Advice Needed: 7/30/16 PG & Wedding Planning

[UnrulySun]

Hi All!

 

We're new to PG and are getting ready to book the 7/30/16 11 night Society & Cook Islands trip. We have lots of questions!

 

We're planning a wedding & hope to be able to hold the ceremony at the Intercontinental Thalasso while docked in Bora Bora, but are a little nervous about doing so, as we were informed there is a possibility the ship wouldn't be able to dock. Has anyone experienced this before during early August?

 

Next, is it possible to book the overnight stay at the Thalasso direct with the hotel instead of the ship excursion? I've looked at the pricing through the boat, and at $2,125 it looks like they are making a hefty profit off of that when you can get a room direct through the hotel for $800-$1000 for the night. I just can't see how transportation, champagne, dinner and breakfast would add on another $1100+, but maybe I am missing something?

 

We will also have a few guests traveling with us, some who may want to stay at the hotel overnight and others who will want to come back to the ship. It looks like it may be possible to take a taxi from the ship to the IHG Moana and take a shuttle boat from there to the Thalasso. Can anyone confirm that this can be done on your own? And if so, any idea how late the shuttle/taxis operate and is there a cutoff time to re-board the ship at night?

 

My other question is, should we splurge for a balcony room or just a window room? We really enjoyed the balcony room on our last cruise in the caribbean, but the $3,200 price difference could open up room in our budget for other things...

 

Any other advice on room choice/excursions appreciated!

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Well, make sure you can actually legally marry in FP--I seem to remember reading that there's a fair amount of paperwork involved.

 

As for Bora Bora, the ship doesn't dock, it tenders into the main dock of Vaitape, and I've never heard of it not being able to, since the ship is inside the lagoon.

 

Don't bother paying for a balcony room, it's a waste of money, if things are tight--you won't use the balcony much. Go for a window in deck 4, that's my favorite.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Oh, and the cut-off for the ship will be the time when the last tender leaves the dock at night, for the sip. Can't remember when that was, sorry.

[6rugrats]

In FP, a legal ceremony must take place at the town hall. A ceremony anyplace else is just a symbolic one. You don't say what your plans are, but it would be easier to just get married at home, and have the symbolic ceremony at the IC.

[UnrulySun]

Yes, we are planning to do a symbolic ceremony only. The legal will be done stateside pre-cruise.

[FlightMedic555]

I don't have any first hand confirmation but there have been some posts that the itinerary sometimes changes not only because of weather but to try and keep the PG and the Windspirit schedules different so both are not in port at the same time.

 

Have you considered having the ceremony at the private Motu?

[twin123185]

Last year I booked directly with the hotel and spent the night. I used my free night for having the IHG MasterCard! Great bargain at $49 a year fee. You just have to let the front desk know. However if you book a non refundable rate and the ship has to change itinerary - rare here - you would lose your $1000+. If you get the credit card you will get enough points for a free night here by the way.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[vjr]

My husband and I were married last month at the IC Thalasso. It's a beautiful place for a wedding. (I have a complete review of this hotel and our wedding on Trip Advisor under Kimba403).

 

We booked the pre-cruise hotel package for IC Thalasso through PG. We were married at the hotel on day 2 of our stay. Yes, it probably was more expensive to book through PG, but my husband and I did not know the area, the transportation facilities, etc, so we felt more secure booking through them. When you consider the # of nights, the flights there to and from Papeete, the transfers to the hotel, and breakfast, it may not be that much more.

 

The taxi to and from the IC Moana is complimentary for hotel guests from from 8:00 in the morning until about 4:00. After that time, you have to pay for the trip. I don't remember how much it was, though, because we only took it one time early in the day.

 

I hate to disagree with the majority on this site because the people here offered some valuable tips for our trip, but I think the balcony rooms are a must! We stayed on deck 8 and when we go back again next year, we will book the same deck and category. We had coffee on our balcony in the morning and pre and sometimes post dinner cocktails on the balcony as well. The views were spectacular! I guess it's just a personal preference.

We also had the butler category B and although the mid-afternoon snacks were nice (sushi was my husband's favorite) and our butler did assist us with some dinner reservations, I think you could save some money here. He was very nice, but we just didn't use his services much.

 

Hope some of this helps.

[6rugrats]

I would also agree about liking the balcony. We were offered a very reasonable upgrade to a balcony cabin about a week before departure. We ate breakfast there every day and enjoyed sitting on it for hours.

[UnrulySun]

Thanks so much for the input so far, it has been very helpful!

[twin123185]

Regarding balcony, I have said it a thousand times. You get your one cruise with a balcony, I get two cruises with my porthole.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[vjr]

If money is the limiting factor, I could not agree with twin123185 more. For my husband and I, the number of vacation days available from our respective employers is the limiting factor, so we want to go all out when we get away.

[twin123185]

I hear you for sure. I just feel that the ship is small enough to use the public areas as my balcony!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[Familygoboston]

If you are planning a "milestone" trip, will you use the money you save on a porthole room for another trip to FP? The answer for most folks on a milestone (honeymoon, BD or anniversary trip) is probably not...in that case a balcony is well worth it if it's in your budget, the ship frequently cruises in daylight and the scenery (often at sunset) is spectacular! It is very romantic to be on your private balcony (and unlike the public decks, you can be in whatever state of dress you happen to be in at the time- I'm often in my robe right before I shower for dinner)

However, if you are planning to spend additional money on an overnight room at the resort in BB, I would book a porthole cabin and save that money for the special wedding events at the IC.

[UnrulySun]

Thanks all for the advice! Our itinerary has changed somewhat. We are now doing the June 1st, 10 night cruise, with a 4 night stay & wedding in Bora Bora pre-cruise.

 

I ended up getting the IHG card for the bonus points, and also purchased additional points in the sale on dailyrewards. We redeem the points for ambassador status and a total of 5 nights in Bora Bora (2 at the Thalasso & 3 at Le Moana). We're not actually using any of the nights we redeemed with points ourselves (other than the ambassador certificate), instead we decided to give those nights to family members who would have had difficulty affording the trip otherwise.

 

We are so excited about this trip, and are counting down the days!