December 10/05 will Paul Gaugin still be okay

[TraceyB]

Looking to do the December 10th 2005 sailing on the Paul Gaugin. Will it still be a great Radisson experience or will they be getting ready for the ship to be sold. Really not sure if they will still have the great onboard service everyone talks about. Any thoughts from passed Gaugin cruisers would be a great help.

Thanks in advance Tracey

[Dolebludger]

I have exchanged emails with Mark Conroy, Radisson's president, concerning the PG and the future of the French Polynesian itinerary. He assured me that the PG will remain "at its best" until she leaves the fleet.

 

 

Thanks,

Richard:) :) :)

[TraceyB]

Thanks so much for the info. Makes me feel alot better.

[2417rocky]

Richard, Since you have been e-mailing Mark Conroy have you found out if RSSC will have a ship in FP when PG is gone. We plan to go back while PG is still with RSSC. :D I am just wondering if you know any new information. Thanks, Roxanne

[Marylis]

The TA I've been working with says she thinks that they may move the Diamond to the French Polynesean (sp?) route, but I think that that is mainly speculation -- I didn't get the impression that she had any hard evidence.

 

Mary

[Dolebludger]

Roxanne:

 

 

No new contact with Mark Conroy, as I contacted him about this PG matter just a few weeks ago, when he indicated that talks with the FP government on another ship there would start soon. Those kind of things take time, and I don't want to seem to be "pestering" Mr. Conroy. RSSC seems to be sincere about wanting to continue this itinerary, but nothing is certain. Perhaps one more trip on the PG would be in order!

 

Thanks,

Richard

[Jim B]

Ok! Here is an idea.

What if Radisson Cruise Line bought or leased one of the old Renissance ships and put it in FP.

Yes it would be the same ship as Tahitian Princess has there but Oh it would be amazing to see the difference in service wouldn't it??

[rfb]

The interiors of the Renaissance Ships are completely different from Radisson and would require a complete redo. In addition they carry over 600 passengers. On a previous thread there was a concern that the Navigator with 490 passengers was too large a ship for the area.

[Jim B]

Yea I realized all that about Renissance ships. 600 is still small when you compare it to mega ships. Mariner & Voyager are both 700 aren't they? That is kind of where I thought one might work. Any ship would need refinishing to make it up to RSSC standards.

[mimie]

I have always wanted to do this cruise and was concerned that it was sold. Finally convinced my husband that we HAD to go on the PG while it was still part of Radisson. We are planning on taking the New Years Cruise - Dec 28, 2005. (Now that is cutting it close!)

 

It would be great to hear from anyone who has done a holiday cruise in FP.

 

Miriam

PG-Dec 28, 2005

Voyager-Baltics- July 2004

[Dolebludger]

Jim B and all:

 

 

The old Ren ships had a much less advantageous passenger to space ratio than anything Radisson has sailed. In other words, they had way too many guests for the over-all size of the ship to meet Radisson standards --- and still do. They are way too crowded. This is one of the things you didn't like on the NCL Dream, and wouldn't like if Radisson cruised an old Ren ship.To retrofit an old Ren ship to meet Radisson standards would be indeed a thankless and ultra expensive task. Inside cabins would have to become history, as would those "tiny" outside cabins. The reason Mark Conroy (Radisson CEO) gave me for RSSC not buying the PG is that it did not fit RSSC's all suite, all balcony objective. Using an old Ren ship would be a step BACKWARDS, not forward.

 

My guess? Radisson will put the Navigator in FP temporarily, unitl it can build or lease something more along the lines of the PG, but with all suites and all balconies.

 

Thanks,

Richard:) :) :)

[Jim B]

Richard:

You are so correct. What was I possibly thinking. I never thought about the cabin ratio part. Navigator does make sense. I wonder if there is anything under construction that RSSC would be interested in or if they have plans to build something? (I realize they usually lease and don't own).

[Dolebludger]

Jim B:

 

Just my impression here from Mr. Conroy's communication, but I strongly suspect that nobody at RSSC was prepared for the departure of the PG, and that they have no firm long term plans in place for her permanent replacement. RSSC DOES plan to put another ship down there on this itinerary, pending FP government approval, but the idea that it will be the Navigator to start with is merely my guess. Also, it is just my speculation that RSSC will want another ship, one it does not now have, on this itinerary in the long run. They may find the Navigator has more guest capacity than there is demand for this cruise. And even if the Navigator constantly booked full up, the matter of air transportation and day rooms for the additional guests may be problems, along with the Navigator's deeper draft (than the PG) which may pose problems in anchorage locations and inter-island routing. I know some believe that the economics are generally no longer there for the building of ships as small as the PG. And this may well be true for "general purpose" cruise ships. But the PG is a special purpose ship which operates under different sailing, air transportation, and land accomodation requirements than do "general purpose" cruise ships. Just my opinion again, but these factors may dictate that the PG's permanent replacement be about the size of the PG, although nobody has even a guess where that ship might come from.

 

Thanks,

Richard:) :) :)

[Jim B]

I know Mr. Conroy never revealed anything about RSSC plans, but sometimes in conversations one can get a feeling about the direction a company is going.

Is this how you have come up with your thoughts?

They make sense to me.

[Dolebludger]

Yes, Jim B, that's part of what I mean. It was clear that RSSC does not intend to buy any more ships that are not all suite and all balcony. My guess that the Navigator will be a "stop gap" came from reasoning that the FP itinerary just may not fill up a 700 guest ship, as many times the 320 guest PG hasn't been full. RSSC's second smallest ship is the Diamond, but she is said to be leaving the fleet in '06 also, and further, her draft is deeper than the Navigator's. Mr. Conroy was very clear in not specifying the replacement ship for the PG. I got the feeling that even he didn't know. So from there, it's just my pure guess that RSSC wil find that the Navigator isn't the optimum choice for this itinerary, and will be eventually wanting to replace her with a smaller, shallower, and newer ship.

 

 

Thanks,

Richard:) :) :)