Pāʻea is a commune in the suburbs of Papeʻete in French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the southern Pacific Ocean. Pāʻea is located on the island of Tahiti, in the administrative subdivision of the Windward Islands, themselves part of the Society Islands. At the 2022 census it had a population of 12,756. Tahiti's west coast freeway runs through Pāʻea and ends in Teahupoʻo down south. Going northbound would take drivers toward Papeʻete. The area of Pāʻea was first settled by Polynesian explorers. Captain James Cook had arrived in 1769. Pāʻea was part of the Kingdom of Tahiti until France claimed the islands of French Polynesia. The Faaa International Airport was built in 1962 and opened later on. The now defunct Air Moorea's flight 1121 crashed while it was flying to Moʻorea. Close to where the crash site is located lies a rock with the names of those people killed in the accident. Moʻorea is north of Pāʻea and is seen as a gray mound sticking out of the Pacific Ocean. Mount Orohena is a major mountain nearby measuring 7,330 feet tall.

Geography

Climate

Pāʻea has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen climate classification Af). The average annual temperature in Pāʻea is 25.9 C. The average annual rainfall is 2221.3 mm with December as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in March, at around 27.3 C, and lowest in July, at around 24.3 C. The highest temperature ever recorded in Paea was 35.1 C on 19 March 1998; the coldest temperature ever recorded was 15.9 C on 30 August 1976.

Population