CRUISE REVIEW OF THE RADISSON PAUL GAUGUIN
May 11-18, 2002
CLICK ON PHOTOS TO VIEW FULL SIZE
I'll start by saying this is absolutely the
best cruise we've ever taken. My wife Elizabeth
and I, (both in our early 30's) have been
on 5 other cruises, all in the Caribbean,
(we live in Florida, so it is easy). We've
been to Tahiti and Moorea back in 1994, where
we stayed at the Sofitel hotels on both islands.
We loved it then, but were looking for something
that would allow us to see more of the islands
in a short time.
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| Bora Bora motu |
We'd been planning this cruise for only 3
months before leaving. However, in that short
time, I'd read all the reviews that I could
find on the internet and talked to 2 people
we knew who had been on the cruise. We were
a little worried that our expectations had
grown too high and that even if it was really
great, we'd somehow be disappointed. I am
happy to say that this was not a problem.
GETTING THERE
We booked the cruise after Easter through
a Virtuoso member travel agent. We got some
nice benefits by going through them which
I will describe later, but the best benefit
was that we were booked as a guarantee. Meaning
that we paid for the cheapest, category F
room and were upgraded to a cat E. (We moved
up one deck and went from 2 portholes to
a nice picture window). Half the people we
talked to with balconies loved them and the
other half said they were just too busy and
were not in the rooms enough to enjoy it.
We left Orlando on Friday afternoon on a
United flight to LAX, where we'd opted for
the free overnight stay. Upon arrival, we
got our luggage, (LAX sucks - arrived concourse
6, pickup luggage concourse 7), and headed
for the Hilton bus. No one from Radisson
was around, but we really did not need their
help. A quick bus ride later and we were
in the check in line at the Hilton. Somewhere
in the lobby was a Radisson host to answer
any questions you may have had, but we never
seeked him/her out. We waited about 10 minutes
in line and talked to some other couples,
most of whom were going on our cruise (we
could tell by their luggage tags). Check
in was quick once we got to the counter,
since they already had our keys waiting.
We got to our room and pretty much called
it a night.
Saturday morning, we had the complementary
full breakfast buffet at the hotel. Then
we boarded the bus for the terminal. This
bus was specifically for Radisson cruise
guests. We got to the Air Tahiti Nui area
and had a long wait in line (due to computer
problems they were having). But again, we
got to meet people who were on the cruise.
We met several other couples long before
even boarding the ship. A Radisson person
came down the line and checked off our names
from her list. Everything went smoothly,
other than the fact that we needed to be
at the airport 3+ hours before the flight.
The flight was great and each seat has its
own video screen. They advertised that First
class got to choose which movie they wanted
to see from about 6 or 7, and that coach
class would only get to watch 2 movies the
entire flight. But for some reason, even
us poor folks in coach got to choose from
all the movies.
On a side note, I bought a pair of cheap
Maxell noisebuster noise cancelling headphones
from buy.com. They cost $20 and have free
shipping right now. The BOSE brand are a
bit better, but at 15x the price, not that
much. Don't let the description "noisecanelling"
fool you. They do not block out all sounds.
Only really low frequency. They eliminate
the low rumbling engine noise in a plane,
but do NOT block out the higher wind noise,
talking, babies screaming, etc. What they
do is allow you to listen to the movies or
music at a lower volume, or by themselves,
block out some of the noise of the plane
engines. For long flights, I think it is
well worth $20. Most people do not realize
how fatigued they can get from noise.
We landed around 7:10 local time at Faa'a
airport. Radisson people were everywhere
and showed us exactly where to go and what
to do. We took a shuttle bus to the dock.
We only got to see a bit of the city by night.
Boarding the ship was very easy. Once off
the bus, we identified our luggage by pointing
it out to a steward - this was for security
reasons. Our luggage was grouped by itself
and was there before we got off the bus.
Then we walked up the gangplank onto the
ship. We showed our passports and were directed
to level 5. There they gave us champagne,
our room key cards and passport receipts
(they keep your passports till the last night).
We learned that there were only 196 people
on board the ship and 201 crew. Some of us
were a bit disappointed since we were outnumbered
and could not take over the ship and sail
endlessly. Seriously, it was fantastic not
having many people on board. Meals were never
crowded. We never waited for a table, a good
pool chair, a beach chair on the motu, or
for a kayak. Once on the ship, there was
no more long waits again.
ON BOARD
The Cabin
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| Tiki god of 419 |
We went to our room, 419, and it was fantastic.
We had a very large window which was easy
to see out of and let in tons of light. There
was over a foot deep of shelf space in front
of the window where we stored various stuff.
All cabins have a tiki statue in a little
cubby in the entry hall of the room. He was
the keeper of our leis, hats and sunglasses.
Under the tiki was four pull out drawers.
