Fare Suisse Guesthouse

The covered terrace is a lovely place to have breakfast in the warm breeze. There’s fresh fruit, local juice, amazing fresh-baked bread, ham and cheese, yogurt, and good coffee and tea. The air-conditioned rooms are fantastic, the staff are wonderful and speak French and English, and getting to the Papeete waterfront is just a short walk. We were impressed by the 6:30 a.m. airport pickup, too. Our name& chz pizza was perfect, with a partial ocean view. Happy hour runs from 4 to 6 p.m., with half off some drinks, and the tap water in the room comes straight from the mountain rains, so it’s nice for filling water bottles. We’ll stay here next time and tell others.

The cats are adorable and love a pet, the Wi-Fi is fast, and the room was spotless with air conditioning and a nice shower. It felt like a little Switzerland in the middle of the Pacific, and being able to speak Swiss German when we arrived was a lovely surprise after traveling for a while. The value and location are great, and we’ll be back. You can also get real Swiss food here.

The women working here were kind, but the rest of the stay was awful. The room was dirty, including stained sheets, and the bed was very uncomfortable. The Wi-Fi didn’t work in our room, and the restaurant took over an hour and a half to serve us. The meal wasn’t good, and when we went to pay, I saw how filthy the kitchen was. I tried reaching Faire Suisse in August to confirm the free shuttle for my arrival, but got no answer. Then I messaged on WhatsApp a day and a half before arriving in October and still heard nothing. I finally emailed the night before. The owner said to take a taxi because he hadn’t heard from me and couldn’t arrange the shuttle, even though I’d already contacted him through Booking and WhatsApp.

The rooms were clean and had enough space, and we found the breakfast well worth having. Everything was delicious and seemed homemade, among the best breakfasts we had in the country. We stayed for two nights. The property has a free shuttle, and it’s close enough to the city center to get around on foot, though I have to say it’s quite dark at night.