The sixteen competitors began the competition by jumping off the fishing boat, Amaryllis, in the middle of the ocean with the bare essentials: two machetes, two cooking pots, two empty water containers, one frying pan, one filet knife, and one magnifying glass. They were divided into two tribes of eight: Maraamu (Tahitian for wind) wearing yellow, and Rotu (Tahitian for rain) wearing blue, and had to paddle two miles to their beaches. Due to the extreme current, the Rotu tribe was making no progress, but by rowing together they started to move. Maraamu noticed that Sarah was not giving an effort into helping row to the beach. After landing on the beach, Sean and Peter had a prayer session out in the water, and Rob M. thought "they either started playing the game as soon as possible, or they were off their rocker."

Rotu tried using their magnifying glass to start a fire, but it was too cloudy to get direct sunlight. They then tried starting a fire with friction, which also didn’t work. As soon as Kathy walked away, some of the tribe voiced their annoyance with her. Hunter look the leadership role at Maraamu, and they got much smoke, and thanks to Peter’s long breaths, they finally got a fire. At night, Rob M. and Sarah’s flirtations had the rest of the tribe talking.

Rotu found a waterfall near their camp, and also found much taro to eat. Maraamu found some grapefruit trees. Rob M. heard a rooster crowing at camp, and went on a wild chase, but it flew away. Hunter thought Rob M. was wasting his time and needed to work on other chores. Back at Rotu, John argued with Kathy about the fire situation, but he felt bad afterward so wanted to start the fire for her, which he and Zoe did. Maraamu found their water source, and Peter thought he was working too hard, so he decided to take a break.

• Immunity challenge: Each tribe has an outrigger canoe with two torches. The teams must run down the beach with it and then swim with it out to a wok where they must light both torches, then come back to the beach, lighting four torches along the way. Once they get back to shore, they must sprint along the shore, lighting three more torches, get the canoe back in its stand, and light the final torch.

The immunity challenge proved tough. Maraamu was first to the center wok, but had issues lighting their torches, and Rotu took the lead. Things got worse as they dropped one of the torches in the water. Rotu won immunity fairly handily.

Peter wanted to keep the tribe as strong as possible, and Gina said she was going to vote the way she wanted to vote and that no one would talk her into voting a certain way. Some of the women thought that Peter was strange. Sean thought the more males on the tribe, the better, and he wanted to vote out Sarah. Going into the first tribal council, there were no clear alliances, and a lot of people had no idea who they were voting for. Surprisingly, the majority of the tribe came together and voted off Peter.

At Rotu, the tribe bonded with a massage line and commented how they were getting along really well, but Kathy continued to alienate herself by sleeping by herself. Rob was also struggling physically due to the lack of food. Some of the males made traps and fishing gear to try and catch some protein. At Maraamu, Hunter, Rob M. and Sean’s morning show was entertaining the tribe, and put them in high spirits. Patricia, or "Momma" as she was nicknamed by the tribe, stepped up around camp. John wanted to be as high as possible on the pecking order, and caught a shrimp with the trap that he made. Almost immediately after, Kathy called the tribe over as she found a trove of shells and crabs. Back at Maraamu, Patricia’s hard work turned into bossiness, which rubbed some people the wrong way. Sean and Vecepia bonded over their culture and love for God. Although Sean looked physically strong, Gina and Hunter noted his laziness around camp. They also noticed that Rob M. and Sarah were spending a lot of time together, and Hunter thought that if Sarah were to go, they could get more productivity out of Rob M. Again back at Rotu, Kathy wanted to have a meeting about the shelter because there wasn’t enough room for everyone. Gabriel fought back a little, saying that she wasn’t putting forth the effort to get to know everyone. Still, they redid their shelter to include everyone.

• Reward challenge: Each tribe has a boat anchored at the bottom of the ocean floor with about 250 rocks inside. They must dive down and remove as many rocks as possible until the boat floats to the surface. Then, they must bail enough water as they determine necessary and paddle to the beach. The winning tribe receives fishing gear: mask, snorkel, and fins.

While Maraamu only sent down one or two people at a time, Rotu went down in groups. They finally sent a group down to flip the boat instead; it worked and rose to the surface. Maraamu followed suit, rising their boat to the surface. While Rotu flipped their boat on their dock, Maraamu flipped it in the water and had to bail water out. That gave Rotu the advantage, and they ran their boat to their mat, giving them their second straight win.

Back at Maraamu, Sarah voiced her opinions about the shelter, but no one wanted to listen to her because she wasn’t willing to put in the effort to do it herself.

• Immunity challenge: One at a time, each tribe member must bob for a piece of fafaru (marinated fish bones, crab and lobster legs) and eat it without throwing up.

After 8 rounds, every person had eaten their piece, each tribe had to select a member of the other tribe to do the tiebreaker. Rotu chose Rob M. and Maraamu chose Neleh to do the tiebreaker. While both had problems, Rob M. threw part of his up and Neleh got hers down first, giving Rotu another win.

At tribal council, Sarah admitted she did less work in order to conserve energy at the challenges, to which Gina responded that if she has to pick up people’s slack at camp, she is twice as tired at the challenges. Although Sarah received three votes, an early alliance was formed as Vecepia, Sean, Rob M., and Sarah voted out Patricia due to her overall bossiness and per their alliance.

After Maraamu’s vote, Sarah got upset about people saying she didn’t do work around camp, and an argument broke out. Rotu began to repair their shelter after they got soaked from a rainstorm. Paschal formed a tight bond with Neleh, because she reminded him of his two daughters. He became the father figure around camp. John landed on a sea urchin and needed someone to pee on his hand, which Kathy did. The Maraamu members were having big issues with the nonos, which were biting them horribly. While moving the bamboo poles for their raft up to camp, Robert stepped on a rock and sliced the bottom of his big toe open, which John took care of. Later on, John got bitten by an eel while looking for food, which gave him a deep cut on one of his fingers.

