Casting all votes - which cruise would you choose?

[weloveplaya]

Hi everyone!

 

So I contacted a travel agent who specializes in the South Pacific for some quotes on a honeymoon cruise in Tahiti.

 

-The first quote I received is for the Paul Gauguin 10 day cruise, which includes a visit to Rangiroa. My travel agent raved about Rangiroa and said it would be right up our alley with beautiful scenery and excellent snorkeling. The price includes a picture window room (category E), round trip airfare from LAX, port charges, fuel surcharges, and trip insurance. Total per person is $4,630.

 

-The other quote is for the Tahitian Princess 10 day cruise, which includes a visit to Rarotona in the Cook Islands. She did point out that to get there, we will go into open waters and it can sometimes be a little rough as it is further to get there. The price includes an ocean view cabin, round trip airfare from LAX, and all other chargesinsurance as mentioned above. Total per person is $3,235.

 

 

I love that the Paul Gauguin includes all drinks (although we aren't big alcohol drinkers, I guess it will be nice to have that included in the cost) and includes the stop at Rangiroa, which I've seen people rave about in posts on TripAdvisor.

 

Price-wise, the Princess cruise is looking a little cheaper to us...and we could probably afford to splurge on a few nights on-land stay in Moorea before the cruise departure. I'd like to hear your thoughts on Rarotonga and the possibility of hitting rough seas. This is somewhat of a concern of ours with seasickness.

 

Maybe you could give me some of your thoughts on the 2 cruises as I know some of you have been on both. Do you think we'd be more satisfied cruising on the Paul Gauguin without an on-land stay than doing the Princess cruise possibly with an on-land stay? Do you think having a balcony room would really make the experience that much better for us? I know that sometimes resorts may have certain specials coming up and the prices may drop....but does this happen with the cruises? I'm assuming that the cruises don't really offer specials like the resorts do so there probably won't be a chance of the PG's price reducing.

 

 

Thank you in advance for all the help/advice you can give me!!

 

Erica

[weloveplaya]

Actually...does anyone happen to know if Princess includes soft drinks or juice in the price? I know alcoholic drinks are not included.

 

I guess some of my worries with the TP are having 3 formal nights...I don't think my boyfriend is too excited about having to put a suit on while on our honeymoon. Also, I've heard that on the TP, the shows at night are very Vegas-y whereas I was hoping to see more Tahitian-style shows rather than cabaret show acts.

 

Thank you.:)

[flamomo]

weloveplaya,

 

We're booked on the Tahitian Princess for the November 9th sailing, and are flying in 2 days early to stay at the Intercontinental Beachcomber Resort in Papeete. I can't imagine flying that far and not haveing a couple of land days to explore independently and just soak up the atmosphere. We booked that stay through Princess, and doing it that way is a little less expensive than booking it yourself with the resort.

We are also doing our flights through Princess, which is considerably less costly than making our own flight arrangements. (I did a lot of online checking on the cost of flying to Papeete, and Princess Air is a much better deal.) I would recomment that you buy trip insurance, since you will have quite a bit invested in the costs of the cruise and the flights (and land stay if you choose to do that).

I've cruised on Princess 5 times previously on 5 different ships. Soft drinks are not included, and juice is free during breakfast. We have not been on the TP yet, but are really looking forward to it. It's a small ship, with only 670 passsengers, as opposed to 2-3,000 PAX on other ships.

You do NOT have to dress up for any of the formal nights if you choose not to. There are alternatives, such as the buffet, Sabatinis (Italian) and Sterling Steakhouse. The latter 2 are considered premium venues, which means you pay $15-20 per person to dine there, but that premium includes your tip.

I don't know what the shows will be like, but on past Princess cruises, they have been sort-of "broadway type" with singing and dancing. I've enjoyed all the ones I've seen. I understand that there are local performers (doing their "island" dancing) brought onboard at least once during the cruise, and others say that is a do-not-miss performance. I think I have read that they also bring local crafts-persons onboard to demonstrate their crafts.

