Tom Sandra

@YoPhilly Did you find another tour operator for Nuku Hiva? Any recommendations or advice? We'll be there in July on PG. @57redbird THANK YOU for this info!! I had reached out to him yesterday (no response yet), so your feedback is timely for me.

@JinxyB Also, did they mention any additional excursions? Especially at ports where no excursion is listed on the PG website...

Wow!! That is awesome!! Thanks for letting us know current protocol!

@mermaid 285 WOW!! Thank you so much for all of this info, pics, and detail!! That sounds amazing!! I will inquire about prices, which might make a difference if just 4 of us are paying for the entire tour. Thank you again!! Very much appreciate your help and time.

@elmaexec @EPTCB @mermaid 285 and anyone else who has toured with Ato, How did you go about securing the minimum of 8 passengers for the tour? Our cruise is 3 months away and we have very few people in our roll call. There are two couples (ourselves + one other couple) who want to do Ato's tour. Like elmaexec, communication has been difficult and sparse, so my questions are: How did you find the additional passengers? If we can't make the 8-person minimum, can those of us in attendance pay the difference? Was he open to this arrangement? I'm just hearing about this South Pass & Pink Sands in this thread. It will be the first time to Fakarava for all of us (so far) and we had inquired about the Blue Lagoon and snorkeling. Should we reconsider the South Pass instead? We are all snorkelers (no divers). [And thank you @Tahitianbigkahuna, I did see your comments about the long and rough ride to the South Pass, so we'll consider that also!]

perfect. Thank you!

Where do you have that arranged? Do you just ask the Guest Services Desk to arrange it? Thank you!

For our July '22 cruise, we did pre- and post- packages with PG, both at the Intercontinental - Tahiti; the post- was in an overwater bungalow and included transfers from ship to the IC and the motorcoach tour that most passengers seemed to be on; also included a meal credit on both days (if I recall correctly); and transfer from IC to airport. Our thoughts about the post- package: We loved the OWB and consider that worthwhile! The biggest benefit was that PG was able to secure a late check out at no additional cost (though the base cost was significant). Other passengers who had booked direct had purchased the full additional night because flights leave so late from PPT. The motorcoach tour was on packed coaches, so we were not interested in getting stuck without window ventilation with people coughing & sneezing, etc. A cab driver took us to a rental car place and we drove the island ourselves with a tourist map (this was not worthwhile, IMO; it's a stark contrast from the cruise ports & excursion experiences which can be a little emotional, and we were just tired from the port-intensive cruise and just wanted to check in at the hotel). For the included transfers to (and from) the airport, we also passed on these. A cab between the IC and PPT was about $25-30; very worthwhile. However, we did the transfer from IC to the ship on Embarkation Day and I thought it was fun to meet some other passengers right off the bat! I will also share that it's very easy to get a cab at the IC (of course 🙂) and we LOVED the food at the IC (food is such a personal thing, but FWIW). Not sure if it was COVID-related or ongoing, but we also couldn't enter the airport before 6pm (I think) and the outer retail area was all closed. When we could enter the airport, the ATN Lounge is the only one available (they do allow United first class to use it) and it's pretty bare bones. Learning from that experience, we are returning in July '24. Knowing that we just want to get home after a long and port-intensive cruise, we got our OWB as a pre- and we didn't need any special arrangements... so we booked it direct. After the cruise, we'll just get a cab to the IC where we booked day passes direct and access begins at 10am. They require reservations for the day passes, as they have a limited number available. You can email the IC directly, but here is the info I received in early January: **************************************** We would like to thank you for your email and your interest toward the InterContinental Tahiti Resort & Spa. Further your request, we are pleased to present you our different offers for a day pass: The Lotus Pool Day Pass – Available everyday Includes access to the pool area from 10.00am to 5.00pm with a lunch at the gourmet restaurant Le Lotus from 12.00 to 2.00pm: main course + dessert a la carte. Weekday rate, Monday to Thursday : 9 500xpf per person Weekend rate (Friday to Sunday): 11 200xpf per person The Tiare Pool Day Pass + Lunch – Available everyday [the most popular] Includes access to the pool area from 10.00am to 5.00pm with a lunch at the main restaurant Te Tiare: main course + dessert a la carte. Weekday rate, Monday to Friday: 8 500xpf per person Weekend rate (Saturday and Sunday) and public holidays: 10 500xpf per person The Tiare Pool Day Pass + American Breakfast – Available from Monday to Saturday Includes access to the pool area from 10.00am to 5.00pm with an American Breakfast at Te Tiare restaurant available from 6.30 to 10.30am. Weekday rate, Monday to Friday: 8 500xpf per person Rate for Saturday and public holidays: 10 500xpf per person The Tiare Pool Day Pass + Tahitian Brunch - Available only on Sunday Includes access to the pool area from 10.00am to 5.00pm with our Tahitian Brunch at Te Tiare restaurant, available from 7.00 to 10.30am with a traditional dance show at 8.30am. Rate : 10 500xpf per person. Beverage and transfer are not included Payment can be made directly on site, upon arrival -50% off for children from 4 to 11 years old Please find below the link giving you access to our restaurants menu: Te Tiare: https://en.calameo.com/read/004500545519b4ff52a44 Le Lotus: https://en.calameo.com/read/0045005451cf07f310609 As we have a limited number of day passes, reservations are mandatory. For a possible reservation, please let us know at what time you would like to book a table at the restaurant for breakfast or lunch. *****************************************

