Any questions? We just returned from PG Jan. 16 cruise

[windsurfer77058]

The cruise was outstanding. I appreciate all the information I learned from the board. If you would like to ask anything, I would happy to let you know what we experienced.

[Jetscot]

Sorry, I am new to this short form. Is PG Paul Gauguin? DH and I have an option on 1st March, Papeete to Papeete. If you are talking this ship, then I want to know everything! We are used to larger ships and I am a bit nervous about going on this much smaller one. As we will be adding on a few weeks in Australia, I want to limit my cruise packing, and I would like to know how formal the dress code is especially on the Captains night and how casual you can be on other nights:confused:. One other thing that is bothering me is how bad are the mosi's (that's assuming you travelled the same area)?

[Wendy The Wanderer]

I presume you mean "Dear Husband"? :)

 

As a Paul Gauguin veteran, I'd like to know how the ship is holding up, since I'm back on her in December, I hope. How was the service, entertainment, food?

 

How was the weather? Jetscot, it will be hot and muggy in March, but on the PG, this won't be much of an issue (tropical breezes, air conditioning.) If you plan on land excursions that involve hiking it will be hot, especially inland. I was there once in April, and found it oppressive, but only when walking around town in the ports. If you rent a car, make sure it has AC.

[Jetscot]

Wendy

Well that all depends on how I feel about him at the time;) and I won't be telling him how hot it will be as he really doesn't like too much heat :eek:. He is really doing this cruise for my benefit as I have always wanted to visit Bora Bora. OK I'd better stick to the 'Dear' word. Are the mosi's really bad at this time of year?

[gazuccio]

OK I can handle the truth...what is the "true" shape of the PG? Varied reports from worn to pleasantly lived in to down right worn out, to brilliant. So, in your opinion what was her appearance?

[windsurfer77058]

The dress is much more casual than I anticipated. I enjoyed that very much. My husband was fine in a Hawaiian shirt and dockers, I wore black pants and different tops, some flowered tops and some flowered pants. There was a pareo/tropical night but some did it and some didn't. It seemed that folks were more concerned with just enjoying the trip than impressing anyone. You sort of did what you wanted. No jeans or few jeans, lots of capris. Bathing suits with something to cover with when going on the tender. Water shoes a must. I was glad I took a few bathing suits and some tide to wash them out. We were in the water almost every day.

The service was outstanding. They had smiles on their face and tried in every way to make guests happy. We only caught 2 shows as we were worn out at night so I can't comment on the entertainment. The children's program in Raiatea was great as has been commented on the board. That was one we pushed to see and were glad. The food was fantastic. I heard no complaints except during the galley tour we commented on the watered down orange juice and the head of the galley showed great interest and it was better the next day. The ship is not new and there is some wear but not anything I would complain about. The beds were some of the best I've slept in. As for "mosi's" I'm guessing you may mean no-seeums but I'm not sure. I'll address no=seeums, I saw none and felt none and I really react poorly to them so they weren't an issue. The weather was a little rainy on a few days but no problem with our tours. It was very humid for those not used to that but we're from Texas Gulf Coast so we thought it was fine.

One of the many highlights was of the Voyager, the sister ship, arriving in Bora Bora. As they departed the second day, the Voyager did a "nose to nose" to our ship,then circled our ship very closely. It was an amazing site. There were horns honking and people applauding and waving; the ship then departs and a full moon rises over the mountain of Bora Bora. It just doesn't get any better than that.

[CelticEyes]

Did Jean-Michel Cousteau give any lectures or lead any special dives? He was scheduled to be aboard during your cruise. Also, did you have any favorite excursions?

[windsurfer77058]

No, Jean-Michel Cousteau wasn't on this cruise. We had Mark Conroy,the President of Regent on board for a special "president's cruise" celebrating the 10th anniversary of the PG in French Polynasia.

We enjoyed every tour we took. It depends on what you like to do. We loved to snorkel and we had the best snorkeling we've ever had, even better than dives we have taken in the past. We did the aquarium in Rangiroa, the coral garden drift snorkel in Tahaa, lagoon discovery in Moorea, snorkeled off the motu in Tahaa and in Bora Bora, and snorkeled after the island cirumnavigation by jet boat. We took the jet boat tour after the land and sea safari w/snorkeling was canceled. That jet boat tour was probably my least favorite but not bad. The snorkeling was ok and we jet ski so the thrill of the boat wasn't important but he did take us to a beach and showed us how to open coconauts and answered alot of questions about his life in Bora Bora.

