Hutchinj

Ah... thanks much both TBK & SWF. Great insight and much appreciated. I think we'll pass on the drift snorkel in favor of less risky adventures. We have other snorkeling opportunities during our pre and post stays in Moorea and Bora Bora and besides, just having a lazy day on Moto Mahana ain't half bad, either. 😄

Wonderful review and great photos! I enjoyed your honest take on the whole experience which provides another perspective. It only served to make me all the more anxious for our first cruise on the PG celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary next July.

Have not been planning to visit La Villa Mahana since we are already doing a private dinner cruise in Bora Bora, but your review has me rethinking that.

THANK YOU!

11 minutes ago, Tahitianbigkahuna said:

 

My response was to  Folkfan13 who appears to be a good snorkeler 😉

TBK -- So you concur with PG's caution? That's all I was wondering.

If the drift snorkel is too rambunctious, we may just opt for PG's Tah'a Exploration tour (sightseeing + vanilla & pearl farm visits) given we have other snorkel opportunities on this trip. Although bouncing around in a 4x4 can be a bit tiring, too. 😄

On 7/27/2019 at 10:25 AM, Tahitianbigkahuna said:

 

The drift snorkel on Tahaa/Motu Mahana day  ..... is outstanding.

Would love to do this but I'm a bit concerned by this caution on the PG website:

This tour is only recommended for experienced snorkelers that are extremely comfortable in the water. Novice/beginner snorkelers are strongly encouraged to snorkel on the Motu. 

We're not feeble by any means but haven't actively snorkeled for years. Sounds like a great precursor to the Motu Mahana visit.

On 6/24/2019 at 7:03 PM, vjr said:

Our second PG cruise in 2016, we did a pre-cruise in Bora Bora and a post-cruise in Moorea.

We're doing the exact opposite next July for our 50th.

While I like the convenience of booking pre & post-cruise hotel stays via PG with easy transfers and day room options, we wanted to try other hotels instead of the Intercontinental brand. In our case, Hilton Moorea and St Regis Bora Bora. Plus, the quote we got from PG for upgrading to ATN's Dreamliner Premium Economy was higher than what our TA arranged for us after applying PG's refund of $3400 for unused coach air.

Since we are taking ATN's redeye from LAX to PPT (the only choice for our date of travel), we are taking the ferry to Moorea first thing that morning. I've prebooked a standard garden room at the Hilton Moorea so we'll have a place to crash, if needed, before checking into a Premium OWB late that afternoon (a surprise for my DW). Then the PG Cruise 3 days later followed by 4 more days in Bora Bora. Should be a great experience for our first time in FP.

The hardest part now is the wait! 🙂

PG gives an airfare credit of between $1600 and $2100 (I was quoted $1700pp) for unused LAX-PPT flights which we will apply to a Premium Economy class upgrade from Coach. Our TA (P4L) can get us a better deal on ATN flights and from all reports, PE class is very nice on the new Boeing platform.

For our flights from Orlando to LAX and return, it was much easier for us to find 1st Class tickets with frequent flier miles on other airlines. 

I'm sure the Regent ship is very nice but we're really looking forward to our first PG experience.

2 hours ago, alwaysonaship said:

The economy plus looks very nice. The fact that you can put your legs up, to me is important. We just cannot handle economy anymore. It used to be comfortable, but now it is unbearable. IMHO.  

And age has nothing to do with it, right?

That's my story anyway and I'm sticking to it! 😉

Thanks, Randal. I'm hoping that with a rashguard shirt, we should be comfy most of the time in the water. Besides, we can always warm up with a nice Mai Tai or Pina Colada afterwards. :)

On 8/19/2018 at 6:03 PM, MrRandal said:

Thanks TBK, I have a CP but not the ND, and since both the 24-105 and the 17-40 are 77mm I can use both on both lenses. I'll order a 3 stop, as there is no room for me to pack a decent tripod. I do have a Gorilla grip, and an itty bitty Ambico tripod that will hold my TG5. I hadn't thought about shooting off camera flash, but if I remove one of my primary lenses I would have room to pack my PW TT1 mini and TT5 flex which gives me ETTL off camera. I could actually mount the flash on the Ambico.

I love it when you guys talk dirty.  LOL  :)

Seriously, GREAT photos that even us simple point-n-shoot folks can appreciate!

davwen81 -- Thank you for the recap of your cruise. It's so nice to read about how others had such a wonderful time on the cruise we are going to take next year. And that's a great tip about having lunch in the ferry terminal while waiting to board the PG.

Also, happy belated Anzac Day. We were fortunate to have been stationed in Sydney in the late 80's and enjoyed many visits to RSL's around the country and the moving tribute recited every evening:

At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.

It's been many years since we lived there but we still "love a sunburnt country." :)

Cheers!

Notion -- That's great to hear. We certainly hope to catch some of the Heiva while on Bora Bora since our stay on Tahiti will be limited to one night pre-cruise. How was your weather and the water temps during your visit?

