Oceania and Tahiti

[Carol From California]

I have always wanted to go to Tahiti and thought if we did we would go on the Paul Gaugin...however received in mail a special being offered with Oceania and I have it "on hold". The itinerary I am looking at is "Picturesque Polynesia", March 25, 2015 (Papeete to Papeete). Oceania is offering a $2,000 early booking per stateroom so the 10 day cruise in a category B4 (lowest price veranda) is $3649 pp. It seems like a great deal, also with free Internet and gratuities included. We will do our own air with mileage hopefully.

 

Does anyone have an opinion on the itinerary? It seems to be much less expensive than Paul Gaugin and we have not tried Oceania yet (have sailed with Regent several times and Silversea once), and have wanted to try Oceania. The itinerary is also slightly different than the 2014 offerings.

 

I am a little concerned about the time of year since it seems to be at the tail end of the hot and humid season, but it seems better than going in January.

 

Thanks in advance for any advice.

[Paulchili]

I think that you will enjoy Oceania - especially their O class ships with 4 specialty restaurants.

I think cruising later is better than Jan/Feb.

See discussion here:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1938570

You can also do a search on FP cruises on these Oceania boards - much info to be had.

[pacheco18]

There is nothing like the pg

No comparison

 

 

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[JimandStan]

I'd say that there WAS no comparison to the PG circa 1995 or so, but today she is a rather tired old girl who is living largely on her reputation.

 

Ships which sail continuously in tropical climates, like beach resorts, need to be constantly refreshed, or the edges start to fray, and the PG hasn't been.

How can she be when she has to sail 3000 miles off her route to be dry docked ?

 

The PG is a better sized ship for Polynesia,has that fabulous aft Marina, and has that "Island Ambience", but the Oceania ships are newer and are FAR better maintained.

Oceania food is also miles ahead of what the PG is serving, unless you are one of the few who can say that they are a poi devotee.

[pacheco18]

I so disagree

Pg was refurbished

Cruising without the gauguines is sad

O cannot provide a comparable experience

Food on pg better than anything I have had on o. Hands down

Edited November 5, 2013 by pacheco18

[Carol From California]

I sure would be interested in hearing from some people who have done this trip with Oceania. I already have heard great things about Paul Gaugin.

 

And Pacheco 18....I noticed you are hoping to book Viking China for 2015. We have that booked in 2014. Very excited about that trip!

[pacheco18]

I sure would be interested in hearing from some people who have done this trip with Oceania. I already have heard great things about Paul Gaugin.

 

And Pacheco 18....I noticed you are hoping to book Viking China for 2015. We have that booked in 2014. Very excited about that trip!

 

My husband refuses to go to CHina-- he always gives in (I have schlepped him around the world) so I let him off the hook. We are going to do a European river cruise instead (need to change my signature). I will do Viking China in 2016 with a girlfriend and leave him home with the dogs. LOL. He doesn't mind and we are going to shop until we drop in China and Hong Kong.

[RJB]

Have never been on PG but can not think the food could be better than Oceania. Could not be even close. O has the best food at sea. By far.:)

[Paulchili]

Have never been on PG but can not think the food could be better than Oceania. Could not be even close. O has the best food at sea. By far.:)

 

IME, this is certainly true when compared to all mass market lines as well as Cunard, Regent, Seabourn and Silversea. We have not sailed with Crystal or PG (nor have any plans to sail with either one anytime soon).

Edited November 6, 2013 by Paulchili

[pacheco18]

Have never been on PG but can not think the food could be better than Oceania. Could not be even close. O has the best food at sea. By far.:)

 

Except for the PG

That's my opinion

Best food at sea

[avalong]

I'd say that there WAS no comparison to the PG circa 1995 or so, but today she is a rather tired old girl who is living largely on her reputation.

 

Ships which sail continuously in tropical climates, like beach resorts, need to be constantly refreshed, or the edges start to fray, and the PG hasn't been.

How can she be when she has to sail 3000 miles off her route to be dry docked ?

 

The PG is a better sized ship for Polynesia,has that fabulous aft Marina, and has that "Island Ambience", but the Oceania ships are newer and are FAR better maintained.

Oceania food is also miles ahead of what the PG is serving, unless you are one of the few who can say that they are a poi devotee.

 

She was refurbished (and beautifully) in January, 2012, in Brisbane.

[avalong]

Another question: Tendering from the Paul Gauguin is a snap as you're anchored within the reef. Where does O anchor and how long does it take to tender to port? Perhaps another aspect to consider...

[Paulchili]

Another question: Tendering from the Paul Gauguin is a snap as you're anchored within the reef. Where does O anchor and how long does it take to tender to port? Perhaps another aspect to consider...

 

O does anchor within the reef but, of course, tendering takes longer due to number of passengers.

That would not be a deal breaker for me - you only tender a few times but you spend a lot of your time on the ship with activities, restaurants and in your cabin; those would be deal breakers for me.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

My husband refuses to go to CHina-- he always gives in (I have schlepped him around the world) so I let him off the hook. ... I will do Viking China in 2016 with a girlfriend and leave him home with the dogs. LOL. He doesn't mind and we are going to shop until we drop in China and Hong Kong.

 

Good idea! My DH won't go to China either, hmm, food for thought!

