What to do before return flight?

[Dunner]

We will be staying post cruise at the Moorea Hilton after the repeater's cruise Sept. 2014. There is an early morning flight on the Tues. which we wouldn't be able to make because we would have to get a ferry from Moorea to Tahiti and then to the airport. The Wed. flight is around midnight. Any ideas of what to do before the flight? I think the last ferry from Moorea to Tahiti is 4, but then we would have had to have been out of our room well before that.

[Tikiintahiti]

How many days are you staying at the Moorea Hilton?

 

And are you staying anywhere pre-cruise?

Edited November 9, 2013 by Tikiintahiti

[Dunner]

We are staying post cruise at the Moorea Hilton Sat. Sun. Mon night. We were thinking of flying out Tues., but the flight is too early-- can't make it so will proabably need to stay Tues. night also which might be o.k. anyway.

 

We are staying 3 nights at the I.C Tahiti precruise.

 

By the way Tiki--many posts ago you said you were going on the repeater's cruise/.Then there was an issue on your end and you weren't sure. Are you still going?

[Tikiintahiti]

Not sure on the repeaters at this time.

 

My main issue is spending so much money and not getting to take the tours we would want to. Though we would love to see many returnees and a new island it just doesn't make sense to take 2nd or 3rd choices on tours as everything is booked. I think we would rather go on a different cruise date that we can book the tours we want.

 

OK, now on to your situation.

 

As you will be staying pre-cruise at the IC I would inform them as you checkout that you will want to take advantage of the 'freshen up' facilities on the day you head to the airport on your return. The IC Tahiti has some small rooms with showers and changing area that you can use at no charge. Just set it up as you check out before you head out to the ship.

 

On your post stay. I would rent a car (only a short walk form the ship) and take it on the ferry with you. Keep it the whole time your on Moorea. When you check out of the Hilton you can run around Moorea a bit more or head over to Tahiti. Again you will take the car on the ferry. When you get back over to Tahiti you now have a car to tour around with and hold your bags in. Go shopping, go all the way around the island, what ever you wish. Toward the end of the day go to the IC Tahiti and freshin up. About 8:00 pm drive over to the airport and drop off the car (pre-arrange the drop off point when you book, usually an extra $15 USD) Walk across the street and checkin.

 

There you go : )

[Dunner]

Sorry you have decided to go on another trip. That sounds like it would work just fine. The only small downside is that we want to veg out and enjoy the Hilton so we won't probably use the car at all until the last day--but at least this is a solid option. How much approx. does it cost to rent a car per day---thanks

Edited November 10, 2013 by Dunner

[Tikiintahiti]

The other option is to rent a car once your back to Tahiti (after Moorea). The rantal place is only a few blocks from the ferry dock. Rent it and keep it for the afternoon and evening, return it to the airport when departing, this allows you to take advantage of the IC to freshen up before the airport circus.

 

Keep in mind it's nice to have a car on Moorea, we always rent one the whole time we are there but that's us .......

Edited November 10, 2013 by Tikiintahiti

[Dunner]

That is a good idea also. We plan on renting a car one of the days we are on Moorea during the cruise. If we find we would use it during the post cruise stay we will use your first suggestion--otherwise the 2nd one. Since we are spending all this money for an OWB we thought we should hang out there and take advantage of it instead of zipping all around the island at that time. As far as you know can you book when you get there or do you need to book in advance? Hate for them to run out of cars. If we need to reserve one ahead of time we will have to make a decision before we leave.

[Tikiintahiti]

I always book before hand ;)

[MrsSmith91739]

We just got back from the post trip in Moorea, we ended up changing our ferry and transport times to earlier as the Hilton would not let us do late check out. We then got a day room at the IC Tahiti. Worked out great for us.

[Dunner]

We just got back from the post trip in Moorea, we ended up changing our ferry and transport times to earlier as the Hilton would not let us do late check out. We then got a day room at the IC Tahiti. Worked out great for us.

 

How did you enjoy the Hilton?

Any tips you think I might like to know?

What time did they kick you out of your room at the Hilton?

How much did you pay for a day room at the IC Tahiti and what time did you have to be out of the room?

Did you have to reserve ahead of time?

Was there a fee for changing your transfers and ferry time? Thanks

[MrsSmith91739]

How did you enjoy the Hilton?

Any tips you think I might like to know?

