Hutchinj

24 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

We were in OTW Cabana 4 yesterday. ALL the Cabanas have an unobstructed view out into the ocean, there are none that have their view obstructed by any other cabana. 

Great to know. Thanks much!

 

I'll keep checking the Cruise Planner site and if the Cabanas ever go on sale, I will attempt to book another one in my wife's name and if successful only then will I cancel the existing one. We shall see!

4 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

$1799 is actually a very low price for these. They can get to $3499 when only a few are left close to sailing during peak season.

 

We had one for our extended family of 8 in late May & the experience was absolutely amazing! Enjoy!

Thanks much, Mike. Glad you enjoyed it. Makes me hopeful it will be worth it.

 

It's still pricey for me but I booked it anyway and will cross my fingers in hopes for a SALE before we SAIL. 🙂

16 minutes ago, theLCC1 said:

1. You find out what cabana you have when you get on board.

2. We went directly to the excursion desk when we got on board and asked for a specific cabana. They moved us without issue. We were one of the first to board and were lucky in that the cabanas were not sold out.

3. All cabana locations are good but some are great - I was particular about the cabana I wanted and was glad to make the change.

Thanks so much. This is quite helpful. We're not suite guests this time but will definitely hit up the excursion desk ASAP if we don't like our cabana assignment. Nice to know it's possible, anyway.

 

Just curious... which overwater cabana did you end up with?

2 minutes ago, BecciBoo said:

But those face out toward the water like a fan sort of, they really aren't bad...if I were reserving I'd pick the end ones too, but just saying they all looked really nice and our friends were enjoying theirs immensely.

I'm sure you're probably right. I'm just being picky. It's almost $2K after taxes, after all.

 

There is no way to reserve a specific cabana unfortunately, and won't know which one we've been assigned until we sail and then it's too late to cancel for a refund if we don't like the location.

Looks great BecciBoo. I'm sure any overwater cabana would be fun but there's little doubt that #'s 4, 7, 14 and 17 have a less satisfactory view with other cabanas in front of you.

 

But I'm going to go ahead and reserve one and hope for the best cabana # and a future sale price, all contingent on sharing the cost with 3 other couples, of course. 😉

Going to book a Cocoa Cay Overwater Cabana for an upcoming cruise in 2023. Even though the price right now is outrageous at $1799, my hope is we'll be able to take advantage of a future sale price if I keep checking the Cruise Planner site. Sales often occur around holidays so I'll be particularly vigilant then.

 

We will have 8 or 9 people sharing the cost so that will help ease the pain of this bucket list item. Hey, ya only live once, right?

 

But when do you find out what Cabana # has been reserved for you? At the time of booking? Sometime before your cruise? On your sail date? Is it possible to request a specific cabana #? I ask because there are some overwater cabanas that are much less desirable than others. See the cocoa key map, below. Looks like units #4, 7, 14, and 17 are stuck behind the other cabanas while units #5, 6, 15, and 16 are furthest out with better views.

 

Want to make sure we get the best bang for our (considerable) buck!

23 minutes ago, dk34 said:

Does anyone have a copy of the cruise contract from 2019 (before Ponant bought PGC)??

 

Or can someone provide the verbiage pertaining to the part if they cancel the cruise?

9. ITINERARY; COMPANY RIGHT TO CHANGE ITINERARY; DETENTION OF PASSENGER:

        b.     [...]    Company may for any reason whatsoever cancel any sailing or terminate the Ticket/Contract at any time before departure of the Ship, and in such event, Company’s only liability will be to refund to the Passenger the amount it has received for the Ticket/Contract.

 

(this is what I had on file from my cc dispute. not sure if this is the latest version)

25 minutes ago, Supertuscan99 said:

Hi hutch..we would of had a great time on the oct 2020 cruise ...dang...land vacation is great also..get on the lagoon as much as you can and take care..I hope you get there this year ! 🙏🏻

Thanks! So glad you had a great time. It had to be magical. We can't wait for our FP anniversary trip!

Typical of PG to deny refunds and come up with some lame excuse why you are only entitled to a future cruise credit even when THEY cancel the cruise. This is in direct contradiction to their own terms of service but they generally tell you to "marteler du sable" (pound sand).