• Reward challenge: Each tribe has to construct a raft from bamboo and rope that can fit 6 members and other supplies. Each tribe has to paddle in a criss-cross fashion to five boxes that are anchored to the bottom of the ocean. The winning tribe receives blankets, pillows, and three lanterns, or a week’s worth of rice.

At the reward challenge, the tribes were relatively even, and collided in the middle of the course. But on the fourth box, Maraamu had issues unhooking their box and Rotu got back to the start line first, and chose to take the comfort items. Being 0 for 4 in the challenges, Maraamu needed a win badly.

• Immunity challenge: Get three coconuts through a puzzle maze. Using pulleys to raise and lower their platform, one person will guide the coconut through the maze, and each time one falls through the hole, the caller must be switched.

Maraamu scored first with Vecepia guiding the coconut to the hole, with Gabriel scoring for Rotu soon after. Sarah quickly navigated Maraaamu to score #2, with Paschal scoring right after. With Rob and Zoe directing, Maraamu kept circling the final hole and Rotu easily dropped theirs in, winning immunity for the third straight time.

Hunter and Gina tried to target Sean, but when Hunter told Rob, Rob said he wanted people on his tribe that he could control, and didn’t care about how strong his team was physically. Even though Sarah received two more votes at tribal council, it was Hunter who was voted out.

Gathering at the reward challenge, Jeff told everyone to stand on a piece of log. Under each piece was a new buff. The new Rotu tribe consisted of Zoe, Gabriel, John, Vecepia, Rob, Sean, Robert, and Tammy while the new Maraamu tribe consisted of Gina, Neleh, Kathy, Sarah, and Paschal.

The new Maraamu members were excited to have a change of food from the shells they were used to. The new Rotu members felt welcomed in their camp but noticed that they did a lot more work. Rob was worried that he was in the minority and ripped his new tribe mates. Sean said he felt like a slave and that he was really tired towards the end of the day. The Maraamu tribe decided to go for a hike and eventually got lost; Kathy wanted to go further while some of the tribe wanted to head back. They found a pool with shrimp in it. While the rest of the tribe stayed to try and catch some shrimp, Sarah wanted to head back to avoid being bitten by the nonos. However, she got herself lost and headed back to where the rest of her tribe was. Back at Rotu, Sean grew tired of working so much around camp and complained about it to Gabriel. Rob asked Vecepia what she thought about everything, and she said she wanted to stay out of the drama as much as possible.

• Immunity challenge: Each tribe has to unscramble a woven tapestry.

Rotu got off to a fast start, while Maraamu struggled. Kathy was the only one offering directions, while Gabriel and Vecepia led the way for Rotu. Rotu easily won their fourth straight immunity, but this is the first time Rob, Sean, and Vecepia won while this is the first time Kathy, Neleh, and Paschal lost.

Gina told Kathy, Neleh, and Paschal she wanted Sarah out because of her weakness in challenges and her laziness around camp. Meanwhile, Sarah was oblivious to her tribemates wanting her out and believed that it was everyone for themselves. At tribal council, the original Rotu members sided with Gina and Sarah was unanimously voted out.

Rob was not happy at Rotu because he was in the minority and he had everything under control at Maraamu. He thought that Sean would definitely be the first to go, followed by a tossup between himself and Vecepia, so he tried to get himself in further with the original Rotu members to further himself. Gabriel said he was not there to play the game, but for the experience, which bothered John. At Maraamu, they found tons of crabs and were able to make an entire pan full of crab meat.

• Reward challenge: Fourteen pieces belonging to four tikis are scattered on a course. One member will guide three blindfolded members to the fourteen pieces. Once all pieces are back, the four tikis must be reconstructed. The winning tribe gets to raid the losing tribe’s camp.

At the reward challenge, Gabriel and Kathy were chosen as the eyes for their tribe. Rotu took an early lead and had 13 pieces, but could not find the last piece. Maraamu made up the difference and collected all their pieces first. Rotu eventually found their last piece, but Maraamu was too far ahead. Maraamu won by a landslide, giving the tribe, and Gina, their first win. They had two minutes to raid Rotu's camp, and nearly every reward item Rotu had won ended up with Maraamu.

John noticed Gabriel bonding with the three original Maraamu members. When he approached him about his voting strategy. When Gabriel said he didn’t have one and that he would only tell John who he was voting for beforehand, John did not feel comfortable and said that Gabe was no longer safe, and that he wanted to get rid of him. John concocted an alliance of himself, Robert, Zoe, and Tammy. In order to avoid a tie, John approached Sean about voting for Gabe as well.

• Immunity challenge: Each tribe must build a distress signal without using fire to signal a ship from a distance.

Maraamu’s raid proved useful as they used a lot of the supplies taken from Rotu to help their signal. Rotu quickly realized that all three of the former Maraamu members were participating in the challenge, which worried Robert. Rotu built a signal with their raft and their life jackets, but the captain said he didn’t think it was a very good signal. Maraamu used the insides and outsides of their life-jackets, Paschal's American flag, and their white blankets to create moving signals. The captain said that Maraamu’s distress signal was much more obvious, and Maraamu won their second challenge and their first immunity.

