Air Tahiti Boarding Pass and Online Check-In

Timing depends on two things: how you check in, and your departure and arrival islands.

To reach Bora Bora airport by shuttle, boarding at the Vaitape dock is called 1h30 before flight departure. On several islands, the airfield is far from the village or main island: plan your journey time accordingly and check the exact time shown on your booking. For flights to Rarotonga, the airline points to a dedicated section: check it before you travel.

Air Tahiti's online pre-check-in is open to passengers holding an e-ticket, with or without checked baggage, for up to 8 passengers per booking file. It is available for departures from the following islands: Tahiti and Moorea (Windward Islands); Bora Bora, Huahine, Maupiti and Raiatea (Leeward Islands); Fakarava, Hao, Manihi, Mataiva, Rangiroa and Tikehau (Tuamotu); Hiva Oa and Nuku Hiva (Marquesas); Raivavae, Rimatara, Rurutu and Tubuai (Austral Islands).

The process has four steps: identification with your booking reference or e-ticket number, selection of the passenger or passengers, confirmation of safety and security rules, then downloading the boarding pass.

Online check-in is not possible in the following cases:

• flights operated by Beechcraft aircraft or with a Beechcraft connection;
• unaccompanied minor (UM);
• passenger with reduced mobility due to a physical, visual, hearing or mental disability, or due to age or illness;
• passenger requiring an extra seat;
• passenger travelling with an animal;
• group of more than 8 people;
• passenger without a reservation on the flight, or holding a paper ticket.

In these situations, airline staff take over at the check-in counter. Travellers with a baby under two years old are also asked to let counter staff know of any assistance needed.

On the device side, no application is mentioned as mandatory; online check-in works on Apple or Android mobile via browser. How you save the boarding pass on your phone varies according to the type and brand of device, since apps differ from one to another.

Once check-in is complete, the boarding pass can be printed, sent by email, or saved on a smartphone or tablet. Saved on the device, it can be displayed at any time without an internet connection.

Arrive at the airport with this boarding pass, printed or on your phone, along with the required travel documents. The boarding time is shown on the boarding pass: this is the reference given by the airline for reaching the security checkpoint and the boarding lounge.

At Tahiti-Faa'a, self-service kiosks also let you print the boarding pass, whatever your destination, along with the baggage tags to bring afterward to the 'Baggage drop' counter. Kiosk identification is done using your booking reference, ticket number, Kaveka card or passport.

There are two routes, depending on what you're bringing.

With checked baggage: 20 minutes before departure. If there is no 'Baggage drop' counter, head to the check-in counter for your flight. The airline advises allowing enough time to drop off your bags.

With cabin baggage only: go directly to the boarding lounge, with your travel documents, no later than 10 minutes before departure. At Tahiti-Faa'a, you must first pass through the security checkpoint; the airline recommends getting there before the boarding time shown on your boarding pass.

For baggage rules, the airline points to its Baggage section, and to information on the documents needed to travel: check these on the airline's official website before packing. Cargo shipments follow their own schedule, separate from passenger check-in.

Arriving after the check-in deadline closes the door on your flight: you can no longer be accepted, no-show fees will be charged if you arrive after the check-in deadline, and any other bookings in the same file are automatically cancelled. This is the costliest part of the journey, since the rest of the itinerary falls with the first segment.

A few useful habits:

• if online check-in rejects your booking, check whether any segment is operated by a Beechcraft aircraft or whether you fall under a special assistance case;
• also make sure you arrive before your flight's boarding deadline, which is different from the check-in deadline;
• if in doubt about timings on a less-served island, call the local Air Tahiti agency directly.

Travellers who would rather not handle this themselves can hand the task to iBoardingPass, which carries out online check-in as soon as it opens and sends the boarding pass by email.

Other airlines in the Pacific apply their own deadlines: see Air Calédonie's check-in rules and Air Moana's check-in procedure.