French Polynesia
Lost a ring in French Polynesia?
Fakarava, Manihi, Nuku Hiva, Tubuai and Raivavae are covered below. Tahiti, Moorea, Bora Bora and their neighbours have pages of their own.
Yes, an earring lost on a pink sand motu at Fakarava can be looked for, as long as the picnic spot can be found again. On islands this far apart, the day, the motu and the patch of sand where you ate are what decide it.
Ring Seekers is a lost ring and jewellery recovery service that works with experienced local metal detectorists to search for a ring, wedding band, watch, keys or phone lost in French Polynesia.
Tell us what happened and where. We choose an experienced detectorist who knows the beach, brief them with your map and photos, and tell you honestly if the odds are poor.
High islands, atolls and a reefless archipelago
The Society Islands, from Tahiti and Moorea to Bora Bora and Maupiti, are mountainous islands set in lagoons, many of them with motu. The Tuamotus are atolls, rings of coral islets around a lagoon that meets the ocean through passes, as at Rangiroa, Tikehau and Fakarava.
The Marquesas have no reef, only a coral shelf, and on Nuku Hiva the mountains drop straight into the sea above beaches of soft black sand. The Austral Islands lie south of Tahiti, and Tubuai, with its cooler climate, has a vast, shallow lagoon.
Working with us from another island, or from home
A WhatsApp chat that follows your trip
Write from a guesthouse on an atoll or after the flight home. It is the same chat with the same person from the first message to the last.
The brief carries your itinerary
Along with your pins and photos, the detectorist gets the order of islands, flights and boat trips, so the day you lost it sits in context.
When the water is too open
A ring that went over the side on a crossing between islands is a long shot, and you would hear that from us first. A loss on a motu or a beach is a different conversation.
Costs laid out early
We explain the costs before any search is booked, and you are welcome to ask about them in your first message.
Our Ring Finder Service Locations in French Polynesia
Start with your island
If you were on Tahiti, Moorea, Bora Bora, Raiatea, Taha'a, Huahine, Maupiti, Rangiroa or Tikehau, open the matching area page from the list above. For the other islands, the detail is in the cards below.
Where on the map you were
Tahiti and Moorea
Papeete and its waterfront, Vaiava Beach at PK18 in Punaauia, Lafayette Beach in Arue and Pointe Venus in Mahina, then Temae, Ta'ahiamanu and Tiahura across the water on Moorea.
Bora Bora and the outer islands
Matira and the Bora Bora lagoon, Raiatea and Taha'a, Huahine from Fare to Avea, Maupiti, and the Tuamotu atolls of Rangiroa and Tikehau.
Fakarava
Fakarava is a Tuamotu atoll north-east of Tahiti with beaches of soft white and pink sand, where people come for a picnic and an afternoon sleep. Excursions go out to motu with pink sand beaches, and visitors explore on foot, by bike or by kayak, or take a paddleboard or windsurfer onto the lagoon. Divers let the current carry them through Garuae pass into the lagoon.
Manihi
Manihi has white sand beaches, motu and a clear lagoon for swimming and snorkelling, and it is the home of pearl farming in French Polynesia, with most farms open to visitors. Fishing trips stop on a motu to grill the catch on the beach. The airport is on a motu, and the main village is Turipaoa.
Nuku Hiva and Anaho Bay
Nuku Hiva is the largest of the Marquesas, with black sand beaches and clear water for swimming, snorkelling and kayaking. The main village, Taiohe, is in the south and the airport in the north. Anaho Bay, in the north-east, is reached by boat or on a hike of over an hour, and its white sand beach is sheltered from the wind and the ocean waves.
Tubuai
Tubuai, in the Austral Islands, has a vast, shallow lagoon with the wind that kitesurfers want. Picnic trips go to motu Toena for some fishing and snorkelling, and Tavana Beach is a place to stop for a swim. The district of Mataura has the town hall and a craft centre, and the best way round the island is by bike or on foot.
Raivavae
Raivavae, also in the Austral Islands, has a lagoon with many motu, and Vaiamanu motu has turquoise water to lie back and relax in. Excursions and boat trips usually include lunch, so tell us where the boat stopped to eat as well as where you swam.