John continued to talk to the other members of Maraamu to get rid of Gabriel, but Rob had other plans and considered getting rid of John. After talking to Rob, Gabriel weighed his options of continuing to play his game or by joining forces. John worried that he may have hatched his plan too early and thought he may be going home. However, Gabriel’s apathetic attitude toward playing the game cost him and he was unanimously voted out. Despite voting against Gabriel himself, Rob told John he was coming after him.

With Gabriel gone, John takes charge at Rotu, and the four original Rotu members (John, Robert, Tammy, and Zoe) agree to stick together to the final four. Rob and Sean agree that their only option is to hope the tribe wins immunity until the merge. Rob is suspicious of Vecepia, stating that she's been distancing herself from them since they came to Rotu. At Maraamu, they collect more crabs.

• Reward challenge: A three part relay race. The first runner races through the jungle, unties a paddle, and tags the second runner. Both then race to untie a second paddle, and then race back to the beach where they break open coconuts to find a key. The two runners pass the paddles and the key to two other tribe members, who must unchain a boat, paddle the boat out to retrieve a flag, then paddle back to plant their flag in the tiki. When the paddlers return to shore, they must push their boat to their chain and both paddlers must be present at the tiki when they put their flag in. The winning tribe receives a meal of chicken, quiche, bean salad, dessert, and Sierra Mist.

At the reward challenge, the Maraamu tribe is shocked to see that Gabriel was voted out. Rob and Zoe easily beat Paschal and Neleh in the jungle portion of the race, however John and Robert have difficulty paddling together, allowing Gina and Kathy to overtake them on the water, retrieving their flag first. However, John and Robert manage to catch up as the boats are heading back. Gina and Kathy forget to take their flag as they ran to the finish, allowing John and Robert to put their flag in the tiki first. Jeff announced that Rotu won the challenge; but Maraamu protests, claiming Robert was not at the tiki before Gina and Kathy put their flag in after John. Jeff then goes to the boats to see if they were in reach of their chains. Maraamu's boat was okay, but Rotu placed their boat too far from their chain. Jeff then stated the Maraamu was correct and that Robert had to be at the tiki with John. Jeff corrects his statement and declares Maraamu the winning tribe.

Back at the camps, Maraamu feasts while Rotu declares it didn't really need food and that the Maraamu members would just make themselves sick eating all that food. Paschal is disappointed that Rotu turned on Gabriel, and he and Neleh bond with Gina which concerns Kathy. Rob confronts Zoe about being in an alliance, which she denies. He then confronts John who confirms that the original four Rotu members are sticking together. After they reach an agreement not to work against each other, Rob asks, "Are you gay?" John answers yes. The four original Rotu members discuss getting rid of Rob but Tammy doesn't want to throw a challenge.

• Immunity challenge: Retrieve five ladder rungs, in order, from throughout a giant maze, while roped together. Climb the ladder they build in the center of the maze.

At the immunity challenge, Rotu is led by Rob and Maraamu is led by Kathy. Rotu wins easily.

Maraamu returns to camp to discover that they have no fire or banked coals. Kathy and Gina discuss if they should vote together to rid of the Neleh and Paschal pair, but end up arguing about whether putting sand on coals banks them (Kathy's method) or puts them out (Gina's view). At tribal council, Gina and Kathy fought for Neleh's and Paschal's votes. In the end, the Neleh and Paschal bloc decided to stay loyal to ex-Rotu member Kathy and Gina is voted out.

After unwittingly discovering an ancient burial (or paepae) with a visible skull and ribcage along with Neleh and Paschal at Maraamu beach, Kathy thinks that she will be the next to be voted out when she notices how strong a bond Neleh and Paschal have. Meanwhile, at Rotu, unhappy with several of his tribemates and disliking the happiness that they seem to have with one another, Rob tells Sean that the others might try to vote one of them out so that a new alliance cannot be formed. Each tribe later gets a tree mail message telling them they have five minutes to select one member to hike to a destination unknown. Rob volunteers to go for Rotu, while Kathy is picked to go for Maraamu.

Rob and Kathy eventually cross paths with one another and meet Jeff at a meeting place called a Tohua. Jeff explains to the two of them that by being sent there, they have been chosen as ambassadors who will be responsible for the upcoming tribal merge. Both would spend the night there to discuss tribal situations, decide on the new tribe's name and paint the new tribe's flag. After leading both ambassadors to a picnic table, Jeff surprises them with a feast of pizza and beer. As they eat, Rob shocks Kathy by telling her that her old tribemates from Rotu plan on aligning with him, Sean and Vecepia to target the remaining Maraamu members upon the merge. Feeling betrayed by her old friends, particularly Zoe, Kathy makes a pact with Rob promising not to vote out each other before turning in for the night.

The next morning, Kathy returns to Maraamu Beach with Rob by her side and tells Neleh and Paschal that they have five minutes to gather everything from their camp and put it on their raft before paddling to Rotu Beach. Upon arrival at Rotu, Kathy, Neleh, Paschal and Rob receive a big welcome from everyone else. Despite being glad to see everyone, Kathy was hesitant due to what Rob told her the night before. When Rob gathers everyone else around, he passes out the new purple buffs, presents the new tribe's flag revealing the new tribe's name as Soliantu (meaning "Sacred Allegiance to the Sun"). Shortly after settling down from all the excitement, things are back to business as usual. Kathy approaches Paschal and explains why she feels vulnerable. Later, while eating together, she told other tribemates how she felt and that she doesn't want anyone lying.

The next day, Rob questions Zoe as to whether she planned on voting for Kathy. Zoe's denial upsets Kathy, who walks off uncertain as to who is being loyal. Rob makes it clear that being continuously lied to aggravates him, while Kathy realizes how badly she needs to win immunity.

