At a Glance

Who Each Resort Is Really For

The fastest way to choose is to be honest about who you’re traveling with. Think about what you want the trip to feel like. We stayed at both, and they solve for very different travelers. If you want the deep dive on either property, we have full write-ups too, including our full St. Regis review.

Who the St. Regis Suits

The St. Regis is a couples resort first. Our beachfront villa came with a private walled garden, a private pool, and real space. And you never felt on top of anyone. It’s built for honeymoons, anniversaries, and anyone whose paradise is quiet and spread out. It still folds kids in nicely. The ice cream perk and the lagoonarium scavenger hunt are real. But the property’s center of gravity is couples and grown-up quiet.

Who the Thalasso Suits

The Thalasso leans toward families in one very practical way. It’s one of the few properties where a family of four fits in a single overwater villa. That is the main reason families end up there. The rollaway and sofa bed do real work. So if you’re two adults and two kids trying to stay together over the water, this is one of the few resorts that makes it easy.

There’s a loyalty split underneath all of this too. The St. Regis is a Marriott Bonvoy redemption. The Thalasso is IHG One Rewards. Which points currency you hold will quietly decide this for a lot of people, before pool or beach ever enters the conversation. We get into the real point math later. But if you want the full rundown on the Thalasso itself, read our complete InterContinental Thalasso review.

The Short Version

So here’s the short version. Both resorts are stunning, and both give you real Mount Otemanu views, including strong pool reflection shots. The St. Regis is the more private, more polished pick. In our experience, it also edges the Thalasso for families, thanks to the beach villa setup, the kid programming, and the calmer feel.

The Thalasso’s standout advantage is practical. It’s one of the few properties where four people fit in a single overwater villa. So book the St. Regis if you want space, privacy, and an easy family fit. Book the Thalasso if you need one room for four, or you’re after the only Thalasso spa in French Polynesia. Everything else is a tiebreaker, and that’s what the rest of this post walks through.

First, a Renovation Note You Need Before You Book

Before we put these two side by side, one thing changes the decision for anyone trying to book the Thalasso right now.

The Thalasso Is Closed for a Full Renovation

As of June 1, 2026, the InterContinental Bora Bora Resort and Thalasso Spa closed for a full renovation. That closure date is confirmed on the resort’s own website. What isn’t confirmed is when it reopens. There’s no official reopening date yet.

Depending on how deep the work goes, a project like this can run anywhere from nine to eighteen months. That window is wide on purpose. No firm date has been published, and we won’t hand you a reopening year we can’t stand behind.

If the Thalasso is your target, keep checking availability directly with the resort rather than assuming a season. Booking windows for these properties open and shift. The renovation timeline may move right along with them.

The St. Regis Is Open and Running Normally

The other half of this comparison carries no such asterisk. The St. Regis Bora Bora is fully open. Everything we describe here reflects a resort you can book and stay at today. So if you’re planning a near-term trip and you want one of these two, the St. Regis is the only one currently taking guests.

Why This Comparison Still Matters

There are two reasons we’re still putting these head to head. First, a lot of Bora Bora trips get planned a year or more out. The Thalasso is expected back, so knowing how it stacks up is worth having ready.

Second, the real question underneath this comparison doesn’t change with a renovation. It’s a luxury couples’ resort versus a family-friendly overwater property. The bones of each place, who it’s built for, and how the points math works are all still useful, whether you book this year or wait for the Thalasso’s return.

The Rooms: Beach Villa vs Overwater Villa

Here is where the two stays split most clearly. At the St. Regis we stayed in a beachfront villa with a private pool. At the Thalasso we were in an overwater villa. We did not book the same category at both. So we’re comparing the room we actually lived in at each, which is the honest way to do it.

The St. Regis Beach Villa

In fact, the villa felt more like a small private compound than a hotel room. It sat behind a full fence, with a secluded backyard, a private pool, and direct access to the sand. There were no neighbors in view. After staying over the water, the privacy stood out most. Overwater bungalows sit close together, and you feel your neighbors. Here, we felt like we had our own corner of the island.

