Papeete Tahiti Temple, Modern temple in Papeete, French Polynesia

Papeete Tahiti Temple is a modern house of worship with a distinctive blue roof in Tahiti's capital city. The building contains multiple rooms for religious ceremonies, including instruction rooms, sacred chambers, and a baptistry, all surrounded by landscaped grounds.

The temple opened in 1983 and was the 25th of its kind established worldwide at that time. Construction began in 1981 and represented a turning point for the local community, which previously had to travel great distances for religious observances.

The first Mormon missionaries reached French Polynesia in 1844, the church's first mission taught in a language other than English. A family history center on the grounds holds over 1,400 rolls of genealogical microfilm, which residents use to trace family trees and prove heirship to land. The 2006 rededication included traditional Tahitian dances, a flag procession of returned missionaries and a choir.

The temple itself is closed to the public after dedication: only church members holding a current temple recommend may enter. The gardens and grounds are open to all, and the 2009 land purchase added parking, gardens and a straightened access road that makes the building visible from the street.

Before the temple was built, believers had to make long journeys to another country to participate in religious ceremonies. A special renovation celebration in 2006 brought returned missionaries together to carry flags representing the countries where they had served, displaying the global connections of this island community.