I definitely wanted to go to Raiatea, which is the central island in Polynesian mythology. Sometimes referred to as Havai'i, meaing "homeland", this was the first island settled by the Polynesian voyagers, around 900 AD. From here they eventually set off to settle Hawaii, New Zealand, Rapa Nui (Easter Island), and around 100 other islands spanning thousands of miles of open ocean. They were by far the most accomplished premodern sailors, and also the most widely distributed ethnic group in history before modern times.

Another interesting thing about Raiatea is that it has a sister island, Taha'a, which is fairly far away but shares the same lagoon. I am told you can go out to the reef edge and just snorkel your way to Taha'a while staying in shallow water all the time. I wanted to explore Taha'a, but it was harder to get to than I thought and I ended up just doing a standard "Taha'a Tour", which was a bit unsatisfactory in visiting numerous farms and things instead of cool snorkel spots.