2/21/05 Tahitian Princess Review

[btkktrout]

Tahitian Princess Marquesas Tour

 

I must first start by saying we traveled with our neighbors and had the most amazing vacation! This is a lengthy review……….

 

Flight: Air France from LA to Papeete was fine. We left LA just after midnight, so we tried to sleep the best we could. We were served a meal just after take off and again just before landing. We had individual monitors on the back of each seat going to Papeete, but returning to LA, the screens were overhead.

 

Pre-cruise stay in Papeete: We stayed at the InterContinental Beachcomber (ICB). It was a great place to stay. We had a 3rd floor panoramic room with a view of the lotus pool and Moorea. The food at the hotel was very expensive – or so we heard. We went to the large shopping market (15 minute walk, right out of the ICB) and bought croissants, bread, cheese, water, juice and a few other snacks to get us by. For dinner that first night, we had made reservations at Le Belevedere through ICB. Transportation from ICB was included in the cost of the meal and was via a Le Truck . It was a wonderful choice. For two people, we paid $123 US. That included transportation, salad, beef fondue (a large portion), good French fries, a large carafe of wine, and ice cream for dessert. We had great company (also joined by our CC friends) and a great view of the city below! It was well worth it!

 

On 2/20, we took the ferry to Moorea, where we rented a car for the day. With it being Sunday, the juice factory was closed. We walked around the Moorea Beachcomber (we thought the Tahiti resort was a bit nicer) and drove up to the Belvedere lookout – what a beautiful view! In Painapo, we went to The Other Place and had their Tahitian feast. It was off the side of the road, and they put on a great Sunday brunch show! We also snorkeled right there off the beach. The Roulettes were a perfect choice for dinner that night, and very affordable. We met our CC friends in the Tiki Bar at ICB later that night – a great group of people!!!

 

Embarkation (2/21): Checking into the Tahitian Princess was a breeze. We were able to grab a bite to eat at the grill before heading to the market to buy our fresh flowers for our room - $15 US for a nice arrangement! They also have handmade jewelry and trinkets to buy upstairs in the market and a lot of the places took Visa. We often made our own cocktails in our room and brought those up on deck to relax by the pool or watch the sun go down. We had a great room steward name Rodolfo (Rod) – he was always in the hallway waiting to greet us with a smile!

 

Moorea (2/22): Room service had the best hot chocolate in the morning – which we often ordered on days we needed to tender early. We would order pastries or bagels and muffins. You could also write in bacon or eggs, and they will bring that. In Moorea, we did the two tank dive. It was arranged by the ship with Bathy’s Club Moorea. We were not overly impressed with the dive outfit. In between dives, we had to swap out our own gear – no snacks or water offered to us. At the end of the dives, we had to clean out and return their gear. This is probably a petty complaint, but there was no customer service at all. The dive itself was great! Black tip sharks greeted the boat as we anchored. We saw rose coral, a huge lemon shark, and 3 turtles. There was a beautiful rainbow as we left Moorea! There are a few small tents set up right off the tender. You can find simple jewelry trinkets to buy. They take US dollars.

 

At Sea (2/23): It was rainy and windy most of the day – the only day we had bad weather. FORMAL NIGHT

 

At Sea (2/24) A BEAUTIFUL SUNNY DAY!!! Our CC friends hosted a reception in their beautiful owner’s suit for a couple who were on their honeymoon. We had appetizers and champagne. It is a very nice suite! There were 16 of us in our CC group – it was nice to finally meet everyone!

 

Nuku Hiva (2/25): We took Jocelyne’s tour – made our own arrangements online prior to leaving the US. It was great!!! She greeted us with flower leis. There were 6 of us in our group and it was $92 US each, including a stop on the other side of the island for fruit platters and water. It was about a 6 hour tour. She spoke English, and she drove all the way across the island, stopping at an archeological site, Notre Dame Cathedral, and several view points. The road was VERY bumpy at times, but a great day and a great tour!

 

Hiva Oa (2/26): Princess pays for the shuttle to and from town – it picks you up right there at the tender. They also for pay for the Polynesian dance show that performs twice. We enjoyed the dance, walking around the cemetery (Gaugaun/Bruel’s graves), and walking on the beach.

 

At Sea (2/27): A sunny day at sea!!! We enjoyed playing the pool games. My husband played shuffleboard and ping pong. We have a large collection of Princess memorabilia (bag, luggage tag, water bottles) that we won. I enjoyed lounging on a deck chair – there were always plenty!

