crossing is often rough. Accommodation is a handful of pensions. Nono flies on the beaches bite badly.

Nearby

Hiva Oa is north across the channel, and Fatu Hiva is southeast.

Key facts