vjr

Ugh, I just heard about this.  Our cruise is not until 12/04, but we are flying Air France, and I'm just trying to stay positive.  

We are also on the 12/4 cruise, staying 6 nights pre-cruise at IC Thalasso in Bora Bora.  Since we won't have our return to PPT flights from Bora Bora until the day we check out, I have no idea how much time we'll have between arriving in PPT and boarding PG.  At this point, we will have to find a testing site on Bora Bora.  What a nightmare this is.

Thanks for the information.  I think I will bring a postcard to have stamped.  As much as I would like to get my passport stamped, I’m more afraid of losing my passport if I pull it for a day.  I’ve gotten so scatter brained as I get older.

Thanks.  I figured it was something fairly easy but thought I would ask ahead of time.

Hi all - 

My husband and I are going on our third PG cruise - first time on the Fiji, Tonga itinerary, Sept 21.  We have booked a private tour with Teking Tours on Aitutaki.  In researching this excursion, there is a stop on One Foot Island where you can get your passport stamped.  Since PG holds your passports throughout the cruise, how is this done?  Can we "check out" our passports for the day?  Has anyone done this trip to One Foot Island?

19 hours ago, Tahitianbigkahuna said:

 

This will answer your questions  ..... My Better Half and I took this video  ...

 

https://vimeo.com/311007932

After looking at our itinerary, I realized that I only had 2 actual snorkeling trips booked.  

After showing my husband your video, and with the knowledge that we had only 2 snorkeling excursions planned, we decided to book the drift snorkel.  Thanks for your input as well as Mr Randal’s!

27 minutes ago, Tahitianbigkahuna said:

 

This will answer your questions  ..... My Better Half and I took this video  ...

 

https://vimeo.com/311007932

Beautiful video!  Thanks for this.  There looks to be some very shallow areas that it would be easy to bump into coral, which I've done in the past - ouch!  I will share the video with my husband and let him decide on the excursion.  We've booked other snorkeling tours on this cruise, so it's not a deal breaker.  This is our first time on the Fiji, Tonga itinerary so I'm sure there will be some beautiful snorkeling there - 41 days and counting!

26 minutes ago, MrRandal said:

By PG's description of the excursion it is for "experienced snorkelers who are extremely comfortable in the water". My wife and I, who are in our mid 60's, fit into that category. While you are drifting with the current, there are areas where the coral is very close to the surface, and you must swim around it or be pushed into it. On occasion, it takes some pretty strong kicking, for a short period, to stay on the "trail" that the guide is following. I've described it as exhilarating, because of the sheer beauty of what you are seeing, combined with the fact that there is a small  element of "danger". It's not death defying, but coral cuts can be nasty. There are plenty of other coral gardens in FP that you can see that don't include the drift factor.

We've been on 2 PG cruises so far and several snorkeling tours both on the boat and through pre and post cruise stays, so I would consider us experienced snorkelers.  I'm just concerned because my husband tires more easily now than before his stroke.  Thanks for the comments - I will discuss again with my husband tonight.

On 8/4/2019 at 11:30 PM, MrRandal said:

Consider the PG Drift Snorkel on Taha'a, it was one of the highlights of our cruise. Exhilarating, beautiful experience. Starts early, 8-8:30, the vendor then drops you back at Motu Mahana in time for lunch, with plenty of time afterwards to enjoy the Motu.

MrRandal - 

My husband and I have looked at the drift snorkel excursion a few times, on our past cruises, but have heard it is physically strenuous than other snorkel trips.  My husband had a stroke two years ago, which has affected his strength somewhat although he can swim without issues and is able to snorkel in calm waters.  How strong is the current on this tour?  Do you think that someone with moderate strength would be able to handle it?

21 hours ago, lovestx said:

Thanks for all of the incredibly helpful replies!  So it sounds like we should try to book as soon as we get up this Saturday and know that it may not work.  We aren't going to go Scuba diving and don't plan to do a PG excursion on Bora Bora so maybe we will be fine.

 

I am planning on booking with Pure Snorkeling and, from what I've heard from many previous cruisers, we won't want to spend more than a couple of hours on the BB Motu given there are no chairs.  At my age (just hit 60), I'm not that comfortable lying on a beach towel for very long!

 

vjr, which ATV tour did you book that was popular?  On Moorea?  Looks like we will be embarking the day you disembark!

 

And Mr. Randal, I think you have it confused....We disembark on October 12th....and close friends are embarking that day for the 7 day cruise.  Have a great trip!

This is the ATV tour on Moorea (see below) - take the morning one if 2 are offered - cooler weather.  We've done it twice.  They take you through pineapple fields, a jam/jelly facility and up to Belvedere Point.  It's a beautiful tour, and the guides are great!

I also agree with all on here that Pure Snorkeling is the best snorkeling excursion on Bora Bora.

My husband and I are booked on the Sept 21 Fiji, Cook Islands cruise - our 3rd cruise with PG.  Excursion bookings opened on Jul 23.  My husband and I went on the site to book at 4:00 am west coast time and there were several sold out already - mostly the Bora Bora ones.  We got the last ticket for the ATV.  I would get on the site as soon as possible the day the excursion bookings become available.

We like to snorkel, so I always book a handful of snorkeling excursions.  This area is so breath-taking that even repeat snorkel excursions are fantastic!  We can't get enough of this place.

We've done the ATV tour on Moorea and I highly recommend it.  The dolphin excursion on that island was also enjoyable as well.  

That's great!  You will love this cruise!  As I said earlier, this is my 3rd time on PG.

