Need some advice- 12/13/14, 7 day cruise

Hello All,

We have booked our cruise for December 13th, getting a little worried because as soon as we booked it there has been a flurry of bad reviews. We always make the best of any trip but just seems strange that it happened soon after we booked $$$. Lovetotravel68 review has been helpful though.

We are staying at the Le Meridian Tahiti pre cruise. Anyone stayed here, thoughts?

Looking for some advice or words of wisdom on excursions/itinerary. Here is what we planned so far:

Day 1, Tahiti- The boat!

Day 2, Huahine- ???

Day 3, Taha- The PG Motu

Day 4, Bora Bora- Jet ski with Moana

Day 5, Bora Bora- Reef discovery snorkel

Day 6, Moorea- ???

Day 7, Tahiti- The boat ???

Anything you can suggest with the days with question marks? My wife and I are in our early 30s and looking for a good mix of adventure, relaxation, and eating on this trip.

The marina on the back of the boat, do they have stand-up paddle boarding? One of my favorite things to do, probably super awesome there. The open hours on the Marina seem short?

Any local must buys and where? Like vanilla, best place?

We are staying on deck 3, looking forward to the block party :-)

Thanks for the help!

Hello All,

 

We have booked our cruise for December 13th, getting a little worried because as soon as we booked it there has been a flurry of bad reviews. We always make the best of any trip but just seems strange that it happened soon after we booked $$$. Lovetotravel68 review has been helpful though.

 

We are staying at the Le Meridian Tahiti pre cruise. Anyone stayed here, thoughts?

 

Looking for some advice or words of wisdom on excursions/itinerary. Here is what we planned so far:

 

Day 1, Tahiti- The boat!

Day 2, Huahine- ???

Day 3, Taha- The PG Motu

Day 4, Bora Bora- Jet ski with Moana

Day 5, Bora Bora- Reef discovery snorkel

Day 6, Moorea- ???

Day 7, Tahiti- The boat ???

 

Anything you can suggest with the days with question marks? My wife and I are in our early 30s and looking for a good mix of adventure, relaxation, and eating on this trip.

 

The marina on the back of the boat, do they have stand-up paddle boarding? One of my favorite things to do, probably super awesome there. The open hours on the Marina seem short?

 

Any local must buys and where? Like vanilla, best place?

 

We are staying on deck 3, looking forward to the block party :-)

 

Thanks for the help!

Did you notice this ........... current, this month ;)

Hello All,

 

We have booked our cruise for December 13th, getting a little worried because as soon as we booked it there has been a flurry of bad reviews. We always make the best of any trip but just seems strange that it happened soon after we booked $$$.

 

Please consider the source of those reviews (and maybe see other reviews from those same posters on other boards). Note that those that have sailed multiple times are still fans and returning as often as finances and schedules permit.

I saw one or two bad ones. Flurry?

Take all the reviews as a whole. Don't forget there are people who hated Casablanca and The Godfather!

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I think you will have a great time! My recommendation for Moorea is to either rent a car and drive yourself and do a self paced tour, or to do an ATV tour. We did both (well, my husband did the ATV becasue I was throwing up SICK) and they are both great options. I would probably lean more towards the ATV for the fun factor though. BTW, we went when we were 32 and 33.

We also did Marc's tour in Huahine and had a great time.

I agree with Clairesmom, we did the ATV in Moorea last year and will be doing them again in Sept. Also did Marc's tour and will be doing it again this year. Had a wonderful time on both tours and can't wait to do them again. Hope you have fun no matter what you pick.:D

I have stayed at Le Meridian and enjoyed myself. Questions?

As to bad reviews, certain people have wound themselves to a fever pitch in their negativity towards PG. I wouldn't get caught up in that.

Hello,

I know exactly how you feel reading those reviews. The day before we were due to leave on our cruise (we were on Moorea) we read a terrible review for the PG. It basically said that they wouldn't wish the experience upon anybody, the food was terrible, service awful and it went on and on. My hubby was really worried as this trip cost us a lot of money and it was our honeymoon which we wanted to be really special.