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| Cabin 419 |
The stateroom had more than enough closet
space and cabinets to hold everything we
had brought. In fact, we did not fill all
the cabinet spaces. The mini bar consisted
of the TV/VCR combo with 2 shelves on each
side. Below was the counter space for fruit
and anything else (2 liters of alcohol) and
4 small shelves for napkins, stirrers, and
drink glasses. On each side were 2 cabinets
(4 total), with wood doors. Below the semi-circular
counter space was two round wood doors and
a drawer. The 2 doors opened to reveal the
fridge and small storage on the inside of
the doors. Also in the room was a small round
glass and wood table, a love seat, a round
stool, and a queen size bed. It is not two
smaller beds put together, but one single
bed, with plenty of space underneath to store
luggage. The bed was slightly firm since
there was no box spring. There were 3 feather
pillows and one foam. On one side of the
bed was a thin vertical cabinet with the
telephone on top and a pull out drawer which
looked perfect for magazines. There was also
a telephone jack labeled FAX. The other side
of the bed had the same setup sans phone.
On the opposite side of the bed from the
loveseat table combo, there is a small vanity
with 2 small pull out drawers and another
round seat. There was also one large desk
type pull out drawer beneath the vanity which
houses the information booklet for the room
- room service menu, phone details, etc.
On either side are the closets for hanging
clothes. We did not have enough hangers,
but just asked and got more. The closets
also have small shelves for storing t-shirts
or shoes.
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| Another view |
There are mirrors all over the room and bath
- in fact nearly everywhere there is a mirror.
The bath had a marble floor, sink and counter
space. It is larger than some hotel bath
rooms I've been in. The bathtub is very long
and you can stretch out nicely. There is
a removable shower head which worked really
well. Inside the shower/tub is also a shelf
in the back for snorkeling equipment or towels,
and a line for hanging bathing suits to dry.
There are 2 tall vertical cabinets on either
side of the sink for holding all your toiletries
and a shelf behind the sink. Below the sink
are 4 cabinets. One tilts outward and is
your garbage can. The other 3 open regularly
and there is plenty of room in them. You
are supplied with large bottles of shampoo,
conditioner, hand lotion and bubble bath.
There is face soap and glycerin soap. They
also supply oatmeal bath soap, cotton balls,
q-tips, and a hair dryer. Maid service is
twice a day, or more often if you put out
the "Service Please" tag on the
door. They replaced everything, including
towels, soda and ice in the fridge, etc.
The A/C control in your room has no calibration
numbers, just a + and - with a dot representing
the middle. So setting it to your liking
is trial and error.
Power
There is 110V US standard and 220V European
standard outlets in the room, so you do not
need a voltage converter or plug adaptor
for your razor, video camera charger, curling
iron, etc. - save the space and weight. There
are two outlets of each type. One is located
by the vanity and the other on the side of
the mini bar, down near the floor. The bathroom
has a special outlet for razors, but no other
outlets. My wife had to do her hair drying
and curling iron at the vanity.
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| View from Window |
TV/VCR
The TV/VCR combo is NTSC meaning that Americans
and Japanese can watch movies they bring
from home, but Europeans can not since they
use PAL. The TV/VCR combo also has RCA input
jacks on the front so that you can plug in
your still or video camera for viewing. Again,
this will only work for those devices which
work on NTSC standard. The unit is capable
of recording if you bring a blank tape.
There were 2 channels showing the live bow
view, 2 local channels when reception was
available, and 2 current movie and 1 classic
movie channels, duplicated in French on 3
more channels. There was also a channel which
showed ship activity information and played
port briefings (alternating between English
and French). You can also get videos from
the reception desk to watch in your room.
There is no charge and they have a pretty
large selection.
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| The Bathroom |
Telephone and E-mail
Making calls from your room to anywhere outside
the ship costs $15 per minute. No, that is
not a typo. There are no dime a minute calling
plans. If you need to call home, you can
purchase a calling card from the Reception
Desk for $10 which gets you about 8 minutes
when using a pay phone on any of the islands.
In the card room you can send e-mail. There
are 2 computer terminals which run a very
simple program which allows you to send e-mail.
You can also receive e-mail, but not while
you are on the computer. People can send
you e-mail to the ship and they will print
it out and put it in your door mail slot.
Costs are $1.00 per 2kb, which is more than
adequate unless you write novels. You can
not attach photos or anything else. Strictly
text.
Mini Bar
The mini bar is stocked with drinks only,
no snacks. For snacks, just dial up room
service. If memeory serves, there was one
coke, diet coke, sprite, ginger ale, tonic
water, a bottle of budwiser, a can of heini,
and two waters. With the exception of the
beer, everything is replenished daily. I
asked for extra diet cokes and had 4 in there
the next time. There is also a bucket of
ice that is replenished daily.
Motion Sickness
The most motion is on the first night sailing
and then on Wednesday night / Thursday morning
sailing. Otherwise, we did not feel the ship's
movement. From Raiatea to Tahaa is a very
short cruise, as well as from Tahaa to Bora
Bora. The stabilizing planes did a good job.
