Live from the PG - May 30 - Cook Islands & Society Islands Review

Aztec and anyone else from the cruise that wants to chat; we are in the palapas in front of the panoramic rooms by the infinity pool. Five hours till boarding!

Kanpai,

Bill

What a wonderful invitation! Thank you for asking and I apologize for not being there but I just read your post. I hope you all had a delightful cruise and are back home safe and sound. We enjoyed our trip very much . . . Especially renewing our wedding vows on the PG motu. The crew made the experience so wonderful! I miss Shurnan the most. Where is my breakfast in bed every morning!?!

I had wanted to quickly follow up with info on our stay at the Intercontinental and additional input on the cruise in general but as we were packing at 1 PM at our last day at the hotel we were informed about the death of my wife's mother! And thus putting a very sour note on an excellent vacation. We've now laid the wonderful lady to rest and I now have a few minutes to spare to finish up my notes on our trip.

Our stay at the Intercontinental was everything that we thought it would be. Charles, the manager at the Tahiti Intercontinental, was true to his word and we we were upgraded to an Otemanu Diamond suite. These three-room suites are phenomenal and you only have to take a look at their website to see how well appointed they really are. The resort is very pricey ($21 mixed drinks at the upper end restaurant!), but if you opt for the included breakfast buffet (which is actually very good) it can bring the price down considerably.

We dined at the Coral restaurant one night (The aforementioned high-end restaurant) to the tune of about $300 per couple and frankly it was very disappointing! I had a tiny stuffed chicken breast that was bone-dry. Better to take the shuttle over to the main island to Bloody Marys for a really fun and much better seafood dinner!

If you have been reading this review you know that we had been planning on chartering a 16 foot pontoon boat for a cruise of the lagoon. We ultimately chose not to do that. First of all, one of our party was ill on the day we planned to do that and second of all we felt that the excursion (Patrick's) that we did on the PG more than filled our needs. However I want to commend La Plage for their flexibility in their willingness to allow us to cancel the excursion and their overall ease in chartering a boat in the first place. I would recommend them just based on this alone!

As our last hurrah on Bora-Bora we did the dual Tahiti Helicopter tour of Bora-Bora and Tupai. It was spectacular! Seeing Bora-Bora from the air was a real treat and the heart-shaped Island of Tupai was incredible. As a final surprise we got to see the Paul Gauguin at anchor in the lagoon! We weren't aware that the ship was going to be there! We got some great pictures from the air!

This excursion is pricey – and we made it more so by having the company pick us up at the resort – Plus we made it private by having only four people on the helicopter instead of the normal five, but it is well worth it. The cost of the two Islands came out to about $800 per person but I would do it all over again!

That's all for now; I'll do some more feelings as I reread the review and take a look at my pictures. I'm happy to answer any questions. It was a truly remarkable Cruise and vacation. The best we've ever had!

Slainte

Bill

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I had wanted to quickly follow up with info on our stay at the Intercontinental and additional input on the cruise in general but as we were packing at 1 PM at our last day at the hotel we were informed about the death of my wife's mother! And thus putting a very sour note on an excellent vacation. We've now laid the wonderful lady to rest and I now have a few minutes to spare to finish up my notes on our trip.

 

Our stay at the Intercontinental was everything that we thought it would be. Charles, the manager at the Tahiti Intercontinental, was true to his word and we we were upgraded to an Otemanu Diamond suite. These three-room suites are phenomenal and you only have to take a look at their website to see how well appointed they really are. The resort is very pricey ($21 mixed drinks at the upper end restaurant!), but if you opt for the included breakfast buffet (which is actually very good) it can bring the price down considerably.

We dined at the Coral restaurant one night (The aforementioned high-end restaurant) to the tune of about $300 per couple and frankly it was very disappointing! I had a tiny stuffed chicken breast that was bone-dry. Better to take the shuttle over to the main island to Bloody Marys for a really fun and much better seafood dinner!

 

If you have been reading this review you know that we had been planning on chartering a 16 foot pontoon boat for a cruise of the lagoon. We ultimately chose not to do that. First of all, one of our party was ill on the day we planned to do that and second of all we felt that the excursion (Patrick's) that we did on the PG more than filled our needs. However I want to commend La Plage for their flexibility in their willingness to allow us to cancel the excursion and their overall ease in chartering a boat in the first place. I would recommend them just based on this alone!

