Nov 15 2010

The Paul Gauguin Was A Treat!

Julie,

The Paul Gauguin was a treat.  We liked our room, especially the bathroom!  Since we don't mind the extra swaying at the end of the ship, we loved the location as we were able to go up easily to deck 8, where the pool, one restaurant, and the morning coffee were.  Decks 5 and 6 had most of the other activities, so even at my advanced age, we did not need to use the elevators unless coming back from an onshore trip.  Getting back on at level 3 and going back to the top needed that elevator for me.

Most of the optional shore items we selected were good; a few were great.  Interesting to note the matriarchal society...most tour groups were run by women.  Several people told us this was the case over there. You probably know that.  The tenders operated often, which made it very easy to have a nice schedule.  Oh, you advisors need to tell those honeymooners to watch out for too much sun with all that liquor.  Saw a sweet young thing heaving over the side of the tender after being on that BBQ outing all day.  We older folks have learned that "little by little" works wonders for your health. Ha, ha!

All in all, I would recommend that cruise to everyone!  Some people may think of it as very expensive, but there are many extras provided that really make for a nice trip.  Wish daughter had more time as we would have enjoyed a longer outing.

I particularly want to mention that the staff of the dining rooms really catered to our non-gluten needs.  After the first few days of telling us which items we could eat, they just presented us (the night before) with the menu for the next night, and we indicated what we were interested in, or they told us what would be recommended.  The chef even made us gluten free gnocchi one night and gave Lindsey the recipe when she asked for it.

The flight over was fine.  I am glad we broke it by spending the night at the Hilton LAX.  We did not have the time to do that on the return leg, and I was really bushed when I finally got back home.  It took me several days to get back to normal...more than my usual jet lag problems.  If people have the time, perhaps you should recommend that they break the trip going back east.  BTW, there were not too many east coast people on the ship!

This leads me to a few negatives.  It was raining very hard when we got to port at the end of the cruise.  They allowed us to leave our luggage under the canopy, so we were able to kill some time in the market and look in some stores.  Even bought a bottle of wine for the first night at the Hilton...which we were glad, considering their prices!!  It was still raining when we needed to go over to the ferry, so it was a horrible short walk.  In addition, the crowd was huge that Saturday, and waiting in that enclosed area was not pleasant.  On the return, the crowd was not that large, but the guy who picked us up at the dock took us to the airport, which was totally closed until about an hour before loading.  This last part was due to the holiday weekend, which no tourist knew about. It seems they celebrate All Saints' Day with vigor.  Almost everything was closed, both on Moorea and at the airport.  Nothing to do at the airport but sat outside until they opened.  If we had known, perhaps we could have come back on a later ferry.  It also impacted Moorea as only one restaurant outside the hotel that we had heard about was open: Rudy's, which we did go to and enjoy.

We also enjoyed the overwater bungalow and thought the Hilton was very expensive but nice.  I am glad I did it once, but if I ever go back to that part of the world, I am not sure I would select that.  I think we would have been better to have just done a longer Paul Gauguin trip with no extras, because the end of the trip was really awful, which accounted for some of the exhaustion.  The people who flew out the night we docked had a dayroom to relax in. The Hilton just said they had no rooms....and that was for almost everyone who was leaving that day.  We had lunch but also had to hang out in the lobby for quite some time.  AND, the entire island could not get VISA and MC to work on that day.

So, to sum it up:  I would certainly endorse the Paul Gauguin cruise.  As for the extra days on Moorea, I am glad I did it, but there had to have been a better way. 

Thanks for your help and patience with us while we were deciding!

And cheers to us all,

-Lynda

Contact a Paul Gauguin Specialist at 800-300-4567 or click HERE.

About Julie Northington

I am a designated accredited travel consultant (CTC) with over 25 years of industry experience. My true passion is helping clients realize their life-long vacation dreams. Tahiti is one of my specialties, and I just recently became a Paul Gauguin PEARLS Agent, which coupled with 10 years as an accredited Tahiti Tiare Specialist, affords me many resources and experience to make your South Pacific travel plans seamless and very memorable. Education is very important to me. I have completed several comprehensive destination training courses on preferred cruise lines and tour companies, in addition cruising on and visiting many popular worldwide vacation spots. Please call me—I am eager to assist you in planning your next vacation whether by sea or land!