Rent a catamaran in Mo'orea · Fountaine Pajot Athena 38 (2005)
Description of David's catamaran
Catamaran Fountaine Pajot Athena 38 12m
I charter my fully renovated 2005 Fountaine Pajot Athena 38 catamaran (January 2024) from Moorea for private cruises for 1 to 4 passengers from the same group. I decided to change my life in 2022 to share my passion for the sea and cooking. I was formerly a gourmet chef in the South of France. Looking forward to welcoming you aboard Tiva for an adventure on the most beautiful lagoons of French Polynesia... Moorea Mini-Cruise: Starting at 3 days / 2 nights, we will sail in the most beautiful lagoons of Moorea: Via'are Lagoon at Pointe V'aipua and its coral garden Haapiti Lagoon with views of Tahiti and its magnificent dolphins in the pass... Cook's Bay and its anchorage at Pointe Paveau Opunohu Bay and its anchorage at Pointe Temaeroa near the Tipaniers. We'll go swimming with rays, sharks, and turtles in the Tipaniers lagoon and its coral garden... You might also see whales from the boat's deck, depending on the season... 5-Day Moorea and Tahiti Cruise Leeward Islands Cruise, Embarkation in Huahine: Starting at 8 days / 7 nights, I offer a Leeward Islands cruise. Day 1 / Huahine: Embarkation, visit to Fare and its sunset at the Yacht Club with a view of Raiatea Island... Day 2 / Huahine: Picnic on a paradise beach...and its coral garden. Day 3 / Raiatea: Visit to its downtown market. Day 4 / The lagoon in Tahaa: Visit to the Pearl Farm and the two Rum Distilleries. Day 5 / Tahaa: Snorkeling at Coral Garden. Day 6: Bora Bora Barbecue on a Private Motu. Day 7: Bora Bora Swim with Sharks and Rays. Day 8: Disembarkation in Bora Bora before 5:00 PM. You will enjoy the most beautiful lagoons of the Society Islands archipelago. We embark on the first day at 9:00 AM and disembark on the last day at 5:00 PM after lunch. The catamaran is always chartered with its owner/skipper and a live-in hostess for comfort and safety at sea. The boat is chartered exclusively for the passengers of the same group, from 1 to 4 people. The port hull and its two double cabins, as well as a private bathroom, will be assigned to you. Not included in the price: Meals will be prepared at anchor by David (former chef) with your participation. The meal package per person per day (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) is €80/day/person, including water, coffee, and tea. Meal packages, skipper, and hostess are mandatory and must be paid 45 days prior to arrival by bank transfer. Soft drinks and alcoholic beverages are not included. Moderate consumption is requested. In case of obvious excess, the captain reserves the right to disembark passengers at the first accessible port. Excessive alcohol consumption is dangerous. It is very difficult to create specific menus in French Polynesia. Any port, marina, or mooring buoy fees are the responsibility of the passengers, as we are almost always at anchor overnight. We sail even in light winds. We will sail according to the weather conditions.
Equipment available on the catamaran
Services provided by David
Overall rating
We couldn’t have asked for a better experience! Our 2 kids also had the most amazing time; happy and comfortable the entire time. We hope to do it all again one day.. A huge thanks to David for keeping our family safe and well fed whilst navigating the most spectacular places in this magical part of the world. Thanks also to Elise for a toning all our requests! Best of luck for the rest of the season and we hope to see you both again! 🥰🌺
David is wonderful captain. Maintains a clean and comfortable boat. David took us on a a couple of beautiful snorkeling adventures. We had a great visit to Motu Tiahura island. David would always point out the whales while we were sailing. David is also a professional chef, the cooking was absolutely perfect. All the meals were perfectly crafted. Overall perfect 5 start experience with David. David truly cares about his guests. Not a single detail was missed.