 

Rangiroa (2/28): We dove with Six Passengers, arranged through Princess. They were great people, and we had an awesome one tank dive. We were not able to dive the drift, because the current was going the other way. We dove just outside Avatoru Pass. We saw an eel, tons of fish and beautiful Coral, and a huge manta ray. The water was so blue! The beach is a 5 minute walk from the tender. Many people hung out at the beach all day – sun and snorkeling. In the afternoon, we took the free shuttle to the Pearl Farm. It was very interesting and recommended if you have never heard the story.

 

 

 

Raiatea (3/1): We docked in Raiatea – which made it nice for coming and going. We arranged the Tahaa Drift Snorkel through Princess. They use Marie and Tony Tucker of West Coast Charters. They were great! You could walk up and drift snorkel the pass several times. The colors of coral and fish are amazing. If you maneuver well enough, you don’t get scratched up as others have said. There is a resort there where you anchor. You can even have something at their bar if you have time. Marie and Tony served us fruit and juice after our snorkel. The shopping right there at the dock is pretty good. There are lots of little jewelry pieces and trinkets to find – they take US dollars. There is also a bar right there where you can sit and have a Hinano. At 4:15, we watched the children’s dance show in the Cabaret Lounge. It was nice. The littlest kids were very cute. We bought flowered head dresses ($5 each) for the island party later that night.

 

We did the night dive through Princess from 7-9pm. They used Hemisphere Sub. It was my first night dive and a good experience. We went off the end of the pier at the Raiatea Pearl Beach Resort. There is a wreck less than 75 below the surface - Nearby is a merchant ship that sank in 1900. We saw shrimp and an eel.

 

At the island party, the adults performed a Polynesian dance show. There was also an ice carving demonstration, champagne fountain, and late night buffet with amazing food displays. People danced (mostly the crew) until just after midnight. It was a fun evening.

 

Bora Bora (3/2): It was another sunny day! We rented a small 6 horsepower boat from Top Dive – for 4 of us. We had a great day cruising around the blue water. We headed out to a motu and then the Aquarium. We snorkeled with tons of rays and saw a black tip shark. On our way across the water, we saw two eagle rays mating. They were flapping at the surface. It was very cool! We stopped at Bloody Mary’s for drinks and pictures. We beached our boat and walked across the street. We also stopped at Matira Beach (next to the Bora Bora Beach Resort) to snorkel. It was easy getting around in the small boat and beaching it when we needed too. The shopping right off the tender is pretty good – if you are looking for inexpensive jewelry and trinkets. They also take US dollars.

 

Tahitian Princess: The ship was very nice. It is looking a bit worn down, but it will go into dry dock in April for 12 days. Many people had a hard time adjusting to the rocking motion and were feeling sick in the beginning. Keep in mind that the ship does tend to rock more than a larger ship if you have problems. The pool is just the right size for the amount of people that spent time in it. It was very refreshing. The pool showers were often very warm and not as refreshing if you wanted to cool off. The crew was very nice and we enjoyed getting to know a few – but we also participated in a lot of the cruise activities and had fun! We are in our mid 30’s and found a large mix of people. There were plenty of young and older people. We got to know so many, that every time you turned around, you knew someone. We enjoyed the great company and people we met. Although we had an inside cabin, it was very spacious and nice. We like spending time on deck and feel that our room was just right for us.

 

Cabaret Lounge Shows: We enjoyed the shows at night. The princess dancers had several great acts they put together. They joined the ship the same time as us and were busy rehearsing their performances. They did a nice job. We also enjoyed the comedian and magic show.

 

Casino: I didn’t leave any money behind in the casino. I let my husband do that, although he was very lucky about the 3rd day. He pulled two straight flushes in a row playing three card poker. The payout was pretty good! I heard the slots were pretty tight! We did play bingo on the sea day that we had rain and on the last day when the blackout jackpot was $1400 – we didn’t win, but it was fun!

 

 

 

Food: We liked the food. We didn’t eat in the dining room for breakfast or lunch. We usually went to the buffet. The pizza is really good. The grill also offered burgers, bratwurst and hot dogs. In the morning, the grill offered omelets and eggs any way you want them. There was always a good selection of food to choose from. We had good food in the dining room – no complaints. We usually brought up our own glass of wine to have with dinner – never a problem. We sat at a table for 8 (already knowing one couple) and had nice table mates. As I mentioned earlier, we met a lot of really nice people. We went to the Sterling steakhouse on the night the dining room was serving French cuisine. We had the best steaks I have ever had. It was very good, and we enjoyed the meal. Ice cream is served in the buffet from 3-4 – don’t miss it! Make sure you are there to get your ice cream well before 4:00. They are really prompt at clearing it away! It is good ice cream! We also did afternoon tea one day. It was nice – they served scones, small sandwiches, cookies and tea – in the dining room.