Radio -- I've considered requesting a motu vow renewal as well but they still offer an abbreviated version... tahitian blanket burrito wrap... on board for free, right? I'm sure the moto renewal ceremony would be fun. Just trying to justify the ~$315 cost.

SW, we're from Orlando so I hear you on the pain of travel between Florida and LAX. Especially on the return trip. Not fun!

Good point, SW. A 2-4-2 layout is much nicer for couples on a long flight. I'm a bit confused, however, as I didn't think there was a Premium Economy offering on the Airbus... only Economy and Business.

We are bumping ours seats to Premium Economy on the Dreamliner partly because of the 2-3-2 seating arrangement it affords and also because it seems to be a nice compromise between business and economy classes. The online Dreamliner reviews I've read so far have been pretty good but time will tell, I guess.

With the $1700pp or so credit we get from PG and the airfare deal arranged by our TA, Premium Economy seems to make sense for us. This is our bucket list trip, after all. :)

So how was the ATN Premium Economy class from LAX to PPT?

I've heard good things about the new Dreamliner compared to the old Airbus.

Go figure. I wasn't even aware that ATN had a flight from LAX that arrives PPT at 11:30 PM.

I'd rather take the Redeye! :)

Thanks to everyone for their input. Really appreciated. It looks like we are going to stick with our July cruise dates after all as we hope to catch some of the Heiva competitions before or after our PG cruise and the September offerings just didn't fit our schedule as well. Thanks!

As per their website, ATN flights departing LAX at 4:40 pm arrive PPT at 9:45 pm.

Given we book this flight our plan is to spend the first night at the IC Tahiti in a standard garden view room, have breakfast there the next morning, then catch the ferry to Moorea for our 3-day pre-cruise stay.

37 minutes ago, fount said:

We are booked on the 4:40 flight on July 6th.  This is our first time sailing with PG and also our first time on ATN.  I would be very interested to find out how much more we would have to pay to get PE.  

My TA says for 2019 PG wants $1,250 per person to upgrade to Premium Economy & $3,850 per person for Business. It'll probably increase a bit in 2020. But you should go ask PG yourself just to be sure. And please let us know if they tell you something different!

They used to offer $1700 pp credit if you booked your own airfare, but currently the legal/privacy page on the pgcruises.com website states:

Air credit for non-use of air promotions is $1,600 - $2,000 per person, depending on itinerary

I'm planning on booking our own  Premium Economy (PE) tickets so this is of great interest to  me, too.

I don't know what PG would upcharge you to go from Coach to PE or Business but I'd wager it would be more than what you could do thru a TA. If you book your own airfare you lose the transfer benefits with the IC Tahiti resort so keep that in mind. We are doing a pre-cruise on Moorea so it's of no consequence to us.

OK, I'm sure this has been discussed "ad nauseum" in other topics but I can't find any definitive answer. Perhaps there aren't any. :)

Anyway, we are currently booked on the 4 July 2020 Tahiti & Society Islands 7-day cruise to celebrate our 50th anniversary which is actually in August (no cruises over our anniversary date, unfortunately). I understand that this would be peak season with more tourists but weather should generally be good with less rain. The Heiva festival going on that month would be an added bonus if we can see any of that pre or post cruise.

But lately I've heard that the water temps may be a bit chilly and since we intend to do a lot of snorkeling and other activities in the water I'm a bit concerned, especially since our home is in Florida and we've become a bit cold intolerant. 

I checked cabin availability and we could actually reserve our desired cabin for this same cruise on the Sep 12th sailing which I understand is the start of the "shoulder" season. Cruise and resort prices are about the same.

Since we have the flexibility to choose, which cruise would you experienced PG Cruisers opt for? Does the water temp really vary that much? Are the crowds noticeably less? Am I being too anal? :)

Thanks!

On 1/21/2019 at 9:39 PM, fount said:

Magroo, I just realized you are sailing in July 2020.  I want to wish you both a very happy 30th Anniversary.  Enjoy your planning time!  It gets more and more exciting each time you learn something new.  We have about 5.5 months to go.  Can't wait!  This will be our first trip to FP also!  So glad you also got the Vow Renewal!  It will be an incredible memory, I'm sure!

Oleta

My wife and I are the ones sailing in July 2020 (4th of July embarkation date). We also want to book the Moto Mahana Vow Renewal. Sounds like great fun!

Be SURE to let us all know how your Vow Renewals on the Motu goes. I'm sure it will be beautiful and a lot of fun, too! Congrats!

We are considering a pre-cruise stay at the IC Tahiti Resort in Papeete. Looking on the pgcruises.com website, I see they offer a "1 Night with Morning Arrival" pre-cruise package. Does that guarantee you an early check-in? Or must you book the "Additional Night" option for that?

And what is the difference between "Air/Sea Program" and "Cruise Only" program? Sorry, the descriptions provided on the website are a bit confusing.

Congratulations! We will be celebrating our 50th during our first PG Cruise in July 2020.

Have been considering a Motu Mahana vow renewal as well so will be anxious to hear all about it next year.