You can always get motion sickness pills
from the reception desk.
Dining
In general, you should never be disappointed
with the menu selections. There are always
plenty of things to choose from. And one
thing we learned was that even if it is not
on the menu, they will make it for you. We
were told we could order anything from past
menus, or just tell your waiter what you'd
like to have. On several occasions, they
substituted dishes for my wife.
L'Etoile
This is the main dining room. It is only
open for dinner. It is where you will have
dinner unless you make reservations for La
Veranda or Le Grill. There is a wide selection
of choices every night, along with standards
or "simple dishes" that are always
available.
La Veranda
This restaurant is open for full breakfast
and has most anything you can think of. You
may order off the menu, or select items from
the buffet, or both. This is where we ate
every breakfast except for one day in our
room.
Lunch here is usually a buffet with a different
theme - pacific rim, French, Italian, American,…
Again, this is where we chose to eat lunch
when on the ship.
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| Appetizer |
For dinner, the restaurant features 2 different
French menus which alternate each night.
You do not have choices. These are fixed
menus prepared especially by Jean-Pierre
Vigato. Having said that, they did substitute
a salad for the Foie Gras (goose liver) at
my wife's request. I doubt the chef would
have liked it, but I'm sure she could have
made substitutions for the main course had
she chosen to do so. Unless you really love
the menu, you would not want to dine here
more than 2 times - once for each menu. The
two menus are displayed outside so that you
can see what you'll be served before deciding
to make reservations.
Le Grill
Open for Light lunch and "Al Fresco"
for dinner. We never got around to making
reservations for this restaurant, and on
Wednesday when we tried, they were all full
for the rest of the week. However, we talked
to some people who had eaten there for dinner
and did not recommend it, so we were not
too disappointed.
Other
La Palette, the lounge, is open early for
continental breakfast. Mostly croissants,
fruit, tea and coffee. They also are open
for about an hour each day for afternoon
tea and snacks. Mainly fruit and croissants,
and there was coffee served too. A lot like
breakfast.
Breakfast is also served buffet style by
the pool. It has all the items that La Veranda
offers, plus omelets cooked to order. It
did not have a menu to order from, so you
could not get some dishes, such as pancakes,
French toast, etc. I ate here once and was
very satisfied.
Light snacks are served by the pool grill
after lunch - usually from 2:30 - 5:00pm.
This is set up for people who have come back
late from tours and missed lunch. My wife
and I stopped to eat here once thinking it
was finger food and appetizers, or bar type
snacks. Don't let the word snack fool you
- by this they mean burgers, hot dogs, pizza,
fish sandwiches, and all sorts of other stuff
that I would consider lunch. We did not order
anything, and instead went to La Palette
for afternoon tea.
Room Service
We had room service for breakfast once, dinner
once and 3 other times for snacks (for me)
and tea (for my wife). I could not get enough
of the vegetarian spring rolls. If there
is something you want and it is not on the
room service menu, just ask. If you've seen
it on the menu a few days before, ask. I
wanted shrimp cocktail and even though it
was not on the menu, they had no problem
getting it. Service was quick. The one warning
I have is that when you are done, place your
tray outside the room, or else a couple hours
later they will knock on your door to get
it. Woke us up one time during a nap.
If you want breakfast in your room, you fill
out a form which is left in your room each
night during turn down service. Place the
form outside the door before midnight and
you'll have breakfast when you requested.
The form is not perfect and we had to write
in specifications on the side, like the type
of tea, (mint), that we wanted, and that
I wanted ketchup, etc. I was amazed that
they got it perfect, even with all our picky
changes.
Drinks
Upon arrival in your room, there is a form
on the mini bar where you are to fill out
what type of alcohol you'd like for your
room. One liter per person. There is a limited
selection - mostly rum, vodka, scotch, etc.
No choices for Kalua or Bailys. My stewardess
also informed me that I could have asked
for many (no number given) cans of beer in
place of one liter, but since beer and wine
are free at lunch and dinner, I declined.
We did not meet anyone who drank all their
2 liters. In fact, many people did not even
open their bottles and just took them home.
I had 2 drinks and that was plenty.
It is not easy to actually purchase a drink.
There were basically 3 types of events where
free drinks were served. At the pool side
parties there were usually two types of tropical
drinks served - pina coladas, mi ties, rum
punch, etc.
There were cocktail parties nearly every
night where you were always served a glass
of champagne as you entered to room. Many
people thought only the champagne was free.
However, anything you wanted from the bar
was no charge during the party.
Then, on the motus, again, anything you wanted
was free. Servers ran around getting drink
orders, or you could hike over to the bar
yourself.
At dinner, there was always a white and red
wine served like water. I suppose if you
hung out in the casino or the connoisseurs
club, you'd probably want a drink and have
to pay for it.
As a side note, we never saw anyone drunk.
With all the free alcohol, no one took advantage
to get drunk.
Dress
Dress for breakfast and lunch was very casual.
