Paul Gauguin Cruise Review by AnglerGirl

New management’s philosophy should be to keep the proven Regent service a mandate. Hence, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

We booked this cruise only 4 months before departure. My travel agent and Regent did an excellent job handling everything for us and we received on board credits which we used entirely on excursions. Regent produces a well thought out booklet with excursion information which we’d read at home and highlighted those which interested us. By pure luck, we were able to get all excursions we wanted with the exception of one.

We flew Delta from south Florida with FF miles to LAX where our layover was a few hours until the Air Tahiti (ATN) flight left at 4:15PM. A Regent rep was at the LAX ATN check-in line checking off passenger names, which was a nice touch; not of formality, but of organization and seamlessness. Our layover was about 4 hours and we spent it in the ‘Relaxation Lounge” which is on the second floor of Tom Bradley. It was a great place to spend a couple hours. We landed at Papeete at 9:30PM or so, collected our luggage, and were transported via charter bus to the pier to meet the ship which was leaving at midnight. We received a lovely dockside welcome with leis and music then were escorted to the Grand Salon where we were given champagne and key cards in exchange for our passports and placing a CC # on file. The main dining room (L’Etoile) stayed open for us late arrivals and after dinner, we retired to our suite (702) where we showered after the long day and evening. We also met our stewardess, who was exceptional throughout, and placed our drink wishes with her for the next day; Captain Morgan, Bailey’s local beer, Coca-Cola and bottled waters. A solid night’s sleep on a very comfy bed was exactly what poor weary travelers needed. We woke around 7:00 AM and placed an order with room service for coffee and breakfast. I opened the curtains and sliding glass door, walked out to the verandah, and saw the sun shining on the most beautiful anchorage I could ever imagine. Our breakfast arrived within what seemed like moments. What was to be hot was hot and what was to be cold was cold. Bravo! The coffee was delicious! The best I've ever had on a cruise. If 2010 management changes the coffee, I will not come back. Life is too short to drink drab old coffee beans. We prepared for our first day in the Society Islands and were, as far as we could see, the luckiest people in the world.

Huahine via tender – We headed down to the travel desk where we scored 2 seats on the Motu Picnic excursion due to a cancellation. The tour was 4.5 hours and we had a lovely boat ride through the lagoons which run through Huahine. We visited a pearl farm, had lunch, and got in some good snorkeling in a protected lagoon. We did not visit Huahine other than the excursion. Next visit, I would like to do a land tour to see the infamous blue eyed eels and walk the small town of Fare.

Raiatea (docked) - We arrived on Raiatea at 9 PM and were there until 5:30 PM the following day. We booked an excursion to snorkel the Coral Gardens about 2 miles away (near Taha’a) early in the morning. Although we had some sprinkles on our snorkel trip, it was fantastic! Drift snorkeling is one of the most beautiful things you can do in FP and I highly recommend this unique lagoon. The weather on Raiatea was frankly, miserable. It rained all day there. Next visit, I will do a 4X4 excursion to see the interior of Raiatea and hope the sun peeks out. It is obvious they want the tourism; they’ve built a dockside shop area, however, the rain made it appear boring for 2 tired and water logged snorkelers.

Rangiroa (via tender) - We had 2 days here arriving at 11AM and leaving at 11:30AM the next day. It’s a split island of quaint beauty which reminded me of the some of the family islands in Bahamas. It’s separated by the Tiputa Pass which the PG places great emphasis on viewing as we cruise through it. Rangiroa is known for diving and snorkeling. They even have a small winery. There’s a village on one side of the pass and another village of sorts with a hotel resort on the other side. Regent tendered two boats depending on which side of the pass you wanted to go. On day 1, we tendered to a beach like lagoon and snorkeled very close to the pier. We found it murky and not very interesting so we walked to the pass and took some photos of what is truly a beautiful scene. On day 2, Mr. Angler Girl and I took an early ship excursion to snorkel the small atoll just outside of the pass. It was deeper, with a stronger current than our two earlier snorkels. We had a wonderful time in the open water. We saw many small reef fish and a large moray eel about 15 feet down. Just across the breakers, we could see scuba divers on another excursion. At one point, I popped my head out of the water to find our panga captain on the bow of the boat strumming a ukulele. Life could not have been better at that very moment. Next time I am there, I will rent a buggy to visit the Blue Lagoon and snorkel in other spots.

Bora Bora (via tender) - We had 2 days here having arrived at 8 AM and leaving at 10PM the next day. Day 1 was beautiful! We went to The Bora Bora motu via PG tender. The beach was stunning and although there were no facilities, a Regent sponsored bar was tended to with cool libations and local beer, which by this day I was quite fond of. Captain Toni showed up to inspect the beach, have a cocktail and play some volleyball. There is no food except fruit, pretzels and potato chips on the motu, but the tender came every half hour to transport passengers back and forth to the ship. We found excellent snorkeling toward the main pass right off the beach. PG sent over some kayaks and we had a nice paddle around the lagoon. Before we knew it was close to 4PM so we headed back to the ship for lunch and relaxed on the deck of the PG. On day 2 we shared an (expensive) rental car with another couple and drove the island ourselves. The rain moved in and it was the complete opposite than the day before. We dodged puddles and rain showers for the majority of the day but we still managed to have a lot of fun. Bora Bora is beautiful in its own right. We went to Bloody Marys and had a couple have a couple drinks and lunch. Next visit, I’ll visit Bloody Marys at night, go to Maitira Point beach and do a 4WD tour of the interior.