And inside, the space was large. There was a king bed, a roomy living area, and a sofa bed that pulled out to a comfortable king. In fact, the memory foam topper actually held up for adults. The bathroom was oversized, with a soaking tub, Tahitian vanilla bath salts, and a separate shower. Nightly turndown left Monoi Tahiti oil. Mornings gave us sunrise views toward Taha’a and Mount Otemanu. The lagoon side also ran cooler and windier, so there were fewer mosquitoes than the warmer overwater side.

A Family-of-Four Booking Catch

Here’s one thing worth knowing if you’re a family of four eyeing this villa. When we walked in, it was clearly big enough for all of us with room to spare. But when we went to book, the online system only let us reserve it for two adults and one child. So we assumed that was the hard limit. On our way out, the front desk told us the villa can hold a fourth guest without a problem.

You just have to call the resort directly to confirm occupancy and the added cost, because the website won’t let you book it that way. In our case, adding a fourth guest was quoted at around $150 a night. Your number will depend on the season, the room category, and how the resort prices it at the time. So if the four of you want this villa, don’t go by what the online form allows. Call first and confirm.

The InterContinental Overwater Villa

So the Thalasso delivered the classic dream. It’s a villa perched over the lagoon, with a deck, sun loungers, and a swim platform with a floating ladder into the water. Stepping off your own deck into the lagoon is something a beach villa can’t give you. That’s the reason people book over the water in the first place. The glass viewing panel in the floor is the enclosed box style, set in front of the couch. It’s more like a lit coffee table than the flush glass floor at some other properties.

It was the more family-ready of the two rooms in one specific way. The master had a king, the couch converted to a bed, and a rollaway was provided. So our family of four fit in a single villa without a second room. That is rare in Bora Bora, and it’s the Thalasso’s real practical edge. It wasn’t flawless, though. The blackout blinds were broken at the cord. The bathroom sits in the closet area, so smells travel. And because the villas sit close together and boats run the lagoon all day, you feel the passing wakes and hear golf carts on the walkways.

Which Room Fits Your Trip

So the choice comes down to what you want to wake up to. Book the overwater villa at the Thalasso if sleeping over the lagoon is the non-negotiable, or if you need four people in one room over the water. Book the beach villa at the St. Regis if you want more space, a private pool, a real fence between you and everyone else, and easy sand access. One stay is about being on the water. The other is about privacy and room to spread out.

The Dining: What We Actually Paid at Each

Both resorts are expensive to eat at. But the difference is what that money buys you. At the St. Regis, you’re paying luxury prices for real range, including a marquee restaurant. At the Thalasso, you’re paying similar prices with less variety behind them. Here’s what it looked like from our actual bills.

Eating at the St. Regis

The headliner is Lagoon by Jean-Georges. It’s the overwater restaurant with glass floor panels and fish moving below your table, run by Executive Chef Eric Weidmann. So our family dinner there, with no alcohol, came to about $207. That was mahi mahi at $76, the catch of the day at $78, truffle mashed potatoes at $23, a kids tomato pasta at $19, and a bottle of Evian at $11. A complimentary starter trio came out before the meal. Our tip: start upstairs at the 727 Bar for the sunset, then head down for dinner.

Beyond that one room, the St. Regis actually gives you options. Aparima Bar is the casual all-day spot. It also runs the kids unlimited ice cream and smoothie window for under 12s, from 11:30 in the morning to 10 at night. That quietly saves both money and meltdowns.

And the signature cocktail is the Bora Mary, a watermelon Bloody Mary. Bamboo is the Asian-inspired restaurant. The spicy ahi tuna roll was a standout, but a plain edamame ran us $20, a number that stuck with us. There’s also an Italian restaurant and a main breakfast venue that hosts Polynesian Night.

Eating at the InterContinental Thalasso

And the Thalasso was just as steep, without the same spread. For instance, a cheeseburger with fries ran about $59. And a piña colada was about $39. A Japanese set dinner was about $109 per person, though staff let us share it. Even the kids cheeseburger was about $23, and it came out the same size as the adult one. Our prepaid breakfast, offered at a discount at check-in, was moved to the fine dining space, and it felt rushed and transactional.

IHG status gave us a few drink vouchers, three for adults and one non-alcoholic. But they were limited to wine, beer, or a soft drink, not full cocktails. The big splurge here is the canoe breakfast, paddled out to your overwater villa. It runs around $320 with tip, and it’s not included in any meal plan or status perk.

