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Flight to Papeete issue


Waynetor
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Friends of ours are booked on Regatta on a cruise inNovember from Papeete to Sydney. They wereoriginally given a flight from Toronto on Monday afternoon to LA and LAovernight to Papeete for the cruise starting Tuesday. Now that it is after final payment O has changedtheir flight. Now they are to leaveToronto on Sunday, fly to LA, then to Auckland and back to Papeete arriving Mondaynight and they have to book a hotel in Papeete.

Means they have to leave Toronto a day early (missing aparty we have planned) and travel an extra 13 hours plus extra expense. O nowsays all direct flights from LA are booked full.

Certainly not a great way to start a vacation and not a goodimpression for a first time O client.

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Why didn't they book their own flights or at least pay the deviation fee & get the flights they wanted ?

If they were your friends why did you not advise them to lock in the flights early

There are only so many flights to PPT from LAX & some may not get

 

them there on the day of the cruise

 

Maybe they can work with O & get the original flights back & O can bump someone else ;)

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Why didn't they book their own flights or at least pay the deviation fee & get the flights they wanted ?

If they were your friends why did you not advise them to lock in the flights early

There are only so many flights to PPT from LAX & some may not get

 

them there on the day of the cruise

 

Maybe they can work with O & get the original flights back & O can bump someone else ;)

 

It would seem though that they already had their flights from Oceania and were happy with them. They got changed once final payment was passed. Shouldn't Oceania have kept their flights?

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It would seem though that they already had their flights from Oceania and were happy with them. They got changed once final payment was passed. Shouldn't Oceania have kept their flights?

AFAIK

Oceania does not give you the flight details until 75 days out usually after final payment

 

So maybe they did have a deviation (does not sound like it) but if that is the case then yes Oceania should have kept their flights

 

Some airlines to PPT do not fly daily from LAX so that is also an issue

 

We do not know all the details

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I cannot understand why people would even fly half way around the world to arrive on the day of sailing especially with a connection involved :eek:

 

but that is just me I even fly in a day early for a flight to MIA

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We paid the air deviation and got the good flight on Mar 2, 2019 leaving LAX at 2:30 in afternoon getting to Papeete at 9 pm and have transfer right to ship. This is on a Tahiti Nui. Since it is a charter flight, all passengers on board will be going to ship so it won't leave without us!! We've done this exact flight before and works well. We always do the deviation so get choices. This trip is Papeete to NYC. Trying again to get off at Easter Island.

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They missed getting on O’s big charter?

 

I’m flying to Papeete in Feb on UA for an O cruise. They fly it three days a week from SFO. We’re going in five days early and staying an extra couple of days. The February flights are nearly sold out. Oceania is not the only cruise line there at the time!!

 

Papeete is definitely not an airport one wants to (1) be cheap and not pay a deviation fee to get to;(b) wait for last minute flights.

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ORV;

 

As bad as it sounds, that routing appears regularly on its matrix. Air Tahiti Nui doesn’t fly every day. UA only flies 3 days a week during season, and I think AF only flies it 6 days a week. Hawaii Airlines only flies it on Saturday. People with flexibility can often more comfortably fly to Hawaii, lay over a couple of days, and fly down to Papeete . If one goes in with an inflexible schedule on the wrong days, they can get the Auckland connection. Bad luck they were chosen for the Zi charter flight!

 

An O ship has more capacity than all of the airlines flying into Papeete combined on any given day.

 

People wanting good connections and decent seats book these flights early on their own!

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Friends of ours are booked on Regatta on a cruise inNovember from Papeete to Sydney. They wereoriginally given a flight from Toronto on Monday afternoon to LA and LAovernight to Papeete for the cruise starting Tuesday. Now that it is after final payment O has changedtheir flight. Now they are to leaveToronto on Sunday, fly to LA, then to Auckland and back to Papeete arriving Mondaynight and they have to book a hotel in Papeete.

 

Means they have to leave Toronto a day early (missing aparty we have planned) and travel an extra 13 hours plus extra expense. O nowsays all direct flights from LA are booked full.

 

Certainly not a great way to start a vacation and not a goodimpression for a first time O client.

 

When booking my flights for my sailing this past March, Air NewZealand regularly had a sale routing me from LAX or SFO to Aukland, and then back down to Papeete.... brutal connection, however also often the cheapest. Likely Oceania is finding this less expensive option now as well if they need more space for their cruisers.

