The warm, milky turquoise waters of The Queen's Bath of Tetiaroa, French Polynesia, glow as if fitted with their own set of underwater lights. Named after Queen Pōmare IV of Tahiti, who would retreat here to absorb the restorative powers of the lagoon in the mid 19th century, this luminous body of water is unlike anything I've ever encountered. “It's the rich minerals that attracted the Queen here, along with its beauty,” says Teva, a guide from the Tetiaroa Society, which observes and protects the region's natural environment. “The waters are sacred in that way and offer renewed energy for those who bathe in them.”
Here, 30 miles north of Tahiti
