Day After Cruise Pg

[bloody mary]

Hi,

 

I´m going in my honey moon on the PG :) , in october, and I´d like to know if the bus or the day room after leaving the cruise are free, or they are just offered and we have to pay for them.

We have to take the plane at 11.00 p.m. and there are a lot of hours that we don´t know what to do.:(

 

Could somebody help me, and tell what they did? and if they had to pay for it?

 

Thanks.

[adrenn]

Congratulations on your upcoming marriage! Check with your travel agent for any changes to the PG schedule, of course. When we were on the PG in May of 2005, this is how disembarkation worked:

 

Passengers were offered a free group tour of Papette that dropped us off at the Radisson Beach resort. Alternatively, you could stay onboard to enjoy a lunch buffet and then be transported to the Radisson Beach resort. We chose to stay on for lunch & then go to the resort.

 

The rooms are lovely and the swimming pool is a "negative edge" design. It is on a black sand beach. Drinks or dinner at the resort was not free and food prices in Tahiti are high relative to the US. If you want to eat before you go to the airport (I'd recommend you do), the service is slow by US standards so plan to order around 5 pm so you can comfortably get back to your room, collect your things & make it onto the bus for transport to the airport. Group transportation from the resort to the hotel was included as part of the cruise disembarkation.

 

When you pack, put valuables and the things you'd want to use at the resort in a smaller bag that you can carry yourself. There is a luggage room to hold the rest of your bags until it is time to head to the airport. The resort offers porterage of your luggage to your room, but it takes a long time to get there (the resort is very spread out & they've got a large number of cruise guests all arriving at the same time). I think it took almost 2 hours to get our bags.

 

The bus leaves around 7 pm to go to the airport. The airport security process and check-in was time consuming. If you want to apply for VAT for your pearl purchases, have the paperwork handy to be stamped as you are going past luggage screening and into the check-in area. The terminal is open air so no air conditioning. There is little in the way of restaurants at the airport.

 

Hope that helps. Cheers, Anne

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Hi Mary, I concur with most of what Anne said above. But there is still a bus tour offered after lunch on the PG, since the day-rooms are not available until about 3 p.m. at the Radisson hotel.

 

Whether you take the tour or not depends on your mood--if you would just as soon lie around a very nice pool, or walk on a black sand beach, then go directly to the hotel (but take some bottled water with you from the ship, everything there is very expensive). Just keep your bathing suit out. They will store your bags until your room is ready. If, on the other hand, the history and culture of Polynesia interests you keenly, then the tour is worthwhile--the cultural museum is very interesting. When I did it last June, they had dropped the visit to the Gauguin museum (which is very lame).

[bloody mary]

Thanks for your answers Anne and Wendy.

I´ll talk to my trouble agent, but she told me that it wasn´t included anything of that.

[Dreps]

We returned from our PG cruise on Feb. 25. On Saturday when we left, we went directly to the Radisson Plaza (on the free transfer) after eating lunch on the ship. We chose not to go on the tour, which meant we were about the last group to disembark, which was good from our point of view. Most people think the tour is a waste--we did it 3 years ago, and we sure thought so. We were able to get into our day room at the Radisson by about 2:00 PM. That left a fair amount of time to spend at the pool (or the beach). We also chose to share a taxi with another couple to the airport shortly after 6:00 PM to beat those taking the free transfer from the hotel, which actually was scheduled to leave about 6:30 PM for the 10:00 PM flight to LAX (not sure if it actually left then). The lines can get pretty long at the airport, and it is not air conditioned.

 

----------------

 

Eugene

[cwc]

Just a reminder, you only get the dayroom arragement if you book the air with RSSC. If you make your own air arrangment, then they will "force" :p you off the ship around 1-2pm and you have to deal the rest of the day on your own.

[adrenn]

We did our air through Radisson on this cruise. If you are doing independent air, best to check with either your travel agent or RSSC regarding the day room arrangements before you fly out. Cheers, Anne

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Right, good point, all this is contingent of RSSC air. Oh, and Eugene is right--taking a cab to the airport in advance of the standard transfer is a very good idea. The airport is quite miserable, but standing in line to check in for an hour makes it even worse!

[bloody mary]

Thanks for your answers.

Now I understand everything. We don´t fly with Radisson and that´s why my travel agent didn´t know anything about the last day. Are there any more differences between people who arrange the flight with Radisson/Regent and people who don´t?

[cwc]

Yes there is a big different if you buy the air with RSSC or on your own.:eek:

 

A note we got when we are onboard regarding disembarkation

 

Disembarakation procedures for those guests who purchased our air/sea program and are traveling home late on Saturday from Papeete. Those guests NOT on the air/sea program are required to disembark by 10.00 am in the morning and are not included in the program outlined below. If you wish to purchase this program the cost is $295.00 per person.

 

Instead of leaving the ship on Saturday morning, Regent invites you to stay with us aboard the Paul Gauguin for a few more hours. Breakfast will be served in L’Etoile (7 to 9 a.m.), La Palette (6 to 11 a.m.) and in the Grand Salon (6 to 8 a.m.). Room service will also be available from 6 to 8 a.m. We ask that your luggage be left outside your room by 8 a.m., and that you vacate your stateroom by 10 a.m.

 

The bars at the Pool and in La Palette will be open from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m., and at 10 a.m. we invite you to join us by the Pool for a farewell Bloody Mary party, or to attend a lecture on the art of puppetry in La Palette, also at 10 a.m.

