Princess in Papeete ... Early Debarkation?

[TRauppius]

I would appreciate advice from anyone familiar with the Tahitian/Ocean Princess 10 day Papeete-Papeete cruise.

 

The cruise returns to Papeete at 8 PM of the evening PRIOR to debarkation the next morning. I am aware that Princess uses a special process so that passengers leaving on the usual ATN flights late at night can have share use of some of the ship's public spaces concurrently with the passengers boarding for the next 10 day cruise cycle.

 

My question is, if instead I tried to go for a morning flight departure at 8:30 AM, is there sufficient time to make the connection given the 6:00 AM "official arrival time" (actually the ship has been in Papeete since 8 PM the day before)?

 

Does Princess procedure, baggage claim, airport taxi, airport processing, etc. make a 6 to 8:30 AM dash feasible?

 

Thanks in advance for any direct knowledge.

[ETepas]

I'm on the 3 March cruise with Royal Princess and am scheduled for a 13 March 8am flight back to the States. I've been told by a few folks that have done this before that there won't be a problem with the ship releasing us a few hours early. The challenge is getting transportation that time of the morning to the airport. It was suggested to make those arrangements with a local transfer co or taxi service prior to leaving port. Another option is working with the purser's office while on ship.

[TRauppius]

I'm on the 3 March cruise with Royal Princess and am scheduled for a 13 March 8am flight back to the States. I've been told by a few folks that have done this before that there won't be a problem with the ship releasing us a few hours early. The challenge is getting transportation that time of the morning to the airport. It was suggested to make those arrangements with a local transfer co or taxi service prior to leaving port. Another option is working with the purser's office while on ship.

 

Thanks. I have received similar advice on other forum portals and will most likely go ahead and try this early departure. I have also gotten an email address of a taxi/shuttle service that features special early pickup arrangements.

[ETepas]

Would appreciate the email address of the taxi/shuttle service that you have. I have one address but would feel better if I had 2!!! THANKS

[TRauppius]

Would appreciate the email address of the taxi/shuttle service that you have. I have one address but would feel better if I had 2!!! THANKS

 

Send an email addressed to Greg's Taxi at catgregtours@mail.pf and request contact information for pre-arranged hires/pickups. Also, the ship's passenger services/concierge can help arrange an early AM taxi, and even cab sharing if your are interested.

 

Also, if you go to the Tahiti Board of Tourism site they have links to other taxi services.

 

I have been warned by Princess (the independent air feedback) that an 8:30 AM departure is "too early for RELIABLE connection". I called and asked and found out the "reliable" portion of the caveat dealt with: 1) the baggage claim tent not being manned in the early AM (so you need to manhandle your own bags off the ship, and 2) getting a taxi at 6 AM on Saturday. The check-in for the early AF flight is smoother and faster than the dual ATN departures at night.

[ETepas]

Thanks for the info...it will help a lot.

[KandKmiami]

A few months ago we were on royal princess and we got off early. I think we took the 8:00am flight. They had bag service for us and we got a bus for 2000 xpf for 2 people to the airport all done by princess. When we got on board we asked about the early departure and they said that they will take care of calling for a taxi for us. I guess they just got so many people that they did a bus because we filled it. Hope this helps.

[TRauppius]

Thanks for the encouraging information.

 

We have gone ahead and made a contingency reservation hold on AF flights to/from LAX. It cost $20/pp to hold for 2 weeks while we wait for EzAir to become available. The regular ATN flights are already almost sold out, and are costing more than AF.

 

I will work through the cruise ship staff to arrange either group of personal transport ~6 AM.

[ETepas]

Just finished the 10 day cruise and flew out of Papeete on Air France that departed at 8:25 am. Was a little nervous before leaving for the cruise but everyone on cruise critic assured me it would be OK. Here is what I did: Early in the cruise I filled out a debarkation card giving my airline info. If you have an early departure, you will be given tags that allow you to pick up your luggage as early as 6am; however, I thought that was a little late so I opted to carry my own luggage off the ship at 5:20 and had no problem doing so. In fact, they had one of the crew take my luggage out to the parking lot for me. There were 4 cabs just sitting in the lot (don't know if that's normal) so I got in and was at the airport in 10 minutes. I arrived and found myself second in line. The check in was uneventful, immigration a breeze and was the only one in line for the security check. Once at the gate, I found the snack bar and the small shop open for business. I don't know if I was just lucky or what but there were at least 10 other couples I saw at the gate that made it after me with no problem. I think the key is to get there between 5:30 and 5:45 to avoid lines. It makes for a considerable wait but if you have a book, there's really nothing else you need. Even the weather was doable at time of day. A small breeze was flowing through the gate area (it's a semi-open waiting area). Hope this gives you an idea.

[TRauppius]

Just finished the 10 day cruise and flew out of Papeete on Air France that departed at 8:25 am. Was a little nervous before leaving for the cruise but everyone on cruise critic assured me it would be OK. Here is what I did: Early in the cruise I filled out a debarkation card giving my airline info. If you have an early departure, you will be given tags that allow you to pick up your luggage as early as 6am; however, I thought that was a little late so I opted to carry my own luggage off the ship at 5:20 and had no problem doing so. In fact, they had one of the crew take my luggage out to the parking lot for me. There were 4 cabs just sitting in the lot (don't know if that's normal) so I got in and was at the airport in 10 minutes. I arrived and found myself second in line. The check in was uneventful, immigration a breeze and was the only one in line for the security check. Once at the gate, I found the snack bar and the small shop open for business. I don't know if I was just lucky or what but there were at least 10 other couples I saw at the gate that made it after me with no problem. I think the key is to get there between 5:30 and 5:45 to avoid lines. It makes for a considerable wait but if you have a book, there's really nothing else you need. Even the weather was doable at time of day. A small breeze was flowing through the gate area (it's a semi-open waiting area). Hope this gives you an idea.

 

Thanks for taking the time to relate your experience. I have cancelled my AF reservation in favor of the the traditional ATN red-eyes to from LAX. I did this not because of the early departure warning from Princess, but rather due to a significantly lower airfare becoming available on ATN.