 

At this moment writing this post I am seeing $753 ... yes not a typo.... $753 Canadian dollars non stop from LAX to PPT (Air France) on Nov 24th. The OP could then stay in Moorea 2 magical & unforgettable nights until the morning of the 27th, then head over to Papeete to get on the ship. These cruisers will never ever forget those two nights in Moorea (ie. Hilton or Intercontinental)

 

I see the ship leaves Papeete at 8pm. Note that earlier this spring an Oceania charter (Air France) was delayed over 12 hours (mechanical) leaving LAX. Instead of arriving at 6am the day of the cruise, it arrived the night of the cruise and passengers embarked very late at night. They were able to do so because the cruise left at 4am. However in this specific sailing, if any delays happen to the OP, the ship will be gone by 8pm and they have to catch up somehow in Bora Bora the very next day at the last second with limited number of seats in small inter-island planes.... with luggage restrictions.

 

You want a nightmare? I believe the OP's current "problem" is minuscule compared to arriving late in Papeete.... imagine a plane delay in LAX for example... absolutely no way I would chance flying into Papeete the day of a cruise.

Listen very closely to the many experienced cruisers here who have already commented with helpful input... pay the deviation fee to get earlier flight to Papeete minimum 1 day pre-cruise. I wish your friends the best of luck and a great trip!

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My wife and I are booked for the January 31, 2019 10 day Papeete to Papeete cruise and we wanted to come in a couple of days earlier to stay in Moorea and not take any chances on arriving the day of the cruise as well as getting a chance to rest up. We gladly paid the deviation fee and it seemed to work out as the particular flights we were finally able to get cost not much more than the deviation fee had we been able to book it on our own. Takes a bit of the stress off that's for sure!

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A little more clarification.

 

They booked directly with O instead of a travel agent. Well before final payment the rep told them they would be on 1 of 3 flights from Toronto to LA and then LA to Papeete. They did not care which flight to LA as they were all close in time so did not worry about a deviation. When the final details came they noticed the flight from LA to Papeete was taking the Auckland detour and arriving very close to Regatta departure time. When they called the rep, he admitted he did not let them know the possible detour and offered a free deviation for the flight a day earlier. Even going the day earlier there were no direct flight to Papeete.

 

For the price of a hotel in Papeete there is a few lessons learned.

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My wife and I are booked for the January 31, 2019 10 day Papeete to Papeete cruise and we wanted to come in a couple of days earlier to stay in Moorea and not take any chances on arriving the day of the cruise as well as getting a chance to rest up. We gladly paid the deviation fee and it seemed to work out as the particular flights we were finally able to get cost not much more than the deviation fee had we been able to book it on our own. Takes a bit of the stress off that's for sure!

 

 

 

Are you flying Air Tahiti Nui or Air France?

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

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A little more clarification.

 

They booked directly with O instead of a travel agent. Well before final payment the rep told them they would be on 1 of 3 flights from Toronto to LA and then LA to Papeete. They did not care which flight to LA as they were all close in time so did not worry about a deviation. .

so the facts are they did NOT have their flight details before only that it could be one of 3 routings

 

A big difference in stating Oceania changed their flights after FP

very misleading on your part

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A little more clarification.

 

They booked directly with O instead of a travel agent. Well before final payment the rep told them they would be on 1 of 3 flights from Toronto to LA and then LA to Papeete. They did not care which flight to LA as they were all close in time so did not worry about a deviation. When the final details came they noticed the flight from LA to Papeete was taking the Auckland detour and arriving very close to Regatta departure time. When they called the rep, he admitted he did not let them know the possible detour and offered a free deviation for the flight a day earlier. Even going the day earlier there were no direct flight to Papeete.

 

For the price of a hotel in Papeete there is a few lessons learned.

 

The biggest lesson that should be learned is that anyone investing this much money in a cruise should have a knowledgeable TA.

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Absolutely, positively, start over and book your own flights. My Conde Naste rated travel agent set me straight on flights to FP. You cannot fly in the day of. You cannot miss a connection because on most days there is no other flight to switch to and no empty seats to take.

We also didn’t want the O charter flights that arrive late on the day the ship sails, you will arrive half dead. We didn’t want a red eye flight.

 

Two years ago we sailed from PPT but we started flying five or six days early.

day 1 we flew to LA, rented a car, sightseed and stayed overnight at LAX.

day 2 we had a 3pm flight to PPT, arriving at 10 pm, we stayed overnight in PPT.

day 3 we ferried to Moorea for three wonderful days at a resort.

Day 6 we ferried back to PPT and boarded the ship.

We had a package deal with a Tahitian travel agency that included ferries, transfers, hotel, etc. It was well worth the money and most people we met onboard had flown in early to do similar things.