We enjoyed the helicopter flight over Bora Bora. It was a beautiful sight.

We did the kayak up the Faaroa River and that was great and beautiful.

We did the Anapa Pearl Farm and that was very interesting. Seeing how the pearls are cultivated is fascinating and different from what I expected.

We did the Aito off road safari in Moorea which was interesting. We had signed up for the Capture Moorea photo adventure but it was cancelled.

We didn't talk to the divers about their experience but they all had smiles on their faces when we were down on the marina deck one day. I think it was after their shark dive. We snorkeled with the rays and sharks in Moorea so I felt like I didn't miss that experience by not diving. I can't imagine having a bad dive there if that's what you will be doing.

[drifting_away]

Windsurfer- Were you on the 10 night cruise?

 

Did you book your excursions through the PG?

 

How many people were on the excursions? Were any of them too crowded?

 

Thank you for answering our questions:)

[windsurfer77058]

Yes, we were on the 10 day cruise. We booked online as soon as we got our papers. You can cancel any tour as long as you do it by noon the day before. We had 3 tours cancelled so we made changes to something similar. There were never more than 20 on any of the tours we were on. When we got to a couple of the places, there might be 1-2 boats from somewhere else but that didn't seem to be a problem like we've experienced with larger ships.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Wendy

Well that all depends on how I feel about him at the time;) and I won't be telling him how hot it will be as he really doesn't like too much heat :eek:. He is really doing this cruise for my benefit as I have always wanted to visit Bora Bora. OK I'd better stick to the 'Dear' word. Are the mosi's really bad at this time of year?

 

The mosquitoes have never been bad for us, we've been 3 times, in April, May and June. Once when we were on a 4x4 excursion on Moorea, one of the pax handed out the local brew, and we used a bit because we were in heavy tropical foliage. But that's it. I've heard that there can be noseeums on the motus, but have never experienced this, I think perhaps they are a problem at other times of year.

[Stacky]

Can you tell me anything about the casino-i.e. can you get cash on your ship credit card? My husband and I are a bit old for the snorkling bit so we have prebooked mostly tours. What were the age ranges on your cruise? Was so glad to read about clothing - it will be nice not to have to pack as much as we do for the "big" ships. Thanks for the info.

[drifting_away]

We will be doing the same cruise in June so I am thrilled to hear that you enjoyed it. I can't believe I have to wait so long. :rolleyes:

 

What time did the childrens program of Raitea occur?

 

Did you go to the ships Bora Bora Motu, how did you like this and was it easy to get to?

[Wendy The Wanderer]

My husband and I are a bit old for the snorkling bit so we have prebooked mostly tours. What were the age ranges on your cruise?

 

Last time I was aboard there were people in their 80's snorkeling. You can snorkel straight from the beach at Motu Manaha, and they will give you a lesson with the equipment. Even just with a mask and snorkel and your reef shoes (obligatory if you go on a beach at all), you can wander around in the water and look at the fish.

[RachelG]

We were there in August, and I was really worried about mosquitos, no-see-ums, etc because I seem to attract them when no one else is bothered. I took some of the insect repellant wipes and really had no problems at all--which is pretty much a miracle. Son and husband, who didn't use the insect repellant, had no problems either.

[windsurfer77058]

To answer some of your questions, the casino is small. There were 2 tables near the bar/lounge area and in a small room there were machines. I didn't go in there but my guess would be 10 machines at the most but there was never anyone in there when I went by. I did mention that we didn't stay up late as we were on the water and going during the day. I don't know about getting cash from your credit card for the gamblling. I remember something about the last day using cash and the daily paper stated us dollars and travelers cheques are accepted.

The age range is wide. We went to an anniversary get-together and there were 5 couples celebrating 50 yrs, 1 -30-40 years,1-40-50 years, and about 15 under 30 years with one honeymooning couple. My guess would be most folks were 40-75 with most being 50-65. Everyone mixed well.

The children's program was around 5 pm.

The Bora Bora mutu was easy to get to, by tender as most things were. It rained that afternoon so there weren't that many folks there but it didn't stop up from snorkeling. It's a great place to learn to snorkel.

