Review: Tahitian Princess 6-13-05 Finale

[RNay]

I'm anxious to finish this up. I hope I'm not rambling too much :o

 

Our last island was Moorea. I could tell it was much hotter when I stepped outside. This day was VERY HUMID. Sailing in to Moorea is beautiful. This island has a beautiful skyline. All of the islands do, really. This one just seemed more varied to me. Just ashore there were local handicrafts. These are only made locally, no imports allowed. Be aware that while shopping, particularly at Le Marche, a lot of the goods are in fact imported. I asked the shopkeepers if I had any doubts. Some are labeled on the shelf as such. The crafts here on Moorea were the most beautiful I had seen. Also the most expensive. There are very inexpensive pearls on black cords though.

 

We caught a tour to the interior of the island. This was an open air truck with two other couples, $25 pp, though the sign said $30. Our guide, Juliann, spoke limited English, so it was difficult at times to catch what she was saying. She didn't seem to mind repeating it for you. She took us up to Belvedere Lookout, one of the two highest. You can see both harbors from there, and the ship far, far away. We then went to a marae which was very large. We saw more of the local flora close up including a large "chestnut" tree that acted as a primitive communication system when banged with large rocks. We had a little beverage stop were we got to sample fruit preserves. Then onto the pineapple fields. We learned how these were grown and harvested (all news to me!) Apparently some fields are government owned and some are privately owned. She showed us the "hole in the mountain" where legend says Hiro threw his spear. Our last stop was the fruit juice factory. They were not giving tours of the factory due to construction, but the store was open. They called us right over to sample the goods. Little shot glasses were given out and he poured us increasingly strong liquers and rums. I wonder if their strategy is to get you drunk and then you buy more??

 

Waiting in the tender to go back to the ship, I saw my first rat. Broad daylight, running right next to us. We had already learned that the metal bands around the coconut trees were to keep the rats from the coconuts, so we knew they were here somewhere!

 

We had to be out of our stateroom by 10:00 am the next morning, so I started packing this afternoon. Packing to go home is depressing, but much easier, as everything is dirty. I had packed bubble wrap, lining my suitcases with it and that is very handy for bringing souvenirs home. I also packed a empty lightweight duffel bag, which I filled immediately. Those souvenirs always take up more room than you think! :p

 

The photo place is a mob scene today, the last chance. The future cruise desk has also been very busy.

 

I had taken Dramamine just in case, but we were docked at Papeete before our 8:15 dinner anyway. It wasn't a very bad ride back either.

 

I had brought a bottle of champagne on the trip, a gift, and we brought it down to dinner. This seemed to throw our inexperienced waiters off completely for some reason. All we needed were glasses! We took our last pictures of our tablemates, our waiters and our friends. We met two groups of people from CC and it was great fun to have them there. This ship is just like a neighborhood. You keep running into the same people all the time - people we met at dinner, lunch or breakfast, on excursions, etc. VERY easy to make friends and very friendly people all around. If you're going, join or start a roll call. These people will most likely be on your flight over and back too.

 

Our last day onboard is quite unusual. This is the only itinerary I know that lets you stay aboard very late, with new passengers embarking. That does mean quite a lot of people by the end of the day and the only time you'll find a line at the buffet. You can tell who the "newbies" are and who is leaving. Just look for the long faces. :( We took our carryons up to Sterling Steakhouse and checked them in. This is very secure. No one goes into that room except for the crew, so I had no qualms about leaving my stuff there. We said goodbye to our steward, Edmund, and he invited us to look at the suite next door to us. HUGE. Opulent. I can only dream!

 

We went ashore to do last minute souvenir shopping. It was nice returning to the same port, as we felt we could really look the souvenirs over at each port and then pick them up at the end. Being a pedestrian in Papeete is very unusual. People just walk out into the street, at a crosswalk, and the cars, all 3-4 lanes of them come to a stop. This is not at a light or a stop sign. I don't know how many pedestrians are hit, but these cars must have very good brakes! And they do not drive slowly.

 

We went back to the ship, ate and laid out by the pool in the shade. It seemed that the people who were leaving were napping in the shade and the people boarding were lying in the sun. It was hard to secure a deck chair in the shade! We hung out with our friends, which was great. Diane, Andy, Jackie and Jim, and the rest of the crowd, we miss you! I hope we can find such good friends on our next cruise.