 

After they cancelled our cruise last year we argued with them for a couple months before finally resorting to a credit card dispute which promptly refunded our full cruise purchase price. It is such a shame what Ponant's "customer last" policy has done to the PG's reputation and I feel sad for the ship's wonderful crew and staff. It's not their fault but they are the one's suffering the most. Sadly, because of Ponant's attitude I will never sail on any of their ships again.

 

Given the the current travel bans are lifted by this Fall, my wife and I will once again attempt to celebrate our 50th Anniversary (albeit a year later) in FP, but this time from the comfort of land resorts only which have been MORE than willing to bend over backwards to earn our business, unlike PG.

 

For those of you still intent on cruising with PG, I'm sure you'll have a marvelous time and I wish you (and your money) well. :) 

Unfortunately I agree with all that. We were so looking forward to this cruise (we also booked cabin 767} but are now totally disenchanted with Ponant due to their total disdain for their customers. 
 

We got tired of waiting for a refund from Ponant which might never come and resorted to a credit card claim which I’m happy to report refunded ALL of our prepaid cruise fare. Whew!

 

We are now booked to visit 3 islands and resorts in FP next year but will never again sail with PG as long as they fly the Ponant flag. I’m sure those currently booked on the PG will have a wonderful time and I wish you all the best... even TBK who lashed out at me via private message on social media just because I voiced my displeasure against Ponant (not the wonderful PG crew). 

5 hours ago, Larro9 said:

We too got the run around on the aft cabin..happy to have a larger room but the aft cabin is the best...no comparison....after the back and forth, we decided to cancel our mid oct cruise before the balance was due...just can’t chance it and on board masks did not sound compelling....I’m not here to bash the PG like the I’ll never travel with them again  “wanderers”  and others..this was unfortunate world events that no one had control over...PG will come back some day and would love to sail again....

 

Couldn't agree with you more about the aft cabins. There's just something very special about them. Although I must admit the promise of a free upgrade to a deck 8 category B cabin was certainly enticing! It's a win-win either way. ;)

 

Sorry you chose to cancel your cruise but well understand. PG made that choice for us by cancelling our July cruise. We've already made plans to visit FP next year (and even added a few extra days) but sadly opted against another cruise until the COVID-19 precautions are a thing of the past (if ever) so we can enjoy the picture-postcard-perfect South Pacific cruise we've dreamed of... sans masks!

 

While I am certainly no fan of PG's new management team at Ponant, I have never had bad things to say about the PG ship itself or her wonderful crew.... despite the extreme personal attack I suffered from one of the most prolific posters to this Forum (who also maintains a popular page about PG/FP on another well known social media site). Pretty sad this person felt the need to lash out like that. <sigh>

 

Like you, we look forward to the day we can cruise with PG and take full advantage of all she has to offer. For those that chose not to wait and cruise now despite COVID, we wish you all the best and hope you have a wonderful, memorable, and safe voyage.

 

They offered us a 120% FCC which we also thought was fair but due to our particular situation (age, economy, finances, etc) we needed to insist on a refund which fortunately they now seem amenable to.

 

Let me stress again that none of this recent strife (brought on by COVID-19) was the fault of the PG staff or crew. They were just caught up in the middle due to Ponant's initial attempt to refuse to honor the terms of their own passenger contract. Not PG's fault.

 

I'm really happy for everyone who has managed to rebook a cruise and wish you smooth sailing in beautiful FP. We'll be waving at you from shore next year! 🙂

 

5 hours ago, Hutchinj said:

It's been over a week and I still have not heard back from PG in regards to my refund demand. I'm not surprised, unfortunately. So it looks like I'll have to file a dispute with my credit card company after all. Really a shame as this leaves such a bad impression on the Paul Gauguin and it certainly isn't the crew's fault. We still wish them all the best.

 

Sorry for the duplicate post but wanted to be sure those pursuing refunds from PG/Ponant saw this:

 

Only after some urging from my wonderful TA, I finally heard back from PG in regards to my request for refund from our cancelled July 4th cruise. Here's what they said:

 

Your refund request has now been noted. The Covid19 pandemic is having an adverse effect on our economy, especially the hospitality and travel industries.   We are doing our best to issue refunds, but due to the circumstances some delays should be expected, please allow up to 120 days for processing.   

