My Review / Suggestions

Enjoying all your beautiful pictures! Curious on your opinion on how rough the sailing is going/coming from the Cooks? I know the ship is built for the shallow waters, and just wondering what to expect.

Enjoying all your beautiful pictures! Curious on your opinion on how rough the sailing is going/coming from the Cooks? I know the ship is built for the shallow waters, and just wondering what to expect.

During the rainy season the sea days can be a bit interesting, nothing bad, in fact I felt like a bay getting rocked to sleep ;)

This is one of the best threads on CC. I have been lurking for a while. Thank you for providing such detailed info. I have been thinking about taking a trip to FP. Now I’m fully convinced that our first trip should be on PG. One quick question: what is the best time to take such a trip if I want to balance between lower prices for cruise/airfares and relatively good weather? We are into snorkeling and general sightseeing, and are flexible about when to travel. Thanks!

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This is one of the best threads on CC. I have been lurking for a while. Thank you for providing such detailed info. I have been thinking about taking a trip to FP. Now I’m fully convinced that our first trip should be on PG. One quick question: what is the best time to take such a trip if I want to balance between lower prices for cruise/airfares and relatively good weather? We are into snorkeling and general sightseeing, and are flexible about when to travel. Thanks!

 

 

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IMO, based on your criteria ... Mid September - the end of October.

Glad you are enjoying the ride .... I'll start on Bora Bora this week. Over a dozen times on Bora Bora between cruise ship and resort stays. I'll give some good tips ;)

Excellent. Can’t wait for Bora Bora...thanks again!

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Lets talk about Bora Bora, probably the most anticipated island for the first timer to paradise. For a teaser I'll post a few pictures approaching Bora Bora, and yes I've included a higher resolution link just below the picture ....

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-3bDT2Qz/0/348c39d7/X3/sunrise%20at%20Bora%20Bora%20full%20%281%20of%201%29-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-w7xKM59/0/f548490d/X3/bora%20%20bora%20%281%20of%201%29-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-9VwLXrr/0/be900320/X3/approching%20bora%20bora%20%281%20of%201%29-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-BWt2bvk/0/05d1bcc0/X3/approching%20Bora%20Bora2%20%281%20of%201%29-X3.jpg

Bora Bora is absolutely breath taking, the perfect lagoon with the perfect backdrop ... Mount Otemanu. Every possible hue of green and blue are present in the lagoon of Bora Bora. A visit to Bora Bora would not be complete without a lagoon excursion that circumnavigated the main island. The reason .... Mount Otemanu changes it's appearance from every angle. I have taken hundreds of pictures of Mount Otemanu and O still find great joy in taking more.

On most cruises on the PG you are on Bora Bora for two days. This allows one day to do a lagoon excursion that circumnavigates the island plus another day to enjoy something else. When choosing a lagoon excursion for the circumnavigation of the island there are three major vendors to pick from. I love them all but for different reasons and you should pick the one that captures your heart.

Patrick – Best whenskippered by Patrick himself. Connected with some cruise lines so mostoften the only way to book is though the ship when you visiting by cruise. The outriggers are covered andflowered up for a Polynesian feel. You will usually make three snorkelingstops. Two are inside the lagoon, one will be outside to see the larger sharks. Usually the skipper will play a ukulele as you cruise around the lagoon and at lunch. You can sit in the water or under a shade cover during lunch. Lunch includes goodies from the BBQ and an in-ground oven. This is probably the most sought after excursion so book early. Tour is usually around 6 hours.

Raanui Tours - Small Polynesian family ran outfit. Verypersonable, will hold your hand; off the beaten trek snorkeling stops, one stopis at the manta ray location. 16 - 20 passenger covered boat in good condition.Beautiful BBQ setting on Motu Tuba where the Amazing Race had their 2nd day legfinish line while on Bora Bora. Clean bathrooms and well shaded area for BBQ. Nicetour at a fair price. Last time we went the price was $120 per person. 6 hourtour.

Christopher -Very personal will hold your hand. His skippers seem to have it together. Fastsleek covered boats, 3 good snorkel locations including where the manta rayshang out, no BBQ. Can handle up to 8 people per boat. $120 seems to be the normfor pricing. 3 ½ hour tour. If you’re simply wanting the best snorkelingexperience this outfit is a good choice.

Personally for the first time visitor to Bora Bora I would suggest Patrick's tour. It is the envisioned excusion most dream about.

I'll continue later ....

