Pacific Princess Papeete logistics disembarkation day

[teckelmom]

We arrive (12 day cruise Pacific Princess Sept. 16, 2015) in Papeete at 8pm and disembark the next day. We want to plan a 1/2 day Morning tour before we take the ferry to Moorea for 3 night stay. Will the ship hold our luggage? We have Princess air but post cruise hotels/transfers are independent. We will be back in Papeete for one night before our Air France flight at 8am staying at the Intercontental. We could do a tour then but hoped to just enjoy the resort. I also wondered if we booked a morning excursion either with or not with Princess on disembarkation day if that would solve the luggage issue. I've seen others rent a car for independent touring and luggage storage but we don't want the hassle.

[caribill]

Because many passengers have evenings flights, Princess will keep your luggage (on the pier) until early evening.

 

Hand luggage may be checked at no cost during the day in one of the specialty restaurants.

 

So you can take your tour (Princess or independent) and then return to the ship for your belongings. You can even go to the buffet for a meal when you get back.

[RDC1]

Just got off of the Pacific Princess last week.

 

They only hold the luggage if you have a Princess transfer booked to the airport.

 

The disembarkation excursions on the last day are those that include airport transfer.

 

The luggage in is a large tent at the end of the pier. You could sign up for an early departure and just leave your luggage there and pick it up about the time the last group gets off (around noon). Of course you then are taking your chances that someone else doesn't decide to take a liking to your luggage.

 

Disembarkation is pretty easy. Just walk off the ship and grab your bags.

 

Depending upon what kind of tour you want to do you could always use a taxi at the dock (just make sure you get one where the driver does tours and speaks good english) for your tour.

[RDC1]

Because many passengers have evenings flights, Princess will keep your luggage (on the pier) until early evening.

 

Hand luggage may be checked at no cost during the day in one of the specialty restaurants.

 

So you can take your tour (Princess or independent) and then return to the ship for your belongings. You can even go to the buffet for a meal when you get back.

 

If you have a Princess transfer to the airport they will keep your luggage and for that matter, as you indicated, you can stay on ship until the transfer time. If you don't have a transfer the luggage is put out for pickup by group just as with any other disembarkation. Their official stance is that they will not hold it. Nor are you supposed to stay on ship or return to it. There were 125 people using Princess transfers and were able to do what you indicated. The other approximately 450 did not and had to leave with their groups.

 

As I mentioned above you can just walk by the tent and not pick it up, but then you are taking your chances that no one else will either. There were three guys in the tent. When you enter they ask you to identify your bags. They do not ask your name or check anything else. Whatever bags you identify they load up and take over to the taxi stand for you.

 

Now I entered the tent from the ship side, do not know if they do anything differently if you enter from the taxi stand side.

 

The last, non-Princess transfer, disembarkation group was around 11:30. Not sure how long after that time that they allow pickup.

 

The same tent is where they collect inbound luggage. When I boarded around 12:00 there was some luggage in the tent, but it appeared to be bags being put on pallets to be loaded. There did not appear to be bags set out in rows for people to pick up.

Edited November 6, 2014 by RDC1

[teckelmom]

Thank you for this useful information. I really appreciate the great detail of disembarkation RDC1. We may try to schedule an independent circle of the island style tour (either in advance or at the pier) or just make it easy and skip the tour and head on an earlier ferry to Moorea. Then schedule a tour when we return to the InterContinental Tahiti the day before we fly home.

[RDC1]

Thank you for this useful information. I really appreciate the great detail of disembarkation RDC1. We may try to schedule an independent circle of the island style tour (either in advance or at the pier) or just make it easy and skip the tour and head on an earlier ferry to Moorea. Then schedule a tour when we return to the InterContinental Tahiti the day before we fly home.

 

If your departure flight is late (most are red eye departing around midnight) you might do the tour the last day. The InterContinental will hold your luggage. You can take the tour from the hotel, that way you kill some of the time the last day after checkout, don't have to worry about your bags, come back to the hotel afterwards. There are nice showers in the gym area so you clean up for the flight after enjoying the pool on the last day.

[teckelmom]

Our flight is an 8am AirFrance with the red eye portion coming from LAX to JFK on the second leg of the trip home. So much we want to do on this trip! Thanks again for your insights.

[DrivesLikeMario]

If you're taking a private tour, why not take your luggage with you? Most tour operators have no problem putting it in their trunk. Or, sometimes they'll let you leave it at their tour office until the end of the tour. Private drives are usually really good about working out these kinds of things. ;)

[caribill]

If you're taking a private tour, why not take your luggage with you? Most tour operators have no problem putting it in their trunk. Or, sometimes they'll let you leave it at their tour office until the end of the tour. Private drives are usually really good about working out these kinds of things. ;)

 

Private tours may be using vehicles that do not have room for luggage.