It sounds like you are booked early enough that you may be able to request flight times and/or seating on the plane.  If you are booking through a travel agent - he or she may be able to accomplish this for you.  It's too bad that you don't have time for a pre or post cruise - they are fantastic.  Maybe next time!

We booked through our travel agent.  I did tell her that we wanted the red eye flight and business class and she was able to book this for us.  I didn't ask for specific seats, but I am sure that she would be able to change our seat assignments if we were unhappy (if they were available, of course).  I think it's all a matter of early booking, and the quality of the travel agent.  We've had our cruise booked since Nov 2018, and she was able to get us the flight times we wanted, the pre and post cruise arrangements and onboard credits as well.  I have also checked with both airlines - Fiji Airways and Air Tahiti Nui - our e-tickets have been issued and seat assignments verified.

Are you on the Sept 2019 itinerary or a later one?

My husband and I are cruising for our 3rd time on PG in September and I always book the air/sea package.  Yes, it’s more expensive but more convenient and safer.  PG takes care of all flight arrangements and transfers to and from the ship and any pre or post cruise land packages and transfers.  Completely worry free.  If you don’t know the area, booking on your own carries some risk and being in a foreign country, even more.

We are on the 12 Nt Fiji / Cook Islands cruise, Sept 21.  We have booked the laundry package for this cruise and this is what is listed on our Trip Itinerary:

2019 Laundry Pkg 12nt Dbl $219.00

We are doing a pre and post cruise - about 3 weeks in all for the trip, so I felt that a laundry package was essential.

I would choose post-cruise.  My husband and I first did a PG cruise in 2014 and we did a pre-cruise in Bora Bora.  At the end of the cruise, when we disembarked and boarded the bus to the airport, I remember feeling so sad that the trip was over.   Our second PG cruise in 2016, we did a pre-cruise in Bora Bora and a post-cruise in Moorea.  It felt like 3 vacations back to back and it was great!  No sad bus ride to the airport.  Of course, we had to go to the airport after Moorea, but it really felt better than going to the airport straight from the cruise.

We are booked on our 3rd PG cruise in this September for the Fiji itinerary.  We are again doing a pre-cruise (Fiji) and a post-cruise in Bora Bora.  If you have the time - do both, but I would choose post-cruise if I could only do one.

We've always booked ship excursions because, as you said,  I'm always worried about the timing.  There aren't a lot of choices on Tonga, which I why I threw the question out there.

I'll look at Teking.  I assume you've never had a problem getting back on time?

Hi everyone - 

My husband and I are book on the 9/21 -  Fiji, Tonga, Cook and Society Islands cruise. This is our 3rd PG cruise (first 2 were 7 days), so we are familiar with the ship and the excursions available on the 7-day itinerary.   In looking at this 12 day itinerary, it looks like we have a few sea days, so I would like to do an excursion each day we can to the ports we have not visited before.  For Tonga - there is a "Beach Combing & Snorkeling" tour to the Tongan Beach Resort.  Has anyone done this excursion?  According to reviews on Trip Advisor, the beach is brown,  somewhat rocky, and not what you would usually expect from a French Polynesian beach.  The other excursions might be a bit too taxing for my husband who has some physical limitations.  We are also looking at  snorkeling tours in each of the Fiji ports and Aitutaki.   Can anyone recommend these?  Thanks!

Hello - 

I made an error on the starting date of my Paul Gauguin cruise roll call for next year.  Can I edit the title?

Thank you.

Wow! What a response. You've really put some thought into this. Thanks for this. I will share with my husband

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My husband and I are taking our second trip on PG to French Polynesia this December. We had a red-eye flight from LAX last time, and I remember not being able to sleep at all which left me really groggy our first day. Does anyone know the approximate upgrade cost to business class per person? And is it worth it from a "sleep" standpoint?

I also recommend the Stingray Ballet. My husband and I went on a few snorkeling excursions when we were in Bora Bora last December, and this was by far, our favorite. We have not tried Pure Snorkeling but is sounds like something we may want to when we return next year.

My husband and I attended the honeymoon/blessing ceremony on our cruise last December. There were about 50 couples there. We all shared a cake, had champagne and our picture taken. We had just gotten married on Bora Bora prior to taking the cruise, so we didn't see the need to spend money on the other ceremony. However, we've put our deposit down for the December 2016 departure, and I'm considering booking the anniversary package after reading the posts here. I would love to know how it turns out for you!

I have to agree with Wendy - the Stingray Ballet is my favorite as well. They take you to some great spots with rays, sharks and lots of other fish.

My husband and I are booked for our anniversary next year. Here are the excursions we would/would not do again:

Huahine: Although we did Marc's Motu Picnic last year, we did not care for it much. I know everyone on this site raves about it - I thought it was long and boring, and our guide did not seem to know much about the sites we visited. Snorkeling was just ok. May have been an off day for this tour.

Taha'a: Definitely the motu.

Bora Bora: Stingray Ballet absolutely! We also did the Wave Runner tour on this island. My husband had a blast, I was just happy to be able to hang on to him throughout the ride! We would definitely do this one again though.

Moorea: Dr Poole's dolphin excursion was fun, but we probably will do something else next time. We did the ATV tour which was a blast. We were able to see some beautiful sights and visit some great shopping areas.

My husband and I just put our deposit down for the Dec 14, 2016 sailing. Although we did not get the 25%, (we're not from Canada) we received the normal 5% for past guests plus an additional 5% for this sailing - I think this deal is good if you book before May of this year.

We have booked the same cabin, 814, that we had last December on our honeymoon. So excited to be returning!