Review of Feb. 9th 10-day cruise Part II

Day 4 – It’s day 4 of our trip (including the travel day) and we are in Rangiroa. We arrived at 8:00 AM and decided to take the tender into town in the morning and onto the beach for some snorkeling in the afternoon. My advice for those of you who don’t have an excursion, spend all the time at the beaches. There is NOTHING in the town. However the snorkeling was quite delightful. There are several spots to snorkel without going out on a boat. We chose the spot near the empty resort with the over water bungalows. The beach looked much nicer and we were rewarded with wonderful coral and tropical fish to view and photograph. However when we spoke later with passengers who went to other areas, they were raving about the manta rays, sharks, and larger fish they spotted. We were quite satisfied with the beautiful tangs, butterfly fish, tusks and triggers. So either way is great and if you skip the town, perhaps you can even do both. During the entire time we were snorkeling the water was shallow enough to stand so especially for newbies like us, this was a great way to gain confidence with the gear while still getting an outstanding viewing experience.

By the time we returned to the ship we were exhausted; so we rested until dinner. After dinner there were two wonderful sessions at the piano bar with Sal with a show in between of Liar’s Club. For those who are not familiar with Liar’s Club, think To Tell the Truth on steroids. Four “contestants” explain the meaning of five obscure words. However only one of the contestants is telling the truth – the other three are lying. It is up to the audience to guess which one is telling the truth. Oh yes, our team won!

In summary, another great day on the Paul Gauguin.

For Days 1-3, go to thread, "Travel Log from Feb. 9th 10-Day Cruise"

Day 5 - We arrived today in Bora Bora at a little before 1:00 PM. The color of the water, the lush vegetation, and the overall scenic beauty met (or exceeded) all of our expectations. I could have taken even more photos than I did, but it still wouldn’t adequately capture what Bora Bora is all about. I guess you will just have to see it for yourselves to understand the fascination of the atolls and the French Polynesian islands. This is our first of three days here so we decided to pace ourselves. We will be taking a ¾ day tour tomorrow and several other tours over the next several days; so decided to stay on the ship today and just enjoy the view. It also made sense because most of the stores are closed on Sunday. After speaking with other passengers who ventured into town, I think we made the right choice.

I did try to find three others to play bridge again today with no luck. The level of participation in the activities on board is just far below what I have experienced on other ships. However at 5:00 PM, we ran into the one other person who came out to play bridge. She and her husband were about to play shuffleboard; so that is what we did until dinner. The after dinner show was again outstanding with Verity Brown, the cruise director, singing a variety of songs. Her voice and presentation clearly show she is a professional that can carry a show. We loved it.

On behalf of all of us who will be traveling soon, thank you for taking the time to write about your trip.

Day 6 – For all of you waiting to hear about Patrick’s¾ day tour, today was the day. We were not disappointed and we bet neither will you be. For those of you who don’t know what I am talking about, perhaps you will want to do some additional reading about highly recommended tours in Bora Bora.

We met Patrick at the docks after taking one of the Paul Gauguin tenders into town. It was Valentine’s Day and he had two fully loaded boats on this day. In addition, he was performing two private wedding ceremonies that evening. Our first stop was the black fined sharks and there was no shortage of them. This was followed by shallow water swimming with the sting rays and finally snorkeling with tropical fish – literally thousands of them in Coral Gardens. But to top it all off, the tour ends at his own island barbeque with lobster, succulent pig, yellow finned tuna and all the trimmings cooked to perfection.

If you think this is like any other tour you can book, think again. Patrick is funny talented, speaks fluent English and knows how to take care of his guests. My only warning is that Patrick is a solo entrepreneur; so he was constantly taking telephone calls during the tour making arrangements for future tours and handling arrangements for that evening’s entertainment. While we would have preferred to have all his attention, the positives FAR OUTWEIGH the negatives and Patrick’s tours are reasonably priced and in demand. So I would suggest making reservations in advance. You can reach Patrick through his website at: maohinui.net or e-mail him at: Patrick at maohinui.net.

We ate that evening at one of Paul Gauguin’s two specialty restaurants: Le Grille. The food and service were excellent. Unlike many other ships, there is no extra charge for these restaurants on the Paul Gauguin. There is also no necessity for going to them as the food at the main dining room is just as good and has more selections. But if you want a little variety, there is no drop off in quality or service.

Once again we went to the show and have found all of them to be very entertaining. We also went to the casino for the first time and found it to be very limited. The lectures on board ship are inconsistent – some good some and some not. We were most impressed by Pia’s discussions of the upcoming island and what there was to do on each. Tomorrow is our last day on Bora Bora.

I have never been on Patrick's tour - almost want to do it now.

I finally was able to post some photos online. I use webshots.com. You can find the link on my profile. Unfortunately I had to reduce the size of the photos to upload them as the internet everywhere in French Polynesia is very very slow.