As our last hurrah on Bora-Bora we did the dual Tahiti Helicopter tour of Bora-Bora and Tupai. It was spectacular! Seeing Bora-Bora from the air was a real treat and the heart-shaped Island of Tupai was incredible. As a final surprise we got to see the Paul Gauguin at anchor in the lagoon! We weren't aware that the ship was going to be there! We got some great pictures from the air!

This excursion is pricey – and we made it more so by having the company pick us up at the resort – Plus we made it private by having only four people on the helicopter instead of the normal five, but it is well worth it. The cost of the two Islands came out to about $800 per person but I would do it all over again!

That's all for now; I'll do some more feelings as I reread the review and take a look at my pictures. I'm happy to answer any questions. It was a truly remarkable Cruise and vacation. The best we've ever had!

 

Slainte

Bill

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Firstly my condolences on your recent loss, terrible news at any time but harder I imagine when you are so far from home.

Secondly I would like to say how much I have enjoyed your reviews and looked forward to you posting them. It has provided some valuable information for us as although we have been to the South pacific before, it will be our first visit on the PG next week. Any other thoughts you may add to your trip I'm sure we would all love to hear. :)

We can't wait until October when we cruise to New Caledonia.

Did you use the exercise room while on board? Browse the ship's library?

Thanks for your wonderful report.

I am sorry for your loss but appreciate you taking the time to post

Thanks for the updates, and so sorry for your loss. Something like this happening does put a particular stamp on a vacation, I know, but hopefully you will still have happy memories and perhaps can go back again some time. The helicopter sounds fabulous, have never done this.

Thanks for the condolences; they were much appreciated. The ride home was a bear. While the Thursday plane to Papeete was 1/3 full, the Saturday flight home was completely full. Plus, leaving at 3PM versus leaving at 11:30 are two different animals! Full beverage service all the way at 3:30 PM; 1 drink at 11:30 PM - makes a big difference. The airport at Papeete was jammed with numerous flights leaving and seats were at a premium. When we do this next time (and we will!) we will either travel both ways on a weekday or make sure we're going home first class. Our friends were in the first class lounge and were much more comfortable. (We flew first from LAX to Newark and so that leg was a lot better as well!)

This might be a good place to mention that Air Tahiti Nui restricts carry on luggage to 10 kilos (22 lbs). That plus a purse or a personal item, (and yes, I was not above doing a man-purse thing for my camera and iPad and Kindle!) We were pretty tight with a 50 lb checked bag and a matching carry on that we packed with sundries (her shoes and stuff; my CPAP and stuff) and then stored one big and one small at the storage office at Papeete when were were flying to Bora Bora because Air Tahiti (not to be confused with Air Tahiti Nui - different airline!) has a pretty restricted weight limit. (It was just cheaper to store it since we didn't need all the stuff and didn't want to drag it with us!)

Just another little rant about the IC Thalasso Spa while I have you here. Much as we loved our stay here, there were some problems. The last of which was that Donna's iPad turned up missing as we were leaving. With the trauma of her mom's death we kind of hoped that we had layered it in our packing but suspected that it had been taken from the room and reported such to the concierge. Upon unpacking at home there was no iPad and we turned on her "Find My iPad" App. It took a week but we got a ping about a week after leaving and sure enough, the iPad was on the main island. We could identify it right down to the street it was on. I sent both IC headquarters and IC Thalasso Spa an e-mail about 5 days ago with a screen shot of the map just saying that we were aware that we were partially to blaim for the theft because we hadn't put the device into the safe, but that perhaps they could use the locator to share with authorities to track down the thief. Long story a bit shorter, I've neither heard back from either IC headquarters or Thalasso Spa. You'd think there would be a little interest in at least a follow up! Anyway...

Point on the helicopter tour: If you are on Bora Bora - do it; do it; do it! Even if it's just for the 15 minutes. It's a spectacular overview of this one of the most beautiful places on the planet. My one critique on their service is that they should offer a video DVD like the one that's offered in Hawaii. (Maybe they do if you get the service from their home base!?)

I'm going to do some shoutouts next, but going to revert to the iPad to do so since TapaTalk is so much easier to post photos with.

Sei gesund!