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We booked our own flights on UA for our February trip. Nonstop Nashville to SFO, then SFO- PPT arriving at 21:45. We overnight in a hotel close to the ferry and then go over to Moorea for 4 days before coming back to catch the Marina. Simple, painless, and relaxing.

 

It sounds as if the cruisers in question did zero research on getting into Papeete, nor did the OP offer them hints. There are numerous articles and threads, in multiple outlets, about the horrors of flying into Papeete the day of the cruise!

 

Another story of the pitfalls of not using an experienced TA! Only thing dumber are those that have a TA but refuse to use them and do everything themselves!

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A little more clarification.

When they called the rep, he admitted he did not let them know the possible detour and offered a free deviation for the flight a day earlier.

 

Excellent news! This is a massive blessing in disguise.... Let your friends know to call the rep ASAP to get that nonstop Nov 24th flight LAX - PPT I mentioned above with that free deviation offer. They will not regret spending the extra $1000 for two nights in an overwater bungalow at either the Intercontinental or Hilton Moorea.... or bare minimum Intercontinental in Papeete. I'm guessing the 2 nights in Moorea will probably be a high-light of the trip over anything the cruise ship will give you.

 

In fact I predict you/they would be coming back on this forum to thank everyone for the excellent advice.... I sure did after my sailing! People here on this forum are beyond awesome and knowledgeable.... notice the 100% posts from everyone so far with experience saying to go earlier than the sailing day? Not one single person has said " No worries, don't bother with the deviation". :)

 

Now let me guess.... since your friends booked flights with Oceania air, are your friends flying home from Sydney the day the ship arrives in Oz? :confused::rolleyes:

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A friend and I just booked the February cruise Papeete to Papeete and then I got concerned when I saw how limited flights are (and how expensive). I’m thinking maybe this cruise will not be for us. I’m an experienced flyer, but I don’t want to extend a 12 day cruise another 2-3 days (or more) to find flights. We can fly to Hawaii and rent a nice condo and have just as much fun. I’d consider a LA-Papeete cruise some time, maybe.

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I’d consider a LA-Papeete cruise some time, maybe.

REG181111.jpg

You're in luck (if you hurry), the Regatta is sailing on Armistice Day, and the pricing is quite good:

Passage to Polynesia

FARES FROM $2,499 PER GUEST

16-Day Voyage

 

 

Nov 11 Sun Los Angeles, California, United States Embark 1 PM 6 PM

Nov 12 Mon Cruising the Pacific Ocean

Nov 13 Tue Cruising the Pacific Ocean

Nov 14 Wed Cruising the Pacific Ocean

Nov 15 Thu Cruising the Pacific Ocean

Nov 16 Fri Cruising the Pacific Ocean

Nov 17 Sat Kahului, Hawaii, United States 8 AM 8 PM

Nov 18 Sun Honolulu, Hawaii, United States 7 AM 6 PM

Nov 19 Mon Hilo, Hawaii, United States 7 AM 4 PM

Nov 20 Tue Cruising the Pacific Ocean

Nov 21 Wed Cruising the Pacific Ocean

Nov 22 Thu Cruising the Pacific Ocean

Nov 23 Fri Cruising the Pacific Ocean

Nov 24 Sat Nuku Hiva, French Polynesia 8 AM 2 PM

Nov 25 Sun Cruising the South Pacific

Nov 26 Mon Moorea, French Polynesia 11 AM 5 PM

Nov 26 Mon Papeete (Tahiti), French Polynesia 8 PM

Nov 27 Tue Papeete (Tahiti), French Polynesia Disembark 8 AM

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For the February PPT-PPT cruise, on which I’m on, I’m willing to bet if one was willing to pay the deviation fee to O, they can still get reasonable routings to and from.

 

If one is financially unable to do so and waits for an assignment, it’s the old box of chocolate thing. I believe that Papeete is one of those places that punish flyers that try to wait until last minute to catch a sale.

 

We booked this cruise in February, while on board, and had plenty of time to evaluate different flight options and catch a very attractive airfare sale that occurred in May.

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That Nov. cruise looks fabulous, JimandStan! Unfortunately, I will be in Singapore and Indonesia (not cruising) during that time. I will definitely pursue paying the deviation to make sure we get reasonable flights and times. Air Tahiti Nui announced a sale a week or so ago, the Dreamliner for $787 RT LAX-Papeete, but the fares went fast and are now up to $1600. So, may as well let Oceania buy them.

Thanks for the advice!

Annette

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