Which Wins on Food

The St. Regis, for us. Not because anything is cheap, because nothing on this island is. But your money buys a real destination restaurant in Jean-Georges, casual beach food, an Italian option, and that kids ice cream perk on top. The Thalasso charges comparable prices with less variety, and no standout meal in our stay. And the prepaid breakfast left us flat, too. So if dining is a big part of how you rate a resort, the St. Regis sets the better table.

The Lagoon and Lagoonarium: Where You Actually Snorkel

Both resorts sell the same dream of stepping into clear water full of fish. And both deliver it best in one specific place: a protected lagoonarium. What differs is the quality of that lagoonarium, and how the water looks once you leave it.

The St. Regis Lagoonarium and Moana

The St. Regis has the better lagoonarium of the two, and it’s not close. It’s a protected stretch of lagoon stocked with marine life. The star is Moana, a resident Napoleon humphead wrasse who has lived there for years and swims right up to you.

There’s also an eel tucked into the rocks that will startle you if you’re not expecting it. And the coral is healthy. A cultural walk runs alongside the water, teaching Polynesian traditions, so the whole thing feels deliberate rather than tacked on. If snorkeling straight from the resort matters to you, this is the stronger setup.

The Thalasso Lagoonarium and the Water Off Your Deck

Here, the Thalasso’s lagoonarium is the highlight of its water experience, too. It has good fish variety and visible coral restoration, part of a National Geographic partnership. We found a resident octopus and a small clownfish reef in there, which the kids loved. But the catch is what happens once you leave the lagoonarium.

Open lagoon visibility right off our deck was only about three to four feet during our stay. That’s a real letdown when the whole fantasy of an overwater villa is diving into clear water off your own deck. There’s a second snorkel spot near the bridge and spa with better clarity. But it has sea urchins, so water shoes are worth packing.

That murkiness isn’t unique to the Thalasso. Every motu resort sits in the same lagoon. Constant boat traffic stirs the sandy bottom, and ocean swell pushes cooler, cloudier water through the channels. We noticed it most off the Thalasso deck, but you can hit it anywhere on the island. That’s exactly why the protected lagoonarium is the move at both resorts.

Book a Lagoon Tour No Matter Which Resort You Pick

Here’s the part we tell every first-timer. The protected lagoonarium at each resort is beautiful. But it isn’t the best snorkeling in Bora Bora, and it’s not close. The clearest water, the healthy coral gardens, the blacktip reef sharks, and the stingrays all sit out in the open lagoon, away from the resorts.

A guided lagoon tour is the only practical way to reach them. We spent two months on this island, and the water days we still talk about were all tour days, not off-the-deck days. So whichever villa you book, set aside the money and a morning for at least one lagoon tour. It’s the experience that turns a pretty resort stay into the Bora Bora people actually dream about.

The tour we booked ourselves was with Keishi. It’s a traditional Polynesian-built boat, run by a family that has been on this lagoon for generations, and we broke down the whole day in our Keishi Lagoon Tour review. Before you pick any operator though, read our full guide, Snorkeling in Bora Bora: Don’t Book a Lagoon Tour Until You Read This. There, we cover every boat we saw on the water, and which one fits what you want. Read that first, choose your boat, and lock it in early, because the good operators fill up fast.

The Points Value: Marriott Bonvoy vs IHG One Rewards

We booked both stays on points, so this isn’t guesswork. Here are the actual receipts from our reservations. We’ve added what those points are worth in dollars, so the comparison means something even if you’ve never chased a point in your life.

The St. Regis on Marriott Bonvoy

Our St. Regis stay was a beach villa with a private pool. We booked it as two separate one-night reservations, because that’s how the availability fell. The first night ran 94,400 Marriott Bonvoy points, and the second ran 91,200. That’s a useful thing to know about Marriott. Award pricing is dynamic, so two back-to-back nights in the same villa can land at different numbers.

So that averages about 92,000 points a night. Using a mid-2026 industry value of roughly 0.8 cents per Marriott point, that’s around $740 to $755 of value per night. We hold Marriott Silver Elite, which is a modest tier. So the real value here is the redemption itself, not status perks.