What time did they kick you out of your room at the Hilton?

How much did you pay for a day room at the IC Tahiti and what time did you have to be out of the room?

Did you have to reserve ahead of time?

Was there a fee for changing your transfers and ferry time? Thanks

 

Hi Dunner;

 

The Hilton was like any Hilton on the higher end. It is great property. Small beach but nice. They let you use kayaks, paddle boards, those little boats you use your feet to get around in and snorkel gear for free, but thats where the free stops. The resort is ridiculously overpriced on everything else.

They charge 3600 xpf each (+/-$42 US) for an american buffet breakfast. The breakfast was crappy, the only thing that was good and what I considered edible were the omelettes that they made fresh. Everything else, potatoes, pancakes, etc were either under or over cooked. Nothing was well stocked, we had coffee which was sitting in a carafe on a table that you picked up on your way in. I asked for a fresh pot and got a cup of nescafe instant. I might tolerate that at a Holiday Inn but not at $1000 a night hotel. The next morning I asked for a fresh pot and they looked at me like they didnt understand what I was saying. Only the saving grace on that was that the breakfast was included in our package. (unfortunately the hotel staff is nothing compared to the PG staff, so it was quite irritating)

Dinner was 7900 xpf for a buffet. They charged us 750 xpf for a bottle of Perrier for dinner. Dinner was OK because they had alot of good sashimi and bbq.

They give you a card saying dont drink the tap water but they charge 500 xpf for a small bottle of water. Again at $1k a night they could have included the bottled water. For coffee in the room it was 2 little packets of Nescafe instant.

So that's what I didnt like about it. We had met other people who were staying at the Sofitel and went and hung out with them there. Their room was just as nice as ours was, but the beach was way better over there. Their hotel is closer to the shopping area too. Hilton is far from everything.

I will explain what our original travel plans were and how we changed them and tips on how to make your trip better.

We had a 3 day post crusie trip too. Our original plans included ferry ride over to Moorea with transfer to the hotel and on the day of leaving transfer from hotel to the ferry and then transfer from Papeete ferry to the airport.

Our ferry ride back to Papeete was for the 4:45 pm ferry and getting back to Papeetee at 5:15 pm. We then would have been at the airport from approx 5:45 until our departing flight at midnight. We had to check out of the hotel at 11 am. That would have left us almost 5 hours at the hotel and almost 6 hours at the airport of downtime.

Since the hotel wouldn't let us have late check out we had the concierge call the transfer company to see if they would be able to change the transfer times, once they said yes, we then called the IC and told them our situation and asked for a day room, they gave us the day room for 14,500 xpf. We stayed at the hotel until 9:45 pm before checking out. It was alot but better than just sitting for almost 11 hours with nothing to do. That included the day room use and the use of the property, it also included the transfer from the IC to the airport. We already had a transfer from the ferry to the airport so we just used that to get to the hotel. (The hotel and airport are 7 mins away from each other)

We took an earlier ferry over and they made arrangements with the transfer company to pick us up earlier. The transfer companies were very cool and had no problem changing it. Each transfer included at least 2-3 other couples, so not like they made any special trips for us. They did not charge us for any of the changes nor did the ferry company.

We did all of the changes that morning of our check out since they wouldnt let us stay later. They did offer us a transit room where we could shower if we went swimming there but we didnt want to have so much downtime still at the airport. We did use the pool and small beach area at the IC.

So if you have time before to make the changes do. Don't expect the Hilton to have your room available, as it was very busy there.

We didnt have a car reservation. On the ride to the Hilton the transfer guy gave us some info on their prices for a car. They were reasonable. The next day we had the concierge call Alberts and they came and got us to rent a car. It was nothing fancy but it was just what we needed to get the job of getting me to the stores I wanted to go to. They gave us a special for $8000 xpf for 24 hr rental same price as an 8 hr rental, she also gave us an automatic included. I did most of my shopping for souvenirs and things I wanted on Moorea. Everything seems more reasonable and better selection. I took alot of advice from the Tiki man and shopped where he said to.

When we went to drop the car off, they were at lunch so they came to the hotel and picked it up, they were very cool about it. Everything there is so much more laid back than in the US. Its like ok man whatever no problem.