I wore shorts with polo or button down short
sleave shirts untucked, or shorts with a
T-shirt if we were in a rush to have breakfast
and then catch a tender to the island. Some
men wore swimsuits and t-shirts. My wife
tended to wear shorts and shirt tucked in,
or sundresses. A couple times she wore her
swim suit, but with a coverup.
For dinner, I wore nice pants with button
down short sleave shirts, belt, and even
socks with my shoes. Most of my shirts were
flowery or Hawaiian style, as were many other
mens. Only wore a jacket for the captains
dinner on Sunday night. My wife wore nice
dresses or dress pants. I guess I should
get her to write this part, but...
Of course, you had people dressed a bit more
casual, and some a bit more formal, but overall
the trend was toward casual.
It was a bit chilly in the restaurants, (and
rest of ship), and my wife wore some type
of coverup to keep her shoulders and arms
warm.
Smoking
One of our main concerns was that this being
a French ship, and assuming there would be
plenty of French people on board, we thought
there would be lots of smoking on the ship.
In fact, there were only 16 French people
on our ship - but most of them did smoke.
There were several other Americans who smoked
too. However, we only detected the faint
smell of smoke once in the hallways of the
ship, and again on the beach.
The restaurants have a special section way
off to the side for smokers. They are literally
in a terrible area and well away from everyone
else. So in a nutshell, you should not worry.
No meals were ruined by smoke and our room
smelled fresh.
People and Crew
We met so many nice people and really got
to know them - much more than you could on
a ship with 2000 people. Most everyone was
a couple. There were a few people who had
come alone, including an 80 year old woman
who did more than most of the younger people.
There were many honeymooners, about 15 couples
celebrating anniversaries, (we included).
90% were Americans, with French and Canadians
making up the rest.
Everyone was so down to earth. No Thurston
Howell the 3rd types. Mostly The Professor
and Mary-Ann types. For most people, this
was an expensive vacation and not something
they could afford to do multiple times a
year. I guess all the really super rich have
their own yachts, are too busy to take vacations,
or would be on the round the world cruises.
The crew were amazing. After just a day or
two, most all of them knew our names. We
were always greeted by our name when entering
the dining room or when passing staff members
in the hallway. Everyone went out of their
way to do whatever was necessary to make
us happy. It was most evident in the stewardess
we had for our room and the restaurant staff.
Especially in the restaurant, you must be
careful when looking up, lest they think
you need something. I don't think we can
ever eat in a restaurant back home again.
I just can't imagine paying and tipping for
service that is not even close to what is
provided on this ship.
Tipping
We never saw anyone tip for anything. It
was nice not to have to dig into my wallet
all the time, or making sure I had plenty
of bills. Tipping on the islands is not encouraged.
It is just not in their culture. I think
the Americans who do tip are slowly changing
their minds, but back in 1994, we were told
that tipping was offensive since it was considered
a bribe. Won't find that attitude in the
Carribean.
Casino
Never went in. Usually saw about 3-4 people
in there - the same 3-4 the entire cruise.
Connoisseurs Club
Again, did not go in for the brandy and cigars.
Cartia Spa
We did not utilize the spa for anything.
However, we did take a peek at the steam
room, whose use is complimentary. All you
have to do is stop by and sign up for a half
hour session and you get the steam room and
adjacent shower all to yourself.
La Boutique
Unless you want a shirt or hat with the Radisson
or Paul Gauguin ship logo, don't waste your
money at this overpriced store.
Reception Desk
You will probably visit this place as much
as any other except the restaurants. This
is where you can have all your questions
answered. They also have free postcards -
although they are all the same one of the
ship. They will mail one postcard for you
complimentary. However, if you buy stamps
from them, they will mark them up 50%. The
reception desk also has the videos and you
can get a copy of your billing statement
anytime from them.
Our room, 419, was very near the reception
desk, the excursion desk, and just one floor
above the gangway where you get off the ship.
It was also just below and very near the
grand ballroom which is where you must meet
before leaving the ship for an excursion.
We always seemed to be in a rush just before
the tours left, so it was convenient to have
our room so close to the ballroom.
Excursion Desk
The excursion desk is right next to the Reception
desk. On the first Saturday night, they open
at 9:00pm to take reservations for all the
tours during the week. If there is any line
you must wait in, it will be here at 9:00.
I highly recommend that you be there a few
minutes before 9:00 and have the tour form
all filled out. Some of the popular tours
fill up quick, There is a form in your room,
or you can pick one up at the excursion desk
anytime - even when they are closed. You
must select which tours you want and sign
your name. If you are a couple, you both
must sign this form. When you get your pre
cruise packet from Radisson, a list of all
the tours will be included so that you can
decide even before getting to the ship.
One thing we noticed is that the excursions
were being offered on the shore at far cheaper
prices. One tour on Bora Bora that we paid
$60 per person for was advertised at $25.
Now this is with a different tour operator,
and since we did not do it, we can not say
what you get, but it looked like the same
type of tour.