 

I forgot to mention that our itonerary inclides Rangiroa, not Raratonga.

 

You might go on the "Reviews" section of this board and read comments of those who have sailed on the TP on the South Pacific itineraries. I think you will find they are rave reviews in most cases.

 

Whatever you choose, based on everything I have read and heard, the South Pacific islands cruises are unforgettable.

[Seal]

I think you'd be wise to have some land time--this March 19th will be our third FP 10 day Cook Island cruise on the Tahitian Princess--we'll be at the IC Bora Bora pre-cruise and the IC Papette 2 days post cruise--our first trip to Rarotonga was a bit rough--I'm one who gets seasick--always wear the patches--I wouldn't cruise for many years because I always got seasick on a 20 mile trip from here to Catalina Island

 

When are you planing to cruise--also remember these little ships have a bit more noticeable movement compared to the new huge ships--I love the large ships--but--you need a small one for FP.

 

Let us hear what you decide.

 

Nancy:D

[cruzegirl]

Erica,

There are alot of decisions into Tahiti.. My friends and I are doing it in October. We chose the TP due to price for the PG.... We are also going 4 days ahead of time and then doing the ferry to Moorea where we will stay before the cruise and then return to Papeete for the cruise.

We booked our airfare with www.vayama.com instead of Princess. We got a better rate and were able to choose our seats.... It worked better for us....

And we are going to Rangiroa not Raratonga..... To me, it's all good......

[MVPinBoynton]

The Tahitian Princess is a wonderful ship and a great way to visit French Polynesia. I can't imagine the Paul Gaugin being worth $1400 per person more. Rangiroa is quite nice; but most of these islands are. We did the Marquesas itinerary, so don't know anything about Rarotonga, except that everyone that goes there, seems to enjoy it immensely. In my opinion, save the money, sail on a wonderful ship and stay a few extra days. You can check out our review with pictures at www.thepreismans.com . Have a ball.

[ShelbysMom]

I'd ask my travel agent to double check the information that they have provided to you about the TP cruise.

 

It is my understanding that the TP cruises in fall 2008 were dropping the Cook Islands/Marquesas options. The itinerary now includes the islands that both of these options went to before: Bora Bora, Raiatea, Moorea and then includes Rangiroa (from the old Marquesas itinerary) and Huahine (from the old Cook Islands itinerary)

 

Also, there are 2 formal nights on a 10 day Princess cruise, not 3.

 

Can't comment on whether the info you've received on the PG is correct...

[MVPinBoynton]

As much as I loved the Marquesas, the new itinerary does sound very nice. By not going out to the Marquesas or Rarotonga, there should be less sea days, since it was a long way to them.

[ShelbysMom]

After having done the Marquesas itinerary where we didn't go to Hiva Oa (but we knew in advance we were missing it and they added more time in Rangiroa which we loved), I almost wish we had waited a year and done the trip in fall/winter 2008 with the updated itinerary.

 

But anytime in French Polynesia was fine!

[MVPinBoynton]

ShelbysMom,

Missing Hiva Oa was a pretty regular occurrence. I have to assume that is one of the reasons it was taken off the itinerary. When we went in February, we were the first one to be able to land that season.

[2manyplaces]

I have been on the PG and on a Princess cruise ship, although not the Tahitian Princess. The PG is an absolutely fabulous experience, much better than Princess, IMHO. Take a look at the Regent board, as there are many, many posts about the PG and testimonials about "you get what you pay for." The food is fabulous, all cocktails are included, wine with dinner, a special ceremony for honeymooners and others celebrating special occasions, sitting on our balcony with a gin and tonic looking at the magnificent scenery--worth every single penny! We were celebrating our 20th anniversary, so it was really a special occasion for us, one we will never forget.

[wristband]

Princess offers a lower fare with balconies and a two additional days (albeit at sea). Yes, the coffee is terrible and food mediocre. Raratonga is, politely, a uneventful port with little to offer save a better exchange rate.