You might want to take some bottled water and fruit when you leave the ship in your baggage so you have it when you arrive at the Hilton. We were pretty tired the first day we got there so we didnt go out that afternoon. Once we got the car the next morning we went to the grocery store called Champion, largest store for everything you need on the island. Water there for 1 bottle was 65 xpf unlike the 500 at the Hilton. We bought a six pack of water and six pack of the Tahitian beer (so good) for basically the price of 1 water and 1 beer at the Hilton. We picked up a couple of baguettes, some cheese and lunch meat for sandwiches we ate for lunch. They also had some hot premade meals there too. They looked good, but the salami and brie called my name.

We bought some extra bread to feed the fishes, we too got an OWB and it was fun to feed the fishes. If you plan to eat at the hotel breakfast, lunch and dinner plan on spending at least 20000 xpf per person on food per day, we didn't buy drinks there so I have no idea what that would be. It was more reasonable to rent a car and go get food from the grocery store and had pizza for lunch the other day we were there than pay their outrageous prices. (and I don't consider myself a cheapy person by any means)

I know this was long, sorry, but I hope it helped answer your questions. Feel free to ask whatever you want.

 

Maria

[Tikiintahiti]

I've stayed at all the major lagoon front resorts on Moorea, yes, every one of them. They all have pros and cons. Here is my order ......

 

1. Hilton Nui - Best snorkeling, good sunsets, nice rooms, mostly adults, mostly American.

2. Sofitel - Good snorkeling, best beach, nice sunrises, A good mix of cultures, lots of French.

3. IC Moorea - Close to Le Petit Village, close to motu/transfer, best for children, nice pool.

4. Pearl Beach - Close to shopping and restaurants, most friendly staff, best bang for the buck.

 

Of the 4 my BH prefers the Hilton Nui. As I've always said there are several reasonable places to eat within walking distance. The only place I recommend eating at at the Hilton is the crepes bar. Good, friendly and somewhat reasonable.

 

I might also add I've never paid $1000 per night for a room at the Hilton Nui. Yes it is usually the most expensive of the 4 but there are deals if you are flexible & know where to book. Last time we stayed there was in 2009 and we got a bargain. Off season, as a package, 7 nights from LAX $1,689 per person. As it was off season they weren't busy and we were upgraded for free to a nice OWB. We booked a car from the airport in Tahiti and took it on the ferry. Kept it for all 8 days we were there, $492. This allowed us to have complete control over our stay and eating needs. It also gave us the ability to tour around Tahiti on our last day with a place to keep our bags. We ended up at the IC Tahiti around 5:30 pm. Took a swim, used their transit room to cleanup, watched the floor show and then drive over to the airport where we turned in the car.

 

I assume the prices have gone up even in the off season but you get my point, you can get first class accommodations without breaking the bank but it comes down to flexibility. To mix a stay for only 3 nights while there for a cruise is a bit harder for the deal prices.

Edited November 20, 2013 by Tikiintahiti

[Emdee]

I actually think the Hilton is closer to shoping at Maharepa though the Sofitel is closer to Champion. However, I love the Sofitel beach and the food etc at the hotel is decent.

You can also get a breakfast and dinner package at the Sofitel which is convenient. Every day after brekkie i would ask the chefs for stale bread for the fish. Its almost as they recognized me as the moment I got into the water they were buzzing around us!

 

We also stocked up at water and Pop from Champion and just gave the left overs to the bell boy when he came for us.

[Dunner]

Maria---thanks for your detailed response. From some of the other reading I have done I knew that it was expensive,but it helps to put a daily dollar amount if we wanted to eat at the resort. I read somewhere that the fish dinners were cheaper but never got an approx. dollar amount for those dinners. One thing that really surprised me is that the breakfast was not that great. When I am putting out the dollars I am for the pool bungalow and OWB I guess I am expecting everything to be outstanding! Maybe they were having an off week. I will change my expectations then hopefully I will be pleasantly surprised. After all the eating I will probably do on the cruise it might be a good time to cut back and eat less!!! I will hit the supermarket too.

Tikintahiti----wow what a deal!! Which of the off season months did you go? What was the weather like? How did you hear about that special? I will definitely try the crepe restaurant/bar.

[Tikiintahiti]

Remember that was 2009 when the economy was in the dump.

 

We went in early December

 

Weather was fine

 

I remember paying $1,349 inclusive from LAX to Club Med Bora Bora for 8 days, that included eats and the bar tab ..........

 

Oh the memories