Places we cover in French Polynesia
- Papeete, Tahiti
- Punaauia, Tahiti
- Arue, Tahiti
- Mahina, Tahiti
- Moorea
- Vaitape, Bora Bora
- Uturoa, Raiatea
- Taha'a
- Fare, Huahine
- Maupiti
- Avatoru, Rangiroa
- Tuherahera, Tikehau
- Fakarava
- Turipaoa, Manihi
- Taiohe, Nuku Hiva
- Anaho Bay, Nuku Hiva
- Mataura, Tubuai
- Tavana Beach, Tubuai
- Motu Toena, Tubuai
- Raivavae
- Vaiamanu motu, Raivavae
What goes missing on a trip through the islands
Rings, pearls and gold
- Wedding bands and engagement rings
- Pearl rings and pendants bought on the trip
- Gold chains
- Earrings
- Bracelets and bangles
Worn in the water or carried ashore
- Oura and other smart rings
- Dive and sports watches
- Phones
- Hire car, scooter and bike keys
- Sunglasses with metal frames
Days out beyond the two area pages
- A picnic on a pink sand motu, Fakarava
- A drift through Garuae pass, Fakarava
- A pearl farm visit on Manihi
- Lunch on a motu after fishing, Manihi
- The boat or the hike to Anaho Bay, Nuku Hiva
- Kitesurfing on the lagoon at Tubuai
- A swim at Tavana Beach, Tubuai
- A day on Vaiamanu motu, Raivavae
How a case moves from WhatsApp to the sand
The same four steps on every island, from Papeete to Raivavae.
What, where, and which day of the trip
On WhatsApp, say what went missing, which island you were on, and on which day it happened.
A pin, and a picture of what is missing
A pin for the beach, motu or boat stop, and a picture of the missing piece, or of its partner if it was one of a pair.
Someone who can fly or sail there
Most of these islands are reached by air, so we look for a metal detectorist who can get there and hand them your pins, photos and notes.
Booked only on your word
Nothing is booked until you have decided. Once a search has taken place, you get a straight report on it.
Questions about French Polynesia
An earring went missing on a picnic motu at Fakarava.
Tell us which excursion took you and which motu it landed on, then where the picnic was laid out and where you swam. Send a close photo of the other earring. On pink sand, a photo of your spot with the water behind it helps the detectorist line the place up again, and the boat crew can say where they landed.
My watch came off on a drift dive through Garuae pass.
Garuae is the largest pass in French Polynesia and its currents are strong, so start by ruling out the boat and the jetty: could it have come off before you went in? Give us the dive centre and the time. The current carries divers into the lagoon, so the place where the boat picked you up is worth a pin too.
A pearl ring I had just bought went missing on Manihi.
Retrace the day from the pearl farm. List the farm, any boat trip, and any motu where you stopped to eat, in order, with a pin for each. The only road on the atoll runs along the shore for just a few miles, so if you were on land the route is short. Send the photo or receipt from the farm, which shows the setting.
My phone went missing on the way to Anaho Bay on Nuku Hiva.
Say whether you came by boat or on foot. By boat, the boat itself and the landing on the beach come first. On foot, the hike takes over an hour, so tell us where you last remember using the phone, and send any photos a companion took on the way, since the times on them place you on the path.
A bracelet came off while kitesurfing on the lagoon at Tubuai.
The lagoon at Tubuai is vast and shallow, which is part of why kitesurfers come. Tell us where you launched, roughly where you were riding, and whether you fell. If you went on to motu Toena or stopped at Tavana Beach that day, include those as well.
A necklace was lost on Vaiamanu motu at Raivavae.
Tell us where on the motu you settled, whether the boat stayed in one place all day, and where lunch was served if the trip included it. Describe the chain, the clasp and any pendant.
Something went missing during a cruise stop in the Marquesas.
Cruises can take in all six inhabited Marquesas Islands, so work out the island and the landing first; the cruise programme gives both, with your times ashore. Then pin the beach, village or trail you visited there.
We were on Moorea and then Bora Bora. Which page should we read?
Moorea is on the Tahiti and Moorea page, with Papeete, Punaauia, Arue and Mahina. Bora Bora is on the Bora Bora and the outer islands page, with Raiatea, Taha'a, Huahine, Maupiti, Rangiroa and Tikehau. Each page gives its beaches a card of their own.
French Polynesia
Name the motu or the bay
A WhatsApp message with the island, a pin and a photo of the missing piece is all it takes to begin.