The Thalasso on IHG One Rewards

Meanwhile, our Thalasso stay was an overwater lagoon-view villa for one night. It cost 165,000 IHG One Rewards points. Alex holds IHG Platinum Elite, which got us a few drink vouchers and a soft repositioned “upgrade” that kept us in the same category, away from construction. Using a mid-2026 industry value of about 0.55 cents per IHG point, that night was worth roughly $900.

Why Timing Made These Redemptions Possible

Here’s one honest piece of context. Both of these were tail-end-of-rainy-season redemptions. That matters more than it sounds. Off-peak is often when award space actually opens up at these resorts. It’s a big part of why we could pull a beach villa and an overwater villa on points at all. During peak dry season, that same availability gets thin fast. So if you’re chasing a points stay at either property, the shoulder and off months are where you’ll find the room to book.

But the tradeoff is weather. We visited at the end of rainy season and got extremely lucky, with clear skies on the exact days we booked. That was luck, not a guarantee. Rainy season in Bora Bora can mean heavy afternoon downpours and cloudy stretches that hide Mount Otemanu entirely. So if you book this window for the availability or the lower rates, go in with realistic expectations. Pad your trip with enough days that one rained-out afternoon doesn’t sink the whole thing.

We Met Another Family Running the Same Play

We’re not the only ones who figured this out, either. During our stay at the St. Regis, we met Vanessa, another mom from Southern California. She was there with her family on the exact same Marriott points redemption we were running.

When you start meeting strangers pulling off the identical strategy, it stops feeling like a secret. Instead, it starts looking like what savvy Marriott travelers just do. The points play is real, and plenty of families are quietly using it to sleep in a beach villa for a fraction of the cash rate.

Which Is the Better Redemption

On points, the St. Regis wins, and it’s not close. First, it costs a little over half the points per night that the Thalasso does. And it lands at a lower dollar-equivalent value, for a room with more space and more privacy. So if you’re sitting on a Marriott balance, the St. Regis stretches it much further.

The Thalasso’s redemption makes the most sense for one specific traveler. That’s an IHG loyalist, likely earning points fast through work travel or an IHG card. This person wants an overwater villa and needs to fit four people in one room. For them, 165,000 points for an overwater night the whole family shares is a fair trade. But for almost everyone else comparing the two on value, the math points to the St. Regis.

The point values above are mid-2026 industry estimates, and they shift over time. So treat them as a guide, not a fixed exchange rate.

How to Earn and Book These Points

Want the exact playbook for booking the St. Regis on points? So we break the whole thing down, card by card, in our guide to staying at the St. Regis Bora Bora for free. Here’s one tactic worth knowing. Chase points transfer to both Marriott and IHG at one to one, which is handy when you’re a little short for a specific award night. We’ve moved points over to help cover part of a stay before. For the bigger picture on earning as a family, our family travel hacking guide lays out the whole system.

Which Resort Wins for Families

Both resorts can host a family, but they solve family travel in different ways. And one is clearly the stronger pick for most.

The Thalasso’s Family Edge

The Thalasso’s big advantage is simple and practical. It’s one of the only overwater properties in Bora Bora where a family of four fits in a single villa. The couch converts to a bed, and a rollaway is provided, so nobody is booking a second room.

On top of that, the “I Love Bora Bora” overwater swing is a real kid magnet. Our daughter was also met with a welcome gift: a pareo, a coloring book, and Bora Bora colored pencils, plus an unlimited ice cream certificate. So if your non-negotiable is sleeping four over the water in one room, this is the resort that makes it easy.

Why the St. Regis Is the Better Family Resort

For the overall family experience, though, the St. Regis is our pick. And it lines up with the call we make in our full reviews of both properties. It pulls off the harder trick of feeling like a luxury resort first, while still folding kids in without turning into a kids club. There’s the unlimited ice cream and smoothie window for under 12s at Aparima Bar.

There are child-sized robes, slippers, and bikes. There’s a lagoon scavenger hunt, flower crown making, dance lessons, and swimming with Moana in the lagoonarium. And the beach villa itself is the family win. You get a private fenced yard, direct sand access, and a cooler, breezier, less buggy side of the island. As we covered earlier, that villa fits four with a quick call to confirm.

There’s one honest caveat we owe families. During our Thalasso stay, Amanda took a hard fall on an unmarked elevation drop in a high-traffic walkway. The staff follow-up afterward was poor. And it’s the kind of hazard that matters more when you have kids running around. The property is now closed for a full renovation, so some of what we saw may be addressed when it reopens. Still, we walk through exactly what happened in our full InterContinental Thalasso review, so you can judge it for yourself.

