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Petersburg, IN: Do you need to be able to speak French to get around Tahiti?

Jason Cochran: Not really. It's a tourism hotspot. Although many innkeepers, drivers, and staffers only speak French fluently, they are used to dealing with international tourists who speak other languages (German, English, Spanish, Dutch). So almost anyone you'll meet in the tourism industry can either speak workable English or get by with a few words. It's easy for Americans to forget how often people in the rest of the world have to adapt to the language barrier. For them, it's not a problem when languages don't blend. Also, most places have written English-language materials on hand for guests just like you. Even the menus are usually available in English--although since French cooking terms are so common in America, you will probably be able to easily order without the help. Grab a French phrase book and memorize the essentials (thank you='merci', hello='bon jour', and so on), and you'll be just fine.

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Atlanta, GA: How warm is it without air-conditioning in September through November? (The promised ceiling fan and trade winds in Grenada in May were not enough!)

Jason Cochran: Most of the time, you'll be fine if your hotel is near the coast. In February and March, though, the air is often as still as if someone switched it off, and even sleeping under a ceiling fan can be uncomfortable. Of course, that gives you a good excuse to go swimming every hour!

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Irvine, CA: What excursions do you recommend on Moorea, for 2 very active 30-somethings? We leave on Saturday for 1 week.

Jason Cochran: My favorite activity was swimming with the stingrays. You're taken out on a boat deep into the northern lagoon, where you anchor and then jump overboard into waist-deep water. Your guide hauls out a bag of frozen fish and the stingrays, who became tame by getting their lunch like this every day, come sweeping in. You can feed them by hand, pet them, and feel their spongy flesh. Bring your own mask and flippers and you can swim with them. Several companies offer this excursion, which is usually preceded by a "swim with the sharks" feeding and followed by a picnic on a lovely offshore island (motu) that's fringed with coral gardens. I went with Moorea Explorer, which also supplies transportation to and from where you're staying. It takes all day and costs in the neighborhood of $70. I loved it. (They used to have a few such stingrays on Huahine, too, but a few locals decided to take advantage of their tameness--and speared them for dinner.)

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Rancho Santa Margarita, CA: How prevelant is it to use ATM machines on Moorea (and other islands) for exchange purposes? Do the various vendors strictly take the Tahitian currency, or are USD accepted? Thank you!

Jason Cochran: Big topic! Before you go to French Polynesia, grill your bank about whether your card will be accepted in ATMs there! Some people report no troubles, but others (including me) have had serious problems. My card didn't work at all, at any machine, and if I hadn't brought plenty of travelers' checks, I would have been in trouble. So make sure your ATM card will work--just call your bank's customer service line and get to the bottom of it. The official name of the country, for your reference, is French Polynesia (Tahiti, the name of the largest island, is the nickname). If you run out of money, don't expect your bank to be able to rush to the rescue right away, since many big companies (Citibank included) do not have offices anywhere in the entire region. If you want to feel completely safe, bring travelers' checks as a backup--all hotels take them, and you can always re-deposit them in your bank if you don't use them. Credit cards are widely accepted, but American Express is not as widely taken as the others, so don't rely on it, either. Many places, especially shops and restaurants, only accept cash. Dollars are not accepted--you must exhange your money into French Polynesian Francs, which currently trade at about 92 to the US Dollar.