French Polynesia Travel Guide

French Polynesia has a detail that catches travelers who assume anything French automatically means Schengen: it is not part of the Schengen Area, and a standard Schengen visa or a mainland France visa does not grant entry here, a visa specifically issued for French Polynesia is what is actually required for nationalities that need one. Citizens of the US, Canada, Mexico, and the EU can stay up to 90 days without a visa, and French nationals need only a valid national ID card, not even a passport, reflecting French Polynesia's status as part of France despite sitting well outside the European Schengen system.

Every visitor needs a passport valid for a full 180 days beyond their return date, notably longer than the six month standard common elsewhere, and the name on that passport has to match exactly what is on your air ticket, a detail worth double checking given how often people book flights under a shortened or slightly different name than their passport shows.