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The Marquesas

French Polynesia

Lonely Planet's Best in Travel 2025

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yachts anchoring in the Bay of virgins on Fatu Hiva Island, Marquesas Archipelago

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Overview

Grand, brooding and powerful, nature’s fingers have sculpted the Marquesas Islands into sharp silhouettes that jut up dramatically from the cobalt-blue ocean. Waterfalls taller than skyscrapers trickle down vertical canyons, the ocean thrashes towering cliffs, basalt pinnacles project from emerald forests, and scalloped bays are blanketed with desert arcs of white or black sand.

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