 

So to their credit, it appears that PG is going to honor our refund request albeit after a wait of up to 6 months. Hate to wait that long but even so this is much preferred to filing a credit card dispute. Things are looking up (I think). 

Sorry for the duplicate post but wanted to be sure those pursuing refunds from PG/Ponant saw this:

 

Only after some urging from my wonderful TA, I finally heard back from PG in regards to my request for refund from our cancelled July 4th cruise. Here's what they said:

 

Your refund request has now been noted. The Covid19 pandemic is having an adverse effect on our economy, especially the hospitality and travel industries.   We are doing our best to issue refunds, but due to the circumstances some delays should be expected, please allow up to 120 days for processing.   

 

So to their credit, it appears that PG is going to honor our refund request albeit after a wait of up to 6 months. Hate to wait that long but even so this is much preferred to filing a credit card dispute. Things are looking up (I think). 

1 hour ago, aururab said:

We just booked a land only vacation to FP in October with our kids and my parents... wish us luck!

Good call. Hopefully things will have settled down by then and even if not, it's still much easier to socially distance at land resorts vs any cruise ship. I'm sure you will have a wonderful time with your family!

 

It's been over a week and I still have not heard back from PG in regards to my refund demand. I'm not surprised, unfortunately. So it looks like I'll have to file a dispute with my credit card company after all. Really a shame as this leaves such a bad impression on the Paul Gauguin and it certainly isn't the crew's fault. We still wish them all the best.

As per the Tahiti Tourism Office announcement of June 5th, 2020, FP is once again open for business to international travelers effective July 15th:

 

French Polynesia has had no active cases of COVID-19 since May 29th. The country’s authorities announced today the borders will be re-opening to international tourism in French Polynesia starting on July 15th, 2020. Timeline is as follows:   July 15th, 2020: Quarantine measures will be completely lifted and French Polynesia’s borders will re-open to international tourism from all countries. There are several conditions, however, including a COVID-19 test 72 hours prior to departure and another 4 days after arrival, plus medical certificates and more. See the link, above, for details.

20 hours ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

 

Well do let us know how that planning goes.  I'm thinking the same thing--if cruising is "over", then we may want to make it back to FP on more time. 

We are already working with our TA to visit FP next August, with resort stays on Tahiti, Moorea, and Bora Bora... no cruise ship. Pluses and minuses to that of course, but all in all I think it should allow for an even more relaxing itinerary. We have been assured no increase in resort prices as they usually do each year plus we're now able to add and additional day to our stays in Moorea & Bora Bora.

 

Still haven't heard back from PG about our refund request. No surprise, though.

I just heard from my TA that PG has now cancelled all sailings in July 2020. Not showing up on the PG website yet but that should be updated soon.

 

And no surprise, their reservations department is saying you can't get a refund, only a credit. I will formally request a refund from them anyway and if (when) they refuse, I'll file a dispute with my credit card company.

 

We've had their July 4th cruise booked for nearly 2 years now. Really is a shame since we wanted to do this cruise so badly. Would even consider risking it all and rebooking for a future cruise but no way I want to do business with a company that ignores their own contracts and treats their customers with such disdain. I do feel sorry for the PG crew, of course, as none of this is their fault. I certainly hope they can recover and get back to some semblance of normalcy.

 

We will now plan to visit FP next year but it will be a land-based resort stay only. We're going to put cruising on the back burner until the industry gets itself sorted out.

 

To everyone else, good luck and stay safe!

Just got this today (May 28th) from my TA...

“FYI, PG had meetings today and are continuing them tomorrow to evaluate if they can sail or not in July based on what the Government/Air Tahiti Nui are advising... they said they plan to have a final decision tomorrow or Monday at the latest.”

So maybe we will know something soon. We can hope!


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Here is the latest on the FP lockdown from the Tahiti Tourism office. The highlighted part seems to be a bit contradictory to the FP President's May 20th Announcement which stated ATN flights would resume July 1st (with restrictions). I guess the situation is still developing...

