Heiva i Tahiti is the defining event of the French Polynesian calendar, running through July each year from around Bastille Day (July 14). It started in 1881 as a grudging French permission for Polynesians to perform their dances during colonial celebrations, and has grown into a month-long celebration of everything Polynesian. Dance and singing competitions are the centrepiece — dozens of groups compete with elaborately choreographed performances in traditional costume. Alongside these are traditional sporting events: stone lifting, outrigger canoe racing, spear throwing, coconut-tree climbing. If you are anywhere in French Polynesia in July, try to catch at least some of it.
Tahiti Pearl Regatta takes place in May, a sailing race around the Society and Tuamotu islands that brings in yachts from across the Pacific. Even if you're not competing, the waterfront scene in Papeete around the regatta is lively.
Marquesas Arts Festival (Festival des Arts des Marquesas) is held every four years, rotating between the main Marquesan islands. It brings together performers, carvers, tattoo artists, and traditional navigators from across French Polynesia and beyond. If the timing aligns with your visit to the Marquesas, it is unmissable.
Tiurai (July celebrations) spread the festive mood beyond Tahiti — most islands hold their own versions of the traditional competitions and dances during July, so wherever you are in French Polynesia that month, something is likely happening.