 

PG offers far better food (and coffee!), less nickel and diming and petty charges imposed, free booze and far nicer public accomodations - plus no annoying formal nights - all at a higher price (albeit no balconies).

 

Overall, the better financial deal is with Princess. The better ship is PG.

 

BTW, did anyone else notice how surly Princess' crew was in February? Are they underpaid and overworked? Or were commitments made that Princess failed to fulfill? Man, the crew was really pissed off!

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Erica. take the Paul Gauguin. Who needs formal nights on their honeymoon? The PG cruises are generally very port-intensive, with lots of time in the water, instead of riding around on top of it. They treat you very nicely, and have a special honeymoon gathering at sunset one night.

 

Rangiroa is supposed to have great snorkelling (I've only been to Manihi, another atoll out there.) But the great scenery will be in Moorea and Bora Bora, not in Rangiroa--being an atoll, it's very flat. So get your fill of the water there.

 

Oh, and try to squeeze in one night pre-cruise to ease the jetlag. It makes a big difference once you get on the ship. I think one night at the Radisson would be about $300 or something like that.

[flamomo]

Mike, thank you SO much for your great travelogue. Your pictures were wonderful and I am now even more excited that we will be taking the cruise in November.

[MVPinBoynton]

Thanks Flamamo. I am sure you will just love French Polynesia. It is a very special place with very warm people. Have a great time.

[flamomo]

Sorry to hear that wristband had a less than stellar experience on the TP. I guess we've been fortunate. We've had very good food and excellent service on all of our Princess cruises.

We're going on the TP with the expectation that we will have a wonderful time, just like all of our past cruises.

And I could not imagine cruising in Polynesia without a balcony cabin.

JMHO

[wristband]

Flamomo - we did have a lovely time and the B2B cruises were great.

 

However, to be honest, I really did sense the crew was stressed or angry (or a combination). The terseness was commented on by several passengers so my antenna was not amiss. The undertone did NOT affect the enjoyment of our trip but whatever was going on was, well, quite apparent. Service was professional but attitude was many times less than warm and welcoming.

 

The coffee was as bad as other CC posters have previously warned. I did think the food was mediocre - not terrible but undistinguished - though there are choices available and portion control is a plus. We found it impossible to get fresh fish or local produce onboard -the fish was frozen and drowned in sauce. We requested, and got, a side plate of steamed vegetables each night which helped improve dinner.

 

That said, I can't imagine going on a cruise in Polynesia with the main focus - or gripe - being the food served onboard. Made little difference to us as we sought out fresher and better meals in various ports.

 

Hope you have a wonderful time when you return to the TP!

[cwc]

I went with PG, so you will know my vote. We bought porthole & we got window. We dive so PG was the only choice for us (Windstar was 2nd, but they don't sail there any more).

 

Just FYI, RSSC is running a special with 2nts precruise & inclusive air from LAX on some of their cruise. Take a look at the website & see if your schedule fits.

[ellbon]

I stayed 3 nights at the IC Moorea- beach room that i walk into the water from the balcony.

I did 10 days mini on the TP. It was 2004 and was wonderful. when we sailed we had no rough seas and after seeing the land I saw the beach and enjoyed swimming all afternoon.

 

also you can get married in the Cook islands and a couple did.

[EagleRockers]

We did the TP in August '07 in a mini-suite w/balcony. We spent a lot of time on that balcony and could not imagine the cruise without it.

 

Met great people on board, wasn't all that impressed with the ship, but hay - we were in French Polynesia!

[weloveplaya]

Thank you all so SO much for your responses! I've been pretty busy with work and haven't had much time to get back on the message boards and respond, so please don't think I just abandoned the post!

 

I'm anxious to look at all of the pictures everyone has so kindly agreed to share, but its 4am and I need to get some zzz's. I'll be looking forward to seeing the pictures tomorrow night...

 

Thank you again for your responses and your feedback on the cruises! :)