Doing The Tahitian

[guardhouse]

We leave April 9 on the Tahitian Princess. We are traveling from Portland, Or to L.A., then onto ATN for the flight to Tahiti.

 

We have HC Cabin 4052, justt off the purser's lobby and we will be taking my wife's wheelchair all the way through.

 

This ship has very few HC cabins, but it will be a treat to see such a wonderful part of the world.

 

I will be sure to post a specific review about the cruise and the ship from a wheelchair perspective.

[Argoknot55]

Hello Guardhouse:

It has been a long time since you posted re your plans to sail in Tahiti. Do hope you had a fine time(?). How was the ship, with its two h/c cabins (only)?

And I wondered in particular about the airport in Papeete. Can they handle someone in a wheelchair? And how is transport around the island pre-cruise ... is there h/c transport.

I visited the South Pacific 30 years ago, when able-bodied, and loved it. I'd love to go back and a cruise looks like the best way to do it, though there are not very many options, and I am concerned about getting to the ship.

Thanks,

[guardhouse]

My apologies for not getting more on earlier. I am not sure I have even had time to be on here since we got back.

 

What a fabulous cruise! In every way. The ship was EXTREMELY easy to get around on and had everything we needed. May be my favorite ship so far.

 

The ship has, I think, 4 HC rooms; two outside window, one interior and I think one mini-suite or outside balcony. We had one of the outside oceanview (4052) and it was great. Lots of room, close to purser and medical, elevators, etc. Dining room was just up one floor. ALL cabins do have mini-fridges, which was a relief with my wifes meds.

 

Papeete was fairly easy to walk around, even with a wheelchair. We didn't use any public transports. My wife did neglect to bring a cane from home (she is able to walk very short distances) and we found her to "brace" canes in a french pharmacy. They are even better for her than her canes, and they only cost the equiv. of $30 USD! We were relieved.

 

We used her wheelchair in a couple of other ports and it worked out ok. You can pretty much see what it will be like when you pull into an island. Some areas there is no way she could have used her WC.

 

Nice bonus, drivers in FP are VERY courteous.

 

It was a great trip. Please feel free to ask any specific questions.

[Argoknot55]

That is good news. Many thanks for your thoughtful reply. As noted in my earlier post, my wife and I have wonderful memories of Tahiti and other islands of the S. Pacific.

 

Another question though: Which airline did you take, and what kind of arrangements did the airline make for boarding/deboarding? While I can walk short distances on the level, I could no longer make it down an airplane's steps. In the past I've had difficulties in smaller airports getting a (working) lift to take me up to the cabin.

 

Again, my thanks

[guardhouse]

We flew Air Tahiti to and fro.

 

We were given priority boarding and we made sure to ask in advance at ticketing for bulkhead seats. They assign these at the airport and hold them out for passengers who need them.

 

There was a passenger on the return trip in Tahiti who could not walk up the steps. They brought her up the other side of the aircraft in a lift pretty quickly.

 

Hope this is helpful!