Just back from the 11 Night Cook & Society Island PG Cruise - bring on the questions!

Just back from the PG 11 Night Cook & Society Island Cruise (June 30 to July 11, 2012). We had a great time and I'll post a review sometime in the next week.

I'm happy to answer any questions you may have about the PG, islands, excursions or whatever else you come up with! (And I'm sure some of my fellow Cruise Critic members who were along on the same cruise will gladly chime in regarding questions as well!)

Can't wait to read your review - we are taking this cruise next June. I am curious about your flight times to and from PPT and what if any hotels you used for pre or post cruise.

Thanks!

I am curious about your flight times to and from PPT and what if any hotels you used for pre or post cruise.

Flights:

Air Tahiti TN 0101 leaving LAX at 11:50pm arriving PPT at 5:20am

Air Tahiti TN 0102 leaving PPT at 11:15pm arriving LAX at 10:25am

Dayroom Hotels:

Pre-Cruise - Intercontinental Tahiti

Post-Cruise - Sofitel Tahiti

(Our travel documents all said post cruise would be the Radisson, but a couple of days before our cruise ended we received notice in our stateroom that our room had been moved to the Sofitel for logistical reasons.)

Welcome back lithlith.

Glad you enjoyed your cruise.

Awaiting your report.

We'll have lots of questions, thanks.

Did anyone leave the last night to go home? By pre-cruise, did you go a day or two early or did you have a day room the same day you boarded ship?

Cant wait to read your report! Just paid my final and found 2 beach coverups- so I'm ready to go!

Wondering what cabin you were in? Also, does the lunch buffet take place in La Verandah? Well, I'm sure you will cover all the bases in your report, after the laundry;)

Hi Karen, it was so nice to meet you on the ship. I hope you enjoyed the trip as much as we did

Cathy

We'll have lots of questions, thanks.

 

Did anyone leave the last night to go home? By pre-cruise, did you go a day or two early or did you have a day room the same day you boarded ship?

Yes, there were people who got off the ship Tuesday night. The disembarkation paperwork says they needed to have their luggage out for pickup by 6:30 PM on Tuesday. Those of us who got off on Wednesday had until 11:30 PM.

We had the same flights and hotels as lithlith and her husband. A day room at the IC Tahiti before the cruise, which included a buffet breakfast; and a day room at the Sofitel (changed from the Radisson) after a bus tour of Tahiti. Food was not included at the Sofitel.

Cant wait to read your report! Just paid my final and found 2 beach coverups- so I'm ready to go!

Wondering what cabin you were in? Also, does the lunch buffet take place in La Verandah? Well, I'm sure you will cover all the bases in your report, after the laundry;)

There is a lunch buffet in La Veranda, or you can order from the menu. We liked La Veranda better than Le Grill for most lunches because there are more tables and more waiters. It was harder to find a spot in Le Grill and the setup there is just a bit more chaotic due to the way the ship is laid out.

For breakfast, we liked the Continental breakfast in La Palette. All I really want in the morning is a cup of tea and a croissant or danish, and my husband has fruit and cereal, so that was perfect for us. I also prefer to get my own tea and be able to go back and get a second cup without having to flag down a waiter and order it. (Not that the wait was ever long in the restaurants, I'd just rather do it myself.) My husband really liked the juicer in La Palette in the mornings. You choose your fruit and veggies from the bowl and the bartender juices them for you. (Except pineapple, which for some reason they have in the bowls but won't juice; instead they call down to deck 5 to have some sent up, which takes about 15 minutes.)

We were in cabin 419. We had originally booked 328, which I didn't realize had twin beds. PG called us twice before sailing, and we turned down an upgrade to deck 6, which would have cost $500/person, and ended up taking a free upgrade to 419. I think they really wanted the twin cabin for some other passengers, so everything worked out. We were in a great location. The only noise we had was from the life boats that are used as tenders being raised and lowered in the mornings and early evenings. If you like to sleep past 8:00 AM, you might want to avoid the cabins on decks 3 & 4 that are under the middle lifeboat. I'm not sure if you could hear anything from deck 6 in that area. They also use the forward lifeboats as tenders for the Bora Bora and Taha'a motus, but those don't start until later on in the morning.

Thanks for all the details! We are on Deck 6. I think because we have a balcony- we could dine there too with room service, but then I'd miss that great juicer, what a wonderful idea that is!

If tenders are running, we will probably be on one of the first ones;) We are pretty active and don't sit well through breakfast, so we will probably go for the continental or RS most mornings. We just like to be off and on our way in the AM with so many beautiful places to explore!