As you can probably tell from my review, we had an amazing time. I wouldn't take too much notice of one or two negative reviews as the majority of them are glowing. No matter how wonderful the PG is, there will always be some that don't enjoy it and have negative comments. I would disregard the outliers and go with the majority of opinions. Was it perfect? No. Were there things they could improve on? Sure. Did these things lesson my enjoyment at all? Definitely not. I would go again in a heartbeat and thought it was absolutely worth the cost.

So seriously don't even worry about it, you will have a great time :)

As for recommendations I agree about doing the ATV ride in Moorea, I did this and had a blast. You get to go to the agricultural college for jam and fruit tasting as well as up to the lookout for awesome views. I booked this through ATV Moorea (http://www.atvmooreatours.pf/atvus/tour-us.html) and did the longer option which also includes going through the pineapple fields, into the crater of the volcano and then up Magic Mountain (which is ridiculously steep by the way). They also take pictures of you throughout the trip and email them to you for free which is nice.

The other thing which I did and would highly recommend is the dolphin and whale watching trip through the PG. If the conditions are suitable, you will get to snorkel with the whales. A once in a lifetime experience (if you are into that sort of thing!).

I think you may spend 2 days in Moorea? I'm not sure though, maybe someone who knows the 7 day itinerary could chime in?

Also, they do have SUP's in the watersports marina :)

I agree with everyone else. We had a great time on our cruise last year. Sure there were glitches and a few things I felt could be improved, but the positives far outweighed the negatives.

Do Marc's tour in Huahine--had a great time with nice people

Bora Bora-- Reef Discovery was amazing! My husband went scuba diving the second day (Manta Ray dive) and I did the 4x4 and saw some of the most jaw dropping WOW views of the lagoon. It was worth the bumps and foliage in the hair just to see it. Take the reef discovery on the first day and then after lunch you could go to the motu for a little while.

Moorea- You only have one day. The ATV tour would give you an overview of the island (stunningly gorgeous and very Jurassic-parky. I wouldn't have been surprised if a T-Rex had come smashing through the pineapple field). The view from the Belvedere lookout is amazing. We didn't do the ATV tour, but we heard nothing but positive comments.

Wow, awesome thanks for all of the great inputs.

I think this is what we will try to do.

Day 1, Tahiti- The boat!

Day 2, Huahine- Marc's tour

Day 3, Taha- The PG Motu

Day 4, Bora Bora- Reef discovery snorkel

Day 5, Bora Bora- Jet ski with Moana

Day 6, Moorea- ATV tour

Day 7, Tahiti- The boat

With the reef discovery do you get to swim with sharks? Or is that a different excursion.

As far as Le Meridian, seems like a nice place and good reviews. Just wondering if you guys had any inputs on that? Best ways getting to from airport and then to the ship.

We booked our flights and pre hotel separate from the cruise, we are on the midnight flight last day of the cruise. Is it possible to book a post cruise day room at IC somehow? Since we booked separate it doesn't seem possible, wondering if we can do it while on the ship or during embarking?

Getting a gopro for the trip but also considering getting a small drone for some aerial shots :confused: not sure on the traveling rules on those yet...

Lovetotravel68's review and pictures are making us even more excited.

Thanks Again!

We have booked a day room at the Meridian this year.

With the reef discovery do you get to swim with sharks? Or is that a different excursion.

That's Marc's tour. You aren't actually swimming with them. They have you hold onto a cable in a big circle and the sharks are all around you. My husband told me afterward that one swam between my legs. :eek: Had I had my head in the water at that time, I would have been back in the boat!

I cant remember the name of the tour on Bora Bora but we swam with sharks, first outside the reef and then inside the reef at a second location. It was awesome.

Yes the BB tour includes swimming with sharks. We enjoyed feeding them in fakarava and one of my friends tried to put his fingers pretty close to their mouths. Of course we all screamed especially his wife and daughter!

Interesting. We didn't see one shark in BB. Our tour was only in the morning, so it could be that we didn't get to that part (which is fine by me ;) )

Interesting. We didn't see one shark in BB. Our tour was only in the morning, so it could be that we didn't get to that part (which is fine by me ;) )

I think there is a specific BB tour with the sharks.

