Tetiaroa
Encyclopedia
Atoll
An atoll is a coral island that encircles a lagoon partially or completely.- Usage :The word atoll comes from the Dhivehi word atholhu OED...
in the Windward
Windward Islands (Society Islands)
The Windward Islands are the eastern group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southern Pacific Ocean.-Geography:...
group of the Society Islands
Society Islands
The Society Islands are a group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean. They are politically part of French Polynesia. The archipelago is generally believed to have been named by Captain James Cook in honor of the Royal Society, the sponsor of the first British scientific survey of the islands;...
of French Polynesia
French Polynesia
French Polynesia is an overseas country of the French Republic . It is made up of several groups of Polynesian islands, the most famous island being Tahiti in the Society Islands group, which is also the most populous island and the seat of the capital of the territory...
, an overseas collectivity of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
. Once the vacation spot for Tahitian royalty, the atoll is widely known for having been purchased by Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando, Jr. was an American movie star and political activist. "Unchallenged as the most important actor in modern American Cinema" according to the St...
. The only inhabitant is Simon Teihotu Brando, one of the many sons of Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando, Jr. was an American movie star and political activist. "Unchallenged as the most important actor in modern American Cinema" according to the St...
.
Geography
Tetiaroa is administratively part of the commune (municipality) of ArueArue, French Polynesia
Arue is a commune in the suburbs of Papeete in French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. Arue is located on the island of Tahiti, in the administrative subdivision of the Windward Islands, themselves part of the Society Islands....
.
The atoll is located 33 miles (53 km) north of Tahiti. The atoll stretches on a total surface of 2.3 square miles (6 square km); approximately 1,445 acres (585 hectares) of sand are divided in 13 motus (islets) with varying surface areas. The lagoon is approximately 4.5 miles (7 km) wide and 100 feet (30 meters) deep. The atoll has no reef opening, making access by boat nearly impossible.
The islets (or motus), in clockwise order starting from the southwest corner, include:
- Onetahi (with regulated airstrip and future site of The Brando Resort)
- Honuea
- Tiaruanu
- Motu Tauvini (Tauini)
- Motu Ahurea (Auroa)
- Hiraanae
- Horoatera (Oroatera)
- Motu Aie
- Tahuna Iti (almost out of sight, immersed)
- Tahuna Rahi
- Reiono
- Motu One
- Rimatuu (with an ornithology reserve)
Ownership & History
The atoll of Tetiaroa holds a special place in the hearts of the people of French Polynesia. It has become almost a “sacred spot” for the people. In historic times, Tetiaroa belonged to the Pomare familyPōmare Dynasty
The Pōmare Dynasty was the reigning family of the Kingdom of Tahiti between the unification of the island by Pōmare I in 1788 and Pōmare V's cession of the kingdom to France in 1880...
, rulers of Tahiti. The royal family placed Tetiaroa in the care of faithful retainers who managed it and lived there.
Members of the royal family spent time on Tetiaroa when they needed quiet time and relaxation. The female members of the family are said to have gone there to eat (gain weight) and stay out of the sun (have their skin lighten up) “for the purposes of beautifying their person.” According to legend, in times of trouble the King placed his treasures there for safekeeping. In 1789, William Bligh
William Bligh
Vice Admiral William Bligh FRS RN was an officer of the British Royal Navy and a colonial administrator. A notorious mutiny occurred during his command of HMAV Bounty in 1789; Bligh and his loyal men made a remarkable voyage to Timor, after being set adrift in the Bounty's launch by the mutineers...
is said to have been the first European to visit the atoll while looking for the Bounty mutineers.
In 1904, the royal family gave Tetiaroa to Dr. Johnston Walter Williams, the only dentist in Tahiti. Mr Williams later became Consul of England from 1916 to 1935.
Dr. Williams managed Tetiaroa as a residence and a copra plantation.
In 1960, Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando, Jr. was an American movie star and political activist. "Unchallenged as the most important actor in modern American Cinema" according to the St...
“discovered” Tetiaroa while scouting filming locations for Mutiny on the Bounty
Mutiny on the Bounty (1962 film)
Mutiny on the Bounty is a 1962 film starring Marlon Brando and Trevor Howard based on the novel Mutiny on the Bounty by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall. The film retells the 1789 real-life mutiny aboard HMAV Bounty led by Fletcher Christian against the ship's captain, William Bligh...
, which was shot on Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
and neighboring Moorea
Moorea
Moʻorea is a high island in French Polynesia, part of the Society Islands, 17 km northwest of Tahiti. Its position is . Moʻorea means "yellow lizard" in Tahitian...
. After filming was completed, Brando hired a local fisherman to ferry him to Tetiaroa. It was “more gorgeous than anything I had anticipated,” he marveled in his 1994 autobiography Songs My Mother Taught Me.
