Tahiti Help

[kim826]

I have been reading posts regarding Tahiti and it looks fantastic. It appears that this would be quite an expensive cruise however. Could someone give me a ballpark figure for the cheapest balcony and airfare out of Chicago? It appears that the pricing might be around $3700 for both. Would that be about correct?

[Toto2Kansas]

I have been reading posts regarding Tahiti and it looks fantastic. It appears that this would be quite an expensive cruise however. Could someone give me a ballpark figure for the cheapest balcony and airfare out of Chicago? It appears that the pricing might be around $3700 for both. Would that be about correct?

 

$3700 for both including airfare to Tahiti? Nope, not even close. More like $3700 per person for a balcony cabin including airfare from ORD to Tahiti RT. You are correct, it is not an inexpensive cruise. Mainly as the airfare will run you almost the same as the cruise does for each passenger for a Princess cruise around Tahiti. ;) In fact, for an inside stateroom, the airfare is much higher than the cruise price.

[Tika]

I have been reading posts regarding Tahiti and it looks fantastic. It appears that this would be quite an expensive cruise however. Could someone give me a ballpark figure for the cheapest balcony and airfare out of Chicago? It appears that the pricing might be around $3700 for both. Would that be about correct?

 

Check out the Regent Seven Seas Sight............Tahiti and French Polynesia are a fabulous destination!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Been there two times.........can't wait to go back. I am not sure I have this right but it is my understanding that Regent Seven Seas cruise line just sold the Paul Gauguin and the new owner has named the line Paul Gauguin Cruise Line. Check out Regent Seven Seas web site or better yet just check out the cruise ship Paul Gauguin.........It is a wonderful ship and what is so great ..........it can get close to all the beautiful ports..........Moorea, Bora Bora etc. where the bigger cruise ships have to tender pax into ports. Sometimes there are two for one sailings with airfare included...........you have to be diligent and search. Keep in mind that our summer months are winter in French Polynesia......best time to go.........not tooooo hot.............there summer is really hot and is our winter months. If you anything and everything that has to do with the water you will be in heaven............even just sitting on your balcony and not wanting to move is awesome........the scenery is magnificent!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[fendbass]

When my wife and I went a few years ago on the Winstar, we paid over $6000 for an outisde cabin with airfare, arranged through the cruise line. The airfare was from Los Angeles to Papetee, so, we had to get flights to and from Atlanta to LA, and we stayed overnight in LA in both directions. I'd say the total for both of us was about $7500

 

I am glad we did it, it was the trip of a lifetime (just before Windstar pulled out of Tahiti), but, I can honestly say we wouldn't do it again

[j!m]

we hav been to FP 3x and have stayed in bora bora and papeete

 

it is THE most beautiful place we have been (bora bora)

 

yes air is expensive but you will probably be travelling for about 12 hrs to meet the ship, i think lax/ppt isa 8 1/2hr flight

 

it is not a cheap place togo because it is indeed in the middle of nowhere and every can of coca cola you drink has to be brought there from somewhere else

 

if the cost is a big issue you may not enjoy the trip

 

i have no idea what it cost us but whatever it was it was worth every penny and we are returning for a visit in about a month

 

our 3 trips were on the TP and they were all GREAT

 

itsa fabulous part of the world

 

do go

 

hava great cruise

[5:00_Somewhere]

Hi Kim,

 

just wanted to add my 2 cents worth here. As mentioned above, if you're saying around $3,700 per person for airfare and cruise, that might be in the ballpark. It was definitely the most expensive cruise we've done to date, with the airfare and cruise and excursions,etc. But, it was absolutely 100% worth it. French Polynesia is truly one of the most amazing places on earth. I would do it again in a heartbeat and, if you can swing the expense, it is definitely one of those once in a lifetime experiences that will never be topped.

 

Hope you do it. I'm sure you'll have a great time if you do! :D

[jacketwatch]

I have been reading posts regarding Tahiti and it looks fantastic. It appears that this would be quite an expensive cruise however. Could someone give me a ballpark figure for the cheapest balcony and airfare out of Chicago? It appears that the pricing might be around $3700 for both. Would that be about correct?

We did that cruise, the 10 day one, out of ORD and used Princess air. This was in Aug. of 2006 and IIRC we paid closer to 6K even. I used Costco travel to book the cruise and got a nice discount. If you get a chance to go do try it. The Society islands are the most beautiful tropical sites we have ever seen. Do bear in mind that land vacations in FP, unless you eat at stands, are even more. Breakfast at most nicer hotels will go for around $35.00 per person. Good luck. Larry :)

[BigGuy25]

The "base" per-day rate for most cruises is about the same. So, the cost rises depending on the amount of days of the trip and up again based on the cost of airfare. It goes down based on any special "deals" being made to attract passengers. So, usually, the South Pacific is a longer cruise than a standard seven-day cruise you might experience in the Caribbean and the airfare is MUCH more than an east coast or Florida debarkation port. So, without a GREAT deal, it's one of the most expensive areas to sail. All that said, I do agree that out Tahiti to Hawaii cruise was one of our favorites. In my opinion, the South Pacific Islands are spectacular!

