Tahiti Intercontinential Through Regent Question

[Iamboatman]

There are very few public sites that have the true best rates on upper category rooms or better. They are pretty good at noting the basic rates.

 

HOWEVER, I would strongly suggest you go to the hotel's website (especially IC's) and make sure you seek out all promotions. Some are not really great deals, but some most certainly are...and usually there is a best price guarantee, so you can book it now - reserving what you want - and then see if you can find a better rate elsewhere with no real risk.

 

BTW, many cruise only TAs (especially if they specialize in luxury cruises) are well versed in hotels and book them regularly. I would ask your TA if I were you.

[inquiring minds]

I am late to this discussion but couldn't help having a desire to share our experience:

 

My Husband and I celebrated our 30th Anniversary in April 2006 onboard PG - ceremony and all! It was a wonderful evening and probably the best part of our memories on board. I found the ship quite disappointing after all the build-up. One night, the ship's power was off because of a fire in the engine room for TWO hours during a storm - the ship was cast about frighteningly and the Captain NEVER ONCE even acknowledged the horror!!!! Otherwise, the service was adequate although certainly not engaging - food the same.

 

Our stay at the ICH in Papeete was really nice - agree with all comments about food and prices - but booked through Regent and had great rooms.

Had the over water bungalow on Moorea post-cruise for 4 nights and LOVED it! The most amazing night sky, snorkeling, privacy - even our own dolphin performing off our balcony each evening after dinner!

 

Our weather in April was rainly so that probably alters my overall impressions but this is a place I am very happy to have been although will probably not return. If so, not on the PG!

[Wendy The Wanderer]

April's not the best month in FP--we did our second PG trip in 2003 in April, and it was really hot and humid. You might have gotten a better impression in May or June. We're going on our 4th trip this December--also hot and humid, but we're going to the Marquesas, and it's supposed to be the "dry" season there.

 

Surprised about your disappointment with the PG, recent travelers have been saying really good things.

 

As for the fire, that sounds really scary. Do you mean that the captain didn't acknowledge the problem during the event, or afterwards? He must have been pretty busy during the event, but surprising that he did not say something afterwards.

 

Not everybody catches the Polynesian flu.

[egret]

Maybe we should start a whole new thread. How many times do you have to sail the PG for them to foul up so bad you forget about ever going back? I wish they would publish the foul up cruise so I could go and get rid of this addiction!

[KLG]

To go back to the original question, sort of...we didn't stay at the IC. But we booked air from LAX and the 2-night pre-cruise package at the Radisson Plaza through Regent before our June 25th cruise. I didn't do the math but I really think we got a good deal with the hotel/transfers package. We got:

- all transfers and luggage handling

- 2 nights in a beautiful hotel, where we were (presumably upgraded) in a suite

- buffet breakfast both days

- cold buffet lunch at the hotel on boarding day

- a huge buffet "brunch" on the PG on disembarkation day

- the right to stay on the PG until 12:30 or 1:00 pm (independent travelers had to be off by 10:00 am)

- a free, optional tour covering some of Tahiti's interesting sites (so-so, but I'm glad we took it)

- a "day room" at the Radisson Plaza until it was time to leave for the airport, which in our case was around 8:00 pm. The day room was a private, regular hotel room. (Based on an experience with a different line, I expected a place to store hand luggage and separate rooms for men and women to shower and change.)

 

Overall, it was worth not having to make our own separate arrangements. We did get from the east coast to LAX on our own, though. "Free" beats anything Regent could do.

Karen

[Wendy The Wanderer]

KLG, I'm interested in the details of your Radisson stay. We had to fight tooth and nail last time to get our included meals, and our TA said that it was unusual for them to be included.

 

So now I'll go back to her and ask what meals are included. A buffet breakfast can take you through the day, and with restaurant price being what they are, it's a big bonus.