@JinxyB We are on this same itinerary, embarking on July 6. I have the same questions as you, regarding excursions on the remote areas on this itinerary! My husband is not keen on long bus rides or non-active tours. Hoping that others will chime in, and/or that you can share your experience while on your sailing. Thanks so much for asking this question! Regarding your first questions: My last time on Paul Gauguin was July 2022. At that time, I was able to call in the day after Final Payment Date (so, 89 days before sailing) and upgrade to any available cabins for 50% of the price difference. So, we were in a C balcony and upgraded to the B balcony with butler service. They took the current cruise fare for the B and subtracted the amount we paid for the C (can make a difference with their dynamic pricing model) and then charged us half of that amount for the upgrade. I'm not sure if they still offer/allow this, as they were not sailing at 100% at that time (just out of the pandemic).

Still no email or Messenger response from Ato. Such a bummer. I'll sign up for a ship excursion as a backup, and keep my fingers crossed for an Ato miracle. lol

@Tahitianbigkahuna First & foremost, thank you very much for this!! I just sent another email (fingers crossed). I checked all three prior emails and I sent them to that same email address. Hopefully it will work out! Again, thank you so much for taking the time to help; much appreciated.

@pappy1022 Are you referring to Ato? I can't reach him either and have been trying since late February. I sent him a message yesterday on Messenger as recommended above, but it has not even been opened yet. We'll keep our fingers crossed.

Thank you so much @Tahitianbigkahuna! I really appreciate your feedback. Yes, that is the email address I've been using for Ato. I will try his Facebook/Messenger as you suggest. Thanks again!

@FlightMedic555 I can't get a response from Ato; I've emailed him a few times in the last 5 weeks. Any advice for connecting with him? Our sailing is in July 2024. Also, have you ever booked directly with Reef Discovery in Bora Bora? I've heard them mentioned a few times on these boards and would like to book in advance with another couple. Just looking for some reassurance that they are a reputable company to pre-book with. It's a sizeable payment and we don't want to lose it for two couples. Thank you for sharing any of your experiences. By the way, it appears that Reef Discovery now provides the longer day with motu lunch according to their website. Thanks so much again!

Hi! I did the Society + Cooks itinerary in 2022, so there are a couple of overlapping ports. We did all excursions through the ship, and we were sailing at about 66% so things may be different with the full/er capacity of today. In Huahine, we did the Huahine Exploration tour. The pros were that it was a small group (like, 6 of us) and we hit many sites. Still, the excursion was just 'okay.' In Bora Bora, we did the small private boat tour with three stops (sorry, can't recall the name). It was outstanding! Pricey, but well worth it!! I've since learned that you can book it privately at a better price point -- which I'm hoping to do when we return in July. I'm having trouble getting responses from vendors though...). In Tahaa, we did the Exploration of Tahaa tour and it was very good!! We saw a lot of sites, met locals, had homemade treats and refreshments from locals, and I love the vendors we visited (vanilla farm and Galatea pearls). It does take away from time at Motu Mahana though; and I've since learned that the Drift Snorkel excursion here is outstanding. So as much as I'd like to repeat this excursion, I'll probably go with the Drift Snorkel this summer. In Moorea, we did the Ocean & Lagoon Tour and it was outstanding. There were only two couples on the tour and the guides were excellent!! One was an academic so we learned a lot, too. Lots of snorkeling, but weather kept us on the boat more than planned -- and they took us to places not on the itinerary to make it better! The next day we did the Slow Paced Belvedere/eBike tour and it was awful. The tour guide was rude and impatient. A few people were new to eBikes and she literally took the group onwards while they were straggling (& struggling) behind...and it was just downhill from there (no pun intended 🙂). Dining: The Grill was our favorite place for dinner. We went almost every night, though it sounds like that is not the norm. You make reservations when you board; your butler will do that for you if you're in a Cat B or higher. I've since read that you're guaranteed one reservation at Le Grill and one at La Veranda per sailing and you can inquire about more onboard (??). Dress onboard: Casual. In the dining rooms, pants (like khakis, Dockers-like) and short sleeved loose button-down or polo shirt for men; and sundresses all the time for women. Have fun!

Our last PG was 1.5 years ago and we had no problem booking excursions on embarkation day. That's what I plan to do this summer also, unless I read differently from a more recent sailor.