Thank you for the detailed review. I've been reading along and applying some of your knowledge to our trip this January. You mentioned that Patrick's tour is the to take for first time Bora Bora visitors - is this tour offered through the Paul Gauguin, as I can't seem to find it? If not, do you remember what the tour company is called or is it just Patrick's?

Thanks again and please continue with your review.

Olga

This is one of the best threads on CC. I have been lurking for a while. Thank you for providing such detailed info. I have been thinking about taking a trip to FP. Now I’m fully convinced that our first trip should be on PG. One quick question: what is the best time to take such a trip if I want to balance between lower prices for cruise/airfares and relatively good weather? We are into snorkeling and general sightseeing, and are flexible about when to travel. Thanks!

Why don't you post this as a new thread so you can get a variety of replies and feedback? You will get lots of opinion on this, but the bottom line is that the weather is almost always beautiful.

Hi, we're Wendy and David too, from Canada.

 

If you're talking about the Society Islands (Tahiti, Bora Bora, etc.), April can be muggy and hot. We've done late May several times and it was lovely.

Wendy, May can be windy in the Tuamotus...they get their ides of March in May!

If you have done the Marina platform private dinner on the PG, I’d love to hear about that and all the details. I signed up for that on next months cruise while in Bora Bora and am going to surprise my wife.

We were booked but had to cancel due to bad weather.

There is a professional review of the PG that describes the experience.

You have given me an idea to gave my 40 th Anniversary vow renewal on the Marina!

Love these pix too, but perhaps new people with serious questions could post new threads? Please? I tend to not look at this thread, and interesting questions get buried in it, whilst the main forum looks empty!

You are correct Wendy a lot of the info gets lost as it is long winded.

My suggestion is either break it down into Threads by port or Gather all the information into one report without questions and get the admin to post it as a sticky on the top much as Keith’s tips for first time Crystal cruisers is done. Then people can read and refer and then ask each question as a separate thread so that one or all of us seasoned PG travellers can respond. Then each question will be separately accessible to new comers to the board and a broader perspective will be provided.

Specific Port info as opposed to PG info should go on the Ports board to help all CC members.

I have been MIA as four of my next six cruises are Crystal with one on RCCL and one on Regent. Not that I dont have a possible 2019 PG cruise on the back burner!!

FYI ... After Wendy made her thoughts be known I waited 6 days before posting on this thread again to allow new questions to be posted as new threads ....

The only new threads that were started were two by me on separate subjects. As no one was posting new threads I thought I would continue with my long thread.

There are new questions asked within the thread. You don't need to go through my long thread to find them, go look at the last page or two. So if you really want to answer questions you can ;)

Thank you for the detailed review. I've been reading along and applying some of your knowledge to our trip this January. You mentioned that Patrick's tour is the to take for first time Bora Bora visitors - is this tour offered through the Paul Gauguin, as I can't seem to find it? If not, do you remember what the tour company is called or is it just Patrick's?

 

Thanks again and please continue with your review.

 

Olga

Patrick's tour is on the PG website as: BRB-1602

Patrick also does a 3 hour lagoon excursion with no BBQ lunch which is: BRB-1603.

Thanks for the kind words :)

FYI ... After Wendy made her thoughts be known I waited 6 days before posting on this thread again to allow new questions to be posted as new threads ....

 

The only new threads that were started were two by me on separate subjects. As no one was posting new threads I thought I would continue with my long thread.

 

There are new questions asked within the thread. You don't need to go through my long thread to find them, go look at the last page or two. So if you really want to answer questions you can ;)

I know I can...and I have.

Just agreed that my suggestion is more orderly for easy access and reference. There is a lot of great info and pics etc I am thinking of it being there for future use. Honestly, I have only glanced at the PG board occasionally. Busy with other trip planning and bookings a lot of research needed for our Upcoming trips.

I know I can...and I have.

Just agreed that my suggestion is more orderly for easy access and reference. There is a lot of great info and pics etc I am thinking of it being there for future use. Honestly, I have only glanced at the PG board occasionally. Busy with other trip planning and bookings a lot of research needed for our Upcoming trips.

I hear you and after this thread is concluded I think that would be something to consider. My thread is more about tips than a review and could easily be made into separate threads for different islands/ports. Until this thread has concluded it is easy to simply hit the black arrow and it will take you to the last new post. So if the thread has a new post with a poster other than myself simply hit the black arrow and you can go read/answer the post.

I do thank you for answering questions as I'm the first to say I don't have all the answers and I point to you many times to help answer the question :)

Patrick's tour is on the PG website as: BRB-1602

 

Patrick also does a 3 hour lagoon excursion with no BBQ lunch which is: BRB-1603.

