some different questions for PG veterans

[poss]

Ok, I'm psyched. Seems as if we may actually get to sail the PG after all! Maybe as a special celebration for my husband's 80th birthday.

 

We're a couple who (after cruising for decades on our own sailboat) assumed we'd not enjoy this other kind of cruising at all. Wrong!! Did Voyager to the Baltics 2 years ago and loved it. Recently returned from Dover-Nice (Voyager again) which we loved maybe even more, in large part I think because it was a longer cruise, much more relaxed, several sea days, much less rushing, etc.

 

FP is a place we've always wanted to visit, so hearing that the PG will stay with Regent for a while prompts me to start the beginning stage of planning. We're still a little hesitant about the delicious idea, because it's so far away; like everyone, we do loathe flying these days. We live on the east coast, so I'll need to find some way that we can break up the trip in both directions; no way we could manage the long haul (neither of us ever sleeps on planes). So, if we're really going to do this thing, it's going to take some very careful planning so that I can make the right choices. I'm hoping to get as much feed-back as possible here. You've been invaluable before! E.g.:

 

When to go to FP? We're flexible time-wise, so I want to try to choose the period when weather is most likely to be good.

 

Which exact cruise to choose? (I'd asked this question once before, but can't find the material.) There seemed to be so many options. I'm not familiar with any of those places. How do people choose?? (We're avid snorkelers. We go to the Caribbean every year and spend 4-5 hours face down in the water every day. Aren't likely to get that on a cruise, but I assume there'll be other pleasures to fill the space!)

 

I've read the posts about pre-cruise options. I think I've got that straight.

 

Just curious: Has anyone sailed on Voyager, loved it, and NOT loved the PG? Another option for '09 would be another Voyager cruise, but my appetite is certainly whet for FP. (But I keep thinking that it's sooo far, sooo much trouble to get to. Could it possibly be all that much more terrific than booking another cruise that's much closer and more convenient?)

 

Thanks in advance to all!

[AlFrank]

Hi, we live on the East coast and did the trip in September. We went out a day early and stayed in LA to adjust to 3 hour time change, very glad we did. Stayed at the 4 Points Hotel, not expensive, paid $105.00 for the night. There are free shuttles to the hotels from LAX. There is a free trolly we took to Manhattan Beach to watch the sunset, visited the small aquarium and had dinner there. Free trolly back to the hotel. This runs until 11 I think.

 

On the way back home we caught a flight to San Francisco for an extended trip. Very disappointed in SF, it had changed quite a bit since I had last been there. Wish we had stayed in wine country instead.

 

There pre and post stays helped in time changes, etc.

[Texed]

There are a few options. If I had the time (and money), I would go to LA, stay a couple of days. Fly to Hawaii, stay a few days. Fly to The Society Island and stay pre-cruise in an overwater bungalo. Then sail on the 10 day itinerary that goes to Huahine, Raitea, and the Society Islands.

There is "PLENTY" of snorkeling. I love it also. :) I guess we are pretty fortunate, but we have had great weather all 3 times we have been there.

[Island Cruiser]

Poss, I am among those who found the PG a considerable let down after experiencing Voyager. The ship isn't in the Regent fleet because it doesn't fit the Regent model. The standard cabins are nice but significantly smaller. The space to passenger ratio is not as favorable. She struck me as a very plain Jane ship compared to the other cruise ships I have enjoyed. The pool deck is awfully drab and the pool a mere bathtub, surprising since the ship was designed to sail in tropical waters. The aft bar is too small, IMO, when you have an active bar crowd on board--it gets too crowded. The main dining room is beautiful but closed for breakfast and lunch, a huge waste and a disservice to those who enjoy a leisurely sit down breakfast or lunch as part of their luxury cruise experience as we do. And the quality of the food served is, IMO, well below the Voyager standard although I think they have improved it since we were on board in 2005. Having said all this, I still recommend the PG. She's a marvelous way to do FP. We were on board for 14 days and had a great time. FP is magnificent. It's a great trip--but NOT Voyager. Patrick

[Iamboatman]

Air tolerance dependent, stopping in Hawaii was great for us. It allows a bit of time change adjustment (same time zone as Tahiti) and it is far, far nicer than LA...sort of a mini pre-vacation. Then a few days prior to the cruise in Tahiti or Moorea will allow a full recuperation.

 

As I have posted, the PG is the PG and there is nothing really like her. If you want a luxury experience, it is not that. It ain't exactly roughing it, but there are cabins (not suites) and the ship is not the newest, but is pretty well maintained. The service, however, I found generally to be excellent. The pizazz of Voyager isn't there.