Sounds like it was heavenly, can't wait!

You learn something on these boards all the time!

I think the juicer in La Palette is new or I just missed it in the past.

DH likes his lamb chops so we always breakfast in La veranda.

I have been in La Palette for an early morning Capuccino especially when the ship does the circumnavigation of Tahaa or to snag an extra almond croissant.

I wonder if the Sofitel will be for the next few months, for now on, or just something different since it was a 10 day day cruise? I wasn't too fond of the Radison last time, and the Sofitel would be much better...

Anxious to hear what you did for excursions or other "outings" at ports.

Macbest you should read what Avalong has to say about Sofitel. I also read that its not a great choice. We are paying the $80 and upgrading to the IC.

The Rad has really gone down over the years.

IC travelodge rooms arent the best but the Panoramic are good as are the general facilites. IC food is much improved over past years.

We'll have lots of questions, thanks.

 

Did anyone leave the last night to go home? By pre-cruise, did you go a day or two early or did you have a day room the same day you boarded ship?

Yes, there were a few people who left the last night to go home, but not us.

We arrived in Tahiti around 5am and boarded the ship around 3pm the same day, so we simply had a day room at the IC hotel pre-cruise.

Wondering what cabin you were in? Also, does the lunch buffet take place in La Verandah? Well, I'm sure you will cover all the bases in your report, after the laundry;)

We were in room 306 - porthole room. Loved it!

There was a lunch buffet offered in La Veranda and at Le Grill daily, with the same food. You could eat from the buffet and/or order off a menu both places. We preferred to eat inside at La Veranda.

Looking forward to your review, welcome home.

Macbest you should read what Avalong has to say about Sofitel. I also read that its not a great choice. We are paying the $80 and upgrading to the IC.

 

The Rad has really gone down over the years.

 

IC travelodge rooms arent the best but the Panoramic are good as are the general facilites. IC food is much improved over past years.

Emdee tell me more about the upgrade to the IC on the post cruise. I thought we were limited to the Radisson. how do we do that? I'd pay $80 (is that per person or per couple/room?) to stay at the IC post cruise. And the ability to head over to the airport for the evening flight without the bus of passengers from the Radisson would be ideal.

JUst cantact PG Cruises or your TA. I believe the cost was $80 per person.

Hi macbest,

Deal with Rad finished recently from what I hear. Sofitel pricing is very reasonable but reports of the hotel not so good as it has mossies.

We asked our TA for the upgrade and got it - $80 for two to go to the IC on the last day.

They will still have a transfer to the airport from IC should you want to use it but I too like that its a lot closer.

In my 6 PG cruises the only time we took the transfer was last year and it was a zoo.

You have to ask for it in advance as once the are committed to giving you the Sofitel they wont change it at the last moment,

Just to clarify the Radisson vs the Sofitel ... as of this week, they are still sending some people to the Radisson.

The original disembarkation info we got on Monday shows buses leaving every 10 minutes starting at noon:

- first 3 buses Tour to Radisson (including us)

- 1 bus Tour to IC

- 1 bus Tour to Sofitel

- 1 direct transfer to IC

- 1 direct to Sofitel

- 1 direct to Radisson

The updated info we got in the daily program on Tuesday night showed that only our bus (the first one to depart) had been switched to Sofitel. I believe this is accurate, as a total of 3 buses were leaving Sofitel for the airport on Wednesday -- one bus that was switched and the two originally planned. The remainder probably did go to the Radisson as planned.

I did not see any mosquitoes at the Sofitel. It's next to the IC and you can actually see some of the IC's OWBs from the Sofitel's beach. There's no environmental difference between the two properties that would lead to mosquitoes at one but not the other. The only thing I can think is that maybe the IC does some suppression that the Sofitel does not do, but again, I did not see any mosquitoes at either hotel. I did get bitten during the tour stop at the waterfall prior to arriving at the Sofitel though.

The Sofitel property and room were smaller than the IC and not as beautiful, but still very nice. Any place would be a letdown from the PG, and if I hadn't had recent comparisons to the IC and the PG, I know I'd have been happy to stay at the Sofitel for a few days. In any case, we were only there for a short time. We arrived at 3:30, had to checkout of the room at 7:00 and wait in the lobby until 8:30 for the buses to the airport.

The timing on the inbound trip: arrive at the IC at 6:00 AM, checkout by 1:00 PM, transfer to the ship between 3:00 and 3:30 PM.

Yes, there were people who got off the ship Tuesday night. The disembarkation paperwork says they needed to have their luggage out for pickup by 6:30 PM on Tuesday. Those of us who got off on Wednesday had until 11:30 PM.