• Immunity challenge: Each player stands on a floating platform in the water. Whoever stays on their platform the longest without falling off or touching the platform with any part of their body besides their feet wins.

When it comes down to two players (John and Kathy), John leans down and touches his platform, giving Kathy a much-needed victory. As Tribal Council looms, Rob and Sean have a heated disagreement with John over the vote. Sean lashes out about the vote being individual when four people vote alike.

At Tribal Council, Jeff reveals a new facet: Whoever has individual immunity has the option to assign it to another player. Kathy decides not to give up immunity and the tribe casts their votes. Vecepia and the Rotu members (minus Kathy) stick together to vote Rob out over John and Zoe.

Upon returning from tribal council after voting off Rob, members of the recently merged Soliantu tribe congratulate one another on making it as far as they've gotten. Shortly afterward, Sean makes it evident that he has a flatulence problem. Robert concludes that the tribe's usual Marquesan diet has affected Sean's system. The next morning, the tribe notices how fortunate they are to have discovered that two trees have fallen near their tent as a result of a fierce storm that hit their camp. Later on, Kathy asks Zoe if she John, Robert and Tammy were planning on voting her out. Kathy doesn't believe Zoe when she denies such plot.

After cooling off in the waterfall near their camp, the tribe discovers a message attached to a kite-making kit at their tree mail. The message instructs the players to make their own kites for the next reward challenge. As the tribe works away, Kathy believes the next thing to do is to target players who were originally on Maraamu prior to the tribal switch, but wishes she could eliminate John and Tammy instead. Kathy approaches Paschal hoping to convince him that targeting stronger players was the way to ensure them a longer stay in the game.

• Reward challenge: Each player has a kite (which they made themselves prior to the challenge). The first player to get their kite 300 feet in the air wins a king-size Snickers candy bar and a scuba diving trip at a coral reef.

During the challenge, several players find it difficult to get their kites up, but Kathy's kite rises above all others, clinching her another victory.

While Kathy is out scuba diving, voting strategies are being made as Neleh and Paschal align with John, Robert, Tammy and Zoe planning to vote out Sean at the next tribal council. When Kathy returns, she shares her Snickers bar with her tribemates. Although all are appreciative of Kathy to do so, John is not impressed saying that his share of Kathy's bar is not enough to change his vote. Sensing vulnerability, Sean urges Kathy to vote with him hoping that Neleh and Paschal will follow suit. Kathy agrees with Sean theorizing that John and Tammy are playing in such a way that would make them difficult to vote out. However, Neleh disagrees with Kathy explaining that there will always be alliances and that the more you speak out, the more vulnerable you become. Despite Kathy telling him that she refuses to be a pawn to help John and Tammy make it to the final day, Paschal chooses not to align with Sean and Vecepia. John feels confident that Neleh and Paschal are supporting him.

• Immunity challenge: The players are asked questions about surviving on the Marquesas Islands. Each player has a station with three ropes each tied to a bundle of coconuts hanging from trees. A correct answer gives a player the right to cut one of the other players' ropes, causing a bundle of coconuts to fall to the ground. Losing all three bundles means elimination from the game. The last player left with at least one bundle of coconuts wins.

At the immunity challenge, Sean realizes his vulnerability by being the first to be eliminated followed by Vecepia and Kathy, all of whom notice a bothersome pattern as John, Robert, Tammy and Zoe seemed to work as a group to eliminate all others, all of whom believe that this pattern would affect future votes at tribal council. The challenge ends with Tammy cutting loose Robert's last coconut bundle, giving her individual immunity. After the challenge, Vecepia senses cockiness among John, Robert, Tammy and Zoe. Sean seconds Vecepia's observation. Neleh and Paschal are also displeased with what happened at the challenge.

At tribal council, Neleh and Paschal align with Kathy, Sean and Vecepia. As a result, John is voted out over Sean and became the first member of the jury.

Sean is overjoyed over John's departure as a result of the previous tribal council vote, realizing a new day for him, Kathy, Neleh, Paschal and Vecepia. Neleh finds it funny to have beaten John, Robert, Tammy and Zoe at their own game. Later, Tammy realizes that she and Robert are outcasts, being seen as traitors by the others, and it's their own fault for trusting John. Tammy then questions Zoe's intentions only to have Zoe deny forming an alliance with Tammy, John and Robert. Zoe even reveals to Tammy that she never liked her.

• Reward challenge: The eight remaining players are separated into four teams of two by random drawing. Each team has a three-foot bamboo shoot and it's up to the teams to fill them with coconut juice using coconuts from the shoreline or from the parcels anchored in the water. Once retrieved, the coconuts must be cracked and drained into the shoots. the first team to fill their shoot to the top wins a helicopter ride over the Marquesas, a horseback ride and an authentic Marquesan feast.

At the reward challenge, the players are separated into four teams of two. Sean is teamed with Paschal, Tammy with Vecepia, Kathy with Robert, and Neleh with Zoe. All four teams must race to fill a bamboo shoot with coconut juice with the winners going by helicopter to a mountaintop where they will ride horses to a Marquesan feast. It was a frantic race, but due to Sean draining a huge coconut early on, he and Paschal come out on top and win the reward. The next day, Paschal and Sean were taken by helicopter to a mountaintop where they met two Marquesan tribesmen who, despite Sean's anxiety, have them mount on horses and journey to where their feast will take place. They are greeted by locals upon arrival and are served coconut drinks with which they toast to their new friendship. The locals perform a traditional dance upon Paschal and Sean's arrival at their dining area. Once served, Sean says a prayer before he and Paschal feast on everything including roast pig, goat and potatoes and even go as far as to sneak food in their pockets for their tribemates before dancing with the locals. When the locals depart, Paschal and Sean tearfully soak in the experience before returning to camp. Everyone is grateful to Paschal and Sean for bringing food from their feast.