 

Putting in perspective, if you want the Voyager experience in French Polynesia you will have a very, very long wait. If you want a solid, inclusive, experience with a warm, friendly staff and decent, if not gourmet, food then sign up. The PG is your only option...and it is a very good one.

[Dolebludger]

poss:

 

We have liked the PG, even though she doesn't fit the Regent model as to suites and passenger/space ratio. But you will note that the fact that the PG isn't up to Voyager standards is reflected in much lower fares for the PG. The PG is a rather unique experience, wherein most of the guests' time is spent of the ship. Possibly the worst weather in FP is in December. The rainy and hot season there is December to sometime in March. A good time to go is during our summer, which is their winter. Not as hot and not as much chance of rain.

 

We have also traveled all over the Caribbean, and find the snorkeling in FP to be much better than anything we've found there. Another thing is that the water is warmer and more salty, so it is almost impossible to sink. Many of the snorkeling areas are actually quite shallow (maybe waist deep) so it's necessary to watch out for coral cuts. Yet, we'd rather do water activities in FP than anywhere in the world we've yet to find.

[egret]

Poss,

I pray that the PG is still sailing FP and I am still able to travel there when I am 80. We stopped over in LA on our first visit to FP. We took a cab from the LAX Hilton to the Getty museum. I am not much of an art student but it made for a very enjoyable half day diversion and not too costly.

I love Hawaii, but I don't get the advantage of flying 6 hours from LA to Hawaii, over 8 hours to FP. I want to get to FP as quickly as possible to adjust and decompress and start to enjoy. More time in security, check in lines and sitting in departure lounges, yuck.

We are going in February so we will experience summer in FP ourselves. I hope it is not too rainy.

I have never been on the Voyager, but did Mariner this past spring. I didn't notice much difference in our Deck 10 cabin on the Mariner compared to our Deck 7 on the PG. I also did not think the food was that much different either.

 

A pool on a ship or resort in French Polynesia is redundant, imhp. The lagoons are like giant swimming pools.

 

134 days and counting.

[south seas sue]

As others have said, the PG is hard to compare with other ships. I have not traveled on the mass market lines, but only on the PG, Silver Sea, and our first cruise was on Celebrity. Yes, the cabins are not luxurious or very spacious, at least as compared to Silver Sea. But the reason to take the PG and indeed to visit FP in general is NOT to enjoy the ship, but to experience the glory of the Islands! The breezes, the people, the wonderful water sports...........if you like snorkling, you will LOVE this trip. There are snorkling and sailing excursions every day the ship is in port. And, its in a different port pretty much every day. Lets not forget the Les Gaugines - a group of 10-12 native girls that travel with the ship - dance, give craft demonstrations, help with serving, and in general create and maintain a beautiful South Seas ambiance on the ship.

 

I first took the PG with my husband 6 years ago - then again 4 years ago with my daughter, as a special treat. Now, our family of four is taking the 12-12 cruise. One of the enhancements I have noticed over the past few years is the longer and more varied itineraries. Instead of the usual 7 days around the Society Islands, you can include the Tuamotos, the Marquesas, and even Fiji for 10, 12, and 14 day trips. Ours includes the Tuamotos, and is 10 days.

 

We don't care about night life and discos. We like good food, but are not gourmet eaters. We LOVE the water, and the slow life of the South Pacific. If those things appeal to you, I say plan your trip and have fun.

 

If you take the air provided by Regent, you will not stop in Hawaii, but go straight through from LA to Papeete - about a 8 1/2 hr flight. I believe the air was about $1100 on Air Tahiti Nui for us. If you want more comfort for such a long flight, get to the airport early and pay for a bz/first class upgrade, another $600-700 out, and more coming back. Who knows what it will be by the time you book your trip.

 

glenda:p

[poss]

Terrific! Thanks for these responses already.

AlFrank: Did you totally love your PG cruise? Which one did you do? (How did you choose which to do?)

Islandcruiser: Thanks so much for that detailed comparison. Extremely helpful! Do you have a particular recommendation for which cruise to try to book?

Texed: Having both been teachers, we don't have buckets of money, so we're going to have to find some air/stopping kind of thing that's as unextravagant as possible. You've been to FP 3 times. Is the cruise you allude to the one you like best? Was that just because it was longer than a week, or did you especially like those places better than the other places PG goes?

Eric: Luxury not needed at all. (though real comfort-- yes) In fact, much as we adore being on Voyager, we always feel a little "odd" about it. In short, not our usual kind of "ambience." Eric: do you have a favorite FP cruise (if you've done several)?

Dolebludger: Interesting (and heartening) what you say about the snorkeling. The only person we know who's been to FP (I can't remember exactly where-- Fiji and a couple of other places I believe) said that he didn't find the snorkeling as good or as interesting as in the Caribbean, e.g. around St John or Bonaire or Cayman. Which PG cruise do you especially like?