[Toto2Kansas]

We did that cruise, the 10 day one, out of ORD and used Princess air. This was in Aug. of 2006 and IIRC we paid closer to 6K even. I used Costco travel to book the cruise and got a nice discount. If you get a chance to go do try it. The Society islands are the most beautiful tropical sites we have ever seen. Do bear in mind that land vacations in FP, unless you eat at stands, are even more. Breakfast at most nicer hotels will go for around $35.00 per person. Good luck. Larry :)

 

We have also sailed Tahiti in the past where (although still expensive) it was more reasonable IMHO. The last couple of years though airfares have drastically increased for this sailing. When checking to answer the OP yesterday, airfare from ORD to Tahiti RT per person was running over $1800. Even if you find your own flights to LAX, the RT flights from LAX to PPT and return can run in excess of $1300+, plus the cost of getting to and from LAX. :eek: And don't forget, flights to LAX will add extra baggage fees on most airlines now. Our last cruise to Tahiti back in 2004, the airfare was less than $900 (no baggage fees back then), big increase.

We are booked on a B2B next month, Hawaii to Tahiti, and then the 10 day Tahiti cruise afterward. We sold our first born for this one. (joking) ;)

[boone2]

We sailed in October last year and it was so wonderful. To my mind cruising is the cheapest way of seeing FP. The cost of our cruise for 10 days was under $2000, I think around $1700 and the airfare from Toronto to LA was $250 ( we got and extraordinary deal) We then flew from LA on ATN and including a night at the Radisson resort we paid $1200 approx each for that. I would pay it again in a heartbeat to go back to that wonderful place, I just have to save up!

Terry

[jacketwatch]

We have also sailed Tahiti in the past where (although still expensive) it was more reasonable IMHO. The last couple of years though airfares have drastically increased for this sailing. When checking to answer the OP yesterday, airfare from ORD to Tahiti RT per person was running over $1800. Even if you find your own flights to LAX, the RT flights from LAX to PPT and return can run in excess of $1300+, plus the cost of getting to and from LAX. :eek: And don't forget, flights to LAX will add extra baggage fees on most airlines now. Our last cruise to Tahiti back in 2004, the airfare was less than $900 (no baggage fees back then), big increase.

We are booked on a B2B next month, Hawaii to Tahiti, and then the 10 day Tahiti cruise afterward. We sold our first born for this one. (joking) ;)

OMG! Thats a huge up on the price. For us Princess air was $1300.00 pp. Have a great time next month. That sounds like a dream of a lifetime vacation. Are you cruising back to Hawaii ater the FP cruise? Do you go past Pitcairn BTW? I hear that some cruisies do and that natives sail out to meet the cruise ships and sell their souvenirs. Well after our FP cruise I got the FP hangover blues really bad so I found the Pitcairn website (just had to have something more from that region :D) and ordered honey. Well after about nearly 3 mos. it arrived and Ihave to tell you its the best honey by far I;ve ever had. It has a fruity taste that you have to taste to believe. Cheers, Larry :)

[Toto2Kansas]

OMG! Thats a huge up on the price. For us Princess air was $1300.00 pp. Have a great time next month. That sounds like a dream of a lifetime vacation. Are you cruising back to Hawaii ater the FP cruise? Do you go past Pitcairn BTW? I hear that some cruisies do and that natives sail out to meet the cruise ships and sell their souvenirs. Well after our FP cruise I got the FP hangover blues really bad so I found the Pitcairn website (just had to have something more from that region :D) and ordered honey. Well after about nearly 3 mos. it arrived and Ihave to tell you its the best honey by far I;ve ever had. It has a fruity taste that you have to taste to believe. Cheers, Larry :)

 

Larry, afraid our cruise ends in PPT after the 21 days from Hawaii and around the Islands of Tahiti. The Pacific Princess will be staying in Tahiti for numerous 10 days sailings until December when it sails back to Fort Lauderdale, so it isn't even going back to Hawaii this year. :(

 

We have done the B2B Hawaii/Tahiti/Hawaii before when it was offered, and it is the perfect combination for a B2B, as there are none of those terrible 8.5 hour flights involved back to LAX.