 

 

 

Spa/Work out room: We took the spa tour when they had their open house/free champagne. We also won 40% off any treatment. With that said, I had the cleo milk wrap and massage. It was wonderful!!! My friend had someone else and her massage was done in less time, and certainly not as good. I had Anja, and she was great. We did use the workout facilities a couple times. It was hard to run on the treadmill if the ship was really rocking. The steam room in the spa is also great, and you can us it anytime. They also have nice showers in the spa room. If you need a new pool towel, it’s easier sometime to get one from the spa than your room steward.

 

 

 

Internet: The internet cost $0.50 per minute. The connections were pretty good. If I was to send a quick email back home and read a few responses, it took less than 10 minutes. We never used the phone at port – too much of a hassle. It was easier to communicate with a quick email every couple days – we left our 5 and 8 year olds home with Grandma and Grandpa.

[MichTraveler]

btkktrout: Thanks for this review. We are "hoping" to do the TP next year for our 25th anniversary. April or May if everything works out. Reviews like yours are very helpful.

[MVPinBoynton]

Hi Toni,

A very nice review. The pictures you sent us were really great. We should be publishing our review to the website early this week. We have finished the narrative and now we just have to insert pictures. I don't know why Carol took so many of them.

[btkktrout]

Thanks Mike -

 

I talked with Trina today. She said they will send you a disc with all our photos, and you will do the same. You can never have enough photos. Those are the best souvenirs!!!

 

Look forward to your review!

 

Karen and Allen will be leaving the TP this evening. I am anxious to hear all about their 10 days without us!

[dansgirlie]

May I ask how did you get your own liquor on the ship? Did you purchase it before the cruise through Princess and have it delivered?

 

Thanks in advance and great review. My DH and I are booked on this cruise for April 06. Still trying to convince him to do a pre or post stay though.

 

 

 

Lori

[btkktrout]

Hi Lori -

 

We actually brought our own liquor and wine on the ship. We put it in liter water bottles (vodka and white rum) and double bagged them. We had no problems. You are allowed to bring a certain amount of wine.

 

We had planned to buy more liquor from room service - it's pretty reasonable. But we didn't go through what we brought as fast as we thought. We also bought drinks of the day on occasion. The peach margaritas were really good! We also enjoyed the apple martinis at the casino bar.

 

Our pre-cruise stay was so nice. It gave us a chance to relax a bit - rather than get off the plane and head straight to the boat. Being divers, it also gave us a chance to see Moorea pre-cruise. When the ship was in the port of Moorea, we dove.

 

 

I hope that helps.

[laurieb]

very nice review.

 

the first time we went, we flew through Princess with no pre or post cruise time. we thought it was very hectic. the secont time, we did both a pre and post cruise stay. it was SO much nicer and much more relaxing. I would highly recommend doing at least a pre or post cruise day, one or two on either end would be even better! you don't have to spend a fortune at a resort, we stayed at a small pension on Moorea for three days, it was very reasonable. If you do stay at a resort on Tahiti, the ICB is fantastic!

[kjo@aol.com]

Hi,

 

You say you rented a small boat in Bora bora from top dive? That sounds just perfect! Can you tell me how much it cost? Did they give you general directions on how to traverse the lagoon? A list of do's and don't..or did they just say "here ya go" and off you went? LOL

 

I would love the freedom to go to a motu and snorkel and lounge, as well as stop by bloody mary's, etc.

 

Where these things easy to find?

 

Thanks for your feedback!

Kim in RI

[btkktrout]

Hi Kim,

 

Here is the email at Top dive that we used to reserve the boat

reservation@topdive.com

 

You can rent it for a half day (not sure of the cost), or the full day like us. We paid $141. There were four of us, so we split the cost per couple. They give you a map and tell you some places you might like to go. You may want to asks them the best way to traverse through the lagoon - there is a lot of shallow coral.

 

We made arrangements for them to pick us up at the tender at 8:30. It's a short drive to the boats. You tell them when you will be back with the boat, and someone will be waiting to take you to the tender.

 

Best of luck!

[kjo@aol.com]

Thanks so much! That sounds like a perfect day! :)