The next morning, Tammy speaks with Robert and the two try to re-align with Neleh and Paschal without success. Zoe makes shell jewelry for the rest of the tribe hoping to win their confidence and friendship and have an effect on distancing her from Robert and an unconvinced Tammy. Later, the tribe finds a message written on a pair of stilts at their tree mail. The message tells the tribe to practice walking on them for the next immunity challenge. Several players have trouble balancing on them, much to the delight of Tammy, who has no trouble at all when practicing on the beach.

• Immunity Challenge: The players enter a ring walking on stilts, trying to knock their opponents off their stilts. The first to fall off is eliminated, leading the winner to move on to the next round. The player left on their stilts after the final round wins.

Tammy's practicing pays off and wins her individual immunity for the second straight time.

After a debate over who will be next to go, the eight members of Soliantu hike to tribal council, where Zoe is unanimously voted out over Robert, making her the second member of the jury.

There are complaints over the living situation due to a restless night's sleep had by the remaining members of the Soliantu Tribe. Sean is uncertain as to the sincerity among tribemates after witnessing hugs as good morning gestures. Later that morning, the tribe celebrates Vecepia's 36th birthday with a special breakfast of bananas and mangoes, much to Vecepia's delight. With only coconuts, taro root and troca left to eat, the tribe's energy level was lower than ever. Armed with a machete in hand, Kathy stands by the shoreline hoping to catch one of the baby black-tipped sharks swimming in the shallow waters. But apparently the waves stop her from even striking one blow. After checking for tree mail, Sean serenades a teary-eyed Vecepia with a rendition of "Happy Birthday" with hugs and kisses.

• Reward challenge: The tribe plays Musical Chairs island-style by racing to retrieve either of six shells from the ocean floor. Whoever does not retrieve a shell is eliminated from the game. Similar rounds are played until four players remain. Those four then race from a dock to the shore carrying a 40-pound rock underwater. The first to reach shore and drop their rock at Jeff's feet wins a day on a luxury cruise ship with a hot shower, change of clothes and a full-course meal.

At the reward challenge, Vecepia is first to be eliminated as she is unsuccessful in finding one of six shells on the ocean floor. Sean and Neleh have the same misfortune in the next two rounds, bringing it down to a race between Kathy, Paschal, Robert and Tammy to bring a 40-pound rock to shore from underwater. In spite of being older than all the others and at his lowest level of energy, Paschal was first to retrieve his rock and drop it by Jeff's feet, making him the winner.

Later that day, a cruise ship comes toward Soliantu's beach and Jeff pulls up in a small motorboat to pick up Paschal. As the rest of the tribe enviously witnesses Paschal board his boat, Jeff surprises Paschal by asking him if there's someone he'd like to take with him. In a sudden fit of excitement, Paschal surprises Neleh by calling out to her waving his arms. Screaming, Neleh rushes to the motorboat and hugs Paschal upon boarding. Paschal's quick choice is much to the chagrin of Sean who would have chosen Vecepia as a birthday gift to her. Once checked in, Neleh and Paschal are led to their rooms a where they find changes of clothes on their beds. Soon after, they have their first showers in almost a month. Later, they have a fancy dinner with fresh bread, escargot, steak and crème brûlée. As the rest of the tribe awaits Neleh and Paschal's return, Tammy wonders if they will bring back food from the ship. Neleh and Paschal return to camp full-bellied but empty-handed. Neleh's full description of the experience rubs Kathy the wrong way. Upset over not bringing back food to her starving tribemates, Neleh offers to share a small mint from the ship that she had previously put in her mouth. No one accepts Neleh's offer.

The next morning, Sean is not convinced that Neleh is doing her share of the work at camp. Kathy seconds Sean's observation. Meanwhile, Robert tries to impress the others and securing his position by building a pig snare. As Tammy assists him, Robert explains that if she wins immunity and if he catches a wild pig that has been seen occasionally, both are safe at the next tribal council.

• Immunity challenge: The players race to gather firewood to place under a wok filled with oil and popcorn kernels. Using flint and steel, they then must build a fire hot enough to boil the oil and pop the kernels. Once the kernels start popping, they must transfer the fire to the bottom of a station and build it to ignite a pyre at the top. The first to ignite their pyre wins.

At the immunity challenge that night, all seven players race to gather enough firewood to place under their woks. With other players struggling with their flint and steel and despite being second after Vecepia to start his fire, Robert is the first to get his popcorn popping. Wasting no time, Robert transfers his fire to his station where he continues to build it. Vecepia is next to pop her corn and quickly tries to catch up. But Robert's fire quickly builds high enough to light the pyre at the top of his station, winning him individual immunity. Robert's celebration does not last long knowing that Tammy is the only other person remaining from John's Rotu alliance and fears she will be next to go.

The next night, Robert's fears come true as at tribal council, Tammy is voted out over Vecepia, making her the third member of the jury.

The six remaining members of the Soliantu Tribe continue to run low on energy after another bad night's sleep and homesickness kicks in as all discuss missing friends and family. A teary-eyed Kathy finds the effect on the tribe's mental stability uncanny. Sean nearly falls from a tree trying to fix the hut with Robert catching him in the nick of time. Paschal finds it weird to miss home and enjoy the tribe's companionship at the same time. Being the last of John's Rotu alliance, Robert realizes he has to play harder than ever.

