PG Society Islands- on our own report

[crisp1]

Just got home from our 7/4-11 PG cruise. Most book everything through PG- air, hotel, transfers, excursions. We didn't. So this will be a different report. I'll skip a lot of the usual stuff and give my take on doing it 'on your own'. I'm dealing with the time differences and I am tired so don't know how far I'll get tonight.

OK, first I have to say that the service was outstanding, the ship immaculate, crew went above and beyond expectations, food is subjective- so I'll leave that out.

For reasons I won't get into, we had to book air, hotels and transfers ourselves- and the air to Papeete had to be done in a small timeframe in order to secure our booking. I learned quickly that ATN, American and Qantas code share and I booked the lowest fare through Qantas. I don't know if this is true but when I got to the airport for our return in Papeete the counter person had to check on our baggage allowances- Qantas allows 2 pp- I don't know about ATN or American (btw- I used skyscanner to find our fare)

In order to break up the trip and to adjust to time zones we flew to LA on Wednesday- noon flight from the right coast :) EWR, stayed at a hotel with shuttle service near the airport with a decent restaurant ( Crown Plaza) I can get into that in more detail on the how/why etc if anyone wants to know. We arrived in LA and got our hotel by 4pm, had dinner at the hotel- very good and were asleep before midnight and awake by 7am ( did not sleep on the plane)

Our flight the next day was a 3:30 pm flight on ATN to arrive in Papeete at 8:50 pm the same day. I'll get into this a little more later but I was surprised that everyone tried to sleep on the plane. I will say this- bring a meal- it is still airline food- very hit and miss. Out of the 4 meals we had, only 1 was edible.

Edited July 14, 2015 by crisp1

[Emdee]

Keep the posts coming.....great stuff!

[crisp1]

So much to do one our first day home so not much time to post today

Transfers: We booked the IC. After immigration and picking up our luggage we exited the terminal walked across to the island and turned right and caught a cab right away. Asked how much to the IC and was told 2,000. I asked if she took US and the driver said yes- $20. When we got to the hotel and she took out her calculator she said $23- I expected $24 anyway- gave her $26

Some exchange $ for franc evenly- not so much around the islands- I'll get into that in more detail later.

Monday on the ship a disembarkation questionnaire was delivered to our stateroom with 3 options. Transfer through local travel agency- have to present a voucher to concierge desk, Independent, or taxi through ship. The ship charges $15 for a 'communication fee' and a local family has the deal with PG- no other cabs allowed in the area unless they have a name of person/s to pick up. We did make arrangements and the 'dispatcher' was not too happy- they charge a premium. We found Sandra through Tracey Thomas who we used for our pre cruise Tahiti tour on Saturday ( I'll get into that in more detail too) Sandra -sandymatae@gmail.com or (689)87-290.250 She charged $22 US to the airport, was waiting for us in the lot and has a newer year very clean van and a very pleasant woman too :)

It was recommended that we arrive 2-2.5 hours before our scheduled flight- our flight was at 10:30 am, Tracey insisted 8:30 was plenty early- 5 minutes to the airport. When we arrived the line was out the door. Only a few showed up after us, so I'm not certain, but a 9:am arrival at the airport seemed to be fine. Our flight coming home was full- going about half. ATN puts pillows, blankets and a small package with ear plugs headphones, socks and an eye mask on your seat-only those seats booked. So on our flight to Papeete those in the know quickly moved and stretched out to relax or sleep. I'll try to post more later today- any questions about what I've posted so far?

Edited July 14, 2015 by crisp1

[Cruisedreamer1]

Did you book a last minute cruise and that's why you had to do air by yourself?

[cforge]

Hi

I'd love to hear about Tracey's Tahiti tour as we are booked for the 28th.

Thanks

[crisp1]

Hi

I'd love to hear about Tracey's Tahiti tour as we are booked for the 28th.

Thanks

 

I was trying to keep my report chronological and compartmental, but just for you I'll deviate a bit............... on my next post :D. Just so you know- Tracey is one of the best tour guides we have ever had.

[olesiabr]

I am very excited to read your review! My husband and I will be on the 7 day Society Islands cruise in October. We also plan to arrive in LAX the Wednesday before, and have reservations at the Crowne Plaza that night. I am glad to hear that the flight on Thursday afternoon is not full, but we also are more apt to stay awake and watch movies instead of sleep. We will be at the Tiare Tahiti (don't ask, my husband wanted a more "authentic" experience, and closer to the roulettes).

