We booked a pre-cruise hotel, at the Intercontinental Beachcomber. Our flight with Air Tahiti Nui over was OK, long flight. Passport control at Papette was slow. The hotel was great, very nice, got an upgrade to a over water bungalow! Food was expensive. Papette was a disappointment, dirty, crowded, non-tourist friendly. Took one tour, 1/2 'safari' to the 'crater'. Bumpy, heavy traffic, not much to look at.
Boarding was simple and efficient. We loved the size of the ship, the entire crew was wonderful. Ship is very nice, clean, room (BA 8033) was very nice, plenty of storage, and large. We found the service to be top notch, especially the room steward (Caesar) and the spa staff (Mike). Best deal on the ship is the spa private deck and hot tub for $15 a day. We reserved both sea days there. Be sure to book spa services first thing. We also pre-booked all excursion on the internet well in advance and suggest that process to everyone.
Food was good, except for the soups. We did not try the speciality dining, we were very pleased with the traditional dining. The wait staff did a good job and we really enjoyed the head waiters.