After teasing the tribe with the chance to win the right to call home at the reward challenge, Jeff surprises everyone by bringing out their loved ones. Among the six loved ones are Neleh's mother Rebecca, Kathy's son Patrick, Robert's sister Diana, Sean's buddy Daryl, Vecepia's husband Leander and Paschal's wife Beverly. After explaining the object of the reward challenge, Jeff surprises all by announcing that the loved ones will compete instead of the tribe.

• Reward challenge: The loved ones of the six remaining players stand around the edge of a large puzzle consisting of individual hexagonal pieces. One at a time, the loved ones move from one piece to another, flipping each piece they step off of to green (a green piece cannot be stepped on). Once trapped in with green all around, a loved one is out of the game. Six pieces of the puzzle read "Skip a turn." If a loved one steps to one of those spaces, they will not move on their next turn. One piece reads "Vote someone out" on the other side. If a loved one turns over that piece, it gives them the right to choose a loved one to eliminate from the game. Verbal contact between players and loved ones is not allowed; non-verbal contact is. The last loved one standing spends the night at Soliantu beach.

After several moves made by all, Beverly is eliminated first. She gives a goodbye hug to Paschal and heads on her way. The game continues with Daryl finding the "Vote someone out" tile. Undecided on whom to choose, Daryl tosses his cap in the air and it falls by Leander's feet, bringing Vecepia to tears. As he hugs a weepy Vecepia, Leander encourages her to stay strong before heading out next. As the game progresses, Daryl is next to go followed by Rebecca, both of whom hug Sean and Neleh respectively before heading out as well. Although Diana and Patrick both run out of moves, Diana was eliminated due to being the first to run out. Therefore, Patrick wins the challenge and, after a big hug from a gleeful Kathy, spends the night with her and the rest of the tribe. Jeff even gives Patrick a buff.

Upon returning to camp, Kathy puts Patrick to work by having him collect taro root and crush troca shells. After struggling to crack the shells, Patrick realizes how hard it is for everybody and even admits to not being the outdoor type. Having been visited by Beverly, Paschal feels he has come face-to-face with himself and plans to change his outlook on life upon returning home and not take things for granted anymore. Vecepia has similar feelings after being with Leander. Once alone with him, Kathy asks Patrick for advice on how to play the game from this point on. But Patrick has no advice at all. All in all, Patrick's stay at Soliantu turned out not to be enjoyable for him. Kathy is in tears as a motorboat arrives to pick Patrick up and take him back. Upon Patrick's departure, the game is back on. Robert feels vulnerable being the last of John's Rotu alliance. Sean and Vecepia suspect Neleh of riding Paschal's coattails. Kathy thinks if she makes it to the final three either with Neleh and Paschal or Sean and Vecepia, she will be last to go due to the bonds both pairs have.

• Immunity challenge: Each player has an hourglass structure filled with sand. A tiki is placed at the base of each structure. Each player takes turns firing small rocks with a slingshot at another player's structure hoping to break one of nine tiles on it. Breaking a tile releases sand that falls over a player's tiki. Once a player's tiki is completely covered, they are out of the game. Players rotate one space over after each round. The last player left with their tiki uncovered wins.

At the immunity challenge, the three men are the first to have their tikis covered, much to Kathy's delight. But Kathy's celebration is short-lived after being the fourth one down. Neleh and Vecepia continue to battle it out until Vecepia's accuracy pays off for her, winning her individual immunity. Feeling even more vulnerable than before, Robert says he doesn't regret anything about his time in the game. Sure enough, at tribal council, Robert is unanimously voted out over Sean, making him the fourth member of the jury.

With just under a week left in the game, the harsh conditions continue to wear down the remaining players. Given the strong bond that Sean has with Vecepia and the similar bond between Neleh and Paschal, Kathy finds herself being the swing vote at the next tribal council. Despite noticing Kathy's predicament and weighing racial differences, Vecepia does not believe that race is not an issue in the game. Upset over such assumption, Paschal bets that Kathy feels foolish for being asked by Vecepia to consider such concept.

• Reward challenge: The players compete in an obstacle course consisting of elements from six previous challenges. Players begin by gathering eight pieces of their color tiki. Once completed correctly, they move on to a pile of coconuts and a bamboo shoot. Players must crack coconuts and fill the bamboo shoot to overflowing with coconut juice before moving on to a pair of stilts that hang in the air from a rope that is tied to a log. Players must untie the knots to release the stilts and take them to a ten-foot section where they must walk across while on the stilts. Once across, players advance to another bunch of coconuts. Inside one coconut is a key to unlocking a box containing a slingshot. Players must take their slingshot to the final station where a plate of colored rocks are found and use the slingshot and rocks to break a tile on an hourglass structure which, when broken, will release sand to cover a small tiki at the bottom. The first player to break the tile and cover their tiki with sand wins a new Saturn VUE all-wheel drive S.U.V. with all of the extra features.

Despite being third after Vecepia and Neleh to assemble his tiki at the reward challenge, Sean is first to fill his bamboo shoot and completes the rest of the course with no one else close to him. He even breaks the tile on his hourglass structure with his first shot, quickly burying the small tiki at the bottom, and winning himself a new Saturn VUE all-wheel drive S.U.V. with all of the extra features.

Soon after returning to camp, despite more hunger and fatigue, everyone goes searching for troca shells in the shallow waters near their beach. Sean is thrilled to have found his very first troca. That night, all five sit around the fire to discuss their differences and the division among one another. Paschal revealed his allegiance to Neleh saying that neither would vote against each other and felt that Sean and Vecepia had an alliance and were not being truthful by denying it. Sean and Vecepia felt that Neleh and Paschal assumed that their allegiance was on account of Sean and Vecepia both being African-American. Although the debate continued long into the night, the issue was not resolved. The next morning, Kathy continues to feel the pressure of being the swing vote and takes time out by trying to fly the kite that she flew at a previous reward challenge, but is unable to get it airborne.