Thanks for the kind words :)

We just finished our second PG Cruise a few days ago (Society Islands and Cook Islands), after doing the Society Islands and Marquesas last February. BRB-1602 was the best excursion we've ever taken. The lagoon stops that 1602 and 1603 make were very nice. It was the first time I ever willingly went into the water with the reef sharks. But the lunch at their family owned motu was wonderful. Delicious food in paradise, with a family that is so welcoming, and cooks up really delicious food. There were only 12 of us at this stop for 1602, and we all had a great time. It was more than worth the money.

Enjoying all your beautiful pictures! Curious on your opinion on how rough the sailing is going/coming from the Cooks? I know the ship is built for the shallow waters, and just wondering what to expect.

Our trip there and back during the first week in December (rainy season) wasn't bad at all. We had some 6 foot swells on the way to the Cook Islands, and the sea day coming back was rainy, but more calm. The tender into Aitutaki and Rarotonga and back were sporty, but the tender captain and tender crew are great at getting everyone to shore and back. The ship stays outside the reef, at both Cook Island Port Of Calls, so the tenders need to go into and out of the small openings in the reef which can be pretty rough. But there was just a gentle rocking onboard the PG. I'm prone to sea sickness and 1 Bonine every 24 hours prevented it for me. Once we got back to the Society Islands, I didn't take anymore and I was OK. The only other rainy day we had was one of the 2 extra days on Tahiti that we had added after the end of our cruise. It was the day that we were flying out, and had rented a car and toured everywhere the previous day, so we were just resting for our 2 red eyes to get home.

This was our 3rd time to French Polynesia in the rainy season (first 2 weeks in March 1995, first 2 weeks in February 2017, first 2 weeks in December 2017), and the weather and water temperature was great each time. We like it warm, and our first trip was 2 weeks of overwater bungalows without AC and we were OK with that. We don't like windy conditions. Our next trip will be September 2019, so we'll see what the dry season is like.

TBK, I have found this thread to be very helpful. As a first time cruiser earlier this year, I came to Cruise Critic looking for information on the ship we were cruising on, the Paul Gauguin, and the places we would be going on it.

Before our cruise, your threads and posts were all extremely informative. I would not have considered reading through the forums for other cruise lines since I had already booked the PG based on the size of the ship, recommendations from friends and our previous land experience in the Society Islands. I briefly looked at the port of call forum, but there was more information there than I had time to look through.

So thank you for everything you do on the Paul Gauguin forum, and your amazing pictures. I appreciate it, and others on here seem to as well. We just booked the September 2019 trip to Figi, and can't wait to get back to the Paul Gauguin, and it's wonderful crew.

It is post like yours that makes me smile from ear to ear and it makes all the effort worthwhile. Who knows, maybe we’ll run into each other someday on-board :)

And we continue ....

Some of the resorts offer day passes. The IC Thalasso, Le Moana& the Hilton Nui are all

good choices and are easily accessible. Price depends on the resort. The

price usually includes a lunch/bar credit.

Intercontinental.borabora.thalsso@ihg.com

intercontinental.borabora.lemoana@ihg.com

mgr@hilton-borabora.pf

There is a car rental place just across the street from the tenderdrop off location. I don’t

recommend scooters or open ‘fun cars’. It takes all of about 2hours to drive around the

island with a few stops for pictures/cool drinks.

http://www.avis.com/

Most of the cruise lines have a pre-arranged shuttle to and fromMatira Point/Beach for

about $5 bucks. Good place to swim, relax in the water or to walk on the beach butsnorkeling is so here. Bloody Mary’s is usually accessible via the shuttle, check with the ship's desk first. Close to Matira Beach are several eateries and shops.

There are several stores, pearl shops, eateries and pharmacywithin a few short blocks from

the tender drop off location.

If you feel real adventurous you can rent a small skiff and tackle the lagoon on your own.La Plage - laplage.bora@hotmail.com - You don't need a special license to hire a motor boatfrom La Plage. Currently it appears to be the only place for small boat hireBora Bora. They only have a few, so book ahead to make sure of availability onthe date you want. La Plage will provide an ice box and just meters down theroad (south) there is a small supermarket where locals shop. Their prices aregood, usually around $150 - $200 for the day. You can buy some snacks anddrinks to take on your boat adventure. Boat hire is available between 8.30amand 5.30pm. From their dock you have easy access to the snorkeling off theirback side of the Sofitel Motu and the area where the manta rays hang out.