The Family Verdict

If your one hard requirement is fitting four people in a single overwater villa, the Thalasso is one of the only games in town. That alone may decide it. For everything else that makes a trip work with kids, the St. Regis is the stronger family resort. That means the programming, the private beach villa, the calmer setting, and the peace of mind. It’s the same conclusion we reached in both of our full property reviews.

Service: Where the Gap Shows Most

Both resorts staff up with friendly people. But service is where these two separate the most, and it’s where the St. Regis pulled clearly ahead for us.

Service at the St. Regis

The St. Regis ran warm and polished from the dock in. The general manager greeted us at arrival. Our butler Julie gave us a full property orientation. The birthday touches for Audrey, a cake, a hat, and two handwritten notes, landed without us asking. Child-sized robes, slippers, and bikes were waiting. They extended our checkout to 3:30 in the afternoon, and sent us off with seashell necklaces. The butler program covered morning coffee delivery, hot chocolate for the kids, garment pressing, and reservations.

It wasn’t flawless, and we’ll tell you the small stuff. Room-service coffee took 30 to 45 minutes, so we learned to order it the night before. The concierge line also rang nine or ten times before anyone picked up. And with three butlers rotating, it took a day to feel like anyone owned our stay. Still, these were friction points, not failures. The overall tone stayed warm and attentive the whole time.

Service at the Thalasso

The Thalasso started strong at the resort itself. There was a horn on arrival, staff waiting at the private dock, luggage taken straight to the villa, a golf cart tour, and cool towels with tea. And the dinner service was good, too. But two things pulled it down.

Getting to the boat at Le Moana, the sister property on the mainland, meant dealing with staff who were unhelpful and rushed. And the low point was serious. When Amanda took a hard fall on an unmarked walkway hazard, one employee saw it happen and walked away without a word. The follow-up afterward was thin. There was no real check-in, and no acknowledgment until we pushed for it.

The manager, Sophia, did step in with ice, an apology, and an extended checkout, which we credit. But a guest shouldn’t have to chase that response down. So we tell the whole story in our honest review of the InterContinental Thalasso.

Which Wins on Service

The St. Regis, clearly. Still, its misses were the kind you shrug off, a slow coffee, a phone that rings too long. The Thalasso’s arrival and dinner service were lovely. But the way the safety incident was handled is the sort of thing that sticks with you. It’s the difference between a resort that feels like it has your back and one that doesn’t. So for service and the sense of being looked after, the St. Regis is the one we’d return to.

So Which One Should You Book?

After stays at both, this comes down to who you are and what you want the trip to be. Still, neither is a bad choice. One is just the better all-around resort for most travelers. The other wins on a few specific things.

Book the St. Regis If

You want the stronger all-around stay. It took our vote on points value, food, the lagoonarium, service, and the overall family experience. Book it if you’re a couple or honeymooners who want space, privacy, and polish. Choose it if you’re a family who wants luxury without a kids-club feel. It’s the pick if you’re redeeming Marriott points and want them to stretch. And book it if a marquee dinner at Lagoon by Jean-Georges makes your trip. It’s also the one you can actually book right now.

Book the InterContinental Thalasso If

Your priorities are specific, and it delivers on them. Book it if you need to fit a family of four in a single overwater villa, which is rare on this island. Choose it if sleeping over the water and stepping straight into the lagoon is the whole point of your trip. It’s the one if you want the only Thalasso spa in French Polynesia. And book it if you’re an IHG loyalist sitting on a points balance. Just remember it’s closed for a full renovation right now. So this is a resort to plan around for a future trip, not book today.

Our Overall Take

If we had to hand one recommendation to a first-time couple or family, it would be the St. Regis. It quietly wins more of the categories that shape a trip. And it does it while staying easy and warm with kids in tow. The Thalasso has real magic, too: the overwater villa, the spa, that one-room-for-four flexibility. When it reopens renovated, it may close some of the gaps we felt. But for now, and for most travelers, the St. Regis is the one we’d book again. And whichever you choose, spend a morning on a lagoon tour. That’s the day you’ll remember most.