Marquesas Islands Travel Guide. Inspired and captivated by the idyllic tropical scenery, lush green vegetation overflowing with orchids, spider lilies and ginger jasmines, vibrant culture and warm welcoming hospitality of the locals, many artists, poets, adventurers and musicians, like Gauguin, Jack London, Herman Melville and Captain James Cook have considered the remote and fascinating Marquesas Islands as a fantastic "hideaway" to give freedom to their creative minds and souls.
They have recorded in song and captured on canvas the smiling faces of children leaving school, the spectacular beauty of dense tropical forests, the magnificent waterfalls, violent and rocky coast, distant beaches, as well as a horde of wild horses on a deserted plateau. Situated on the eastern edge of Polynesia, approximately 930 miles northeast of Tahiti, the Marquesas Islands comprise an isolated group of 12 volcanic islands, of which 2 are small rock islands and only 6 are inhabited. Marquesas Islands Tourism Information from Tahiti Tourisme North America. The Mysterious Islands About a three hour flight from the Society Islands and the Tuamotu Atolls, the Marquesas, or Henua Enata meaning "Land of Men", are seemingly lost at the end of the earth.
Even now, some of the islands are virtually untouched since the era of European exploration. Their isolation has created an immense pride among the people and a fascinating culture. The language is unique to Tahiti, as the lilting Marquesan dialect is traced directly to the ancient Polynesian tongue of Maohi. Natural wonders abound as 1000-foot waterfalls cascade down sheer volcanic cliffs, and towering mountains disappear into the clouds. Marquesas Islands. Coordinates: Map of the Marquesas Islands Marquesas Location of the Marquesas Islands in the Pacific Ocean The Marquesas Islands (French: Îles Marquises or Archipel des Marquises or Marquises; Marquesan: Te Henua (K)enana (North Marquesan) and Te Fenua `Enata (South Marquesan), both meaning "The Land of Men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southern Pacific Ocean.
The Marquesas are located at 9° 00S, 139° 30W.