 

As for the PG, some advantages:

 

- smaller ship, very intimate, staff and service is wonderful

- snorkelling equipment included for the duration

- the Gauguines, a Polynesian singing/dancing troupe who entertain onboard

- there is always a day on their private motu off Taha'a

- usually a half day at least on a private beach on a Bora Bora motu

- food is good to great, but can't comment on whether it's better than O, and haven't been onboard since 2008

- all inclusive including booze

[pacheco18]

And the big intangible

 

The feeling u get being on the pg

Only 300 passengers

A ship that is designed to be in go

Totally immersed in the culture of the islands

 

There is nothing better

 

 

 

 

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[Benita]

Oceania is by far my favorite cruise line. That said, we sailed on the Paul Gauguin in French Polynesia. The food on Oceania is much better and the cabins are nicer, but having only 300 passengers landing in places that have fewer than that living there trumps the 1200 passenger ship. For the once in a lifetime experience, we chose the PG last May and do not regret it.

[TERRIER1]

I sure would be interested in hearing from some people who have done this trip with Oceania. I already have heard great things about Paul Gaugin.

 

And Pacheco 18....I noticed you are hoping to book Viking China for 2015. We have that booked in 2014. Very excited about that trip!

 

We went on the Tahitian Breezes cruise that sailed on April 7 2013. The Marina was the ship and our 6th Oceania cruise. We have only cruised on Oceania so I can't even begin to compare the experience to the PG or another cruise line. When we priced out the PG it was too high for us and the O pricing was very good.

 

We prefer the smaller R ships overall which are Oceania's 650 passenger ships to the larger 1250 passenger O ships. This is strictly personal preference but it is my opinion that a smaller ship is better suited to these islands. I would much preferred to have been on a R ship versus the O ship. Just about all of these islands are tender ports which is just one of the reasons why I think the smaller ship is better in this neck of the woods.

 

The itinerary was great. It was also 11 days (I think) which is longer than other cruise lines. We visited lots of Polynesian Islands and they are all very different. We love being on the water, in the water and under the water so we took off each day on private snorkeling adventures and having lunches on motus. Fortunately we had arranged private excursions almost a year in advance with other CC members. These islands are small and really don't have the capability of handling 1250 passengers coming ashore for excursions. The private tours book up quickly and I heard so did the O tours which are astronomically expensive. Our fellow CC excursion cruisers were great company and we had a blast.

 

Oceania canceled one of the islands Nuku Oa saying it didn't have the "infrastructure" to support the ship. This in my opinion was BS since the island is still on their agenda for 2014 and the "infrastructure" hasn't changed. I think O cancelled since there were not enough 4x4's to handle their own excursions and therefore no money to be made. They should have known this going in.

 

When we priced out the PG it was too high for us and the O pricing was very good. The weather cooperated and we had only one rainy day in Bora Bora but we took off on our excursion in lightening and pouring rain and it worked out fine. The 2012/2013 season was VERY rainy according to locals. Weather is a crap shoot anywhere in the world. The islands are hot and humid all the time just more so during December/January.

 

Good points on Oceania are the food, the ship, casual dining, casual dress, great service and great beds. O itinerary is excellent when compared to others. More islands and longer cruises. No real bad points but we would have loved a smaller ship. O is too big for the islands. O excursions are expensive but they are expensive everywhere they good.

We used O air with a deviation so came in 2 days early and stayed 4 days after. The deviation fee is $150 pp plus any up charge. We flew ex NYC and they charged an additional $100 pp for air fare. French Polynesia is a very expensive place so a cruise is a great way to control costs. We loved the trip.

 

Enjoy.

[pacheco18]

Pg runs tons of specials. Lots of great offers. We r tempted. I get emails

all the time. Air is included. Get on their email list.

 

 

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[Carol From California]

I appreciate everyone's comments and advice. I would be leaning towards the Paul Gaugin for the reasons mentioned....the small ship size, the more Polynesian experience, etc. However, in pricing a similar size cabin (veranda) and itinerary the cost for the cruise is over $11,000 on PG vs $7300 on Oceania (for 2 people). On top of that our travel agent gives us a substantial discount plus OBC. The Oceania price includes Internet and gratuities so the main item not included is liquor...and we are not big drinkers so that is not important to us. I have wanted to try Oceania anyway so I think we are going to go ahead with it. When the PG itineraries come out in 2015 and if they run a special I may consider booking with PG and cancelling the O cruise. Thanks again everyone.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Don't book a balcony on the PG. A window cabin or even a porthole will do just as well. The cabins themselves are the same size all the way up to deck 8, then they get a bit bigger.

 

A balcony sounds like a no-brainer, but in fact you spend very little time in your cabin so you don't miss it because there's so much going on onshore and on the ship. The one time I had a balcony on deck 8 I hardly used it because it was too hot in the sun just to sit out there.

 

The deck areas are very nice and more comfortable than any balcony.

 

But as for tenders, the PG still tenders at almost all ports. The exceptions being Papeete of course, Raiatea, and perhaps one of the Marquesas islands. So that's not a big difference--we've seen other cruise ships in the lagoons, mostly mid-range size like the R ships, but also large Princess ships in the past.

 

So the only difference in the tendering issue would be the sheer numbers of pax going ashore, the number of tenders available, and how many can operate at one time.