Lucky you to have Patrick as your captain/guide on Bora Bora and to score his deluxe feast with lobster! I hope we can do the same, but our numbers aren't looking promising. How many passengers are on your sailing?

Look forward to continuing reports. Continue to enjoy! :):)

Art, your webshot pics are great! Keep them coming whenever the internet cooperates.

 

Lucky you to have Patrick as your captain/guide on Bora Bora and to score his deluxe feast with lobster! I hope we can do the same, but our numbers aren't looking promising. How many passengers are on your sailing?

 

Look forward to continuing reports. Continue to enjoy! :):)

The cruise is totall full.

Thanks for the feedback. I will try to keep them coming. Glad they are of some assistance to future travelers.

Day 7 - We decided to take it easy on our last day in Bora Bora. I went into town to use their Internet café, while Ellie went shopping. Ellie bought several Pareos as gifts for friends at home. She decided to pass on the pearls. As far as the internet cafes on Bora Bora, I didn’t find that they were that much faster than the ship. In the end, I had to reduce the size of the photos in order to post them. You can view them on my site on webshots.com. You can find a link on my profile on cruisecritic.com or you can just do a search on the site for my home page under “artspeaker”.

As a tip for future travelers, I first tried to just download the photos onto a flash drive so I wouldn't have to carry my laptop into town. No luck! None of the internet cafes in Bora Bora could handle that. So I went back with my laptop in hand. As I previously said, even then the sites connection speed was so slow I had to reduce the size of the photos in order to upload and post them.

For the rest of the day we hung out at the pool on deck and just relaxed. Tomorrow is Taha’a and we have a full day of activities planned.

Love the photographs, Art. It seems much longer than a month since we were on board, but these brought all the memories back. I saw Moretto in one of your pictures from Patrick's tour. Was he acting as Patrick's crew, or responsible for another boat?

Some people have indicated that there is considerable concern for motion sickness. Are you finding it to be true now?

Love the photographs, Art. It seems much longer than a month since we were on board, but these brought all the memories back. I saw Moretto in one of your pictures from Patrick's tour. Was he acting as Patrick's crew, or responsible for another boat?

He was captain of his own boat. We switched boats after the lunch so both boats got the expertise (and humor) of Patrick.

Some people have indicated that there is considerable concern for motion sickness. Are you finding it to be true now?

If you are prone to motion sickness, I would suggest contacting your doctor and getting the patch. That is what Ellie did and it is helping her greatly.

Day 8 – This morning we started out on a ship’s excursion - the Taha’a Cultural Tour. The touring company picked us up from the boat and took us to a vanilla farm. The owner was very informative and well spoken. She also had some nice items to purchase after the tour was completed - vanilla candles, oils, and fragrances. (FYI, you might want to put on some insect repellent if you visit the farm as Ellie received several bites, though I did not).

Our next stop was a pearl farm where they explained how pearls were farmed. This was also interesting, though the presentation was not quite as professionally done. At the end of this tour, they had a place to purchase pearls. These pearls appeared to be commercial, though they were reasonably priced.

Finally the boat dropped us off at the private motu owned by the Paul Gauguin cruise line. This motu is not like any of the other stops we made thus far on the cruise. Most of the ports were very “rustic” with virtually no facilities. The motu on Taha’a has restrooms, lounge chairs, and the cruise line provides a full lunch, drinks and ice crème. It is real treat. My one disappointment was that I couldn’t get anyone to play beach volleyball. Consistent with what I have mentioned before, the passengers who take this cruise do not participate in many of the typical activities you find are popular on other ships. They seem to be focused on diving, snorkeling, and other water activities.

By 2:00 PM we were tired and headed back to the ship. That afternoon we were taking a bridge tour so we wanted to be back in plenty of time. Our bridge tour was excellent. The Paul Gauguin has a beautiful bridge and a very informative and helpful crew.

This evening we ate dinner at one of the specialty restaurants – La Veranda. I had the multi course tasting menu. It was delicious. Ellie was not feeling well so she hardly ate. Later that evening her illness got worse and we called the doctor. Based on her symptoms he diagnosed the problem as a negative reaction to the motion sickness medication – the patch. So if you are thinking about wearing one, you might want to review the possible side effects carefully with your doctor.

That night’s entertainment was produced and performed by the crew. They were funny, talented and very professional. You will enjoy.

Really enjoying your posts, thanks for the time and effort!

Martini Cruiser

So if you are thinking about wearing one, you might want to review the possible side effects carefully with your doctor.

My wife has never had any side effects from Bonnine.

Day 9 – A number of guests have come down with intestinal problems of varying severity. At this time the cause is still uncertain; however the ship has instituted strict new procedures at every facility serving food.

The first we knew of it was when Ellie began having pain in her stomach. She took some Rolaids, but the pain did not go away. Instead, sharp shooting pains began moving up and down her stomach and into her esophagus. By 11:30 PM last night (Wednesday, Deb. 16) we decided to call the ship’s doctor. He and his nurse responded promptly and came to the room. The initial diagnosis was that she was having a side effect from wearing the motion sickness patch (transderm scop). He gave her two different shots to calm her stomach and some Maalox chewable tablets.