 

We were in the first disembarkation group, so we knew the approximate time they would start. We got our carryons and shortly after that our number was called, about 5:45 pm. We finally had to leave :( . We boarded the bus and shortly after left for the airport. As I think I mentioned before, this system runs very smoothly. They explain everything when you arrive at the airport. You do have to wait briefly in a line to claim your luggage. Then through customs. If you bought pearls in a shop duty free and were given paperwork to fill out, you will need to have the customs officer stamp it and then mail it back to the shop or you will end up paying the duty. We hung out and chatted with friends until most of the crowd was through the gate. There was still 1 1/2 to 2 hours to wait. The terminal is open air and not unpleasant. A beautiful garden. A couple of shops. Everything is more expensive, of course, than anywhere else. The only part I disliked was when boarding was called for the plane (about 9:30 pm). We were very near the rear of the plane, but as usual, everyone mobbed the gate and you couldn't get through. Once through that, everything was fine. Shortly into the flight, dinner was served, then off to sleep. Breakfast was served shortly before arrival in LA.

 

Friday morning in LAX. EVERYONE has to claim their luggage and go through customs. This actually ran very smoothly too. The longest wait was simply for the luggage to come off the plane. There was another line to drop your baggage for a connecting flight. That is the only place I was told to remove my TSA locks. The luggage could not be locked AT ALL.

 

If you have any questions about anything specific, please let me know and I'll try to answer. If I can't, I'm sure that Diane or Jackie can. Their mental faculties might be more in shape than mine :o !

 

To all of you going soon, or even in the next year, I am green with jealousy. I think I am spoiled and going anywhere else is going to be a let down.

 

Bon Voyage,

Renee

[nancyrg]

Renee:

I am going on the 7-13-05 TP cruise so I was very excited about reading your review-I enjoyed all the information-thank you for your effort-I appreciate it!

 

I am so excited I can hardly wait!

 

Nancy

[annag]

Renee, thank you for the review and for the wealth of information. One surely cannot find it in a Princess brochure. I keep thinking that there was something really important I wanted to ask you, but cannot recall right this minute. Will post when my braincells recover. Anna

[pugsbest]

Renee,

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to post this great review! I still have quite a while until our cruise next year, and the more I read the more excited I get!

 

Thanks again!

Julie

[TahitianVirgin]

Renee,

 

 

Thanks so much for your efforts to detail your trip.

 

I can't wait until September!

 

Chuck

[RNay]

Thanks, everyone, for the positive replies. It really helped me relive my trip and get over my post vacation depression :cool: . I'll probably continue to watch this board for a while and see if I can contribute any further.

 

Bon Voyage,

Renee

[Jackiealu]

Renee:

Thank you for your wonderful reviews. I will be taking this same cruise in September and I am getting great info from these boards. I have a question on your Moorea excursion. Is this something you just found on the dock when you got off of the ship? Did you get many of your excursions on the dock and how available are they.

I want to see and do as much as I can on our shore days, and I don't want to miss anything, so I am trying to figure out best ways to book shore excursions.

Any info you can give me would be appreciated.

Thank you,

Jackie

jackiealu@aol.com

[RNay]

Jackie,

 

Yes, the Moorea excursion we found onshore. I believe it was probably around 10:00 am. We booked two excursions through Princess, one in Raiatea and one in Bora Bora. We also found an independent tour in Raiatea. This is the first time we have done this independently and we had great luck. They seemed readily available and we never hurried to get off the ship.

 

Renee

[Bsan1221]

Thank you for taking the time and writing about your cruise and island experience.

 

I cant wait until I go. :D ... Its just so far away.... :(

[arizdback]

Renee,

What cabin were in and do you have any pictures? (Cabin or any other part of the cruise)

[RNay]

arizdback,

 

We were in Cabin 7117. I don't have any pictures of the cabin, just video. :(

I do have over 400 pictures from the cruise, around the ship, etc.

 

Renee

[mtfasls]

Renee,

 

I am on the November 20 sailing of the Tahitian Princess just a couple of rooms down from 7117. How was it so far aft on the ship? Was it noisy or did you feel alot of vibration?

 

Barb

[RNay]

Barb,

 

No noise at all. No vibration. I didn't have any problem with our room being where it was. As a matter of fact, being the last one on that side suited me well, as we didn't have any neighbors on one side of us. Keep in mind that these balconies are enclosed, but there are BIG gaps between the walls, so you can get quite a good view of your neighbors, and they of you, if desired. You will feel the motion on this ship, no matter where you go because of its size. On the big ships, you can stay in the middle, low down and not feel as much, but there is no such place on the TP.

 

Renee