Thanks so much, everyone!

[Travelcat2]

As part of their world cruise, the Voyager will be in the South Pacific (January, 2009). I agree with just about everything that has been said in terms of comparisons. I did want to add snorkeling comments. . . when we were on the PG (2004), we mistakenly thought that snorkeling was available through the sports deck of the ship. We also love snorkeling and consider Tahiti to be the best in the world (Fiji is a close second). On the cruise, however, were not able to do as much as we would have liked.

 

We thought of staying in Hawaii but found the flight times to be difficult (as I recall, you would leave Hawaii in the middle of the night). I would suggest flying direct to Tahiti and staying a few nights in Moorea (very good snorkeling). On the other hand, I would prefer taking the Voyager in January, 2009. . . just my opinion.:)

[Dolebludger]

To clarify, snorkeling equipment can be checked out at the sports deck on the PG, but snorkeling from the sports deck is not allowed. One must either take a ship's snorkeling excursion, or make private arrangements to go to a spot with good snorkeling. Indeed, areas where the ship anchors are unlikely to have good snorkeling anyway.

[Iamboatman]

Poss,

 

I have done one...and it was pretty much perfect: 10 days of the Society and Tuamotu Islands. Coupled with 5 days pre-cruise in an OWB and a day + in Hawaii I could not have asked for better. (BTW, it is only 5 1/2 hours from Hawaii to Tahiti...and I have a very civilized 5PM flight on Hawaiian that landed in Tahiti around 10:30 PM.)

 

From speaking with those on the ship (and some others) the 14 days to the Marquesas is a no-go (lots of sea time and not much when you anchor). The Cook Islands, however, I have heard very positive things about. Just know that 14 days is the absolute limit of the PG's provisioning, so things will tail off near the end of the cruise quality wise.

 

I cannot imagine 7 days is sufficient time. Too far, too much to do and not enough time to enjoy the relaxing of FP.

[Island Cruiser]

Poss, I think all the comments you received are right on the money. We did the seven day itinerary twice--back-to-back. For us, that was a great decision. We didn't feel rushed to get it all in the first time. If someone on week one came back to the ship raving about a shore tour we haden't taken, we booked it next week. If they came back raving mad about a trip we had booked on week two, we canceled. And believe me, seven days of FP is better than nothing but not enough considering the distance you have traveled to get there. Our one night at the Intercontinental pre-cruise was far better than we had anticipated too. (When we did the Baltic cruise on Voyager like you did, we thought it sensational but definitely not restful like you. We met a couple on that trip who were doing the Baltic twice B2B. THAT was the way to go too.) Patrick

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Hey Poss,

 

Good to hear you have enjoyed your cruises. I haven't read this flood of responses yet, but I would say that for snorkelling intensity, nothing beats the 7-day Societies itinerary. A back to back is great (we did this with Island Cruiser), or an extension of the 7-day with some place that is famous for snorkeling like Manihi or Rangiroa.

 

The first time we went on the PG, we did a 3-night pre-cruise on Manihi, and it was lovely. But I think our b2b 14 days was our favourite. We're going to do the 14-day Marquesas next, but they are not great for snorkeling, and there's lots of sea time. If you want water-time, avoid sea days.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

BTW Poss, on the subject of breaking up the trip. I can't remember precisely where you live, but from where we are (Toronto), we get a "forced overnight" in L.A., with a complimentary hotel. That we like. There is the direct flight from NY to contend with if you live close enough, but it does not fly every day, so you can always try to plan it so there is no flight that day.

 

We also always go at least one night, preferably two in Tahiti to rest before the cruise. I'm hoping to do a pre-cruise to Moorea next year (more snorkelling!), if we can swing it.

 

Coming home, we tried overnighting in L.A. too, but it doesn't really seem to help, so we fly straight through.

[Joanandjoe]

This post is interesting, and makes me think about going to FP on the PG.

 

Unlike most Regent cruisers, this fair skinned redhead who burns and doesn't tan, doesn't snorkel, and has to avoid the sun between about 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. has never dreamed of a trip to FP. I've always thought that the trip from NJ would be too long, and there would be nothing to do that wouldn't get me a sunburn. Am I missing out on a great thing? Is FP something even a redhead would enjoy?

 

As background, I've had one "land" vacation, five business trips, and two cruises to the Caribbean, and found the weather unbearably hot and uncomfortable. I thought the islands were fascinating, but am not likely to return because of my dislike of the weather.

[Iamboatman]

As someone from New Jersey that has to stay out of the sun quite a bit I can wholeheartedly endorse the trip.