Bill

I don't think I've every really spent much time commenting on the music on a ship much less an individual band. I'm going to break with that particular orientation and spend a bit of time on the ship's band, Santa Rosa. These guys (actually four guys and a very pretty girl) are like the Swiss Army Knife of bands - they do it all. They play pool-side; they play at the stern bar/lounge, La Palette, they are featured in the after-hours shows and they accompany the other leading acts. And get this ... They are super! Hailing from the Philipines, they are all members of the Garcia family. The young lady (Rochelle; and brothers Ronnie, Rogel, Ranel and Voltaire. Rochelle is married to one of the brothers. Still for the life of me don't know which one she's married to!) Their harmonies are great and their hard work evident. They can do everything from oldies and a super Elvis impression (a favorite with most of the demographic) all the way up to contemporary stuff. Truly a wonderful find on any cruise ship but a really big surprise on a ship as small as the PG. Kudos to Santa Rosa and to the PG for employing them!

Cheers,

Bill

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Glad you had a great trip.....repeaters cruise coming up in 2017 do stay tuned!

Shocked about your iPad. We have left ours outside at hotels around the world including the IC Tahiti with no problem at all.

Glad to hear a positive review of the house band. I had read other bad reviews and was not looking forward to them. Now I'm getting excited for our cruise next week.

Santa Rosa was just fine when they were on my cruise

Yes, I remember them I think. They weren't bad at all.

:)

Glad you had a great trip.....repeaters cruise coming up in 2017 do stay tuned!

 

Shocked about your iPad. We have left ours outside at hotels around the world including the IC Tahiti with no problem at all.

Hello Emdee,

Any info' on repeaters cruise 2017 yet, as I'm really keen on forward planning, ..have already got my eye on a 10day 2016 cruise, but wouldn't say no to the following year too!!!

:D

:)

 

 

Hello Emdee,

 

Any info' on repeaters cruise 2017 yet, as I'm really keen on forward planning, ..have already got my eye on a 10day 2016 cruise, but wouldn't say no to the following year too!!!

:D

Hi Tess,

Definitely in 2017. Tentatively July/ August but to be confirmed. Will likely be Cook Islands itinerary and also have two days in MM.

Likely I love to plan ahead.

Miriam

Hi Tess,

 

Definitely in 2017. Tentatively July/ August but to be confirmed. Will likely be Cook Islands itinerary and also have two days in MM.

 

Likely I love to plan ahead.

 

Miriam

Thanks Miriam, that will be something else to look forward to.

I thought Aitutaki lagoon was the most beautiful I have ever seen, would love to visit again.

Altho' I recall sometimes the seas can be a bit "inclement" en route to the Cooks!! Have to hope for good weather:)

Tess

Hi Tess,

 

Definitely in 2017. Tentatively July/ August but to be confirmed. Will likely be Cook Islands itinerary and also have two days in MM.

 

Likely I love to plan ahead.

 

Miriam

Nice, good for you Miriam. You did a great job planning the last one.

Wendy a lot of the group will be returning. Some of our family and friends are also planning to come.

Hi Miriam, Tom and I are also waiting (not too patiently) for the 2017 reunion. So many great memories. Gail

Which island is this?

Gosh, does that mean we will have to share the ship with teens and younger children?

It will likely be to the Cooks.

There aren't too many kids....

Looking forward to any time in FP and especially on the PG. Miriam did a wonderful job arranging the last repeaters cruise and I look forward to the next.

Thanks for your review! I'm sorry about your MIL, and the missing ipad, clearly theft, but too bad, often in paradise, no one wants to acknowledge ugliness, things just get ignored! Lesson learned,continue to put everything in the safe! Hubby also has a pac safe bag that has metal exo mesh and a cable drawstring. You'd have to show up with a hack saw and a lot of free time to get at any camera gear that doesn't fit into the safe!

You really did your research and had some great excursions planned...I'd love to hear more about them...especially on the days you couldn't report due to connectivity. I LOVE your spread sheet with all the contact info and prices- saving! :D

Welcome back and I do hope you and your family have better days ahead after the unexpected loss of your wife's mother.

John and I will be planning to join the group for the 2017 reunion cruise. But for now, we will be on the PG again this Aug. 28 for the 14 day Marquesas cruise. We have been blessed to be able to enjoy our third time on the PG. Just can't fight that bug. We can't wait to meet some of you that have been on the ship many times. The 2017 trip will be just in time for my 60th birthday.

John and I will be planning to join the group for the 2017 reunion cruise. But for now, we will be on the PG again this Aug. 28 for the 14 day Marquesas cruise. We have been blessed to be able to enjoy our third time on the PG. Just can't fight that bug. We can't wait to meet some of you that have been on the ship many times. The 2017 trip will be just in time for my 60th birthday.

Well it will be around my 60th also!

Going to miss you this year twin. I know we will meet soon. Have a great time at the wedding. Are you planning to go to the 2017 reunion cruise?