[Jetscot]

I almost spoke too soon about being on this cruise! Did anyone else have flight problems? We tried to book a round the world ticket with British Airways, but Air Tahiti is not on the one world alliance. They wanted us to fly from the UK to LA then to Auckland and back to Tahiti - paying the Tahiti part on top of the basic fare. Our TA had a terrible time re-routing us through Singapore, Sydney and Auckland to Tahiti. Still had to pay the on cost to Tahiti and back, but it was MUCH cheaper this way! I would have been so disappointed if we had to cancel:eek:

[drifting_away]

Thank you so much for all your great info.:D

 

I could use a little more help with my planning ( I am a planning freak)

 

You talked briefly about the anniversary ceremony. Was this not to be missed or would you skip it for a Bora Bora sunset cruise? We are celebrating our 16th anniversary on our cruise but we usually avoid group gatherings on cruise ships (sexy leg/belly flop contests etc.), but if it is really nice we would be interested.

 

Are there any other nights that have special events (Capt. dinner for example) that we would benefit from knowing in advance?

 

thanks,

 

Diana

[Wendy The Wanderer]

There are no activities that you would want to avoid on this cruise, at least I can't imagine one. The closest you get to the "sexiest legs" contest are things like watching the Gauguines dance while showing you how to tie a pareo.

 

The anniversary ceremony is very nice, but not "can't be missed". We've never done the full-monty, just crashed it once or twice (since our anniversary's always been around the time we cruised.) Given the choice, I would rather be on a catamaran on the Bora Bora lagoon.

 

There's the Children of Raiatea, that would be some time the day you're at that island. It's a don't-miss, but take a hat and cover yourself, the sun on deck is very strong, and there's not much shade.

 

I believe the Captain's welcome is always on the second night, as on most Regent cruises. I believe there's entertainment.

 

And on the last night, coming back to Tahiti, there's usually a performance by a full-up Polynesian dance troupe, O Tahiti E. Don't miss that.

 

You guys are making me wish I was going back sooner! How can I wait until December?

[drifting_away]

Wendy- thank you for being a great presence on this board. I appreciate your input:) December will come along quicker than you know.

 

We are doing an all day excursion on Raiatea so hopefully the childrens program won't start until 5. We will have to rush back and skip the shower in order to enjoy them.

 

Diana

[RachelG]

Loved the sunset catamaran cruise in Bora Bora--only a few other people and really nice and relaxed. Wedding ceremony was ok--but like Wendy said, catamaran is better.

I enjoyed the dolphin watching, but I like dolphins a lot. My husband and son would have been bored (they went scuba diving 3 different times and really enjoyed that).

Also loved the motus!

[Jetscot]

Where do the tenders drop you in Bora Bora? Is it in the main town? I read somewhere that you can hire electric golf carts to get around. Anyone been to Bloody Mary's? I don't know whether to book tours. I want to do as much snorkelling as I can, but Ken won't go in the water. Can he sit undercover on the tour boat and do they have refreshments/toilets on board?

[windsurfer77058]

In asnwer to your questions, the tenders in Bora Bora dropped us off at the market area. There was some shopping, never alot except in Papeete. I didn't notice any golf carts anywhere. One night there was a special tender to Bloody Mary's which left around 6 and returned at 9 I think. You can book tours and cancel them up to noon before the day of the tour so why not book what you might want to do now. We were glad that we did and didn't have to spend the time right when we boarded to figure all of that out. There was no toilet on any tender or snorkel boat we went on. Some of the boats had some shade though. I would add that if my dh didn't want to snorkel, I would have felt very safe going alone and letting him do as he pleased. As for the anniversary event, we did that and really enjoyed the photo, the dance, the music and the explanation of the wedding ceremoney. We had someone comment on the catamaran being rough for them but I think they went on a different night than the anniversary ceremony. Many of these things affect folks differently so when you read someone's opinion or experience try to see where they are coming from or what the weather was like and how that may have affected their tour or event. Our biggest problem was to have enough energy and time to do all the things offered. We failed at this but had so much fun "trying to do it all".

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Diana, you're quite welcome. I just love FP.

 

Remind me, are you on the 7-day itinerary? (I'm thinking you are, since many of the other itins don't even stop at Raiatea, including ours in December.)

 

7-day usually stops there on Sunday, a day off from school. The kids come on in the morning, before the tenders start (I remember riding back with them.) But then maybe they are actually docking now, that would make a difference, but I still see arrival times of 11 or 12. I would imagine that most tours would be built around this event, but things could have changed. Perhaps a recent guest could provide up-to-date facts on this.

 

Can you tell I have the Polynesian flu? :o

[Stacky]

What is a motus? Did I miss something in my reading?