David is a great host, he picked us up at the airport and personally dropped us to the ferry terminal at 4am. More importantly, David’s cooking skills are unparalleled with any other captain…every dish was thoughtfully paired and very flavorful. You may find newer or nicer boats but you won’t find a humble boat owner that is passionate about serving others and ensuring you have a comfortable stay. He organized a whale tour for us which was simply magical and probably the highlight of our 8 days in French Polynesia. There are several tours to choose from but I highly encourage you to book through David’s network. We felt we received special treatment since he has a great relationship with the tour operator. His hostess Elise was kind, friendly and made sure we were comfortable throughout our stay. Together Elise and David made our last few days in French Polynesia very special.
Fantastic from start to finish: the boat, the food, the team. Special mention for making us feel safe during the whole stay!
We had an amazing catamaran trip on the island of Moorea! Captain David was fantastic—he knew all the best spots for snorkeling, and we got to swim with blacktip reef sharks and stingrays in the most beautiful, clear water. He’s also an incredible chef—the food on board was fresh, flavorful, and absolutely delicious. Elise, the hostess, was so sweet and welcoming, and really made us feel at home. The whole experience was perfect for our family. We especially loved getting to explore the water with the kayak and paddleboard alongside our six-year-old daughter. David even picked us up from the Sofitel and dropped us off at the ferry, which made everything so easy and convenient. Highly recommend this trip to anyone looking for a special, memorable experience in Moorea!
We had an absolutely unforgettable experience sailing around Moorea on a catamaran with Captain David and Hostess Marjorie. From start to finish, everything was perfectly organized and tailored to our family of four. David was not only a skilled and friendly captain but also an incredible chef. Every meal he prepared was fresh, delicious, and full of local flavor. Marjorie was a warm, attentive hostess who made us feel right at home and ensured every detail was taken care of. The highlights of the trip included swimming with reef sharks and rays—an exhilarating and magical experience that our kids are still talking about! David and Marjorie were both incredibly knowledgeable and made sure we were comfortable and confident during all our activities. They were attentive to every detail, anticipating our needs before we even voiced them. If you’re looking for a dream sailing trip in Moorea, we can’t recommend this team highly enough. It was a once-in-a-lifetime adventure we’ll never forget!
It was a pleasure sailing with David, he really went out of his way to take us to the best secret spots and make the holiday truly special! He is also an excellent chef and prepared fantastic meals for us.
What can I say, our host David and Sarah were so welcoming. Nothing was too much trouble for them. We had quite a few options given to us before we decided which trip to take with them. It could not have been better. The food prepared and cooked by David was excellent and Sarah was always on hand with drinks or just to chat to myself and my wife. The snorkeling and use of the paddleboard and kayak were great. We saw plenty of fish, coral and the sea was beautifully clear. The trip was made extra special by David when he took us to the Motu on our last but 1 day. To have reef sharks and rays swim around your feet was truly sensational. I would recommend David and Sarah to anyone who wants to experience French Polynesia by boat. We spent 5 weeks in Polynesia and the trip made as by far the best part of our holiday. Thank you so much both. See you soon hopefully. X Best wishes Paul & Jackie x
We had such a wonderful time with David and Sarah onboard Tiva! We sailed around the island Moorea which was so incredibly beautiful- literally breathtaking! We swam with sharks, stingrays and turtles, went kayaking, relaxed on the boat and did a guided tour of the island. David is a great captain and made sure that we got to experience the best of French Polynesia. On top of it all, he cooked us the most delicious meals every day relying on fresh local produce and fish (among others a shrimp bisque that we are still dreaming about!). David and Sarah constantly made sure that we were comfortable and had everything we needed. We feel very fortunate to have spent time with them on Tiva ❤️
David was a fantastic boat captain and chef! He was very welcoming and knowledgeable. Our family had an amazing time together sailing the Leeward Islands with David. Thank you so much for the wonderful memories and hospitality. We can’t wait to come back and sail with you again.