 

A brunch will be served in L’Etoile from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

 

During the morning, guests also have the choice of two exciting optional tours for purchase: an East Coast Highlights tour by air-conditioned coach, departing the ship at 8.30 a.m. and returning around noon, or an Off the Beaten Path tour by 4 x 4, departing the ship at 8 a.m. and also returning around noon. Please consult the Tour Desk on board for further information and pricing on these two tours.

 

Alternatively, you are of course welcome to go ashore to explore Papeete on your own.

Following brunch, air/sea guests are offered a complimentary tour of Tahiti’s Culture, departing the ship between 12.45 and 1.30 p.m., and ending approximately 2 ½ hours later at your designated hotel, where afternoon accommodations will be ready.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Wow, so you don't even get to stay on the ship for the morning! Oh well, sorry for misleading you, Mary.

 

You might consider trying to get a day-room on your own. Barring that, go to the airport, store your baggage in the luggage storage (slightly outside the terminal). Then head for town to catch the end of the market before it closes (or maybe the ship will keep your bags on the dock while you shop). Then take Le Truck back to the Beachcomber and have lunch, and sit by the pool.

 

Or, rent a car for the day, and drive around the island. Keep your bathing suits out, and stop and have a nice swim. Arrange to deliver the car back to the airport around 7:30, and then you can check in for your flight. This sounds the simplest, but beware, you may have to drive a stick shift.

[calberry]

What is the disembarkation process like for those of us that will be doing a post cruise stay on Bora Bora? We booked through RSSC (June 10 cruise), but was just curious what time we would fly out and therefore how many of the above mentioned last-day morning activities we would be taking part in.

 

Thanks

 

Steve

[cwc]

Not from personal experience, but personal observation.

 

For those people with post-cruise stay NOT on the Tahiti Island, and booked through RSSC. They will have an "early" breakfast and depart the ship by 9 am for their boat/airplane to whatever island they are going to. We know this because the day before disembarkment, we received the colour luggage tag and an explaination sheet on what those colour mean.

 

We had a 2nts post-cruise stay on Tahiti (IC), our tag was salmon colour and our disembarkement time was ~1pm.

[Kathy Z]

Steve - we have done two post-cruise stays after being on the PG. In 2004 we went to Manihi and were off the ship by 6:15 am for an early flight to Manihi! RSSC was wonderful in that they had someone make our room service delivered breakfast and had it to us by shortly after 5:00 am. This is earlier than they normally begin room service. At Manihi we had an early check-in and were happily settled in our OWB by 10:00 am.

 

Last year we had our post cruise stay at the Moorea Pearl Resort. We had to be ready to leave the ship by 8:15 am for transport to the ferry dock for our ferry ride to Moorea. We chose room service for that breakfast also. Since the Pearl Resort was nearly at full capacity we were not able to check into our OWB until afternoon. Be sure to have easy access to swim suit etc. You are welcome to use the pool etc.

 

It will all depend on what arrangements Tahiti Nui Travel makes for your transfer to Bora Bora. You will not get that information until after you board the PG. In the case of our 2004 trip we knew that we would have an early morning departure from the ship because there was only one flight from Papeete to Manihi the day of our travel. (I had learned that on the Internet.)

[Zbayette]

Hi! We are taking a cruise on the PG next month after visiting Australia and NZ. Therefore we are not doing the airfare thru them and are not doing the day before and day after thru them. So if we are on our own in Tahiti after the cruise, what would you suggest we do? We're considering renting a car. Are rental places right at the pier? Do we need to reserve a car ahead of time? What places do you suggest we drive to before our flight? Can we then drive the car to the airport and return it there? Any advice anyone can give us for our day in Tahiti will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[cinder10]

congratulations on your pending wedding and fabulous trip! While we were on the PG in February, a couple that we met that did not book Radisson air booked a day room at a hotel. I think the cost was high, about $150 for the afternoon. I would check that out prior to leaving, as it is difficult to do from the ship. Staying on the ship is lovely, if you choose to pay the $295, my advice would be to skip the city tour, stay for the brunch. We took the tour and wish we had not.

Anne, beautifully said as always. Wendy, you know that trip so well!!! Bet you are dying to go back.

Cindyr

(cindy and David)

[Trvlbugs]

we just returned from our pg trip . It was wonderful! The day room and transfer are included if you do the rssc package. Our room was available rigth away with no wait at all. We were swimming in the pool by 2:00. This was such a relaxing day. The reviews on the tour were mixed. It seemed the older crowd really enjoyed it while the younger couples wished they would have spent the whole day relaxing at the hotel.

Congrats!

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Well, yes, I admit I am getting the flu again. When we came back from our Pip B2B last June, I thought to myself, "that's it, won't go back there again". After all, we've spent 28 days on that ship! I also said, if we ever go back, we'll do the Marquesas, or some other different itinerary, or will do some fabulous island that we haven't been to, like Huahine, or...oh yes, I said we'd take my son with us--don't know if that would ever happen. You never know. I live in hope.

 

At the moment I have Voyager in Europe to look forward to, less than 3 months now. And lots of other places in the world to visit, and re-visit (I seem to be good at the re-visiting part--favourites draw me back.) After that, nada, probably not until 2008 :(

 

Oh, and there's the Aranui, would love to do that, and maybe just a land trip to Moorea???