You will get your fair share of sharks in Huahine with Marc's tour! :) We stopped for snorkeling outside the reef in Bora Bora with sharks (both lemon and reef) on Patrick's tour. It seems that the reef sharks are kind of everywhere, as I think I saw them on every stop! :)

I think your trip sounds amazing, and I would definitely do a GoPro! A drone would be pretty awesome in Bora Bora and Moorea as well! Have fun, and PLEASE do a review :)

Sigh:(

There was one poor review that's had some legs, and I wish I had written down my prediction at the time, but as I read through dozens of planning question threads posted by that reviewer for more than a year before that cruise, I told my DH "this isn't going to go well:rolleyes:" And sure enough, the review popped up and as I predicted, it hadn't gone well!;)

What's you attitude in general? Do you focus on problems and challenges as opposed to focusing on what goes well? Do you have trouble "letting go" generally when things don't go smoothly? I would imagine people in those situations have trouble finding and then reporting the positive stuff generally. (In life, never mind on trips) I have a relative like this, and she's written off all of France forever because of a couple of bad apples!

Most of the folks branded here as PG "cheerleaders" are people who approach life with a warm and open heart, hoping for a great experience and able to accept a few bumps in the road that might happen in any travel situation. Most of the reviews written and read, are pretty honest, but it's the attitude of the traveler that makes the experience great or not great for any individual in the end.

I hope you have a wonderful trip, and you can read my unvarnished review (linked in my signature) to hear about mine...I was inexplicably, pointedly ignored by bar staff on Motu Mahana, the shore excursion manager had a poor attitude, and pretty much had to be "worked around", I'm sure we had a dish or two we didn't love and of course my hair dryer burst into flames!

But somehow I didn't come away saying "well, that was crappy". Instead I focused on how fun it was learning Polynesian dance moves and tying a pareo on MM and how over and above a shore ex staff member went to arrange a bicycle rental for us in Moorea, and honestly, thinking back, if there was a bad dish- I can't recall it:p. As a matter of fact, even the hair dryer flambé was immediately replaced by a functional one.

I'm willing to bet that despite an occasional snafu you will have an amazing adventure in FP on PG:D Do come back and report on how it goes! (And we all love photos ;))

I'm sure we will have an awesome time!

I'm sure we will have an awesome time!

See there you go! That kind of attitude and it's practically guaranteed! ;):D

 

Looking for some advice or words of wisdom on excursions/itinerary. Here is what we planned so far:

 

Day 1, Tahiti- The boat!

Day 2, Huahine- ???

Day 3, Taha- The PG Motu

Day 4, Bora Bora- Jet ski with Moana

Day 5, Bora Bora- Reef discovery snorkel

Day 6, Moorea- ???

Day 7, Tahiti- The boat ???

 

I would suggest signing up for the Drift Snorkel (it is a PG excursion) for the morning you go to PG Motu. I have read here that some folks had negative experiences on the snorkel (getting cuts on the coral), but we had no issues, and frankly had a blast. The current "swooshes" you forward, and it is almost like flying. If you are a reasonable swimmer, and can follow some instructions, I think you would enjoy it. I know most people like the PG Motu, but that may been my least favorite day (still a pretty good day), but I once referred to it in a previous post as the Disneyfication of French Polynesia.

Bora Bora Motu, on the other hand was spectacular and much more of what I always imagined FP to be--so I would suggest that on Day 4 or 5 you spend some time there. If you are able, hang around and catch the very last tender back to the ship from Bora Bora Motu--most people go back earlier, and in the late afternoon you practically have the entire island to your self. Very beautiful with sun slowly setting, so very quiet because no one is around. Pretty perfect

On Moorea. you may want to check and see if you can get a pass to spend some time at the Hilton. When we went, we paid a fee that allowed us to use their beach and snorkel---pretty nice snorkeling, and the fee includes a very nice lunch at their restaurant. Was very quiet there when we spent the day--quite relaxing. We rented a car with another couple and drove around the island a bit first---saw Belvedere Point, the agricultural center, etc, then went to the Hilton.

Have fun.

Woah, thanks for the excellent info Stephen!!

Anyone have any more details on how the marina works, hours of operation and such on the 7 day cruise?

The Marina will only be open when you are in port and this is weather dependent. So on a 7 day cruise it will likely be open in Bora Bora and maybe Huahine. On the Motu Mahana day the kayaks etc will be on the beach. Moorea waves can be quite substantial around the Bay so I have never seen it open.

We have been able to kayak in Moorea but only in Cooks Bay never Opunohu.