Marina
Located on deck 4 (actually 3, but you get
to it via deck 4) and just down the hall
from our room, is the Marina. We went there
on Sunday and got fitted for our snorkeling
gear. They put it in a mesh bag for you to
carry. You can keep it in your room or return
it back to them each time. You can also water
ski and kayak off the ship's marina. We did
neither off the ship, but too the kayak around
one of the motus when we were there.
Entertainment
The entertainment director Michael Collins
was great. He did the best he could with
so few people. There is not much emphasis
placed on nightly entertainment, and I can't
blame them since many people were exhausted
and went right to sleep after dinner.
There was a British magician / comedy team
that was not all that funny. Mostly sexual
related British humor, which I usually tend
to like. The magic wasn't fantastic either.
Most of it was the basic stuff that my 4
year old could figure out. However, there
were people who liked their show, so my opinions
are strictly mine and since there is nothing
else to do, you should see them once, (they
have 2 shows, one aptly titled "The
world's worst magician.")
Another night the cruise director sang some
show tunes and it was really good. The shows
only last 30 minutes or so, and of course,
I'm sure they change when a new director
comes aboard (which is approx every 2 months).
The enrichment talks are fantastic. See them
all if you can. These people know what they
are talking about and give effective casual
presentations where you will learn more than
you ever wanted.
Piano Bar
Hal Fraser is a great pianist. We got to
have dinner with him one night and he is
a very interesting fellow to dine and talk
with. He loves his work and is in his element
playing piano on this cruise ship. Make sure
you get to hear him at least once. Unfortunately,
not many people stay up till 11:00pm to hear
him, but he does play at other times during
the day too.
Other
On one deck, can't remember which one, there
are tables with games that you can play,
such as trivial pursuit or chess. There is
also a communal puzzle, which was completed
by the end of the cruise. Unfortunately,
there were several missing pieces. The library
is not really a quiet place to go to read.
It consists of bookshelves along a hall where
there is a fairly good selection of books.
Not many people had the time to read.
What Costs Extra?
I got a lot of questions from people asking
what is exactly included in the cruise price,
and what costs extra. Here is my list that
I am sure is not complete:
INCLUDED:
Mini bar items.
Sodas, tea, and water.
Any drink during parties or at motus.
Beer and wine during lunch and dinner, unless
you ask for special wine. There is one Red
and one White selected for each meal which
is complementary.
Special reservations at the alternative restaurants.
Marina activities, such as water skiing,
kayaking or snorkeling equipment.
Video rentals.
All tips - including the room service guy
who makes 10 trips a day bringing you food.
COSTS EXTRA:
Excursions except the Tahiti one on the last
day.
$10 one time fee for using the casino.
SPA treatments, except for the complimentary
use of the steamroom.
Sending or receiving e-mails and your phone
calls.
Medicine and consultation fees if you need
to see the doctor.
Laundry services.
Photos, stamps, etc. (obviously).
ON SHORE - THE ISLANDS AND EXCURSIONS
Weather
We had perfect weather the entire time. We
got a small shower for about 10 minutes one
day, and it was a bit windy on another day.
Other than that, we had clear to partly cloudy
days and nights, with the daytime temps around
87-90 F and the nighttime temps around 78
F. Evidently, the week before had seen more
rain. The one negative about not much rain
is that the waterfalls on the smaller islands
are not as impressive, or non-existent.
Tenders
The Paul Gauguin does not dock except at
Papeete, so you must take the tender to each
island. She anchors in the harbors fairly
close to where the tenders dock which makes
for short rides. Some people would prefer
to be docked; however, then you do not get
as good a view of the surrounding island.
Tenders were prompt and we never had one
so full that we had to wait until the next
one.
Saturday May 11
Tahiti
Once on board, I walked just down the hall
and booked our shore excursions, and then
came back to the room and showered. Liz had
already done some unpacking and showered.
We then went to dinner at L'Etoile and had
the lobster. After dinner, we went up to
the pool deck and there was a bon voyage
party going on. Two kinds of free drinks
were being served - one banana, orange rum
drink, and another one made with Baileys
which tasted like a milkshake. They kept
them coming to you or you could pick them
up yourself from a table. The cruise director
did a little talk, and then a band played
pop music and Les Gaugines danced with the
crowd.
We left the dock around 10:00 pm. It was
a beautiful clear night with temps around
85F and the southern cross was easy to spot.
It was actually a bit chilly out on deck
near the railings where the bridge did not
block the wind.
Sunday May 12
Raiatea
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| Children of Raiatea |
Today was the day of the mandatory lifeboat
drill - good thing we did not hit an iceberg
or anything in the night. It is nice that
they don't keep the life vests in the rooms.
They are located in lockers on deck. Don't
forget the lock combination - just kidding.
Before lunch, there was a show on deck called
the "Children of Raiatea" where
the local children come and dance. It was
really nice and should not be missed. We
had lunch quickly and left to catch the tender
for our first tour excursion - the Faaroa river and island exploration.