• Immunity challenge: Six stations are spread throughout an area. Each station has a question with two possible answers. The questions are related to a Marquesan story told to the players by Jeff. When a player reaches a station, they must insert their torch in a slot, signifying that the station is occupied and not allowing another player to enter. If a player reaches into the bag below the right answer, they will find a tiki which must be attached to their necklace. Otherwise, they will find a bone which must be taken to a fire wok and dropped in as a sacrifice before continuing on, costing valuable time. The first player to answer five questions correctly and cross the finish line with five tikis wins.

At the immunity challenge, it was a frantic race as the five players raced to answer questions about a Marquesan story which Jeff told them. Although she and Neleh each dropped one tiki on their way to the finish line, Kathy found the tiki she dropped and came out on top, winning individual immunity.

The next day, Kathy continues to weigh out her voting options before she and the others hike to tribal council where the debate from the previous night continued where they left off and with far more tension. Although he tried to influence Kathy's vote one last time, Sean was voted out over Neleh, making him the fifth member of the jury.

After returning to camp from a heated tribal council, the final four members of the Soliantu Tribe sit around the fire to discuss the outcome of the vote. Having cast the deciding vote, Kathy dwells on her final decision to vote out Sean not knowing whether or not she did the right thing by doing so. The next day, Paschal struggles with his island routine saying that he is in good mental shape but bad physical shape. After a duet of "Show Me the Way to Go Home," Kathy and Neleh let out a scream hoping to relieve their physical and mental fatigues. Having heard their screams, Vecepia decides that in spite of loving them, she has had enough with her tribemates.

That night, the final four players hike to tribal council where their next immunity challenge takes place.

• Immunity challenge: At tribal council, the final four players are each given a pad of paper. Jeff asks them a series of questions relating to the twelve players who had been voted out or the events that happened throughout the course of the game. Once a question is asked, the players must write down their answers and reveal them once all four have finished writing. Each player gets one point per correct answer. Whoever scores ten points first wins.

The first of several questions that they are asked is a two-parter to which Neleh gets two points on, while everyone else get one point apiece. Although the lead is tied for most of the game, Vecepia is the first to reach ten points, winning her individual immunity. Shortly before the vote, Kathy negotiates with Vecepia by asking her to keep her immunity but not vote against her in order to force a tie. Vecepia accepts Kathy's offer and casts the deciding vote against Neleh. The vote is tied as Kathy and Neleh receive two votes each. Jeff then reveals that in the tie-breaker previous tribal council votes do not count nor do questions and answers as opposed to previous seasons. Instead, the players are given two minutes to discuss who should be next to go and come to a unanimous decision as to whether Kathy or Neleh will be voted out. Failure to finalize such decision means all but Vecepia picking colored rocks (two yellow, one purple) out of a bag. Picking the purple rock means being the next to go. After the discussion, no decision is made. So Jeff brings the bag around and one at a time, Neleh, Kathy and Paschal reach into the bag and pull out a rock. When Jeff signals the three of them to reveal their rocks, Kathy and Neleh each had a yellow rock, leaving Paschal with the purple rock. Therefore, Paschal, despite never receiving one vote at previous tribal councils, is the next player eliminated and becomes the sixth member of the jury.

At 3:00AM the next morning, Jeff comes to Soliantu and wakes up the final three players and lets them know of the day ahead of them. Upon conclusion of the description, Jeff gives the final three players a map to where they will later journey to before leaving them to assemble an outrigger canoe. With their canoe completed, Kathy, Neleh and Vecepia paddle to the other side of the island. Shortly after reaching shore, they find a mat with brushes and black body paint with which they paint symbols and personal images on their bodies similar to the tattoos worn by local Marquesan tribesmen. Once painted, they hike along a high ridge where they encounter the torches of the first thirteen players eliminated from the game and reflect on the time they spent with them. After passing all thirteen torches, the final three players hike to an area of purification where, after saying a prayer, they bathe to cleanse their spirits using a mixture of oils and spices. As their cleansing ritual commences, Kathy reflects on herself and the other two remaining players and finds it amazing that the three of them have made it to Day 38 in spite of their different ways of life. After adorning themselves with flowers, the three remaining players hike the rest of the way and meet Jeff for the final immunity challenge.

• Immunity challenge: The final three players stand on two logs and lean forward to have one hand on the immunity idol. If a player lets go of the idol, lifts up one foot or touches the idol or supporting tiki with their free hand, they are out of the game. The last player standing wins.

The challenge goes long into sundown. About four and a half hours into the challenge, Neleh suggests that Kathy fixes her top. Doing so with her free hand causes Kathy to lose her balance and fall off her logs, putting her out of the game. After Kathy limps off to the side, Vecepia tries to make a deal with Neleh by asking if she will take her to the final two if she steps off. Neleh agrees and Vecepia steps off her logs, giving Neleh individual immunity.