The itineary originally said we would be stopping at Christmas Island on the way to Tahiti, but after booking, it changed to only senic cruising. :( Disappointed in that one as we had always wanted to return to Christmas Island (first visit was back in 1993) and have missed stopping there on each cruise after that, but it isn't in the cards this time so we get to enjoy that 'scenic cruising'. lol I have to laugh though about scenic cruising by Christmas Island as there really isn't anything scenic there to see except a long flat stretch of island in the middle of the Pacific. lol

 

I know exactly where you are coming from with the FP hangover blues. I still remember our first cruise there as we pulled away from Bora Bora and I told myself to take it all in as we would never get to see anything like this again in our lives. Well, the hangover got the best of us as these upcoming cruises will be #6 and #7 for us to that area as we have found that Tahiti is one of our most favorite of all places on earth. ;)

 

Taking my netbook on this one and we have unlimited internet access. So, if by chance we have 'access' (you know how that sometimes goes)? Hopefully I will be able to post some pictures along the way. At least you can take another 'virtual' tour of the islands that way. ;)

[jacketwatch]

Larry, afraid our cruise ends in PPT after the 21 days from Hawaii and around the Islands of Tahiti. The Pacific Princess will be staying in Tahiti for numerous 10 days sailings until December when it sails back to Fort Lauderdale, so it isn't even going back to Hawaii this year. :(

 

We have done the B2B Hawaii/Tahiti/Hawaii before when it was offered, and it is the perfect combination for a B2B, as there are none of those terrible 8.5 hour flights involved back to LAX.

The itineary originally said we would be stopping at Christmas Island on the way to Tahiti, but after booking, it changed to only senic cruising. :( Disappointed in that one as we had always wanted to return to Christmas Island (first visit was back in 1993) and have missed stopping there on each cruise after that, but it isn't in the cards this time so we get to enjoy that 'scenic cruising'. lol I have to laugh though about scenic cruising by Christmas Island as there really isn't anything scenic there to see except a long flat stretch of island in the middle of the Pacific. lol

 

I know exactly where you are coming from with the FP hangover blues. I still remember our first cruise there as we pulled away from Bora Bora and I told myself to take it all in as we would never get to see anything like this again in our lives. Well, the hangover got the best of us as these upcoming cruises will be #6 and #7 for us to that area as we have found that Tahiti is one of our most favorite of all places on earth. ;)

 

Taking my netbook on this one and we have unlimited internet access. So, if by chance we have 'access' (you know how that sometimes goes)? Hopefully I will be able to post some pictures along the way. At least you can take another 'virtual' tour of the islands that way. ;)

Cool! I'll look for that and thank you. I'll never forget that first glimpse of Bora Bora. Its a notural beauty like no other for me. :).

[kim826]

Yes, I meant per person and not for both - my screw up! Thank you for the helpful advise. As one poster said, if I would worry about the price, I wouldn't enjoy the cruise. The four of us that were planning on going decided that it's just too much this time around and we could take two cruises in place of this one. Hopefully we will have many more years to cruise and can afford to do it some day!

[j!m]

well kim i do hope you get to FP

 

we hav hada lota great cruises but dont think i would trade any 2 of them for another in FP

 

think onit befor you decide

 

its worth the price to just sit at the intercontinental hotel, martini in hand and watch the sun set over moorea

 

whatever you finally choose

 

hava great cruise

[jacketwatch]

Yes, I meant per person and not for both - my screw up! Thank you for the helpful advise. As one poster said, if I would worry about the price, I wouldn't enjoy the cruise. The four of us that were planning on going decided that it's just too much this time around and we could take two cruises in place of this one. Hopefully we will have many more years to cruise and can afford to do it some day!

I do hope you get to go one day. There is a reason it costs so much but IMHO its worth it. True the cost of this one can pay for two others but the memories of what you see will last a lifetime. Good luck in whatever you do. Larry :)

[mmyorkston]

Tahiti and all of FP are well worth the effort, but to save $$$ I would recommend doing a B2B out of Honolulu to Papeete and back to Honolulu. We did that a couple of years ago and were so grateful we didn't have to do the air to and from Tahiti. The B2B isn't offered often, but jump on it if you see it. Absolutely wonderful, and we would do it again in a heartbeat.

[Cruise Junky]

We just booked an aft BA from Tahiti to Honolulu with air from Vancouver I believe our total was around $8,000 us.

[flamomo]

We did the 10 day cruise r/t Papeete last November, and between the fare for a minisuite, and my r/t airfare from Tampa and 2 nights at the Intercontinental Papeete Resort pre-cruise, I spent around $5000 just for myself (before food, souvenirs, etc).

 

Would I do it all again? In a heartbeat! FP is tne most beautiful and exotic place I have been. As someone else said, sitting on the infinity pool beach, cold frufru drink in hand, and watching the sun set over Moorea, or snorkeling in a quiet inlet in the crystal clear water on the coast of Bora Bora - - -Priceless!!!