[gazuccio]

We had a wonderful honeymoon on the PG and our OWb Villa was simply amazing at the IC!! I would stay there again in a heartbeat...what a beautiful place! The food in La Tiare was fanstatstic especially their breakfast! I wasn't all that impressed at the Lotus restaurant...food was ok but nothing to write home about. Once you get over the sticker shock of the food prices...well for that matter all the prices...then life is more enjoyable. Now get this...we found the food at Les Roulotte to be amazing. Simple, abundant and easy on the pocketbook. We ate there twice! Mahi Mahi or steak with french fries covered in a blue cheese sauce was absolutely amazing!!!! This is a must and it is within skipping distance to the ship!!! By the way the Bathy's dive center was nothing but Top Notch. This group was the best group we dove with followed closely by top dive in Bora Bora. What a way to start the honeymoon!!

 

The food on the PG was ok, again nothing to write home about. I will say we tried to eat at the Le grill as much as possible as this array of seafood selections were amazing. Le Veranda was, as we read, way overrated and the food in LeToille was much much better. We loved the ship and we loved the crew! The dive group at the marina were amazing!!! The ONLY flaw we saw were the water stains on the carpet. Seemed odd there were so many but other than that the ship was in great repair!!! And balcony? THE ONLY WAY TO GO!!! We took a few couples to our room who did not have a balcony and that was when they realized they made a huge mistake. It is worth every penny IF you can afford it!!! AMAZING!!!

[islandwoman]

To go back to the original question, sort of...we didn't stay at the IC. But we booked air from LAX and the 2-night pre-cruise package at the Radisson Plaza through Regent before our June 25th cruise. I didn't do the math but I really think we got a good deal with the hotel/transfers package. We got:

- all transfers and luggage handling

- 2 nights in a beautiful hotel, where we were (presumably upgraded) in a suite

- buffet breakfast both days

- cold buffet lunch at the hotel on boarding day

- a huge buffet "brunch" on the PG on disembarkation day

- the right to stay on the PG until 12:30 or 1:00 pm (independent travelers had to be off by 10:00 am)

- a free, optional tour covering some of Tahiti's interesting sites (so-so, but I'm glad we took it)

- a "day room" at the Radisson Plaza until it was time to leave for the airport, which in our case was around 8:00 pm. The day room was a private, regular hotel room. (Based on an experience with a different line, I expected a place to store hand luggage and separate rooms for men and women to shower and change.)

 

Overall, it was worth not having to make our own separate arrangements. We did get from the east coast to LAX on our own, though. "Free" beats anything Regent could do.

Karen

 

May I ask how much this package cost?

 

[Wendy The Wanderer]

The poster can answer if she likes, but looking at what she posted, there are two components:

 

1. perks that you get when you book Regent Air. This includes the transfers, the disembarkation day extension, tour and day room, and any food on board.

 

2. the hotel package booked through Regent. I have a Radisson two-nighter booked in December, I can't find the amount, but I think it's $295.

[KLG]

Wendy's right. Since we booked the whole thing through Regent, I never made the mental separation between what comes with the air package and what comes with the hotel package.

 

The 2-day pre-cruise package at the Radisson Plaza was $295 per person. (At the time the IC cost $395/person for a standard room, not an OWB.) We booked in June, 2007 for this sailing, so I don't know if prices have changed. Our TA gave us the info, and she said that the price included breakfast and transfers to/from the hotel. The cold lunch buffet on boarding day was a surprise, but a welcome one. We looked at the menu, and a basic hamburger was 2400 francs. That's maybe $35? My can of Sprite by the pool cost over $4.

 

IMPORTANT NOTE: The Radisson hotel is off by itself, so without a car or a cab you're basically stuck there. We were so tired that it didn't matter to us, and it's a really pretty resort. But if you're planning on sightseeing you may want to rent a car.

Karen

[Dreps]

There is a shuttle bus from the Radisson into town--I think twice a da--so you are not completely isolated. I think it is complimentary. We had been to Papeete before, so we just hung around the resort a few days before our cruise. It was very pleasant.

[islandwoman]

Thank you, Wendy, Karen, and Dreps. Now I can make an informed decision about pre-cruise travel and lodging.

[ORV]

Sounds like the deal we have, except it was a package deal, it came with the air included, and the 2 post days at the Radisson. I haven't seen any information on whether or not the breakfast is included but I hope it is. I'm waiting until we get our documents to see what it says. We also have the transfers included. We did also get that first time Regent customer $500 per cabin OBC. That gets us a couple of excursions on the house.