This Bora Bora Dream Pictures Review is part of a trip report on Bora Bora, Tahiti and New Zealand luxury resorts, dining and activities. Since neither of us is anything remotely resembling a professional photographer, we often wish we had better photos of our family. So I was happy to find Vincent Brossault of Bora Bora Dream Pictures, and while it's not inexpensive, I booked it as an anniversary present to ourselves.
For the prior posts, please see:
Review: American A321 Business Class New York to Los Angeles
Paradise! Can You Guess the Place?
Review: Residence Inn by Marriott LA
Review: Los Angeles International Lounge
Review: Air Tahiti Nui Business Class
A Must in New Zealand: The Farm at Cape Kidnappers, Hawkes Bay
Review: American Airlines A321 First Class JFK to LAX
Four Seasons Bora Bora Restaurant Reviews and Menus
Four Seasons Bora Bora: Top 10 Things to Do
Review: InterContinental Bora Bora Resort Thalasso Spa
Bora Bora Dream Pictures Photo Tour Options and Costs
Lagoon Explorer Tour (this is the one we chose)
- Day time circle island guided tour of the lagoon, snorkeling in the coral garden, cocktail on board the boat
- Departs 2:30pm, 4 hours
- 150 high resolution edited photographs
- XFO 55,000 or $550
Magic Colors Tour
- Afternoon and sunset circle island guided tour of the lagoon, snorkeling in the coral garden and by the reef, cocktail by an islet, in front of the sunset
- Departs 2:30pm, 4 hours
- 200 high resolution edited photographs
- XFO 65,000 or $650
Ultimate Bora Bora Tour
- Circle island guided tour of the lagoon, snorkeling in the coral garden and by the reef, observing the manta rays, cocktail by an islet, delicious Polynesian lunch
- Departs 8:30am, 5.5 hours
- 200 high resolution edited photographs
- XFO 85,000 or $850
There are a few other options as well, but these are the most popular ones. A 30% deposit is due at time of booking, and cancellation must be at least 24 hours before the day of the tour. The deposit is refundable only in the event of bad weather, medical reasons, or problems related to the activity itself.
Our Bora Bora Dream Pictures Experience
Vincent Brossault was already waiting for us at the boat pier at the appointed time, in his small but nicely appointed boat, a Beacher V8:
We set off and were soon enjoying views of Otemanu and the brilliant blue of the lagoon, which Vincent used as a backdrop for many of our shots. Since the last time we did a professional photo session our son was about 10 months old, we at first felt a bit self-conscious posing for photos, but the weather was so beautiful we didn't really have to force any smiles.
I liked that there were also some shots of us facing away from the camera and simply enjoying the view:
Of course in the latter half of the cruise, our son started getting antsy, and fortunately it was time for some water play. Here's my husband dislodging a 65 pound kid from his shoulders:
Or throwing him, to my son's great delight:
Towards the end, we reached the Coral Garden, where we had also been with Pure Snorkeling (future post coming). This is a good place to see corals and smaller tropical fish, and we were happy to return.
The Verdict
We couldn't have asked for better weather, and really enjoyed our Lagoon Explorer Tour with Vincent Brossault of Bora Bora Dream Pictures. While my husband balked a bit when I told him the cost, I personally think the Lagoon Explorer fee is reasonable, given that it's an entirely private tour and photo session for 4 hours, and Vincent was a friendly guy with a great sense of humor as well as knowledgeable about Bora Bora from living there and his training as a naturalist and marine biologist. As promised, we received a link to a Dropbox of edited photos from Vincent about 1 week after our Lagoon Explorer Tour.
We're thrilled to have better quality photos of our family than we can ever manage to take ourselves. I would caution that there isn't much shade on the boat, so we were very glad to have our sun hats and sun protective swim shirts as well as sunscreen. Make sure to protect yourself well, since the sun in Bora Bora is extremely strong.
I'll leave you with a quick video clip taken on the boat:
Disclosure: I paid the regular retail rate for our Lagoon Tour and photo session. The opinions expressed in this review are mine.
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