1st time PG cruiser ? About excursions

We are booked on the 14-day cruise next April. I understand we sign up for shore excursions 60 days out. Are there things to do w/o doing a PG excursion? Seems like it would be pricey to do more than one/day. Any luck with local tours plus a PG excursion or is that too much in one day? Thanks!

What is your itinerary?

I think you have to consider a combination of land and sea excursions.

IMO must dos are

1 Motu picnic to give you the experience

Mark Eddowes trail of the ancients

Bora Bora circumnavigation with the ship that includes snorkelling with the Sharks, stingray experience other snorkelling and a full circle of the island and lagoon.

We will travel from Tahiti to Fakarava, Tuamotus - several stops in the Marquesas Isalnds, Bora Bora, Society Islands and Moorea, then back to Papeete. Thanks for your input!

You are about to get very different opinions!

Fakarava you have to go to the Blue Lagoon. Either with the ship or on your own.

I love renting a car on Moorea.

Bora Bora - so many choices I will defer to others.

Tahaa just hang out on the motu

Do not arrive in French Polynesia the day of the cruise. Give yourself a few days pre cruise!

Marqueses is all about the island

Fakarava is all about the lagoon

Bora Bora is primarily about the lagoon. Make sure your circumnavigate the lagoon on a tour. This is a good island to do a Polynesian BBQ on a motu

Tahaa is about Motu Mahana though the thrift snorkel is good

Huahine is nice for a land/lagoon tour

Moorea is about the island. I also love renting a car on Moorea

Fakarava ...if you have a small group ask Ato to take you or take the ship's excursion to the blue lagoon

Huahine Marc at Huahine Nautique has an excellent island circumnavigation and snorkelling day.

Do visit the PG Motu for some relaxation and great views in Bora Bora. There are no facilities but there is usually some water and beer available there and the ship runs tenders all day.

Marc does a land/lagoon combo on Huahine, been on it several times

We rented bikes just outside the tender area on Bora Bora and round around the island. Once outside of the center of town traffic was very light. There were only 2 spots where I dismounted and walked my bike (gravel due to construction and one hill a bit too steep for me). It was economical and very relaxing going at our own speed. We stopped to visit a hotel and was allowed to use the restrooms and to visit an over the water bungalow. One our our best experiences.

We tried to rent bikes on Moorea and found the traffic too heavy to safely bike around.

Marc does a land/lagoon combo on Huahine, been on it several times

Anyone know who this Marc is and have an url for website or email? Thanks

Anyone know who this Marc is and have an url for website or email? Thanks

Here you go!

http://www.huahine-nautique.com

Just be advised that if you book the combo tour, he might change it to just the boat and picnic without telling you. He did that to me when I visited. I learned I would not be doing the land portion while en route to the boat.

I have never done the land portion. My groups have always booked water only.

I went on the land only last year. Nothing much. The water tour is definitely better.

Here you go!

 

http://www.huahine-nautique.com

Thanks for the url! Just don't know these tours by a persons first name:confused: (maybe we will by our 3rd cruise?).

Just be advised that if you book the combo tour, he might change it to just the boat and picnic without telling you. He did that to me when I visited. I learned I would not be doing the land portion while en route to the boat.

Hmmm got the url here and went to check his tours and he charges 40 dollars more for the combo tour.

I hope he refunded your extra you paid for the land part of the combo tour.

Thanks for saving us 40 dollars each!

The lagoon part is the highlight but the land part was interesting if you never been to Huahine. Remember your only there one day so getting w bit of both land and lagoon is nice.

The land part included a bit of time in Fare, a stop at a marae/history museum, a stop at a pearl farm and finally an incredible vie of MRoe Bay from the Belvedere.

Mark Eddowes trail of the ancients

 

Bora Bora circumnavigation with the ship that includes snorkelling with the Sharks, stingray experience other snorkelling and a full circle of the island and lagoon.

Can you give more info about these two excursions? I've heard fantastic things about Mark Eddowes. Is this one a PG tour? At which port?

I'm especially interested in snorkeling with sharks and rays. Someone recently posted some fantastic pics of black tip sharks. This sounds like a really great tour that offers a little of everything in Bora Bora. Again, is this a PG tour, or does anyone have links to a recommended tour operator?

Thanks!

Mark is on Moorea and is a ship's tour.

Sharks? Do you want to just observe or are you wanting to watch a shark feeding while in the water?

Can you give more info about these two excursions? I've heard fantastic things about Mark Eddowes. Is this one a PG tour? At which port?

 

I'm especially interested in snorkeling with sharks and rays. Someone recently posted some fantastic pics of black tip sharks. This sounds like a really great tour that offers a little of everything in Bora Bora. Again, is this a PG tour, or does anyone have links to a recommended tour operator?

 

Thanks!

We did the BB circumnavigation with the ship ..Maohi Nui. It started with snorkelling with sharks and rays and then had other snorkelling as well. Paws excellent.

Mark Eddowes tour is trail of the Ancients and is on Moorea. It includes a view from the Belvedere, a visit to the Agricultural station.....great ice cream and preserves....and a short hike. Mark explains Polynesian life and culture as you visit some ancient sites.

The one Emdee mentioned you can enter the water with the Sharks but it isn't an actual shark feeding. There has been a move over the last few years to move away from actual shark feeding. Patrick (ships tour) did do shark feeding in the past but on our last tour with Patrick it was in the water watching black tip sharks close by and lemon sharks down deep, but no actual feeding. At another stop they do the Ray feeding while your in the water.

There are some other vendors that still do shark feeding. So again I ask is this about Observation of sharks while in the water or an actual feeding?

Thanks for the info! To answer your question, Tahitianbigkahuna, it was my understanding that there's at least one excursion where you can safely snorkel in the water with black tip sharks. That's what I was referring to. That sounds like it would be an amazing experience!

Thanks for the info! To answer your question, Tahitianbigkahuna, it was my understanding that there's at least one excursion where you can safely snorkel in the water with black tip sharks. That's what I was referring to. That sounds like it would be an amazing experience!

That excursion is the one I was recommending in BB.

It also includes snorkelling/ swimming with the sting rays, some other snorkelling and the circumnavigation of BB.

Enjoy!

Lucky,

I've Been on that tour 4 or 5 times, you will enjoy it. Several times we were lucky enough to have dolphins follow us around, right next to the outrigger, made some great video.

Enjoy