PG cruise or land based trip or combination of both?

[Snowcat1]

Just wondering, those who have done both, which did you prefer, the cruise or traveling around and staying on different islands?

[Leejnd4]

I’ve done both, and it’s hard to compare them as they are very different types of vacations. I enjoyed both trips very much, but for different reasons. 
 

There are pros and cons to both. The main pro for the PG is the ease with which you can get to multiple islands without dealing with all the travel, packing and unpacking, checking in and out of hotels. The conveniences are pretty significant: dining is so easy, no searching for a restaurant, eat whenever you want. Figuring out what to do is super easy - just pick a tour. And if you don’t want to do ship tours. Private tour ops are plentiful and very experienced in dealing with cruise passengers. 
 

Land tours do offer benefits too tho. You can stay in much less traveled places, and get off the beaten path. 

[Tahitianbigkahuna]

Many returnees do a pre and/or post stay along with a different cruise itinerary of what they did prior. 

 

Cruise lets you sample many islands ... when one calls out to you it's a good one to plan your next trip to along with a new itinerary do you can find your next island to spend more time on  .... and so on and so on  ... 30 trips for us. Most have been a combination of both.

 

Remember different experiences can be had by booking a different cruise. PG is a wonderful cruise line, we love our experiences on the PG but after 2024 we would of been on 4 different cruise lines in FP waters. Each is unique and offers something a bit different. All have been or will be on smaller ships ... IMO that is a must.

Edited June 18, 2023 by Tahitianbigkahuna

[Leejnd4]

3 hours ago, Tahitianbigkahuna said:

Many returnees do a pre and/or post stay along with a different cruise itinerary of what they did prior. 

 

Cruise lets you sample many islands ... when one calls out to you it's a good one to plan your next trip to along with a new itinerary do you can find your next island to spend more time on  .... and so on and so on  ... 30 trips for us. Most have been a combination of both.

 

Remember different experiences can be had by booking a different cruise. PG is a wonderful cruise line, we love our experiences on the PG but after 2024 we would of been on 4 different cruise lines in FP waters. Each is unique and offers something a bit different. All have been or will be on smaller ships ... IMO that is a must.

You are 100% right that a smaller ship is a MUST! Especially now that Bora Bora is limiting the size of ships allowed there. Bora Bora is a huge highlight of any trip to FP, and it would be a crime to miss it. And just the idea of dropping a couple thousand passengers off on these small islands all at once tells us all we need to know about how enjoyable that would be. 😉 Yep, gotta be a small ship.

 

Windstar is a lovely line, we've done two of their cruises in other parts of the world. But for FP I would pick the PG over Windstar in a heartbeat, mainly because of the total cultural immersion offered by the PG. And also for the luxury factor - Windstar is a somewhat less luxurious cruise line. Although as sailors ourselves, we did love the very nautical theme on Windstar! And I gotta say, when they raise the sails on a Windstar ship, it's pretty awe-inspiring. That song they play..."Conquest of Paradise"...man I hear that and my heart soars!

 

This is a fun conversation, discussing the differences between land-based and cruise ship experiences in FP! Here's some more ruminations:

 

I've done land-based resort stays as well private yacht trips in the South Pacific, and they were just entirely different types of vacations. The nice thing about a resort stay is that it's VERY relaxing - you're generally not running all over the place doing tours, like you are on a cruise. We found ourselves sleeping in more, relaxing on the beach, long sunset walks, just taking it real easy. Lots to enjoy there! Especially if you're still working, the relaxation and rejuvenation can be wonderful.

 

On the other hand, you don't meet people the way you do on a cruise. I'm a very social person, and one of the things I love about cruise ships is the opportunity to meet other cruisers...whether in a Cruise Critic roll call, or on a tour, or asking to sit at a larger table for dinner. You just don't generally have those kinds of opportunities in a hotel.

 

In a completely different type of vacation, I did a 3-week sailing trip on a private yacht that visited some very remote, untouristed islands, and that was A-MAZ-ING! We got to interact with the locals, participate in Kava ceremonies, have lobster feasts on the beach...on one tiny island, the entire community came out to greet us and the children put on the most astonishing dance performance I've ever seen, and it was so authentic - not something they do weekly for tourists. I don't think they'd ever SEEN tourists! You're just not going to experience this in either a resort OR a cruise ship. But those types of excursions are hard to find. 