 

We are looking for a water/snorkle based excursion for Friday but cannot seem to find anything. I'm interested in the land tour you took as well...

 

We will be leaving the ship on Friday evening and catching the red eye back to LAX a day early due to work on Monday...wondering how crowded THAT flight will be!

 

Looking forward to the rest of your review...

[twin123185]

Main island of Tahiti not good for snorkeling. Head over to MOOREA.

[Emdee]

Twin, the only thing I can think of is Tetiaroa.

[twin123185]

Thanks for making me smile Emdee!

What a day that was!

[Cruisedreamer1]

We will be taking our 9th PG cruise in October. In all the times we have gone, the outbound flight to Tahiti had some unsold seats but every single time the return flight was totally sold out!!!!

 

The 8 hour return flight is the worst part of the trip: 1) you are leaving Tahiti and 2) the flight is full and the food terrible. I think it's because the food is done in Papeete for the return flight. All the airlines seem to be cutting back their budgets for food these days.

[twin123185]

Air Tahiti has been going downhill steadily since 2005 (2007?) when they changed their food service. Especially noticeable in business class. When leaving Papeete if you are on the plane that continues to Paris, those are the worst of all. Pushy inconsiderate people everywhere. Some of the worst on my last flight were ATN employees, one of whom was sitting in front of me and was a real a....... I am at LAX waiting for my flight later TO Papeete and it's also the continuation of the Paris flight so I am not holding my breath whether or not the flight is full. I am just praying I don't get the old interior that is still in one of their planes. I hope the new Boeing 787's there are getting in three years significantly change their product. Last year I used Hawaiian air in and Honolulu and was happy with them. Timing didn't work this time.

[twin123185]

Of course I meant Air Tahiti Nui

[Emdee]

Did you see that Air Calin to Noumea now stops at Papeete.

Edited July 15, 2015 by Emdee

[crisp1]

Our trip was planned to minimize jet lag and to give ourselves time to adjust- the overnight in LA at the Crown Plaza, then 2 nights at the Intercontinental Faa'a. With our late arrival on Thursday evening we planned to just enjoy the property on Friday. We wanted to see Tahiti as well as the other islands and I checked out the excursions available for Saturday morning- figuring we'd leave our bags at the hotel and after a morning tour pick them up take a cab to the ship, hoping to be able to drop them off and then have lunch in town. I kept reading reviews on how boring these tours were until I came across Unique Tahiti- people raved about Tracey. Her cost was a bit more, but I thought to be worth the extra $. I contacted her and her response was quick. She suggested the full day tour and said she'd drop us off at the ship after the tour, she also accepts US dollar=franc. I exchanged some US $ at the hotel- their rate was 93/100- Tracey said I got ripped off and she also will do an exchange for you. The ship was the best rate- I forget but it was somewhere around 103/100.

Seems everyone knows Tracey. She emailed me the morning of the tour that she might be a little late because she was taking a dear friend to the airport. We waited for her in the lobby of the hotel and after 15 minutes one of the porters came over to ask us again about our pickup- I told him who it was and that we had been in contact and I knew she might be a little late. He said he has seen her at the hotel earlier picking people up, then he went over to the concierge and had him call her. Her van has her company name and website painted on the side- so it was easy to spot her when she arrived. After an introduction and a hug we were on our way. I told her I had an odd request. I packed only one sandal and needed to buy a new pair. She said no problem and took us to their version of a Walmart/Target where I bought a decent pair for $15. On the ship they have flip flops for $42. Our second stop was the museum where she guided us around with a wealth of knowledge of the history of the islands- an enjoyable and interesting time. Put on your bug spray- I didn't think it was necessary for an inside, air conditioned museum- and I was eaten alive. The day was cloudy with rain on and off, so Tracey made some adjustments- we missed the Botanical garden, but did get to one of the falls and ate lunch in Maui on the water- it was good, but too rich for me-French. If you aren't into the rich sauces have the burger. Even with the rain we had a most enjoyable day. It was fun just driving around listening to her Brit accent- she talked about her family and truly loves the islands and it's people. Hugs again at the end of the day- and of course she knows some of the PG's crew and had to say hello to them when we arrived at the ship. When I found out about the disembarkation junk/fees and not being able to just walk off and hire a cab I reached out to Tracey who emailed right away. She was leaving to spend the weekend in Moorea in an OTW bungalow and she then reached out to her friend Sandra and arranged our pickup with her.

