Fatu Hiva

Introducing Fatu Hiva

Fatu Hiva is the island of superlatives: the most remote, the furthest south, the wettest, the lushest and the most authentic. It was also the first in the archipelago to be seen by the Spanish navigator Mendaña, in 1595. He christened it Santa Magdalena after the saint whose day it was.

With no landing strip and only poorly serviced by the bonitiers from Hiva Oa (75km), Fatu Hiva's untouched paradise remains, well, untouched. The phallic skyline of Hanavave Bay caused it to be named Baie des Verges (Bay of Penises). Outraged, the missionaries hastened to add a redeeming 'i' to make the name Baie des Vierges (Bay of Virgins). At sunset, the bay is drenched in purple and the surrounding peaks give off bronze reflections - an entrancing spectacle that has intoxicated hundreds of international yachties.

Last updated: Feb 17, 2009