 

I found that by wearing a rash guard (surf shirt) and a hat my sun issues were well in hand. There are wonderful eco and cultural tours, incredible views, nice entertainment...incredible views, etc.

 

If you search my posts, you will find a long thread about my cruise in August-September. It may give you some more specific answers.

 

Any other specific questions, just ask away.

[freddie]

JoanandJoe - My partner and I are also in the group who must avoid too much sun and don't like heat (which is why we live in the delightfully cool Pacific Northwest). Nonetheless, on many occasions during our 14-day cruise in the Society Islands I found myself seriously contemplating the notion of living there. The islands are absolutely magnificent - much less developed than Hawaii or the Caribbean. No high rise hotels or chic shopping malls with the same stores (Little Switzerland, etc.) as in every other resort. As Eric suggested, you can very easily avoid sun burn by wearing rash shirts (they come in both short & long sleeved versions), hats, and even swim skins, if you want to go out on small boat excursions and be completely protected from the sun. I agree with the other posters that the PG is not a luxury ship; but it's the best thing going in FP and a wonderful experience. Now that Regent will be managing it at least through 2009, the concerns people have had about morale and service should be greatly diminished. Cheers, Fred

[Wendy The Wanderer]

This post is interesting, and makes me think about going to FP on the PG.

 

Unlike most Regent cruisers, this fair skinned redhead who burns and doesn't tan, doesn't snorkel, and has to avoid the sun between about 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. has never dreamed of a trip to FP. I've always thought that the trip from NJ would be too long, and there would be nothing to do that wouldn't get me a sunburn. Am I missing out on a great thing? Is FP something even a redhead would enjoy?

 

As background, I've had one "land" vacation, five business trips, and two cruises to the Caribbean, and found the weather unbearably hot and uncomfortable. I thought the islands were fascinating, but am not likely to return because of my dislike of the weather.

 

You do have to think about the sun, and the heat. Avoid going in (our) winter or early spring--it's more humid and on land it can be quite uncomfortable. I went once in April and frankly, on land, it was too much for me.

 

I'm one of those (not redhead, just blonde) who has an allergy to the sun, and just cover up well, and use lots of sunscreen. I love the water, but my husband does not--he will snorkel, for about 20 minutes, and that's enough. He never swims. It's his favourite place in the world, as well as mine. Get yourself onto land on the islands, and see a bit of the culture. And enjoy the ship--the ambiance is wonderful.

 

The first time I went to FP in 2000, my co-workers asked me on my return, why did I have no tan! So it can be done.

[2manyplaces]

We were on the 7-day in Sep. 2005. The weather was great for the most part, but we did have a couple days of gray skies and some rain which was said to be atypical of that time of year. That aside, it was the best vacation I ever had. I love to snorkel and my DH doesn't, so we changed up the excursions we did, but I thought the snorkeling was magnificent. We will be on the 14-day at the end of Sep 2008 with Jean-Michel Cousteau which goes to the Cooks. I chose this because of the snorkeling opportunities available there as opposed to other longer PG itineraries. The Aitutaki lagoon is supposed to be awesome.

[Joanandjoe]

You guys and gals have convinced us that it's worth looking into, but for the summer, not for the winter. That means 2009 at the earliest, since we're scheduled to sail on the Mariner to Alaska next summer.

[Texed]

Texed: You've been to FP 3 times. Is the cruise you allude to the one you like best? Was that just because it was longer than a week, or did you especially like those places better than the other places PG goes?

 

Yes, we loved the 10 day the best. 7 days, IMO, is too short. If you do the back to back 7 days, you would have 4 days each in Moorea and Bora Bora. That is not a tragedy, but a little variety is nice. :)

[AtA]

Poss, we are going on the 12/12 10 day cruise and I'll be happy to report back. I have been on Voyager and loved her. Of course we were on the w. caribbean New Years cruise and Tobias was the chef for that cruise, so we couldn't have asked for a better cruise. I am an avid snorkeler, and my partner likes to snorkel as long as it's relatively calm. It took a bit for me to convince him to go, so I'll also comment about his thoughts after the cruise.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Believe me, 4 days in either of Bora Bora or Moorea is no tragedy. And two motu days!

[Iamboatman]

Poss, we are going on the 12/12 10 day cruise and I'll be happy to report back. I have been on Voyager and loved her. Of course we were on the w. caribbean New Years cruise and Tobias was the chef for that cruise, so we couldn't have asked for a better cruise. I am an avid snorkeler, and my partner likes to snorkel as long as it's relatively calm. It took a bit for me to convince him to go, so I'll also comment about his thoughts after the cruise.

 

I am anxioius to hear your impressions and review of the ship.:)