Go direct through Paul Gauguin or find a travel agent?

I know you cannot recommend specific travel agents but since this will be our first PG cruise and only our 2nd cruise ever, we at at a loss on where to start. We were wondering whether to go direct through PG themselves or find a travel agent to handle it for us. I see there are comments about on board credits but don't really understand how to get them. If you could share some pros and cons without violating the guidelines it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

You can reach out directly to PG and they will connect you with a travel agent that specializes in FP.

Please look into who you use. Check that they do know both the PG and FP.

Make sure you get a good OBC.

Please look into who you use. Check that they do know both the PG and FP.

Make sure you get a good OBC.

How exactly do I go about making sure they know both the PG & FP?

We haven't done all that much traveling & only used a travel agent once when I was flying to Australia to meet my husband after a business trip. We went direct for a Windstar cruise of BVI & a Grand Circle riverboat cruise on the Rhine & Mosel and/or planned our own (numerous Caribbean island visits before retiring, and New Zealand since then). We just don't know much about FP other than what we are reading in guidebooks & on this forum.

Google is your friend. Since I can't tell you exactly how we booked our PG cruises, I can relate that when I was researching South America, I googled something like "best travel agents" "South America" and came up with someone very satisfactory.

B and B, first of all, I am not an expert by any means. We are planning our first trip to Tahiti, so we are novices. With that disclaimer, I would say that I have not used a travel agent for almost 20 years. We travel a fair amount in the continental US, and have done a few cruises as well as a trip to Europe in the past few years. I have never felt that I needed a travel agent to help me plan these trips. In fact, the last time I used an agent was when I realized I knew more than the agent, just from my Google searches about our destination.

Where to start... we had to decide when we wanted to complete this bucket list trip. My husband has wanted to do this for many years. We finally settled on this coming summer.

Next, I looked at the different itineraries offered. After few internet searches, it was clear that PG had what we wanted. It seemed like too much work to try to plan a trip independently, which would require inter-island transfers, hotels , excursions, etc. Using a cruise line makes all of this easy. For us, it made sense to go for a longer itinerary. After spending the time and money to go, we might as well stay awhile. So we chose one of the longest itineraries they offer -- the 11 night July 30 cruise.

Not trying to be a walking advertisement for PG, but they handle the flights and transfers for you, as well as pre- and post-cruise hotel (or day room). So I don't have to worry about planning any of that It's done.

As for on board credit, it was offered when we booked. I called PG directly and booked through them. It so happened that they were offering $750 OBC when we booked. If they don't offer it, then just ASK! See what they will do for you.

Since booking, I've been doing a lot of internet searches and reading the forum here. Keep doing that and you will be well prepared when you arrive. You don't need a travel agent to do this for you!

Have fun!

How exactly do I go about making sure they know both the PG & FP?

...

Ask them questions. And as someone said, Google is your friend.

Start by finding 2 or 3 agencies that claim to specialize in the luxury market, then talk to them all. Check that they have personal experience on the PG, and ask about cabin recommendations--a good, knowledgeable TA won't steer you wrong. PG Cruises can still handle your flights, if you want them to do the whole package for you--your agent is just an intermediary.

And many TA's will give you either a cash rebate on the cruise, or an OBC. This in itself makes it worthwhile using a TA.

Oh, and decide if you want a "full service" TA or not, if you're interested in booking your own flights. Some cruise TA's book the cruise only, i.e., they won't book flights for you (but they will handle flights booked through the cruiseline, if applicable.) Most people don't mind booking their own flights these days, but some people want full service. So ask that question, if it's pertinent to you.

While we book a lot of components individually we find using a good TA for specialized travel is essential. Anyone can use Google and put together a European trip but if you want a seamless trip in countries where security could be an issue only a good agent will be able to tell you which hotel to stay in in Johannesburg or why the Monasterio in Cuzco is special.

That being said many have gone before you and unless you are not travelling the beaten part Google should help.

My first step would be decide on which itinerary you want.

Then decide whether you want a pre or post cruise

Decide whether you will be arranging your own air or using PG services.

Once this is somewhat clear in your own mind check out agents.

Don't use the agents advice slavishly come back here and ask.

Check other sources, Trip Advisor, Fodors forums etc. I planned two extensive Asian vacations by finding a travelling couple I felt I could identify with in the Fodors forums. I decided to stay at all the hotels they stayed in and used all the private guides they used. Hit the jackpot that way! Fodors also allows you to post travel agents details. I even called a Consulate once to recommend a respected local agent. Be imaginative.

Come back and chat with us. The collective experience of those who post is immense.

Remember the planning is at least half the fun!

If you join us on the reunion there are a lot of experienced people who will steer you in the right direction.

I'm booked on the PG 10 night cruise in 2017 and initially booked with a TA that PG steered me to...meaning that after I visited PG's website and made an inquiry, she responded. Long story short, I recently asked her to release the booking to me so that I can either work directly with PG or assign the booking to a different TA.

The original TA offered a fair amount of OBC, but I was told by PG that if I keep the reservation TA free, they will 'only' give me the Valentines Day promo which is $100 pp OBC, strawberries and sparkling wine. The OBC offer by previous TA was much more useful in total than PG's offer so I'm definitely going to ask any prospective TA about OBC.

I'm tempted to just hold onto the reservation myself and work with PG directly, but I definitely would love the perks that TA's can offer. PG gave me a couple of weeks to decide.

A TA who is familiar with the company and ship(s) can be very valuable: either (s)he or another representative of the company has actually been on board. Our TA for example, who I am not allowed to name, will not book cabin XX on ship YY because (s)he knows there are problems with it. This is information that usually you can't get from any other source.

If the PG has any promotion then a TA should easily offer that as well since the PG is paying for it. You should be able to find a TA who will offer you at least $600 in additional OBC or a rebate of that amount.

You can post on Trip Advisor as you may get some different answers and it is easy to then ask questions through the private message option.

Since I'm in a TA no mans land at the moment, can I ask what the Private Messaging thing on CC is and how it works?

And thanks OP for this thread!!

There is no private message process on this board. Unless someone publically lists their email you can't contact anyone. On tripadvisor you can sent a private email to anyone who posts. This is very useful when you want to ask a question out of,the public eye. For this reason using Tripadvisor is good as you can ask someone exactly what they paid for a cruise, excursion, etc.

Many of us that answer here also answer on the South Pacific, French Polynesia forum on tripadvisor.

There is no private message process on this board. Unless someone publically lists their email you can't contact anyone. On tripadvisor you can sent a private email to anyone who posts. This is very useful when you want to ask a question out of,the public eye. For this reason using Tripadvisor is good as you can ask someone exactly what they paid for a cruise, excursion, etc.

 

Many of us that answer here also answer on the South Pacific, French Polynesia forum on tripadvisor.

Thanks so much FlightMedic555 and everyone else! I posted on the Tripadvisor thread under Tahiti.

Any and all help is greatly appreciated...

I also posted this response on my thread so I apologize for the repeat!

If you care to...enjoy the game tonight!

The 1st PG cruise we took we did through the PG website. No percs at all. After the initial booking never heard from anyone. But a GREAT cruise. This time we are using a TA. The difference is the extras! I have received quotes from at least a dozen agencies and they are basically the same price or higher! We finally settled on a TA that is knowledgeable about the ship and the area. I also like they have someone to contact 24/7 in case you have any problems. She is also going to continue to check on any other incentives that arise since we are over a year out and will automatically add them to our trip! A word of caution on comparing prices! Be sure the airfare is included with the quotes if you are not going to book it on your own. A few "deals" were just the cruise so when air was added is was the same price! Enjoy the process-it can be fun!!:)