If you are staying on Bora Bora for a few days pre / post cruise and are trying to pick which one the view of Mount Otemanu may come into discussion. I've attached a PDF that gives you the view from each of the major resorts. Here is a map showing the major locations.

Here are the layouts of two of the major resorts and the room numbers and type. In the case of the Thalasso many want to know the view that they will have from a particular room of category.

I do have the layouts of the other majot resorts and will share if someone wants to peek but most on this forum will book with either the Thalasso or Le Moana.

I'll share some photos of a few of the major resorts later ....

I hear you and after this thread is concluded I think that would be something to consider. My thread is more about tips than a review and could easily be made into separate threads for different islands/ports. Until this thread has concluded it is easy to simply hit the black arrow and it will take you to the last new post. So if the thread has a new post with a poster other than myself simply hit the black arrow and you can go read/answer the post.

 

I do thank you for answering questions as I'm the first to say I don't have all the answers and I point to you many times to help answer the question :)

Not to put too fine a point of it, it feels like you're trying to have this thread replace the entire board. The board is meant for asking questions on a variety of topics. They should not be ask in one big thread.

The IC Le Moana .....

I've included a link for a better peek ...

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-QpJKLxZ/0/4b1605ac/X3/Le%20Moana%202%20%287%20of%207%29-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-sFz5jg2/0/84b96321/X3/Le%20Moana%202%20%284%20of%207%29-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-2p3XQ3p/0/03667c90/X3/IMG_0424z-X3.jpg

The water shuttle that takes you over to the Thalasso

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-vDZnh3d/0/9c3dac0b/X3/Le%20Moana%202%20%286%20of%207%29-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-J3wXdmJ/0/29156a08/X3/Le%20Moana%203%20%282%20of%203%29-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-F8PKXP2/0/fc55370b/X3/le%20Moana%20patio%20%281%20of%201%29-X3.jpg

The Le Moana has a very nice Polyneisan feel and has great access to the Coral Garden behind the Sofitel Motu which is known to be one of the very best snorkeling locations on Bora Bora. Across the street is Matira Beach, one of the most beautiful in all the world. Within easy walking distance are several restaurants, two stores and several shops.

A few more from the Le Moana .....

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-Hd88PRr/0/b67245b6/X3/dock%20at%20Le%20Moana%20%281%20of%201%29-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-kdD3nXH/0/eb1a9192/X3/Le%20Moana%203%20%281%20of%203%29-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-KMxJcC3/0/361b9c18/X3/Le%20Moana%202%20%285%20of%207%29-X3.jpg

The beach cafe at the MaiTai which is within walking distance

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-HLzJptv/0/8bb809da/X2/Maitai%20beach%20cafe%20%281%20of%201%29-X2.jpg

Me out on the lagoon

One of my great thrills on Bora Bora. Took this with a throw away film camera years ago.

Le Moana looks spectacular from your excellent photography. Won't be able to stay there this time, but maybe in the future!

Thanks for the excellent analysis and photos,

Doug

Let us continue ....

IC Bora Bora and Thalasso Spa ...

This is a beautiful resort, a real 5 star experience. The rooms large and wonderful, the beach stunning, the inner lagoon inviting and of the course the 5 star view of Mount Otemanu.

The PG offers a day use excursion at this resort so if you want to experience a 5 star resort without the price tag this is a good one to take in. We spent the day here taking pictures and enjoying everything. The restaurant was very nice and the lunch was fabulous. On many of the pictures I included a link so you can take a good peek ...

The ride over from the Le Moana

The view from the water taxi looking back to the main island.

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-8J9cwQr/0/6d28b6df/X3/Mount%20Otemanu%20fron%20east%20side%20lagoon%20%281%20of%201%29-X3.jpg

The view of Mount Otemanu from the water shuttle dock

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-h5LbvRF/0/d037d3db/X3/Thalasso%20pier%20looking%20at%20Mt%20%281%20of%201%29-X3.jpg

A relaxing beach to enjoy and the view is fabulous

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-NFqBsWt/0/cb5bee09/X3/Outrigger%20%281%20of%201%29-X3.jpg

Relax, your in paradise

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-df9TKJ6/0/431f0a6e/X3/Thalasso%20ex%20%281%20of%206%29-X3.jpg

The possibilities are endless

https://photos.smugmug.com/South-Pacific-Photography/i-Pncs2FT/0/990c186c/X3/Thalasso%20Resort%20%288%20of%2018%29-X3.jpg

More pictures and info about this wonderful resort to follow ...