 

We had the same flights and hotels as lithlith and her husband. A day room at the IC Tahiti before the cruise, which included a buffet breakfast; and a day room at the Sofitel (changed from the Radisson) after a bus tour of Tahiti. Food was not included at the Sofitel.

Yes, there were a few people who left the last night to go home, but not us.

 

We arrived in Tahiti around 5am and boarded the ship around 3pm the same day, so we simply had a day room at the IC hotel pre-cruise.

 

 

 

We were in room 306 - porthole room. Loved it!

 

There was a lunch buffet offered in La Veranda and at Le Grill daily, with the same food. You could eat from the buffet and/or order off a menu both places. We preferred to eat inside at La Veranda.

Thanks to both of you for the info and quick reply.

Lillith (and other past cruisers),

Did you think the Tahiti tour after the cruise was worth the time?

After hearing the recommendations to upgrade to a dayroom at the IC, I did so. Now that we committed the extra bucks for the nicer room, I'm wondering if we should skip the tour. We will be staying at the IC for three nights before the cruise as well, so we will be familiar with the property.

I hate these "tough decisions."

Lillith (and other past cruisers),

 

Did you think the Tahiti tour after the cruise was worth the time?

 

After hearing the recommendations to upgrade to a dayroom at the IC, I did so. Now that we committed the extra bucks for the nicer room, I'm wondering if we should skip the tour. We will be staying at the IC for three nights before the cruise as well, so we will be familiar with the property.

 

I hate these "tough decisions."

We're the kind of people who like to be out and about seeing things, so we were glad that we took the tour. But if you enjoy sitting around at the hotel, laying by the pool/beach then go immediately to the hotel. It's just a personal preference. Most of the official hotel check in times in Tahiti are around 2:30pm, so you may have to wait around a bit at the hotel if your room isn't ready when you get there. (But our friends who we were traveling with skipped the tour and went to the hotel and said they got their room right away.) We wanted to see more of Tahiti than just the hotels and Papetee. The tour went to three places: James Norman Hall Home/Museum, a waterfall, and a park. We enjoyed the waterfall and the overall drive/scenery along the way. We didn't have to sign up for the tour or direct hotel transfer until about half way into our trip, so you've got some time to think about it! If you don't take the tour you'll gain 2-3 hours more at the hotel.

If anyone else is thinking about several days of pre or post cruise hotel stays- I would try to get a hotel in Bora Bora or Moorea and skip the Tahiti hotels.

Hi lithlith,

I seen awhile back on the camera forum that you were asking about waterproof cameras. Did you buy one and how did you liked it? I'm teetering between a Panasonic TS4 and Nikon AW100 for our cruise in 2 weeks. Thanks.

Jeff

Hi macbest,

Deal with Rad finished recently from what I hear. Sofitel pricing is very reasonable but reports of the hotel not so good as it has mossies.

 

We asked our TA for the upgrade and got it - $80 for two to go to the IC on the last day.

They will still have a transfer to the airport from IC should you want to use it but I too like that its a lot closer.

 

In my 6 PG cruises the only time we took the transfer was last year and it was a zoo.

 

You have to ask for it in advance as once the are committed to giving you the Sofitel they wont change it at the last moment,

Emdee:

I checked and yes, it is $80 for two for the IC. I'm assuming you have been at the Radisson and agree it is worth the $80 for roughly 6-7 hours at the IC? And do you remember when you went to the airport to avoid the rush? About how much was the taxi ride there?

Thanks..

I wonder if the Sofitel will be for the next few months, for now on, or just something different since it was a 10 day day cruise? I wasn't too fond of the Radison last time, and the Sofitel would be much better...

 

Anxious to hear what you did for excursions or other "outings" at ports.

Macbest you should read what Avalong has to say about Sofitel. I also read that its not a great choice. We are paying the $80 and upgrading to the IC.

 

The Rad has really gone down over the years.

 

IC travelodge rooms arent the best but the Panoramic are good as are the general facilites. IC food is much improved over past years.

We are doing this too, upgrading to IC for our day room before departure and my understanding is they will still provide all the transfers. We have two long red eyes to get to the east coast ( we leave Sat night and won't arrive in Boston till Monday AM!) and we just felt it would be more relaxing to spend time at a resort where we already knew the " lay of the land" so to speak, since we have 2pre nights there. We are hoping to get a nearby Marriott day room, or maybe use one of the flight lounges in LA on the way home, but that's not sorted yet, so we wanted something familiar and comfortable!