·         The increase in the frequentation of the atolls has been almost entirely due to the success of single destination tourism during the last few years. Package tours involving various stops in different countries ("World tours"), have shown a sharp parallel decrease since the mid '80s: it accounts nowadays for only a quarter of all the tourists (41 700 tourists in 1996), as compared with 54% in 1985 (65 000 tourists).

Leisure tourism is now the main reason for which people visit the atolls, since it accounts for more than 70% of all the tourists. Honeymoon trips rank second (12.6%), and visiting members of the family and friends comes only third (8.1%), just before business trips (7.2%).
Hotels are therefore the main type of accommodation used, since they are frequented by 84% of all the  tourists. In addition, there are almost 9 000 excursionists, or "day visitors", who are people on passing boat cruises who spend the night on board. Since 1992, considerable efforts have been made to improve and develop the hotel system on this Territory. The number of classified hotel rooms increased by 400 from 1992 to 1996, amounting to a 15% increase, mainly on the islands of Bora-Bora, Huahine and Moorea. In view of the many ongoing projects and building sites, the total hotel capacity was expected to reach 4 000  by the end of 1999, as compared with 3 075 in 1996.

As a result, the atolls, which are equipped with only four classified hotels, three of which are located on Rangiroa and one on Manihi, do not have a large enough capacity to satisfy the tourists' requirements.

The various specialised services (such as the Service du Tourisme, G.I.E. Tahiti Tourisme, G.I.E. Tahiti Manava) were not able to specify exactly how many tourists visit the atolls nowadays. However, the following figures are given as a rough estimate for Rangiroa, the atoll which is most intensively frequented by the tourists : 

Owing to the shortage of hotel accommodation on Rangiroa, it is not possible to increase the number of tourists, which seems to have levelled out at approximately  15 500.

• Since the atolls are so far away and so far apart, it is not easy to ensure a steady flow of tourists,  which makes it impossible to extend the existing luxury facilities because of the heavy investments involved. In addition, the atolls are fragile structures exposed to harsh weather conditions,  and they therefore do not always lend themselves to building projects of this kind.

And yet the atolls can always rely on the unique beauty of their landscapes to attract an international clientele wanting to spend leisurely holidays relaxing  in an idyllic marine setting.

The tourist activities available on these atolls mainly consist of water sports such as skin diving.

There are skin diving clubs on four of the atolls: one each on Tikehau, Manihi and Fakarava, and eleven on Rangiroa. The underwater diving sites around the atolls are inhabited by an exceptionally wide range of fauna, even for Polynesia. Fakarava, the second largest atoll among the Tuamotu islands, is about to be included in the biosphere reserve classified by Unesco, which will cover the whole administrative commune of Fakarava. The diving centre located on this atoll, which is open all year round, is able to provide 10 divers at a time with the appropriate equipment. There are two boarding houses which offer tourists accommodation. Rangiroa, the largest atoll in French Polynesia, is the most fully developed tourist site among these island ecosystems communing with their marine surroundings. With its eleven diving clubs, this atoll is a consistently dynamic tourist resort, and 90% of all its tourist activities centre on this underwater sport (vidéo).

Another way of visiting the Tuamotu atolls consists of hiring a catamaran. Some of these boats can accommodate up to 16 people, and propose cruises around the atolls on the theme of underwater diving.