Mercruiser

In February, we stopped by the Hilton Tahiti and walked through the public spaces. It looks completely new (it's an older hotel that was closed for many years). This is a very nice Hilton resort property, in a very convenient location. I would be happy to stay here. I would not stay in a downtown Papeete hotel. It's not a very attractive area IMHO - busy, noisy, lots of concrete. The Tahiti Nui is right on one of the busiest arterials in Papeete. It will have constant traffic noise. Have a look on Google maps street view. But if you want to be in walking distance of downtown, I'd stay at the Fare Suisse B&B.

Air Tahiti Nui will start 2x weekly Seattle -PPT flights in October. https://onemileatatime.com/news/air-tahiti-nui-seattle-alaska-airlines/ They are also partnering with the Alaska Airlines mileage program for mileage accrual and award redemptions. This is a nice option for us in the Northwest.

We are headed to Tahiti and Moorea for a resort stay. We had a Tahiti cruise booked on the Pacific Princess, way back in November 2020. Princess cancelled that cruise when they sold the ship to Azamara. I've been looking at FP cruises ever since. But I have not been happy with the "Cruise with Confidence" arrangements that provide a FCC, in the event that you have to cancel. If I fail a covid test, I don't want to have $4000 to $8000 tied up in a FCC. We have opted for a resort stay instead, with 2 nights at the Tahiti Intercontinental and 5 nights at the Moorea Hilton. Even though I'm not on a cruise, I figure my CC friends may some interest in this trip anyways, since both these resorts are popular for pre-/post-cruise stays. We just passed our way-too-expensive RT-PCR tests at the local health provider. The tests have to be completed within 24 hours of our 1st flight, which leaves from Spokane tomorrow morning. Just yesterday, Air Tahiti Nui and Tahiti Tourisme published the updated rules that remove the requirement for a PCR test. Now you can go to FP with either an antigen or a PCR test. Antigen tests cost way less than a fast PCR test. Unfortunately, by the time I found out about this, all of the antigen test appointments around Spokane were already booked. So I had to go with the already booked, expensive PCR test. "In for a penny, in for a pound" Now it's time to finish packing.