FRENCH POLYNESIA SEPT 2014: The Brando

THE BRANDO

September, 2014

The Brando Lagoon

The Brando began as a dream from actor, Marlon Brando.  He cherished his special place in the world, the atoll of Tetiaroa and hoped to share his vision with others about the interdependence between nature and mankind.  

Tetiaroa Atoll is a quick 20 minute flight on a 8 seat airplane from Tahiti.

Tetiaroa Atoll is a quick 20 minute flight on a 8 seat airplane from Tahiti.  There is a charge for this flight and arrangements must be made in advance.  The view as you approach this piece of heaven is incredible.  From the distance, the atoll looks like a strip of blue as as you get closer and closer, the blue turns into many shades of magic.

Atoll of Tetiaroa

The Tetiaroa Society which is a non profit evolved from Brando's dream with the wish to inspire sustainability.  It sponsors an Ecostation that allows scientists to work in a living case study to then bring their results to other situations around the world. The Ecostation is designed to LEED Platinum standards.  Some of their projects include Lagoon Fish and Crustacean Replenishment, Mosquito Population Control and a Bird and Green Turtle Sanctuary.  Part of their mission statement includes “Tetiaroa is a place of rare biodiversity and a natural sanctuary for birds and marine life. Preserving and protecting this rare habitat and its plant and animal life is critical to us.”

The Brando Resort offers 35 one, two and three bedroom villas along their vast beachfront.  Each villa is private and positioned along the beach with views and privacy in mind.  I am sitting in villa 210 which is a sunset villa.  It is an easy 3 minute walk from the central hub of the resort. The view of the reef is stunning.  Because The Brando is an atoll, I can see both the space within the atoll which is a lagoon and then the crashing waves along the reef separating the lagoon from the sea.

View from our living room

The outside area of each villa includes a beautiful thatched covered sitting area called a Fare Pote to enjoy a drink, breakfast, lunch and/or dinner.  Treat yourself to breakfast in your villa.  It is amazing!  Your breakfast is delivered to the Fare Pote, set up and then you are called on the phone to let you know that it has been delivered.  The respect for privacy to evident and it really is a romantic thing to do!

There is a wonderful plunge pool, lounge chairs and your own beach area outside the villa.  There is a zen feeling here.  While I was in the water snorkeling, I noticed that it was just my husband, myself and the lagoon fish in the stunning warm water of our lagoon.

1 Bedroom villa - Bedroom

The villas are huge!  The one bedroom villa that I'm in is over 1,000 square feet.  There is a media room with a large TV and a comfortable sitting area.  The bed is so comfortable and faces the water.  There is a separate dressing area that you walk through to access the bathroom. The bathroom has dual sinks and a large shower. Just off the bathroom is an outdoor private bathtub.  The bathroom amenities are just wonderful and totally organic.  The towels, bathrobes and sheets are Frette.

The two and three bedroom villas offer a large dining room table and cooking facilities cleverly hidden from view.  The two bedroom villa's bedrooms are on two different levels and the three bedroom villas offer a bedroom en suite completely separate from the adjacent two bed room villa.  The beachfront on both is quite vast.

Outside the 1 Bedroom Villa

Each villa has new bicycles to ride during the duration of your stay.  After 44 years of not riding a bicyle, I made it onto my bicycle and really enjoyed biking around the resort's beautiful, lush property.

Outside a 2 Bedroom Villa

As part of your “package” (really dislike this term), you have one massage per room per day from a list of four options.  The spa is subcontracted out by Varua Polynesian Spa.  My husband enjoyed the Taurumi Massage and I had the Head to Toe Scrub combined with the Taurumi Massage.  It was a lovely experience.  The spa complex offers a Hamman, plunge pool and tea area to relax in before and after your treatment.

Bathroom

The Brando has two restaurants The Beachcomber Cafe serving breakfast, lunch and dinner and the gourmet restaurant, Les Mutines.  Les Mutine's cuisine is inspired by the French Chef Guy Martin, a 2 star Michelin chef from Paris.  There are two bars as well.  Bob's Bar is a casual bar located on the beach and Te Manu Bar is a tree level bar with six small private terraces overlooking the beach.  This is the place to be at sunset!  The Brando also offers 24 hour room service.  The food is excellent.  Antoine Gonzalez is the Chef on property.  The french pastries and breads are so fresh.  He also uses top ingredients in all of his cuisine.  A great example are the mushrooms in his omelets.  He doesn't use the button mushrooms as most restaurants do.  Instead, Chef Antoine uses morels and it makes a difference!

The View of the Lagoon from our 1 Bedroom Villa

Lunches and dinners at The Brando are also special.  Try the chef's special and you won't go wrong.  I loved the Poisson Cru and also the Sauteed Shrimp and Chicken with Curry.  Boy, does Chef Antoine understand how to prepare the local fish!  I especially loved his preparation of the local lagoon fish, Parrot Fish.  All the food at each venue was perfect and I can't wait for you to try it yourself!

There are many things to do here.  The Brando has a billiard table, ping pong table, all sorts of outdoor sporting such as paddle boards, outrigger canoes and kayaks.  There is a Top Dive shop so diving and snorkeling are always available.  The is a large comfortable pool and a well equipped fitness center.  Babysitters are also available.

1 Bedroom Villa Dressing Room

In addition to the many independent things to do, The Brando offers activities and classes such as experiencing the reef, learning about the local culture, birds and green turtle conservation.  You can also learn how to carve coconuts or tie a pareo.  My husband enjoyed a couple of ukelele classes.

The Ultimate Four Hour Island Tour lead by Tihoni is a must do. Tihoni was a wonderful, knowledgeable guide that showed his “office” which is a string of 12 motus in the Tetiaroa atoll.  We learned about the local birds, visited a hidden lagoon, watched as sharks circled near us, and were told about the green turtles originating from Fiji that the scientists are studying.  This tour was the real deal.  It was paced well with snorkeling thrown in and The Brando's boat was luxurious and covered to protect from the sun.

Transitions to the resort once you arrive into Papeete and from the resort back to Papeete are the resort's only weakness.  Once on property, things move seamlessly.

A few other things to mention:

Wifi is included in the rate and is very strong.

There is a gift shop boutique and Pearl Shop, The Himerava close to the Concierge Desk and another boutique in the Spa.

1 Bedroom Villa

To close, The Brando is an amazing all inclusive resort to escape to.  It is not a social kind of resort as most people seemed to want to keep to themselves.  The staff respects this and is totally professional.  The resort is a “more for more” resort with a respect for privacy in your large and comfortable villa.  I hope that you can find your way to this very special place in the world.

The World is Our Playground!

Mari