Yes, our butler booked our dining; we're not divers so I'm not sure of how/where to make those reservations. Butlers stock your fridge and accommodate those requests; they bring a daily hors d'oeuvres plate; transport laundry items; deliver room service; work in tandem with your room steward.

Hello! I appreciate the recommendations from FlightMedic -- thank you! We are going on our 2nd PG cruise in July and would like to arrange for some private excursions. Pappy, for your ports that I have visited, we did the following the PG shore excursions: Huahine: Huahine Exploration. I wouldn't do this one again, but it was worthwhile. The positives was that it was a small group; we hit most of the tourist highlights; it was very reasonably priced. We did not get to snorkel for long and it wasn't that great of snorkeling anyway. Bora Bora: (although we purchased the Bora Bora Off Road Adventure and the Lagoon Cruise and Polynesian luau excursions, we skipped both of these. Our friends had a private boat that provided three snorkeling stops and invited us along; it was amazing!! I would highly recommend that (I believe they booked it through PG). We will totally do this in July. And leaving one day in Bora Bora to just explore town on our own again. Tahaa: We did the Exploration of Tahaa excursion and it was excellent! I really wanted to get Tahitian vanilla beans (this was a priority for me) and this excursion really delivered!! We absolutely loved it and all of the places we visited (notably a thorough learning experience at a local vanilla bean farm and a stop at a place that had an apiary (we're hobby beekeepers so this was very cool) and the locals shared some cooking traditions and delicious fresh snacks. The downside of this excursion is that it takes all morning and you miss time at Motu Mahana. Moorea: We did the Ocean and Lagoon Tour Snorkel and the Slow Pace Belvedere Bike ride. The Ocean & Lagoon Tour (I believe was led by Ocean Adventures) was outstanding!!! Very small group, it was a bit pricier and you only snorkeled (no food, etc), but so well worth it! We snorkeled in the lagoons AND the wide-open deeper ocean areas (which I had never done before -- thrilling, but not aching to do that again). Our guide was a scientist and so informative!! Also, we had the best boat driver that I've ever had (extremely impressed); the crew was top notch! On the flipside, the electric bike ride was not good and I do NOT recommend it. They didn't give sufficient instruction for use so a few people were really struggling to ride their bikes. When my husband told the leader that she needed to slow down and assist everyone (and granted, he did tell her that she was rude -- because she really was), she was very offended by my husband and visibly frustrated by the two women who struggled with their bikes...so she just moved on and led the group to the next site. Since we have e-bikes, we held back to assist the strugglers/stragglers. The tour guides went on without us and we missed the information shared at a couple of stops by the time we pulled up! Perhaps if they made the group smaller they could better manage the situation, but I was frustrated by this whole thing and actually glad when the tour was over. Side Note: there are wonderful jams and honeys onboard the PG and they are made on Moorea. That is a worthwhile stop/place to visit to pick up some souvenirs. Finally, you didn't mention Papeete...but we actually had wonderful snorkeling at the Intercontinental at our overwater bungalow. THAT was a worthwhile experience! We did it for a night pre and post cruise...but this next time we will do it 2 nights pre-cruise. These are pretty intensive cruises, so afterwards we're ready to go home.

There is a new itinerary in 2024 that has caught our eye: 14-night Islands of the Marquesas & Tuamotus. Any information or thoughts on this itinerary or the new ports? We did the Cooks & Society Islands itinerary in 2022 (absolutely loved it!). We're deciding between this new itinerary or the Fiji/Tonga/Cooks/Society Islands itinerary. I welcome all feedback!

We just disembarked last week. We did the Muri Lagoon Cruise in Rarotonga and loved it! The shuttle/bus ride to the lagoon was also very interesting and beautiful (no narration nor announcements; just observation). A couple of nice snorkel stops and then a very light picnic on the islet. Try to get the back seat on the bus for the most space and airflow. (Details: 3 hours, $119pp, departed at 9:15am)

Thank you Aussieboy, Tahitianbigkahuna, and Minidonuts! I just want to stash a few eMed tests in our luggage, just for peace of mind. 🙂 Tahitianbigkahuna, is the Lafayette Pharmacy in Papeete? Is it close to the Intercontinental? TIA

Thank you for that info; that is what I needed! And yes, I do understand that you never said anything about the eMed proctored tests. I was just trying to word my question as thoroughly as possible to avoid confusion...which I still managed to do anyway. haha thanks again.

Hi Tahitianbigkahuna, thanks for the reply. PG said they do NOT accept the eMed proctored antigen test for boarding the PG. My question was about returning back to the USA after our PG cruise. Do you know if the eMed proctored antigen test meets the requirements for an antigen test for flying back to the mainland? Thank you! (I'm just trying to get my ducks in a row for next month.)

Thank you for this update! Do you live in the United States? Do you know if the eMed Binax Now test is sufficient for returning back to the US (online, proctored by a medical professional)?