 

https://tahititourisme.com/en-us/covid-19/

 

Lockdown lifted in French Polynesia starting from May 21, 2020

After two months of lockdown and following the improvement of the health situation, the authorities declared the end of lockdown in French Polynesia starting from May 21, 2020:

• Access to the territory for all non-residents of French Polynesia is still suspended (since March 18, 2020), until further notice. Commercial flights will be resumed following specific regulations which will be announced in 15 days.
• Domestic flights will start their operations from May 22nd, with Air Tahiti flights serving only 10 islands: Huahine, Raiatea, Bora Bora, Rangiroa, Tikehau, Fakarava, Rurutu, Tubuai, Nuku Hiva and Hiva Oa.
• Sailing yachts which have been welcomed in overcrowded mooring areas must leave and resume their trip.
• All companies and administrations will resume their activities.
• Restaurants, bars and nightclubs will resume their activities under usual conditions.

 

On the flip side is the cruise is awaiting cruisers and my guess is everything possible to go beyond their normal great service will be done. The 'guinea pigs' will be the first to report back  ... I think that may very well be a great cruise to experience [emoji6]

TBK... always the cheerleader. And a highly valued one, too. :) Have always enjoyed your posts and lovely photos!

There is no question the first cruise after lifting the lockdown WILL be different from the past. Of course I’m sure the crew will do all they can to make it a good experience but within limits. Yes, it could be good. But it could also be very, very bad.

It may be like old home week to you and others who have sailed with PG many times before. But for many of us newbies, this is likely a one-time bucket list trip that we cannot afford to replicate.

We paid for a dream trip as advertised in the glossy brochures and videos. Social distancing, forced wearing of masks, limited activities, and other necessary restrictions will unfortunately water down, not enhance, the overall experience.

We desperately want the PG cruise we have dreamed of and planned for 2 years in celebration of our 50th Anniversay. But allow me the liberty to be nervous about it. ;)



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https://www.pgcruises.com/travel-advisory

 

Update: May 21, 2020

Ia Orana!

We hope you and your family are safe and in good health during these unprecedented times. The safety and security of our guests and crew members has always been our top priority.

The current global pandemic situation has led us to temporarily suspend the operation of voyages through the end of June 2020 aboard the m/s Paul Gauguin. We are in the process of personally notifying travel advisors and guests with affected sailings.

We look forward to resuming our voyages in the future and continuing to offer our guests exceptional cruise experiences in Tahiti, French Polynesia, Fiji and the South Pacific.

Māuruuru roa,

Paul Gauguin Cruises

 

1 hour ago, fedexretiree said:

This was just posted on PG ..All June cruises cancelled

https://www.pgcruises.com/travel-advisory

 

Thanks for the update, Fedex. So PG has cancelled all cruises thru June. That still leaves our July 4th cruise in limbo. I gotta admit, my wife and I are not necessarily thrilled with the idea of serving as PG's guinea pigs for their first cruise after the lockdown is lifted. <sigh>

1 hour ago, Sailwithbars said:

We are booked on the June 6th cruise. I emailed them two weeks ago regarding the status of our cruise and they informed us that it has been cancelled. American Airlines also called me and wanted to check what we wanted to do with our flights because the Fiji-FP flights, operated by Fiji Airways and Air Tahiti respectively, has been cancelled. 

 

I'm currently having a hard time deciding what to do... receive a 120% credit for a cruise next year or demand for a refund? We also have purchased a travel insurance with Cancel for Any Reason clause. Should I just cancel it myself and file a claim? Any insight would be appreciated. Thanks! 

 

Interesting. All the cruises from June 6th on are still listed as bookable on the PG website. Go figure.

 

Good luck if you opt for a refund. They seem to be saying NO to that even if they cancel the cruise. You may need to file a dispute with your credit card company if it comes to that.

 

And I recommend you double-check your Cancel for Any Reason policy very closely. Most of those still have a general exclusion for epidemics/pandemics. Your policy may be good but don't assume, confirm.

 

Yesterday the FP President eased up on restrictions including non-residents but there is verbiage about medical clearance 72 hours before travel, a potential 14-day quarantine upon arrival, daily health monitoring, etc, etc that we have no details about yet. Hopefully that will be clarified very soon.

 

Here is the English translation of the 5/20 FP announcement. I have no idea how the highlighted section will be implemented in regards to non-residents. There is no specific mention of cruise ships.