Tahitian Princess - lots of questions

[madaroch]

We are taking our first ever Princess Cruise, we've sailed many times but always with Holland America. We have decided to do a back to back Tahitian Princess Cruise for Christmas and New Year of 2006 to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. DH and I love our wine, which leads to my first question. Actually we love only red.....LOL

 

1. Is there a place to buy wine in Tapeete, that we would be allowed to bring on board and have in our room.

2. Does Princess allow you to bring on wine and store in your room. I've heard that it does, hence the question.

3. What are some great tips from some of you who have travelled this itinery before.

4. The casino is small but is it still enjoyable?

5. Do they have daily bingo and all of the same stuff for entertainment that is typically onboard a ship for those infamous sea days.

 

Anything else you can give me a heads up on would be great. I'm currently reading the CC survey section on this particular ship and learning lots but the wine question just hasn't come up yet.

 

Thanks for your input.

[donna5]

It will probably be cheaper to buy wine on the ship, or bring it from home. Everything is about 3 times the price in Polynesia. The grocery stores do sell liquor wine. There is one on the back street in town(the road that the le trucks run up and down. It would be to the left of town when looking from the dock. There is also one toward the Radisson(you can take a bus there and back.)

[Toto2Kansas]

Definitely check the wine lists on the ship. Purchasing wine, other than maybe a bottle just for something different, would be very expensive in Papette. In fact, friends of ours bought one a few years ago and brought it to a party we had onboard. When it was opened, we all ran for the balcony as it had turned to pure vinegar type liquid...........................:eek:

 

As for the casino??? Well, I would not go when it is crowded, as it is arm to arm and you can have a hard time even moving around. But there are other times when it is not so bad, like the afternoon of a sea day. But evenings were the worst.

 

Enjoy your Tahitian B2B cruise.

[MichTraveler]

...

5. Do they have daily bingo and all of the same stuff for entertainment that is typically onboard a ship for those infamous sea days.

QUOTE]

They have the usual stuff but sometimes on a little smaller scale. The casino is small. They have shows, but not the BIG production numbers. They have bingo and art auctions. They have trivia and other games. They have the spa and a wonderful library. They have 2 specialty restaurants, although they alternate nights. No 7th deck promenade around the ship, but there is a small track up top. Plus they have the locals come onboard to perform Tahitian dance -- kids and adults. And that night is Tahitian night with tropical dress-up -- a good night to wear locally made headress or leis.

[rayison]

Hello,

 

My wife and I just returned from a great 10 days in Polynesia. I have some answers for you.

 

This ship is small and intimate. It is unlike any cruise you have taken on ships holding 2000 people or more. You get to know the crew and fellow passengers on a much more regular basis. That is what makes this a unique experience. I spoke with people from England, Australia, France, America and Asia. In my previous 8 cruises, I have never had the fun with other passengers that I did on this cruise.

 

We brought 5 bottles of wine from home. We just packed it carefully in our checked luggage and it was fine when we got there. We took them to the dining room on several nights. They say there is a $10.00 corkage fee, but we never had to pay it. The previous posts are right about prices in the islands. Nothing is inexpensive except baghettes of bread. They are government regulated. Expect to pay significantly higher prices for items you buy in the states.

 

I did gamble some nights in the casino. It is really small, but on the other hand, they had some nice prices at times. .25c roulette to name one.

 

Do not miss any of the local tahitian dancers that are brought on board. They have great fun and really engage the crowd. We never went to one of the ship shows, just the local flavor.

 

If you have any other questions about the ship, don't hesitate to ask.

 

Ray

[RainbowSuperstar]

I just returned from Tahiti. The ship is awesome. Deck 5 is a great secret hide away. They call it the poormans deck. Bingo so much fun. The roll over jackpot rolled over to the last game and the room was packed. Great people on the ship. I bought the local beer on shore. Wine is just as expensive if not CHEEPER on the boat. There were several people who brought their own wine on board, but the ship has a nice wine list. If you want a nice bottle of Champange, keep in mind you are in a region of FRANCE and the champange prices on shore are a little cheaper than in the states. You do have a frig in your room.

 

Excursions to book:

Tahaa--Drift snorkel

Marc's Motu Picknic--(not Princess)

 

Several of the ports you can get off the boat and book on shore.

 

Take your own mask and snorkel. Fins---depends on what you want to do.

 

Definately pack some water shoes. I bought a pair of chaco's great for water and land.

 

Have a great time.

 

Ginger

[Spikesgirl]

It is true that the wine and almost everything else is really expensive inTahiti, but in Te Tiare, we found two bottles of Grand Marnier - Codon Jaune (it has yellow as opposed to the red trimmings and can't be purchased in the states. A friend had brought back a bottle from France and my DH fell in love with it) in this grocery store. The cashier must have thought we were crazy, but it had ended a three-year seach by my husband for this. He hand carried it throughout the rest of the trip without incident. We now have but a teaspoon left and that tells me it's time to go back. It wasn't cheap, but worth every CFP we paid for it.

 

As for the rest of what my fellow CC's report, it's absolutely true - Tahiti is incredible, the ship was small, but friendly and passenger oriented and we loved the excursion we picked. They were all snorkling, booked with Princess, and we have a marvelous time on all four of them. Tahiti is also a place to relax and just take the islands at their pace. It ws unlike any other place we had visited - you are in for a treat.

 

Charlie

[SingerEsq]

How exciting for you! B2B cruises?!! Wow.

 

We've sailed the sister to the Tahitian when she was an R-Class ship for the now defunct :( Renassaince. These are BEAUTIFUL ships. However, as you obviously know, they are small. Only 650 passengers. And as discussed, ship activities are scaled (way) back from the mega-ships. We've done larger ships and enjoy them, but nothing has yet compared with our R2 cruise. This type of cruising is more like hanging out at a chic country club, rather than traditional cruising. We are looking forward to booking the TP for the same reason, as well as trying Oceania, which owns 3 of the former R ships.

 

BTW-- The minisuites are generously sized with a very nice bathroom (w/tub). Highly recommend the upgrade.

 

Enjoy!

[laurieb]

the ship has a very good wine selection and the prices are very reasonable. we brought our wine with us the two times we have gone, but will only bring it along for our pre and post cruise stay next time. we did get charged a corkage, so maybe it depends on who your waitstaff is.

[spindrift]

Princess had a very good selection of wines. Just go with them. That is the easiest, and they are very good. Some of the other lines is where you worry about that, but not with Princess. Enjoy your trip. It was WONDERFUL. You will love the ship and the staff.

[madaroch]

Thanks for all your replies to this topic. I think we'll probably just buy onboard, and maybe if we find something on the pier we'll try. It's not quite as easy for us to bring liquor as we are coming from Canada and that can be a long day to start, let alone trying to get liquor across two boarders.

 

Take care, I'm getting excited.

[LnJ]

It's been a couple years now (June, 2004) since we took the Tahitian Princess cruise. Can't help you with your wine questions, but definitely encourage you to spend a lot of time out in those beautiful lagoons. That's what makes this cruise so special.