South Pacific R/T Los Angeles

[9tee2Sea]

Has anyone done this cruise to Tahiti r/t from los angeles?  32 nights is such a long time, but there would be no airfare, hotels, or jet lag.  Im thinking of 2025 ( it will probably take a few months to pull the trigger anyway).  I know I can shorten the trip by flying to Hawaii or Australia/New Zealand, but by the time you add air fare, hotels, food, tours, etc, I am probably just 7 days shy of 32 nights, and it will be cheaper going r/t out of los angeles

[reedprincess]

15 minutes ago, 9tee2Sea said:

Has anyone done this cruise to Tahiti r/t from los angeles?  32 nights is such a long time, but there would be no airfare, hotels, or jet lag.  Im thinking of 2025 ( it will probably take a few months to pull the trigger anyway).  I know I can shorten the trip by flying to Hawaii or Australia/New Zealand, but by the time you add air fare, hotels, food, tours, etc, I am probably just 7 days shy of 32 nights, and it will be cheaper going r/t out of los angeles

I did the 28 day r/t out of LA. It was Ah. Mazing. I would do it again in a heartbeat - 32 days would be fantastic! Loved everything about it...

Enjoy! 

[alyssamma]

1 hour ago, 9tee2Sea said:

Has anyone done this cruise to Tahiti r/t from los angeles?  32 nights is such a long time, but there would be no airfare, hotels, or jet lag.  Im thinking of 2025 ( it will probably take a few months to pull the trigger anyway).  I know I can shorten the trip by flying to Hawaii or Australia/New Zealand, but by the time you add air fare, hotels, food, tours, etc, I am probably just 7 days shy of 32 nights, and it will be cheaper going r/t out of los angeles

Doing this in a couple of weeks. There are many roll calls for these. For the one I'm on, many people say they've sailed it multiple times and like @reedprincess they all say it was one of, if not the, best cruise they've done.

 

I've been working my way up to 32 days (did a 14 in May and then a 21 in Aug)...I'm pretty nervous about it, especially since this is my first Princess cruise 🙂 But based on what others say, I think it's going to be great.

[Therese S.]

We did the  Hawaii/Tahiti  28 day round trip from LA in March 2019, still my top cruise.  Snorkeling in Bora Bora and Moorea was amazing and we’re going back next year for the 33 day on the Grand which includes two new ports of Fiji and Raitiea.  After doing 28 days, adding on another 5 days for 3 additional ports is easy.  

[Yehootu]

Did it last the 28day last March, Bora Bora was cancelled and we instead overnighted in Papeete. On a cruise now and we keep comparing it back to that one. Very relaxing.

[skynight]

Yes, I have sailed on  this voyage. You have to really enjoy sea days. There are 23 of them. Twice there will be 5 days in a row, on the way to Hawaii and then from Hawaii to American Samoa. There are 4 sea days from Fiji to Tahiti. On the return from Moorea there are 8 sea days in a row. Sapphire will be a nice ship for this trip with it's wide 360  promenade, traditional lounges, nice lido deck indoor and outdoor pools. Prepare for heat and very strong sun. Much of the time you are in the tropics, crossing the equator twice. There will be a crossing the equator event. You will also be crossing the date line twice losing a day west bound and then gaining it back, repeating the same day, east bound. Unfortunately large ships are no longer permitted to anchor in Bora Bora. It is a really nice island and very expensive. There is nothing to do in Moorea, no town unless you take a trip. There is no shopping area and  one small store down the street. Believe there is one hotel that offers a beach day. We took an organized tour. I remember visiting a vanilla farm. Vanilla is grown in screened in gardens and requires hand pollination of each flower. Moorea is a very short  few hour sailing from Papeete. Moorea is visible across the channel from the Papeete port. Locals commute to Papeete each day on the ferry. In America Samoa there were lots of vendors on the dock. The NPS had a table there. We were off the ship early and signed up for a National Park tour by the park service. It filled quickly. I was aware of it since I was there on another cruise. There were also local busses that ran around the island. Think very small. You can probably find photos on line of these small busses. Because this is a long cruise the demographic will be older people with free time. Expect more than half to be elite loyalty level, seasoned Princess customers. The roll call for the cruise we took was very active. We joined a few private trips.

Summary. I enjoyed this cruise. It's one not many take. The ports are not standard cruise ports like you find in the Baja or the Caribbean. They have limited ship visits throughout the year.  

[DUCHESSRN]

My friend is doing the 32 day on Sapphire next week, we go Spring 2025 .

[chrysalis]

2 minutes ago, DUCHESSRN said:

My friend is doing the 32 day on Sapphire next week, we go Spring 2025 .

We go next week, too

[Gaynors]

I'm going spring 2024... can't wait. 

 

The ease of travel, cruising roundtrip LA (having only to fly to the "relatively" short flight to LA) , and the south pacific ports was the biggest reason to book.   Kind of like an almost transpacific.. but on training wheels.

 

 

[LACruiser88]

42 minutes ago, DUCHESSRN said:

My friend is doing the 32 day on Sapphire next week, we go Spring 2025 .

We are also booked on the Sapphire in April of 2025.  We have been on the 28 day to Tahiti/Samoa's/Hawaii four times.  Great cruises!