Marlon eventually purchased Tetiaroa from one of Dr. Williams’ direct descendants, Mrs. Duran. (Mr. Williams and his wife are buried on motu Rimatuu). Marlon purchased most of the atoll in 1966 for $200,000 and the other part in 1967 for $70,000. Marlon had to overcome political interference and local resistance to purchase the atoll. Many, many important archaeological sites have been located, identified, and studied on Tetiaroa. Thus, the historical significance of Tetiaroa to the people and the government of French Polynesia continue to make future development and/or sale questionable at best.
Over the years, Brando came to the island a number of times and used it as a getaway from his hectic life in Hollywood. Although he didn’t spend as much time there as he wished, it is said that he always cherished his moments on Tetiaroa.
Brando opened a hotel on Tetiaroa in 1973 with his Tahitian wife, Tarita Teriipia
Tarita Teriipia
Tarita Teriipaia is a former actress of French Polynesian and Chinese descent most famous for being the wife of Marlon Brando...
, who played his on-screen love in Mutiny on the Bounty
Mutiny on the Bounty (1962 film)
Mutiny on the Bounty is a 1962 film starring Marlon Brando and Trevor Howard based on the novel Mutiny on the Bounty by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall. The film retells the 1789 real-life mutiny aboard HMAV Bounty led by Fletcher Christian against the ship's captain, William Bligh...
. The hotel operated for more than 25 years, even after Brando left French Polynesia to return to Los Angeles although many hotel guests lamented the lack of amenities normally found at an island resort.
In 1980, the famous maxi yacht
Maxi yacht
A maxi yacht usually refers to a racing sailboat of at least in length. It is also a Swedish brand of smaller sailing yachts.-Origin:The term maxi originated with the International Offshore Rule rating system, which in the 1970s and 1980s measured offshore racing yachts and applied a...
S/Y Condor of Bermuda
Condor of Bermuda
Condor of Bermuda was a maxi yacht campaigning under the leadership and funding of London based international businessman Bob Bell. Originally called "Condor" but re-named "Heath's Condor" for the 1977-78 Whitbread Round the World Race after Bell's association with Heath's Insurance Co...
ran aground on the Onetahi reef, which caused it to be shipwrecked and written off by insurers. Purportedly, Brando and the owner of the yacht engaged in a brief bidding war for rights to the vessel’s polished mahogany hull (as reported by its owner in the New Zealand yachting magazine, Sail
Sail
A sail is any type of surface intended to move a vessel, vehicle or rotor by being placed in a wind—in essence a propulsion wing. Sails are used in sailing.-History of sails:...
in 1981), which Brando, it is believed, wanted to use as a bar at a resort he planned to build on the island. The yacht was salvaged, and sent to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
for repair.
In 2002, two years before the actor’s death, Brando signed a new will and trust agreement that left no instructions for Tetiaroa. Following his death in 2004, the executors of the estate granted development rights to Pacific Beachcomber SC, a Tahitian company that owns hotels throughout French Polynesia and shared in Brando’s vision for an eco-luxury resort on the atoll.
Future of Tetiaroa
TetiaroaPacific Beachcomber SC began construction on Tetiaroa in 2009. The first phase of building included reconstruction and reorientation of the runway, as the original surface was in disrepair and not long enough to meet current aviation regulations. In addition, a reef dock was built to enable the transfer of supplies from the ocean side of the reef to the lagoon side.When construction is completed, the motu Onetahi will include a luxury eco-hotel (The Brando), spa, research station, staff village and private runway.
The resort is expected to be certified LEED Platinum, the highest LEED
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design consists of a suite of rating systems for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings, homes and neighborhoods....
certification level possible. LEED
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design consists of a suite of rating systems for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings, homes and neighborhoods....
is an internationally recognized green building certification system that provides third-party verification that a building was designed and built using strategies aimed at improving performance across all the metrics that matter most, including energy savings, water efficiency, and CO2 emissions reduction.
Using various methods of renewable energy -- solar panels, bio-fuel generators and a sea-water air conditioning
Seawater air conditioning
Deep water source cooling or deep water air cooling is a form of air cooling for process and comfort space cooling which uses a renewable, large body of naturally cold water as a heat sink...
(SWAC
Seawater air conditioning
Deep water source cooling or deep water air cooling is a form of air cooling for process and comfort space cooling which uses a renewable, large body of naturally cold water as a heat sink...
)) system, as well as innovative wastewater treatment procedures -- the entire resort aims to create a net zero water and energy community. This objective is above and beyond the requirements of LEED
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design consists of a suite of rating systems for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings, homes and neighborhoods....
and reflects Marlon Brando’s passion for environmental sustainability.
External links
- Tetiaroa Island at NASA Earth ObservatoryNASA Earth ObservatoryNASA Earth Observatory is an online publishing outlet for NASA which was created in 1999. It is the principal source of satellite imagery and other scientific information pertaining to the climate and the environment which are being provided by NASA for consumption by the general public...