Once at the dock, we boarded a motorized
outrigger canoe. We had about a 35 minute
ride around the perimeter of the island,
which was rough and wet. It was a very windy
day and the seas were choppy. With every
wave the boat hit, we were showered with
a rain of salt spray. Once in the river,
it was very calm and tropical. We said it
looked like the REAL jungle cruise at Disney.
Unfortunately, it only lasted about 10 minutes
since the river gets shallow quickly and
they must turn around. Also, the woman tour
guide in the boat was very loud, and we were
right next to her in the front row. She bellowed
the entire boat ride, even in the river portion
where you just want quiet and to be able
to take in the tranquil serenity. She was
a nice lady, but most of her screaming had
nothing to do about what you were looking
at. It was a lot about the plight of the
tour guides and shop owners who were suffering
now that the Ren ships were not making the
trip.
 |
| Great guide |
After our brief time in the river, we were
back out in the open waters and headed toward
another dock. Once back on land, we got some
fresh fruit which was served. We listened
to a talk, (different guide) on the sacred
ruins where the ancient Polynesians performed
human sacrifices. Then we got into a jeep
(8 of us, 4 to a side) and toured the island.
It was a beautiful and very green island.
Our tour guide, (not the woman from the boat)
was fantastic. He stopped many times to get
out and show us the different flowers, fruit,
etc. He showed us how to make a big plate
from the hibiscus leaves, and how to use
the bark as a rope for climbing coconut trees.
The guides driving the other jeeps were not
as good and did not stop often enough.
We recommend that you talk to some of the
tour guide drivers a little before selecting
which jeep to take. Some of the drivers speak
much better English than the others. The
quality of the tour was greatly dependent
upon the guide.
Some people will have the jeep tour first,
and then take the boat ride. Just depends
on what time you take the tour.
Once back, there was only one pearl shop
open near the tender dock. Otherwise, we
were told all other shops on the island were
closed for Sunday and that there was nothing
to do.
We made it to the captains cocktail party
and then had dinner with the cruise director
Michael Collins and the social hostess Claudia
Gomez De Souza. We had been randomly selected
to dine with them. We had Maine lobster that
night and it was excellent. Dinner took 2
hours, but that is how we wanted it. After
dinner we say the magic comedian show.
Monday May 13
Tahaa (motu Mahana)
Here you can go to Tahaa and/or the private
motu. The island is great for taking a tour
and seeing the tropical foliage and views
from high above in the mountains. The motu
is where you go to be on the nice sandy beach
and have lunch.
Woke up this morning just in time to go on
deck and watch the sunrise. We had not booked
a tour for today, but thought we'd go ashore
and rent a car. However, we were told that
this was not possible since there were no
car rentals on the island. Luckily, there
was still room in the 4x4 jeep tour. It was leaving in 10 minutes, so we scrambled
to get ready.
We tendered over to the island and took a
wonderful 3.5 hour jeep tour. We made sure
to be seated last so that we sat in the back
of the jeep. They seat 4 to 6 people per
side in the back of the jeep, just like all
the jeep tours do. Our guide did many of
the things the previous guide had done. We
stopped at a beautiful overlook and took
photos. They also had fresh fruit for us
and some of the guides played music and danced.
After, we toured a pearl farm and learned
how they cultivate the pearls. Next we went
to a vanilla bean farm and had a tour of
it. We had more fruit and juice. TIP: Buy your gift vanilla beans at the pearl
farm - not the vanilla bean farm. The reason is that the prices are the same,
but at the pearl farm, they are packaged
in bamboo tubes and at the vanilla farm they
are in plastic tubes. In the bamboo tubes,
they make perfect gifts.
Tahaa was our favorite island since it seemed
the most primitive and remote. We called
it the anti-Honolulu.
Once the tender got back to the ship, we
only had 15-20 minutes to get ready to catch
the other tender to the motu. At the motu,
we got a drink from the floating bar even
before we were off the dock. The glasses
had long pointed bottoms for sticking them
in the sand. They had a BBQ lunch for everyone
buffet style which consisted of burgers,
chicken, steak, and plenty of fish, along
with salads, desserts, and of course fresh
fruit. There were plenty of picnic tables
under the shade and lots of shade areas to
relax in. We spent the next few hours snorkeling
in the lagoon and kayaking around the motu.
 |
| From Motu Mahana |
Once back on the ship, we had another cocktail
party to attend. This one was only for those
people who booked through a Virtuoso travel
agent. If you did this, then you are automatically
a member of the Voyager club. Here we met
one of their representatives who happened
to be on the cruise and we learned that we
were getting a free tour of Moorea, (if we
wanted to take it). There were only 15 of
us on this cruise. We walked down some spiral
stairs to where we had reservations at La
Veranda. It was one of two alternating French menu nights. The meal was wonderful and the service
even better.
After dinner, we went to the show put on
by cruise director Michael Collins where
he sang show tunes. This was one of the better
nights of entertainment.