 

Anyway, thanks @Snowcat1 for asking this question, gave me an opportunity to reflect on my trips to FP. Can't wait to get back there in November! 🙂 

[Tahitianbigkahuna]

1 hour ago, Leejnd4 said:

You are 100% right that a smaller ship is a MUST! Especially now that Bora Bora is limiting the size of ships allowed there. Bora Bora is a huge highlight of any trip to FP, and it would be a crime to miss it. And just the idea of dropping a couple thousand passengers off on these small islands all at once tells us all we need to know about how enjoyable that would be. 😉 Yep, gotta be a small ship.

 

Windstar is a lovely line, we've done two of their cruises in other parts of the world. But for FP I would pick the PG over Windstar in a heartbeat, mainly because of the total cultural immersion offered by the PG. And also for the luxury factor - Windstar is a somewhat less luxurious cruise line. Although as sailors ourselves, we did love the very nautical theme on Windstar! And I gotta say, when they raise the sails on a Windstar ship, it's pretty awe-inspiring. That song they play..."Conquest of Paradise"...man I hear that and my heart soars!

 

This is a fun conversation, discussing the differences between land-based and cruise ship experiences in FP! Here's some more ruminations:

 

I've done land-based resort stays as well private yacht trips in the South Pacific, and they were just entirely different types of vacations. The nice thing about a resort stay is that it's VERY relaxing - you're generally not running all over the place doing tours, like you are on a cruise. We found ourselves sleeping in more, relaxing on the beach, long sunset walks, just taking it real easy. Lots to enjoy there! Especially if you're still working, the relaxation and rejuvenation can be wonderful.

 

On the other hand, you don't meet people the way you do on a cruise. I'm a very social person, and one of the things I love about cruise ships is the opportunity to meet other cruisers...whether in a Cruise Critic roll call, or on a tour, or asking to sit at a larger table for dinner. You just don't generally have those kinds of opportunities in a hotel.

 

In a completely different type of vacation, I did a 3-week sailing trip on a private yacht that visited some very remote, untouristed islands, and that was A-MAZ-ING! We got to interact with the locals, participate in Kava ceremonies, have lobster feasts on the beach...on one tiny island, the entire community came out to greet us and the children put on the most astonishing dance performance I've ever seen, and it was so authentic - not something they do weekly for tourists. I don't think they'd ever SEEN tourists! You're just not going to experience this in either a resort OR a cruise ship. But those types of excursions are hard to find. 

 

Anyway, thanks @Snowcat1 for asking this question, gave me an opportunity to reflect on my trips to FP. Can't wait to get back there in November! 🙂 

 

Were not taking the sailing ship  ... Windstar as of next February is parking the Star Breeze full time in FP. They will have their own local host similar to the PG and the cultural experience. 

 

We've had over the years several local families we gotten close to ... had some good memories. We would load up my friends 12' skiff with 4 adults, 4 kids, the family dog and food for a BBQ on their families motu. 

Edited June 19, 2023 by Tahitianbigkahuna

[Tahitianbigkahuna]

 

A long time ago in a galaxy far far away ....Well 23 years ago on the tiny atoll of Aitutaki @ Crushers Bar. Great memories ... before cell phone videos. It was like being at a private party.

 

The secret is to find places before there are 'found' ...

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/CmPa40qgabu/

[Leejnd4]

1 hour ago, Tahitianbigkahuna said:

 

Were not taking the sailing ship  ... Windstar as of next February is parking the Star Breeze full time in FP. They will have their own local host similar to the PG and the cultural experience. 

 

We've had over the years several local families we gotten close to ... had some good memories. We would load up my friends 12' skiff with 4 adults, 4 kids, the family dog and food for a BBQ on their families motu. 

 

Now that's REAL travel! The kind of travel experiences I love. 

[kleenrcruise]

If you can afford it do both! You have to be up for the "cruise" part, but it can be so easy and as Leejnd4 mentioned there's an added social benefit if you like meeting new people. It generally attracts people celebrating anniversaries and those who've just fallen in love with FP and become "regulars". Depending on how far you are traveling to get there and whether you will get the chance to return to FP, the PG boat really allows you to see so much in such an easy way. Each island feels like a new paradise on and off the boat. We ended our trip with a stay at an OWB which seems to be a bucket list for many and it was a perfect way to relax after a week of touring the islands. While the ship is relaxing in a different way, every day we were doing something, at the bungalows you could just look out at the beautiful sites and take it all in, my husband commented that snorkeling was our "excursion" of the day. 