Mauruuru roa pour votre hospitalité David et Julien! David is kind-natured and attentive, with a passion for creating delicious meals that showcase fresh produce of Polynesia alongside his French culinary expertise. Our group of 4 shared a wonderful experience sailing Mo'orea lagoon, with numerous wildlife encounters right at our fingertips! À bientôt David, nana!
We had a great week thanks to David and Elise, our hostess. We felt very welcome and quickly felt at ease on the boat. David, in addition to being a skilled skipper who knows the islands like the back of his hand and took us to some magical places, is an outstanding cook. In short, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves! We highly recommend him.
We spent 4 days aboard the catamaran with David and Elise between Huahine and Bora Bora. It was our first experience on a catamaran, and we loved it! David is a super experienced, passionate captain, and a great cook (we had a blast); Elise was lovely to all of us. The anchorages were magnificent, and the meal on a paradise beach on a Bora Bora motorboat was unforgettable. We highly recommend this experience aboard the Tiva!
Very good stay aboard the tiva Magnificent anchorage spots Hearty and tasty meals A great hostess, very attentive and friendly, thanks to Véro ?
Our cruise aboard the Tiva ends and leaves us filled with a feeling of fullness, of great happiness in front of the immensity and beauty of the discovered spaces. David, when he opens his boat to us, welcomes us to his home, in this Polynesia that he has adopted and that has adopted him. He makes us discover splendors thanks to his local contacts, away from the beaten track, places in which he feels good and we are like lifelong friends with whom he shares them. For the table, it's the same, he has this generosity and this taste for shared pleasure inherent to enthusiasts. From Huahine to Bora Bora via Raiatea and Tahaa, we benefited from the local maritime expertise (and not only) of David, an outstanding skipper, who knows how to adapt to offer the best route, the best window in front of weather that is not always clement. Under his initial appearance of a sea dog, David turns out to be an attentive host, very respectful of those around him… and whom we will not name to preserve some surprises but whoever they are, we had very beautiful and friendly exchanges with the Polynesians that David introduced us to. Let's also talk about his hostess (Véronique), absolutely adorable with whom we shared wonderful moments (the coral garden ?). Thank you ?! For your information, Tiva means trust in Polynesian, trust David, let go, and you will come back with memories full of eyes and heart!
David welcomed us magnificently on his boat and prepared delicious meals for us. Everything was perfect and in line with expectations, with a lot of authenticity and great discoveries of incredible places (coral garden, beaches, lagoons, etc.). The hostess, Manon, was super amazing. The quality to price ratio is excellent. We highly recommend David and his hostess.
We spent a week with David on board Tiva, sailing in the Leeward Islands. David's strong point is certainly his cuisine, with his dishes he satisfied and amazed us at every meal. David speaks absolutely no English or Spanish as reported in his profile, communication is only possible if you speak French. Luckily my wife speaks it but if she hadn't, it would have been impossible to have even the slightest conversation and this is especially unpleasant on a boat. In fact, I who don't speak French have always gone through my wife to communicate with all the consequences of the case. Another sore point was the sailor/hostess, who, although endowed with good will, had never been on board a boat and this greatly influenced her attitude and the good performance of her duties. In addition, I must also underline how David does not have the slightest respect for the people on board since one evening, he thought well of inviting a guardian from a local beach, without asking us our opinion on the matter. Not that it didn't suit us, but when you rent a boat to clients, the latter always have priority over such choices. It definitely needs to pay more attention to customers.
Superb weekend on David's catamaran around Moorea! All the comfort that one could ask for on a catamaran is available. The welcome was warm, David and Sarah took great care of us and the meals served were very good and varied (you can feel your cooking background ?). Thank you again for these moments!
Offered by David
Je suis skipper depuis 30 ans ... j ai appris à naviguer sur un optimiste et fais mes classes sur toutes les catégories. J ai couru en funboard de 16 ans à 21 ans en semi professionnel. Je suis propriétaire de mon CATAMARAN ATHENA 38 FONTAINE PAJOT. Je maîtrise les longues traversées...
Location
Location of the catamaran: Marina Vai'are, Mo'orea