Taha’a – Ahhh, the infamous “motu day” that everyone raves about! We went out to the pool at 7 AM for the scenic navigation in the Taha’a lagoon which was dotted with rainbows. I’ve never seen so many rainbows in one place. Although I know everyone says not to book an excursion because motu day is so terrific, I couldn’t resist doing the coral garden drift snorkel again. The excursion captain dropped us off right at the motu in time for lunch. After a delicious bbq lunch (bravo, Regent!) with new friends, a few of us decided to strap on masks and snorkel out to the end of the motu. It was spectacular! I can tell you after all that snorkeling I was ready to go back to the ship to get ready for dinner and call it a night but got railroaded into attending the sunset sail away party by the pool which was, absolutely, phenomenal! When I go back to Taha’a’, I’ll grab a lounger, relax and snorkel the motu.

Moorea – We anchored off Moorea around Opunohu Bay from 8AM to 5PM the next day. We were some of the first folks off the ship as we were invited by some friends to take a private tour of the island. What an amazing place! So beautiful and lush! I longed to get into the water but was thrilled and amazed with all the interior interest the island has to share. On day 2 we rented a car at a very reasonable rate through Albert so we could drive on our own to snorkel spots. We began at the Intercontinental which was interesting, but with limited clarity and being spoiled thus far, we drove over the Hilton and snorkeled beautiful lagoons there. We had so much fun we were the second to the last tender back to the ship.

Papeete – Soon after leaving Moorea, we were docked at our starting point, Papeete, Tahiti. I was tempted to hit the club across the street playing great sounding music but was exhausted. We went to dinner, the casino and had some drinks, then headed back to the suite to pack. On the morning, we had a lovely room service order arrive as our wake up, moved out of the stateroom, placed our bags with Regent and went to the marketplace with some friends to see the sights of Tahitian life. I was thankful for the opportunity to finally see the marche. What a robust place, and it smelled of very good pizza! We shopped for trinkets and headed back to the ship for lunch. At approximately 12:30 we were called to board a charter bus to the Radisson Plaza hotel on Lafayette Beach. Upon arrival at 1:30pm, we checked in and were given keys to our hotel room. We quickly changed into our bathing suits and hit the beautiful black sand beach with the locals and friends we made on the ship. The beach was super for walking and the waves beckoned people of all ages to body surf or boogie board. We had a blast! Around 6 PM the charters arrived to take us to the airport for our 10PM flight back to Los Angeles.

Stateroom – Our suite was appointed well. It was clean, large and I was very impressed with the closet space and vanity area. I had plenty of room, and remarked to Mr. Anglergirl I could have brought so much more crap with me! Having said this, I found the provided bath gel, lotion, shampoo and conditioner completely useless and of poor quality I admit, I snuck into the larger suite on our deck (OV perhaps) and even their ‘ultra luxe’ bath amenities smelled like Old Spice. Would it kill someone to give their guests of any cabin class some Aveda, L’Occitane or local emollients on a ‘luxury’ ship?

Dining – We found all the meals delightful regardless of where we ate. I’m a simple foodie while Mr. AnglerGirl can be a bit adventurous. We both enjoyed all our meals and loved the nice selection of wines on board. New management will be wise not to mess with the offerings. Dinners, as well as any community eating times, were made special by new tablemates and friends. This voyage is attractive to numerous types of people, not just honeymooners, who, at any time, may extend an invitation to the next dinner or perhaps an excursion.

High Tea - very nicely done and after a couple days our friends called it 'high scotch"!

Spa – Carita has a small spa aboard which was a centralized and busy place. The services were performed very well, and I found the specials advertised in the Passages letter to be very cost friendly. The menu of services wasn’t overwhelming and the technicians we’re delightful.

Shows / Entertainment – We attended as many dance shows as possible as well as lectures. The entertainment and educational lectures, for us, was a very important part of this voyage. We were not disappointed. The dancers from the islands as well as Les Gauguines were exceptional. Friends attended pareo tying classes and helped create leis with local children.

Marina – We never did get to water ski (which in the states you rarely see any more). Next time I will engage. We did borrow some gear and dive bags from the marina although we were equipped with our own masks and snorkels. The gear they gave us was in great shape and the fins came in handy.

Overall, Regent (and my agent) made this experience absolutely wonderful. I have to give credit to Regent since they are out of the picture in 2010. They got this right, from start to finish and my expectations were met, especially with service. I mean, so what the bathroom stuff is like crap? Regent got 99.5% of everything else right. I look forward to my summer 2010 re-journey of French Polynesia and look forward to reading future reports from others.