By breakfast the next morning she was feeling somewhat better, but we soon found out that she was far from alone. Several guests at breakfast asked us if we had any intestinal problems. Some described severe symptoms that had lasted the entire previous day, where both partners could not move any distance from their toilet. Others had less severe but similar symptoms.

The one common factor for these people was that they (and we) had all attended an offship excursion where a barbeque lunch had been served. What seemed particularly odd to me was that I had no symptoms at all and had eaten the same food at the barbeque. In fact, I had gone back for seconds. Why this seemed particularly odd is that I suffer from a gastrointestinal disorder that should make me even more susceptible to this kind of problem. Yet I had no symptoms at all.

My next move was to do some investigation to see if I could find any passengers who had suffered from similar intestinal problems, who were not on this outside excursion. By late afternoon, I uncovered several people who had not been on the outside tour who had had similar intestinal problems. Then I heard about a crew member who had also become ill.

So now it appears that the problem was most probably some kind of virus (the 24 hour kind). I confirmed with ships’ personnel that they were aware of the issue and they told me that the ship will be totally sanitized between sailings.

As for us, Ellie and I took a break for the day and stayed on ship and mostly rested. One very positive note – we finished the 3,000 piece puzzle today. It was a proud moment for those of us on the ship who participated in putting it together.

Enjoy reading your day to day adventures! Sorry to hear that several passengers including your wife were taken ill.

Art, so sorry to hear about your wife's illness.

Hopefully the ship will be properly sanitized and sick employees will be confined to their rooms.

Day 10 – Today’s is our last day on the Paul Gauguin and it was a beautiful day. We went into Moorea and found four other people who were interested in hiring a private taxi and touring the island. We were very fortunate to find Tava who owned his own taxi. Tava was born in the United States but has lived the past 25 years in Moorea. His English was impeccable, his knowledge of the island superb, and his sense of humor added luster to the tour. For just $45USD each we were able to see the entire island plus we were able to set our own timetable for how long we stayed at each stop. If you find him on the dock where the ship’s tender lets you off, I would highly recommend his taxi and tour service. I wish there were a more permanent way for me to tell you how to reach him.

We got back to the ship just a few minutes before 2:00 PM. You would have laughed seeing us all run to the dining room as lunch closes at 2:00. You would have thought we had been starving for weeks.

The afternoon was great for resting, packing, and making final arrangements. For many that meant going home, but luckily for us we still have four more days in Moorea at the Hilton Moorea Lagoon Resort.

That will be my next segment.

Thanks again for your travelogue! We will be following in your footsteps next month. Since you'll be at the Hilton on Moorea, we would be curious to know if they provide a "day plan" so we could enjoy their facilities on one of our days in Moorea.

Art,

I just had time to read your post. They are great. I was looking forward to seeing the picture of our completed puzzle. Since I didn’t get a picture of it, can you please post it when you get home?

Aunty Pat

Barefoot Windjammer - Phantom ‘81

K&D German Rhine Line ‘84

NCL - Norway ’85, Pride of America ’05, Southward ’87, Star ’97 & ‘05, Starward ’92, Sun ’02 & Windward ’93

RCCL - Song of America ’89 & Oasis of the Seas ’10

American Hawaiian - Independence ‘98

HAL - Volendam ’99, Noordam ’06, Oosterdam ’07 & ‘09, Statendam ’02 & ‘08, Prinsendam ’03 & ’06, Westerdam ‘09 & Zuiderdam ’04, ’06 & ’07

Carnival - Spirit ‘05

Celebrity – Summit ‘05

Cruise West - Yorktown Clipper ‘06

Princess - Golden Princess ‘07

A & K - East Queen ‘07

Cunard - QM2 ’08

Crystal – Serenity ‘09

Lindblad Expeditions – Sea Bird ‘10

Paul Gauguin – February 9, 2011

Future Cruises: None planned at this time, I can’t believe it.

Thanks again for your travelogue! We will be following in your footsteps next month. Since you'll be at the Hilton on Moorea, we would be curious to know if they provide a "day plan" so we could enjoy their facilities on one of our days in Moorea.

Yes, the Hilton Moorea does provide a day room service. I believe the current rate is $65 and includes a beach towel and place to change clothes. However I would call the facility directly as we did a post-stay at the Hilton Moorea and did not utilize the day room facilities.

I will be providing a review of the Hilton Moorea Resort in a separate thread.

Thanks again for your info guys. We will be following your footsteps on the 10 day cruise in March.

One questions on which we'd appreciate your comment. How tight was the schedule in Huahine? The itinerary says 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM. We hope to take a morning sail with Sailing Huahine Voile. When does the last tender depart for the ship from the dock? It's a long swim to Fakarava!