The main island, located about 230 kilometres (125 nautical miles) northwest of Papeete, is surrounded by a lagoon and a barrier reef.

Produce of the island is mostly limited to what can be obtained from the sea and from the plentiful coconut trees, which were historically of economic importance for the production of copra.

The guns were set up at strategic points around the island to protect it against a potential military attack.

One of the most beautiful and photographed motus in Polynesia is Motu Tapu, to the west of the main island, especially before a hurricane carried away part of the tongues of sand at its ends.

Tuuraapuo Bay separates the main island from two islets of volcanic nature: Toopua and Toopua-iti.

Necklace-shaped coral reefs surround the central island and protect it from the open sea as if it were a dike.

The barrier reef is very wide in some sections, where it exceeds two kilometers in width to the southwest of the island.

To the east and north of the island, the reef supports a series of islets made up of coral ruins and sand (the motu).

Its color varies with depth: dark indigo when it is deep (Teavanui Passage, Poofai and Faanui bays) and pastel shades of blue and green elsewhere.

Corals, when they are very close to the surface, along with the fauna that colonizes them, come to wear a wide variety of colors: egg yolk, red, blue or purple.

It is an extinct volcano which was active in the Upper Pliocene (between 3.45 and 3.10 million years ago), and then underwent at least partial depression and strong erosion under a hot and humid tropical climate.

The days are still sunny, but although the dry season is present, this does not prevent the occurrence of some showers or even thunderstorms in the afternoon.

In addition, there are small, two-seater buggies for hire in Vaitape, and motorboats can be rented to explore the lagoon.

Using glass bottom boats, diving, and snorkeling, tourists can explore the reef with thousands of colorful coral fish.

In the deep lagoon, tourists can feed barracudas and sharks during guided diving excursions.

The hike to the top of Mount Pahia,[21] from where, according to legend, the war god Oro descended on a rainbow, leads through orchards, forests, orchid fields and fern-covered crevices.

Another large Aboriginal ceremonial site is Marae Marotitini, in the north of the main island, right on the beach.

The stone platform of the complex was originally 42 m (138 ft) long and was restored in 1968 by Japanese archaeologist Yosihiko Sinoto.

About five kilometers south of Vaitape, directly on the main road, is Bloody Mary's, a bar and restaurant frequented by many guests with its own yacht jetty.

The two wooden plaques at the entrance list 230 names, including Marlon Brando, Jane Fonda, and Diana Ross.

In the relatively densely populated and intensively used lowland regions for a Polynesian atoll, hardly any remnants of the original vegetation remain.

In contrast, the flora of the high, steep mountains, which are difficult to access, remains largely untouched.

[23] The back beach areas are fringed with low-lying, heavily vegetated Cordia subcordata and Hibiscus tiliaceus.

A cultivated form with a straight trunk and a rounded crown, Hibiscus tiliaceus var.

[23] Up to the foot of the steep mountainous region, there is mainly cultivated land, with plantations of coconut palms, breadfruit trees, Tahitian chestnuts (Inocarpus), cassava (Manihot), and tropical fruits, as well as orchid plantations for the decoration of tourist hotels.

[29] The best preserved ceremonial site is the Marae Fare Opu in Faʻanui Bay, located directly on the beach.

Today, a road runs through the area, so the overview of the site, which is quite large[ambiguous], has been lost.

The site consisted of a rectangular, level area bounded by boulders and a stone platform.

Bora-Bora is one of the seven municipalities of the Leeward Islands Administrative Subdivision (French: Subdivision administrative des Îles sous le Vent), and in turn is subdivided into the three submunicipalities (French: Communes associées) of Nunue, Faʻanui (plus Tupai Atoll, further north) and Anau.

However, the preferred means of transport for tourists are bicycle, moped or motorcycle, and the shuttle service offered by some hotels.