[Leejnd4]

29 minutes ago, kleenrcruise said:

If you can afford it do both! You have to be up for the "cruise" part, but it can be so easy and as Leejnd4 mentioned there's an added social benefit if you like meeting new people. It generally attracts people celebrating anniversaries and those who've just fallen in love with FP and become "regulars". Depending on how far you are traveling to get there and whether you will get the chance to return to FP, the PG boat really allows you to see so much in such an easy way. Each island feels like a new paradise on and off the boat. We ended our trip with a stay at an OWB which seems to be a bucket list for many and it was a perfect way to relax after a week of touring the islands. While the ship is relaxing in a different way, every day we were doing something, at the bungalows you could just look out at the beautiful sites and take it all in, my husband commented that snorkeling was our "excursion" of the day. 

 

OWBs are great! Especially as a pre- or post-cruise extension.

 

We're doing something entirely different this time: we're flying in several days in advance of our cruise and have rented an AirBnb up in the hills on Tahiti, and rented a car. This will be our first time doing this. We're going to drive around the island to tour it on our own, and I've even put together a detailed map of the places we want to stop. I'm excited to experience FP in a whole new way! But I'm also looking forward to the pleasures of the PG afterwards. 🙂 

[kleenrcruise]

We did the Magic Mountain hike in Moorea when our excursion (ATVs) got cancelled due to weather (which turned out to be fine) We met a younger couple at the top and each took photos for the other, when I mentioned "Do you want the boat in the background?" which was our PG boat they said, it didn't matter but then we took their photo from a different angle and they said that's "our boat" in the background, an AirBnB catamaran! they said it was a husband and wife team who sailed them around, cooked for them and it was cheaper than any of the resorts. I thought it was such a cool Airbnb idea.

[Tahitianbigkahuna]

2 hours ago, Leejnd4 said:

 

OWBs are great! Especially as a pre- or post-cruise extension.

 

We're doing something entirely different this time: we're flying in several days in advance of our cruise and have rented an AirBnb up in the hills on Tahiti, and rented a car. This will be our first time doing this. We're going to drive around the island to tour it on our own, and I've even put together a detailed map of the places we want to stop. I'm excited to experience FP in a whole new way! But I'm also looking forward to the pleasures of the PG afterwards. 🙂 

 

Your map is fine but your missing out of some of the very best and accessible areas ... The 3 Cascades just past the Blow Hole is very nice and a short walk. I would recommend driving out to Tautira on Tahiti Iti  .... off the beaten trail that very few ever see and the black sand beaches going out there are nice.

 

At the end of the road Tahiti Iti

 

Three Cascades 

 

black sand beaches on Tahiti Iti

Edited June 19, 2023 by Tahitianbigkahuna

[Leejnd4]

53 minutes ago, Tahitianbigkahuna said:

 

Your map is fine but your missing out of some of the very best and accessible areas ... The 3 Cascades just past the Blow Hole is very nice and a short walk. I would recommend driving out to Tautira on Tahiti Iti  .... off the beaten trail that very few ever see and the black sand beaches going out there are nice.

 

At the end of the road Tahiti Iti

 

Three Cascades 

 

black sand beaches on Tahiti Iti

I left out some places due to the fact that my traveling companion has mobility issues, and walks with a cane. I only picked places that appeared she'd be able to get to them. 

 

Are any of these locations accessible to someone with mobility challenges? I'd LOVE to see that waterfall (I adore waterfalls) but I left that off the map as I didn't think she'd be able to get to it. I'd appreciate your expert help!

 

Tahiti Iti looks fabulous! We may do that on another day. We have four days to explore. 🙂 

Edited June 19, 2023 by Leejnd4

[Tahitianbigkahuna]

4 minutes ago, Leejnd4 said:

I left out some places due to the fact that my traveling companion has mobility issues, and walks with a cane. I only picked places that appeared she'd be able to get to them. 

 

Are any of these locations accessible to someone with mobility challenges? I'd LOVE to see that waterfall (I adore waterfalls) but I left that off the map as I didn't think she'd be able to get to it. I'd appreciate your expert help!

 

Tahiti Iti looks fabulous! We may do that on another day. We have four days to explore. 🙂 

 

The walk is about 100 yards from the parking. Slightly uphill most paved. There is a small bridge with a few steps just as you leave the parking area. 

[Leejnd4]

2 hours ago, Tahitianbigkahuna said:

 

The walk is about 100 yards from the parking. Slightly uphill most paved. There is a small bridge with a few steps just as you leave the parking area. 

Thank you! That's awesome. I really wanted to see this. I will put it on our map!