Tuesday May 14
Bora Bora
Bora Bora is the most touristy island and
the people were not as friendly as on the
other islands. There were tenders taking
people to Bora Bora for shopping and tours,
and another tender taking people to a semi-private
motu for relaxing on the beach. The entire
motu was not owned by Radisson, but the part
of it where they dropped you off was still
private.
We had a wonderful breakfast in La Veranda
out on deck, but under cover and in the shade.
One side of the ship is usually in the shade
and one in the sun during breakfast. But
it was never so crowded that we could not
get a shady seat outside.
After breakfast, we took the tender to the
island for the Bora Bora off road adventure. The tour was 3.5 hours long and was very
bumpy. They warn you extensively about how
bumpy it is and they are not kidding. We
went up to 3 different peaks with fabulous
overlooks. We stopped at a black pearl store
and also at Bloody Mary's restaurant, but
did not have time to eat there. If you buy
a drink, down it fast because you are immediately
on another bumpy road after the stop.
We felt the tour was OK. I think we were
all jeeped out after having done the other
two. If you don't do the jeep tours on Raiatea
or Tahaa, then you definitely should do it
on Bora Bora since it had the most scenic
views.
 |
| View from Bora Bora |
If you rent a car, you will not be able to
take it up to these views. The cars are too
small and low to the ground to make it over
the rugged terrain. So the only way is to
hike up or take the tour. Plus, it is not
evident where the roads are that lead to
the outlooks.
Lunch back on the ship was Italian buffet.
It was very good. But again, if you just
want grilled fish, or a burger, you can get
that ordered too.
When you book your cruise, there is a form
you have to fill out and send in. On that
form, they ask if you are celebrating any
special event. Our travel agent put on ours
that we were celebrating our 10 year anniversary,
even though it is not until October. We had
no idea what, if anything, would be done.
But one of the notices in our cabin mail
slot was an invitation to an anniversary
party on the back deck. It was great, and
I recommend to everyone having an anniversary,
to put that on your form. We had cocktails
and snacks, and a simple Tahitian ceremony
was performed and your photo taken. Also,
a special Tahitian love poem was read in
Tahitian, French and English. They brought
out a big cake, and of course, champagne.
We sat out there and just talked to some
other couples well past sunset.
We had another wonderful dinner at L'Etoile.
That night there was a special tender for
anyone who wanted to have dinner at Bloody
Marys. We choose not to go, and only about
20 people did so. After talking with a few
of them, the consensus was that it was fun
and the food was good, but they all sort
of had second thoughts as to why they overpaid
for fresh fish when they could have gotten
it for no charge on the ship with much better
service.
Wednesday May 15
Bora Bora
This morning after breakfast, we took the
tender to the island and we rented a car
for 4 hours. We drove around the island stopping
every so often at little shops and to take
photos. Even with all the stopping we did,
we still had plenty of time left on our 4
hour rental.
 |
| Motu off Bora Bora |
We then took the tender back to the ship
and had the French buffet lunch. We hopped
on another tender to the motu. Rather than
the usual tender, this was a landing craft
type because there was no dock and they just
drove right up onto the beach and dropped
the front door. We snorkeled a bit, although
it was better on the Motu Mahana. There was
no food served on this motu, only drinks.
Also, there was some shade, but also more
mosquitoes. This was the only place during
the entire trip where I was bitten by mosquitoes.
We had to move away from the bushes and trees
and towards the waters edge to be free of
them.
Once back on the ship, we listened to the
enrichment talk on the Polynesians and their
history, migration and culture.
Tonight we got room service for dinner. We
also filled out the form to have breakfast
in the room the next morning.
Thursday May 16
Moorea
Breakfast was delivered right on time and
exactly as ordered, even with all our quirky
modifications.
This morning, the ship was circumnavigating
Marlon Brando's island, and many people were
up on deck to view it. We also had a great
view from the cabin window. I've read in
another review that the cabins on the right
side (odd numbers) have the better views,
and I would agree.
Around 11:15, as we were sailing into Cook's
Bay, we went on deck for the pool party where
they were serving Mi Tias, Bloody Marys,
and snacks. The ship does not anchor until
around noon, so they provide this party to
keep the natives from getting restless. The
band was playing and Les Gaugines were dancing.
There was also some activities, including
shell bracelet and necklace making.
Lunch today was American buffet, which was
not as good as the French or Italian, but
I still found plenty of things that I enjoyed.
After lunch, we took a tender into Moorea.
Our biggest complaint or disappointment about
the entire trip was the small group, (7-10),
of people accosting us just off the pier
where the tender lands. They all wanted to
drive us to their pearl shop free of charge.