Next the IC

[olesiabr]

Thanks for the details! Tracey sounds great. I guess we just need to decide if we want to do a "circle the island" tour vs a tour of the interior.

Can't wait to great about the rest of your trip.

[olesiabr]

Of course I meant read!

[Cruisedreamer1]

Keep writing we are loving it!

[crisp1]

Keep writing we are loving it!

 

Thanks, I thought this might be a repeat of my postings on the roll call- talking to myself :)Glad you're enjoying it so far. Reading reviews most were the same with nothing out of the ordinary- there's some things a bit unusual this cruise (hint;))

[crisp1]

crisp1's wife Karen here. I have to say that Tracey was the absolute best guide we have ever had on any of our 30+ cruises. So pleasant, so warm and funny, so knowledgeable, so down-to-earth, just the best!

 

We can have a good time anywhere as long as we are together, so I will leave the critiquing to my hubby, but I must also say that the PG staff was also the best staff, hands down, on any cruise we have taken.

[NC&KY]

Thank you for your review. We will have an extra day in Papeete, and I have contacted Tracy to see if she can help fill the void.

[Emdee]

Enjoying your report....

[crisp1]

Enjoying your report....

 

And all of your's too :D

Edited July 16, 2015 by crisp1

[cforge]

Thanks so much for the good word on Tracey's tour. I had read the same excellent reviews on trip adviser which is why we contacted her. We're doing the 1/2 day East tour. Love hearing all about your trip. Looking forward to the next installment :)

 

Carol

[crisp1]

After looking at other hotels/ prices on Tahiti we decided on th IC. At first we considered a garden view- glad we didn’t- not much of a view at all and you could be looking at another garden view couple across from you on your balcony. For $20 more/night we booked a lagoon view and were pleasantly surprised to find that we were upgraded to a panoramic view ground floor room. We arrived around 9pm and the hotel is almost more dramatic at night. Being cut into the side of a hill, the lobby is on the 3rd floor and across the lane is a waterfall with vertical gardens. The views from the lobby are incredible, looking down on the larger pool, lagoon and across to Moorea. Our room was large with a queen sized bed, the bath was quite large too with a corner tub, double sinks, separate toilet room and a huge shower. My only complaint is the lighting- even with the drapes open and all the lights on the room was still dark. We sat on our deck the first night enjoying the view of the walk path, lawn and listening to the waves while enjoying a glass of wine. In the morning we found that we were just steps from the sand bottom infinity pool. There was a map of the hotel grounds in the room and it showed a walk around the property on the ‘promenade’ that was 1 mile. We started out and came to a halt at the lagoon. It was closed off as was access to the lagoon- they are re-doing the OVB there and also the entire building next to us- the one closer to the main building. So we decided to just have breakfast. The buffet was $38 and there was also an ala carte menu- we decided on the buffet. Just like any other buffet- the ‘hot’ items we’re barely luke warm. A great selection of fruits, yogurt, cereals, juices, an omelet station etc- still overpriced in mho. The next morning I ordered an omelet and it came with toast, potatoes, sausage and bacon- all for $10.50. We spent the morning sittting/ swimming in the infinity pool. My mid day the clouds and rain moved in- so we spent that time on our deck. Still a bit off our sleep schedule we decided on an early ala carte dinner and skip the show and buffet. It was a nighmare from the beginning. Our waitress hurried us to order then it took forever for our meal to come out- ice cold. We sent it back, another 15 minutes and it was re- delivered with the promise that it was hot this time- still ice cold. I wanted to leave, grab a cab and go somewhere else. At this time the chef came to our table and apologized over and over and asked if there was anything at all he could make for us- I ordered a mahi sandwich, my wife a bowl of pasta with red sauce. 10 minutes later the meal came out- mine was hot- hers came with a white sauce. I asked for the check and said we had had enough.Only our bottle of wine was on the bill. 15 minutes later the chef showed up at our door with another sandwich for me, a bowl of piping hot pasta with red sauce for my wife and a bottle of wine. None of this was on our final bill.

Some side notes. I walked over to the OWB and the sound of waves hitting the wall was loud- not the soothing sound I expected. There is free wifi throughout, free washers and dryers, but no detergent and ice machines are next to the laundry- every other building on the second floor

Edited July 16, 2015 by crisp1