Costa Rica vs French Polynesia

Illuminated beachfront dining pavilion with white railings and thatched-roof bungalows reflected in the pool at dusk.

Four Seasons Bora Bora villa with thatched roof bungalow, private pool, palm trees, and white lounge chairs under umbrellas.

French Polynesia2 resorts · ★ 4.7 average

Costa Rica and French Polynesia, side by side: live travel advisories, our resort catalog's real guest data, and each destination's honest weather picture. Everything you need to break the tie.

By the numbers

Costa Rica compared with French Polynesia
Costa Rica	Measure	French Polynesia
Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution	U.S. travel advisory	Level 1: Exercise Normal Precautions (better)
6 (better)	Resorts in our catalog	2
★ 4.4	Average guest rating	★ 4.7 (better)
$88–$285/night pp (better)	Nightly rates	$667–$1631/night pp
1 of 6	Adults-only resorts	0 of 2
Low hurricane risk	Hurricane exposure	Low hurricane risk
May–November ('green season'), with September–October seriously wet	Rainy season	November–April
December–April, bone-dry in Guanacaste	Sweet spot	May–October (dry season; also peak overwater-bungalow pricing)
Spanish (English common in tourist areas)	Language	French & Tahitian (English at resorts)
Costa Rican colón – USD widely accepted	Currency	CFP franc (XPF) – US dollars not widely used
120V, Type A/B plugs (same as the US)	Power	220V, Type C/E plugs (bring an adapter)
On the right	Driving	On the right
Liberia – Daniel Oduber (LIR)	Main airport	Tahiti–Papeete (PPT), then a flight to Bora Bora (BOB)
~3.5–5.5h from the US (nonstops to Liberia)	Flight time	~8h nonstop from the US West Coast (LAX–PPT)

Advisory levels sync from travel.state.gov; catalog figures reflect the resorts we've researched, not every hotel in the country. A marked row is one we are willing to call; rows without a mark are a matter of taste, or we have no comparable figure for both sides.

On the map

Costa Rica

French Polynesia

Weather, month by month

Month-by-month average high temperature and rainfall for Costa Rica and French Polynesia
Measure	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Costa Rica · high °F	91	92	93	93	91	88	88	88	87	86	87	89
French Polynesia · high °F	89	89	89	89	87	86	86	86	86	87	88	88
Costa Rica · rain (in)	0.1	0.1	0.2	0.7	7.7	9.0	5.9	7.9	13.0	12.2	4.3	0.5
French Polynesia · rain (in)	13.2	9.6	6.7	5.5	4.0	2.9	2.1	1.9	2.1	3.5	8.3	12.5

Approximate climate normals for Guanacaste / Papagayo and Tahiti / Bora Bora: planning guidance, not a forecast. A deeper tint is a higher number, read within its own row.