The fact that the Ren cruise ships went under,
and that the Club Med was closed had driven
demand down and now all the shops were hurting
for business. However, you don't have much
options unless you want to rent a car or
take a taxi, which can be more expensive
than renting a car. There are no big shops
within walking distance. We wound up taking
a free ride over to one of the shops, where
we actually found very cheap prices. As much
as I hated being accosted by the drivers,
they are very nice and will let you shop
at other pearl stores. They even brought
some people to other shops, after visiting
their own of course. You'll probably have
a short wait before they take you back to
the pier, so ask for the ride back about
10 minutes before you are ready.
Tonight we had dinner at La Veranda for the
second French menu. This one, as with the first, was fantastic.
If you have any electronic devices that need
their batteries recharged, do it tonight.
Friday May 17
Moorea & Papeete, Tahiti
Today we left around 9:00am for our free
circle island tour that was being offered
to Voyager members. First we stopped at a
pearl shop a block down the road where we
learned the same stuff we'd heard before.
The tour stops at the Sofitel lookout, Belvedere
lookout and the liquor plant where you can
try samples of the different alcohols they
make. Unlike our tour 8 years before, there
was no actual tour of the production line.
Afterwards, we had a wonderful lunch at the
new Sheraton. The food was great, but we'd
been so spoiled on the ship that we wondered
where the waiter was when he had not shown
up 10 seconds after we'd sat down.
Once back on the ship we did a little packing
before dinner. This being the last night
on the ship, we had to have our luggage packed
and outside the rooms by 1:00am. We had dinner
with Hal Fraser the pianist, and another
couple.
After dinner, we viewed the nights entertainment
which was a farewell show including all the
performers. Then we had the sad task of finishing
our packing.
Saturday May 18
Papeete, Tahiti
Some people were scheduled to fly out Friday
night, but we had chosen to fly out Saturday
night. Radisson offers a free "Gauguin
Footsteps" tour of Tahiti, lunch, and
use of a hotel room for the afternoon, since
the flight does not leave until 10:45 pm.
Those in the cheaper rooms get to stay at
the Intercontinental Beachcomber hotel, and
the others stay at the Meridien, which is
a newer hotel. You could choose to skip the
tour and go directly to the hotel, but the
rooms won't be ready until 2:00 or 3:00pm.
We had our last meal on board, and finished
packing our carry-on bags which we'd keep
with us on the tour. TIP: Pack some sodas and water from your
mini bar. We disembarked around 9:00am and boarded
one of three busses for the tour. This was
definitely the largest tour group. We'd grown
accustomed to the 15-20 person tours. The
tour took us around Tahiti, where we stopped
at the Gauguin museum, then a fern grotto,
and then the Museum of Tahiti and her islands.
The museums were the best part, but we were
only allowed to stay 30 minutes at each.
The rest of the time we were just driving,
and the scenery was not as good as on the
other islands. Finally, we were dropped off
at the hotel and had the buffet lunch. The
lunch was really good, but again, where was
the service? (You mean we actually have to
place the napkins on our laps OURSELVES,
and use only one set of silverware?). Welcome
back to the real world.
After lunch, we checked into our room, where
our checked luggage was waiting. The room
was a dump. The room was just old and had
obviously not been remodeled in some time,
except for the shower tile. It was fine for
what we were using it for - a nap and shower,
but I am sure glad we were not staying here
post cruise. Others echoed our feelings.
If you need to recharge laptop batteries
or use a 110 outlet, you WILL need a convertor
at this hotel. There is 110V only for a razors
and it is the 2 prong type. Otherwise everything
is 220V and European style outlet.
We used the pool, which was really beautiful,
took a nap and shower, and grabbed a light
snack at the pool bar. Sodas here were not
cheap - approx $4.25 each, so bring some
from the ship as mentioned above. Some people
even brought croissants and other food from
the breakfast on the ship. You must have
your checked luggage outside the door by
6:00pm. The bus leaves for the airport at
8:30pm.. At the airport, you pass all your
luggage through an x-ray machine before even
getting to the ticket counter. After checking
in, you have to give your VAT tax forms from
black pearl purchases to a customs agent.
The airport is not air-conditioned, but there
were ceiling fans helping a bit. The mood
in the waiting area was pretty somber as
it finally sank in that our trip was over.
After a 3+ hour layover in LAX, we boarded
another flight back to Orlando. Then we had
a 2 hour drive home. Luckily, no flights
were delayed and everything went well.
POST / PRE CRUISE STAYS
Some people came early to enjoy the islands
before the cruise and some stayed after the
cruise and were going to various islands
for a few days. We did neither, but it was
our observation after talking to many who
did do one or the other, that most agreed
you should do any hotel stays on the islands
BEFORE going on the cruise. If you go after,
you will surely be disappointed in the level
of service. One couple had a 3 night stay
booked on Bora Bora, but after touring the
other islands via the cruise, they were wishing
they had booked on a different island.
When I think back on the cruise, which was
only a week ago, I think, "Wow, that
was quick", and "When can we go
again." If you ask me if I thought the
cruise was worth the money, I'd say absolutely.
Feel free to e-mail comments, corrections or questions to borne@gate.net, and thanks for reading this far.