[DUCHESSRN]

19 minutes ago, LACruiser88 said:

We are also booked on the Sapphire in April of 2025.  We have been on the 28 day to Tahiti/Samoa's/Hawaii four times.  Great cruises!

Love Sapphire and I look forward to meeting you .

[Bgwest]

9 hours ago, reedprincess said:

I did the 28 day r/t out of LA. It was Ah. Mazing. I would do it again in a heartbeat - 32 days would be fantastic! Loved everything about it...

Enjoy! 

This ☝️

if you love sea days like we do, you’ll enjoy this trip. 
if not, might best to reconsider. 

[PescadoAmarillo]

9 hours ago, Therese S. said:

We did the  Hawaii/Tahiti  28 day round trip from LA in March 2019, still my top cruise.  Snorkeling in Bora Bora and Moorea was amazing and we’re going back next year for the 33 day on the Grand which includes two new ports of Fiji and Raitiea.  After doing 28 days, adding on another 5 days for 3 additional ports is easy.  

If that port in Fiji is Dravuni Island, you are in for a snorkeling treat. Walk far to the right after leaving the tender dock. On the elevator that night, everyone was talking about it and comparing fish stories. 

[PacnGoNow]

We’ll be on our 4th RT LA South Pacific soon.  Love this itinerary and love sea days.  Go for it.  They have a lot 

of activities to keep you busy…if you want to be busy! 🥴

 

We’ve also have done Pacific crossings 

and loved those too. However, those have a Loooong flight home. 😳

[louden]

14 minutes ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

If that port in Fiji is Dravuni Island, you are in for a snorkeling treat. Walk far to the right after leaving the tender dock. On the elevator that night, everyone was talking about it and comparing fish stories. 

Always grateful for your  info.  Quick question.  Did everyone travel with their own snorkelling gear or was there some available on this stop.

 

Thank you

 

Louden

[LACruiser88]

11 minutes ago, PacnGoNow said:

those have a Loooong flight home.

We like having the loooong flight to start our trip and then take the cruise home.  We are on the Majestic's 33 day, Sydney to Seattle, this coming April.  🙂

[LACruiser88]

3 minutes ago, louden said:

Always grateful for your  info.  Quick question.  Did everyone travel with their own snorkelling gear or was there some available on this stop.

 

Thank you

 

Louden

We usually bring our own when the voyage does not involve a flight, otherwise we rent/purchase upon arrival.

[Musky Ike]

Sure, now I'm thinking about doing this one. Might have a cruise problem. 😉 

[chrysalis]

49 minutes ago, louden said:

Always grateful for your  info.  Quick question.  Did everyone travel with their own snorkelling gear or was there some available on this stop.

 

Thank you

 

Louden

That island only has about 125 people living on it, so I don't  expect to see any equipment for rent.

[louden]

13 minutes ago, chrysalis said:

That island only has about 125 people living on it, so I don't  expect to see any equipment for rent.

Thank you for responding.  We are thinking the same thing but with having to fly we were hoping to limit what we are packing.  Whatever we decide the stop should be very special.  Thanks again.

 

Cheers

 

Louden

[PescadoAmarillo]

2 hours ago, louden said:

Always grateful for your  info.  Quick question.  Did everyone travel with their own snorkelling gear or was there some available on this stop.

 

Thank you

 

Louden

😊

 

I checked my blog pics and don’t see anything resembling a place to rent gear on the island. There is even a map and it doesn’t show a rental place. I did not feel I needed fins on Dravuni, and just used my own mask and snorkel.

 

I have three posts on Dravuni Island (check Older Posts at the bottom to see the third one). 
 

http://pescadoamarillo.blogspot.com/search/label/Dravuni Island

Edited October 17, 2023 by PescadoAmarillo

[LACruiser88]

1 hour ago, louden said:

Thank you for responding.  We are thinking the same thing but with having to fly we were hoping to limit what we are packing.  Whatever we decide the stop should be very special.  Thanks again.

 

Cheers

 

Louden

Are you stopping in Hawaii on the way there?  If you are, you could buy snorkeling gear there?  🤷‍♂️

 

We have purchased snorkling gear at ABC stores in Hawaii in the past.

[louden]

16 minutes ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

😊

 

I checked my blog pics and don’t see anything resembling a place to rent gear on the island. There is even a map and it doesn’t show a rental place. I did not feel I needed fins on Dravuni, and just used my own mask and snorkel.

 

I have three posts on Dravuni Island (check Older Posts at the bottom to see the third one). 
 

http://pescadoamarillo.blogspot.com/search/label/Dravuni Island

 

[louden]

Just now, louden said:

 

Thanks for touching base but why did I not think of your Blogs?  I read them all the time and was so happy to see you back on the oceans after Covid.

 

Stay well and I am off to read your posts.

 

Cheers

 

Louden

[trbarton]

I did a 21 day cruise before on the Majestic Princess from Sydney Australia to Hong Kong, a repositioning cruise & loved every minute of it. You’ll enjoy every moment. On the 1st port stop I met someone from CC that was joining the ship from there & he offered to meet us at the pier & take us around the town. 
 

Here’s the couple that took us around. 
 

Tom😀