When the final three players arrive at tribal council, they notice that Paschal is not among the members of the jury. Jeff explains that Paschal collapsed before tribal council was to start and had been evacuated to medical care. Having witnessed the incident and being a registered nurse, John is asked by Jeff to explain what happened. John explains that Paschal fainted on his feet and showed signs of dehydration but was within normal limits, talking, alert and knew where he was. Kathy, Neleh and Vecepia are relieved when John assures them that Paschal will be fine. The three of them move on to discuss what happened at the immunity challenge. Kathy admits her mistake by trying to fix her top and falling from the logs as a result, leading Vecepia to make her deal with Neleh, much to the jury's chagrin when Jeff points it out. Neleh explains that she accepted Vecepia's offer because she was convinced that she would be the next to go if she didn't win. Before long, Jeff sends Neleh to cast the one vote to determine who will be the final player to be eliminated from the game. When Jeff tallies Neleh's vote, it is revealed that Kathy is the final player voted out of the game and the seventh and final member of the jury. Neleh and Vecepia thus became the first final two who originally started on two different tribes.

Upon returning to camp from tribal council, Neleh and Vecepia tend to their fire where they later sit by and pray for Paschal's health before turning in for the night. Shortly after waking up to their final morning and preparing breakfast, the final two players notice a pig and two chickens near their camp. The two of them later take their last mud bath in the shallow waters near their beach. When they return to shore, they start up a bonfire and ceremoniously burn unwanted clothes left behind by their former tribemates. All the while, the two finalists are curious as to how the jury will interpret their methods of gameplay. Vecepia hopes the jury will define her methods as strategic, decisive and partly deceiving, while Neleh hopes that the jury will know that she has been upfront and honest. Both ladies somberly take one last look at the ocean before hiking to their final tribal council.

Each jury member has different feelings about the events leading to the final day. Paschal feels that the game was played honestly and does not know what caused Neleh and Vecepia to make it so far other than luck. Kathy cannot process the game and has not focused on whom to vote for. Zoe thinks it is best to have an all-woman's final and that both Neleh and Vecepia are deserving of the million dollars. Despite not feeling so good about Neleh and Vecepia being the final two and that they lasted longer than him, Robert sees his jury vote as a coup for himself. Sean says that the money will not be swayed by his preference for race and thinks the best player should win regardless. Unable to feel the jury's power until joining the jury herself, Tammy does not think that Neleh nor Vecepia deserve to win the money and must decide who played best and deceived her the least. John feels that how the final two will react to his statement will determine who gets his vote.

When Neleh and Vecepia arrive at their final tribal council, they are glad to see Paschal back on his feet and among the rest of the jury. After explaining the procedure, Jeff has both finalists make their opening statements. Neleh states that she has had an incredible time, that everything she did for the other players was out of love, that she gave everything 100% and loves them regardless of their vote. Vecepia states that she wanted to have a strategy, develop relationships, avoid riding other players' coattails and prove herself with her work ethic, spirituality and gumption to be her best.

The jury then approaches Neleh and Vecepia with questions and comments. Tammy states that she was going to lie, cheat and do what she could to win but changed her strategy because she felt bad about her gameplay because of Neleh and Vecepia's "holier-than-Thou" attitude. Tammy considers the two finalists as hypocrites and possibly the biggest liars due to condemning herself along with John, Robert and Zoe for being manipulative only to be the same way behind their backs through Christianity. Tammy feels that Kathy deserves the million dollars more than Neleh and Vecepia but congratulates them anyway for beating her at her own game. Sean asks the final two if there was a moral message they gained gameplay. Neleh says that at times, she wanted to follow her heart but felt she couldn't due to an alliance she had made and learned to always follow her heart. Vecepia, on the other hand, says that when in a situation, she will think it through before giving her word. Paschal considers both finalists deserving of making it to the end, the epitome of what America has to offer and would have been glad to have had either of them as his daughters. Robert asks the finalists if there was any decision they made or action they took that could be their downfall. Vecepia says that she regrets what she did to Kathy, while Neleh says that she regrets Robert and Zoe leaving when they did. Zoe believes that both Neleh and Vecepia are good-hearted and congratulates them for making it to the end. Kathy asks Neleh which point in the game she did her most dramatic strategic movement, what her decision was and when and the decision she made herself. Neleh explains that she really started playing on Day 24 when she along with Kathy, Paschal, Sean and Vecepia started targeting the Rotu alliance of John, Robert, Tammy and Zoe. Kathy then asked Vecepia how she could go on playing the game by adjusting alliances and not feel part of such cunning manner to which Vecepia explains that her strategy was to wait for people to approach her. After angrily stating how he feels about integrity and stating that both of them lied, John asks why he should vote for either finalist. Neleh states that she was going to join his alliance with Robert, Tammy and Zoe hoping that somehow she would finish further than fifth place but chose not to due to finding out that would not happen. Vecepia states that John knew she came in with a strategy and played the game at her best to get to the end.

In conclusion, Vecepia stated that regardless of she and Neleh responded to what the jury had to say, that the jury finds the answers to decide justly. Neleh asked the jury to consider how she treated them, her love and compassion and that luck got her to the end. Shortly afterwards, the jury casts their vote for who they feel deserves the million dollars. Once the votes are cast, Jeff retrieves the voting urn but does not tally the votes right away saying that they will be tallied after they return to the United States. Jeff then leaves the tribal council area, boards an arriving helicopter and flies away.

Months later, Jeff arrives in New York City in the same helicopter he left the tribal council area in with the voting urn in hand, Jeff hails a taxicab which takes him to Central Park where the two finalists and the seven members of the jury await him on a big stage before a live audience of cheering fans. Shortly after building suspense, Jeff tallies the jury's votes. Neleh receives the votes of Kathy, Paschal, and Zoe, but in the end, Vecepia receives the votes of Sean, Robert, Tammy, and John and is declared the winner of the million dollars and the title of Sole Survivor. The jury confirmed Kathy would have won easily over both Vecepia and Neleh, beating both 6-1, with only Paschal voting Neleh, and only Sean voting Vecepia.